The countdown is over. The Cheltenham Festival is finally here, and The Wine Tipster is excited to make this year’s At Home Festival unforgettable for all the right reasons. Read on for top tipples to accompany you through the four days of unbeatable racing and how you can recreate the electric Roar of Cheltenham at home.

Cheltenham is synonymous with superb racing, and The Festival is the pinnacle of the Jump season. The Festival has been held at Cheltenham since 1911, and The Stayers’ Hurdle is the oldest championship race having first been run in 1912. Over its many successful years, the Festival has expanded from three days to four, and now boasts four days of seven-race cards, 14 Grade One races and some of the best horses, trainers and jockeys in the world. It really is Horseracing’s Olympics!

This year, The Festival is supporting the charity WellChild. WellChild is a national charity that gives sick children the best chance to thrive through support at home and for their families.

Celebrate in Style

To match the atmosphere and excitement of each day of racing, The Wine Tipster has chosen some Grade 1 wines and spirits to give you that wonderful Cheltenham experience at home:

Day One Tues 16 March

Kicking off The Festival is an incredible card of four Grade One races including the top class Unibet Champion Hurdle. Start your At Home Festival off with a bang with a Cheltenham Sponsor, Nyetimber. Their world-renowned English Sparkling Wine is meticulously crafted in West Sussex, Hampshire and Kent, Their Classic Cuvée MV is a wonderfully elegant option for the start of The Festival. Pair it with smoked salmon blinis for a great aperitif.

For a touch of Pink at the start of Cheltenham, Château Léoube’s artisan organic wines are just the thing. Their award-winning Rosé de Léoube is a rosé for all seasons, full of mineral notes and fruit on the palate. Pair with a light lunch and you have yourself a winner.

Day Two Wed 17 March

As the going gets underway, there are seven classic races to really spoil punters. The Grade One Queen Mother Champion Chase is set to be an unmissable watch, as is the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase. Watch it with a Glenfarclas 15 year old Single Malt on the rocks. The rich history of this family owned business make for award-winning Sherry cask aged malts in the traditional Speyside way.

Day Three 18 March

Not one but three Grade 1 races make Thursday a truly magnificent day. Hold on to your Racing Gin & Tonic throughout the Marsh Novices’ Chase. Ryanair Chase and the Stayers’ Hurdle ! Racing Gin is a recent addition to the gin scene, but is perfect for race lovers. Featuring beautiful silks on the label, and with a herbaceous and floral taste, this gin is great with a classic tonic water or in any cocktail.

Gold Cup Day Fri 19 March

Saviour the outstanding Gold Cup Day – the pinnacle of the Cheltenham Festival. With the coveted Grade One WellChild Cheltenham Gold Cup featured as the Blue Riband of Jump racing, you’ll surely be wanting a bottle to match the magnificence of The Festival’s finale. Jack Mann Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 from Houghton Wines in the Swan Valley in Western Australia, pays homage to the great winemaker Jack Mann MBE, who shared a birthday with Gold Cup Day! It’s a rich and concentrated red with a pure Cabernet Sauvignon dark fruits, spicy, oaky notes and a wonderful long finish. Decant for a couple of hours beforehand, this is delicious with a Roast.

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For more food pairing ideas, get inspired with world class hospitality recipes from The Jockey Club’s top chefs. All the dishes work well with the bottles here, and are a great way to get the Cheltenham Hospitality experience at home.

If you really want to bring Cheltenham home, get yourself an At Home Hamper! Brought to you by British Fine Foods, these luxury hampers come in three options, full of award-winning food from artisan producers across the UK. Each hamper comes with a different bottle to really make your At Home experience special. Order here in time for The Festival! 10% of each hamper sale will go to WellChild.

Be Raceday Ready

• Check out how to watch The Festival from home. ITV Racing and Racing TV will be showing The Festival, and if you miss any of the action, The Jockey Club’s Racing Replays are available 20 minutes after the winner crosses the line.
• The official racecard is available here with details of horses and jockeys available here.
• Find out more about each of the top quality races here.
• Put your racing knowledge to the test with The Ultimate Racing Quiz featuring Double Grand National-winning jockey Ruby Walsh and Gold Cup-winning Jockey and Festival legend Barry Geraghty
• The Race Results and Winners page will help in your revision for the quiz!
• Download The Jockey Club App with a digital racecard, live updates, competitions and the latest odds at your fingertips.
• Check out the latest editions of Kalendar Magazine between races
• Why not impress your friends and family with some top facts and stats!
• Got kids? Find some fun raceday activities for them to enjoy here – host a mini best dressed competition, make hats or turn your garden into a track!
• You can still dress the part from your home! Browse out The Jockey Club website for At Home Style inspiration.

However you choose to celebrate this superb meeting, share pictures and comments with The Wine Tipster on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and make sure to follow him for daily updates and Unibet Racing Blogs.

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Rosé is pink, Curaçao is blue, Happy Valentine’s Day from The Wine Tipster to you! Here are The Wine Tipster’s top 4 bottles of Rosé to make Valentine’s Day special however you choose to celebrate it.

As the quality of Rosé has continued to grow, the popularity of this pale pink wine has extended to an appreciation of the subtlety and celebratory nature of rosé all year round. With the 2020/21 addition of Prosecco DOC Rosé to the market, this popular choice really knows no limits.

Here are The Wine Tipster’s top celebratory Rosés perfect for Valentine’s Day:

Château Léoube Rosé de Léoube 2019 – £18.99 Daylesford

Provence in Southern France is the obvious place to go for classic pale pink, lighter styles of rosé. Château Léoube’s Rosé de Léoube is superbly delicate and elegant. This dry organic rosé is lovely on its own or with some salmon, seafood or cheese.

Prosecco DOC Rosé Millesimato 2019 Astoria Extra Dry Gerrard Seel £13.95

Astoria produce a range of excellent Prosecco DOC wines, including their Prosecco DOC Rosé Millesimato 2019 Extra Dry, which has attractive redcurrant fruit, with tangy notes, hints of white pepper and a creamy texture. A winner!

Prosecco DOC Rosé Millesimato 2019 La Gioiosa £11.99 – £13.99 with offers Waitrose, Majestic, Ocado

La Gioiosa is a very known and highly respected Prosecco DOC producer. Their Prosecco DOC Rosé Millesimato 2019 has a lovely balance of soft strawberry fruit, with floral and creamy notes and a long elegant finish. No wonder Prosecco DOC Rosé is so popular

Mirabeau Pure Rosé Provence 2019 – £14.99 Waitrose

Mirabeau’s ‘Provence in a Glass’ is inspired by summer days on the Côte d’Azur, just the bottle to lessen the February chill. With a crisp finish and delightful aromas of peach and lychee, this bottle is beautiful enough to be a present by itself!

However you choose to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year, share your Rosé pictures with The Wine Tipster on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, and subscribe to get blogs directly to your inbox.

For The Wine Tipster’s latest guest blog, he welcomes Beth O’Brien of Beth’s Food Odyssey to share a vegetarian option for the festive season. Beth is a final year dentistry student at Sheffield University who started documenting her passion for cooking on her Instagram account over 2 years ago. From intricate bakes to colourful salad-bowls and much more, Beth’s voyage into the culinary world provides inspiration for any adventurous cook. Read on for the latest recipe she’s developed, and The Wine Tipster’s vegan wine pairings. Enjoy!

Seasonal Mushroom and Kale Quiche with Roasted Leeks and Garlicky Crushed Potatoes

Deep into Winter, months from the long, light days where fresh vegetables can be thrown together to create light summer salads, cooking vegetarian meals can be a challenge for some. Meat can be easily paired with root vegetables to make hearty winter dishes, making this an attractive option for an evening meal.

However, having not eaten meat for many years, I have found that warming, wintery, vegetarian dishes can be easily created using the produce available to you at this time. Eating seasonally has the benefits of fresher produce, greater nutritional content, a lesser environmental impact, and often a cheaper price. There is the added bonus of supporting the local economy, something that is more important than ever right now.

Taking this into consideration, this vegetarian dish uses solely seasonal produce. Mushrooms, onions, kale, leeks and potatoes are all grown locally in the month of December. Although I have suggested some accompaniments for the quiche, it would work well with many other dishes. The perfect Christmas Eve or Boxing Day centrepiece for non-meat-eating guests, perhaps…

Serves 4

Ingredients

Mushroom and kale quiche:

1 block shortcrust pastry

1 tablespoon butter

1 onion

2 large garlic cloves

1 teaspoon fresh thyme (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)

½ teaspoon chilli flakes

1 pack (300g) mushrooms

Salt

Pepper

Zest of 1 lemon

80-100g kale

160ml double cream

80ml whole milk

4 eggs

50g gruyère

Roasted leeks:

3 leeks

1 teaspoon fresh thyme (or ½ teaspoon dried thyme)

Salt

Pepper

2 teaspoons butter

A few splashes of white wine

Garlicky crushed potatoes:

800g new/baby potatoes

Salt

Olive oil

3 cloves garlic

Method

Mushroom and kale quiche:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190°C

2. Roll out the pastry to be just wider than the quiche tin (I used a 25cm diameter tin). Put the pastry into the quiche tin, gently moulding it to the shape of the tin and letting the edges of the pastry fall over the sides. Leave these edges on for blind baking the pastry

3. Blind bake the pastry. Cover the pastry with baking parchment and fill the parchment with ceramic baking beans or dried beans. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove the beans and cook for another 5-8 minutes until the base is golden brown. After removing from the oven, trim the overhangs of pastry

4. Meanwhile, dice the onion, finely chop the garlic and thyme, and slice the mushrooms

5. Add the butter to a frying pan and melt. Add the onion and cook until beginning to soften. Add the garlic, thyme and chilli flakes and cook for about 30 seconds before adding the mushrooms. Cook on a fairly high heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the mushrooms have cooked and most of the liquid has evaporated, remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper, and add the lemon zest

6. Heat a pan of water to boiling. Add the kale to the boiling water for 30 seconds to soften before draining

7. In a jug, combine the beaten eggs, milk and cream. Season with salt and pepper

8. Assemble the quiche. Spread the mushroom mixture over the base of the pastry. Add the kale in a layer on top. Pour the cream mixture evenly over the mushrooms and kale. Most of the kale should be covered by the mixture so that it does not burn. Grate the cheese and scatter evenly on top

9. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes, until the top is golden brown, and a knife put into the centre comes out clean.

Roasted leeks:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190°C

2. Cut the leeks in half lengthways and lay flat in a roasting dish

3. Finely chop the thyme and scatter over the leeks along with a pinch of salt and pepper

4. Distribute the butter in small blobs over the leeks. Then, pour over a few dashes of wine

5. Roast in the oven for 30-40 minutes until tender and browning around the edges.

Garlicky crushed potatoes:

1. Put a large pan of water on the heat and add a tablespoon of salt. Put the potatoes into the pan whole. Parboil for about 20 minutes, until a knife can easily slide through them

2. Drain the potatoes and place on a chopping board. Flatten them using the palm of your hand

3. Peel the garlic cloves and crush them using the heel of a knife

4. Add multiple glugs of oil into a large frying pan on a fairly high heat. Once hot, place the flattened potatoes into the oil in a single layer. Scatter a generous pinch of salt over the potatoes and add the crushed garlic. Leave the potatoes for 5-10 minutes to brown and crisp on one side

5. Once crisped, turn the potatoes over, adding more oil and salt. Again, leave on this side until golden and crispy

Wine Pairings

Les Dauphins Côtes du Rhône-Villages 2018, Cellier des Dauphins, Rhône, France (£9.99 from Waitrose).

This vegetarian and vegan friendly wine is warm, smooth, spicy and a great medium bodied red. It is not only great for those cold wintry evenings but is also a super pairing with Beth’s fabulous dish. This is a great value red which has the structure to match the flavours and textures of the mushrooms, kale and roasted leeks, whilst the low tannins and smooth style make for a lovely pairing with Beth’s delicious garlicky crushed potatoes. Enjoy!

Morgon La Chanaise 2017, Dominique Piron, Beaujolais, France (£14.99 from Waitrose).

Another top vegetarian and vegan friendly wine for Beth’s dish. Beaujolais remains one of the most overlooked wine regions. Its reds are made from the Gamay grape variety, and Beaujolais and Beaujolais Villages make for super easy drinking. For a suitable pairing with Beth’s seasonal dish, we need to choose from one of ten Beaujolais crus where the best vineyards are. Fleurie is the most well known cru, which is lovely and perfumed, yet the intensity of this Morgon from Dominique Piron has the generous fruit character required and the supple tannins to compliment Beth’s wonderful dish.

Thanks again to Beth for sharing her wonderful seasonal quiche with us, do try out the recipe and wine pairings and share with us on Instagram here and here, and Twitter here. Cheers!

Christina McElhinney is a racing producer for Racing TV who has previously written for The Wine Tipster’s blog. Her own blog, The Food Waffle, is a place where the musings of an amateur home gardener and resourceful cook join and result in delicious recipes and accessible tips. Here, The Wine Tipster adds wine pairings to Christina’s Christmas Salad. Enjoy!

Christmas Salad: Maple Syrup & Whiskey Bacon and Warm Chestnuts with Blue Cheese Dressing

Obviously, Christmas is great. There’s food everywhere, plenty of wine around, generally speaking everyone’s in a good mood until the first row over sprouts kicks off and there are probably several million repeats of The Vicar Of Dibley that are virtually mandatory to watch whilst constantly shoving chocolate in your mouth because at Christmas, calories don’t actually exist.

Except unfortunately they do. And for all it’s great, Christmas can be a bit of an ambush on your body and while the first few days of carefree – or even deliberately headstrong – indulgence, I know I end up waving the white flag and needing something a bit lighter. Sort of like hitting the turkey wall – you suddenly realise that you’re not far off being unable to get off the sofa not because you don’t want to but because you would need at least three people and a JCB to help you actually do it.

But any day over the Christmas period that doesn’t involve the sort of ingredients and flavours you associate with the holidays feels like a criminal waste. So this year I decided I’d prep a recipe that not only uses things that are always so abundant in the days around the 25^th but also embraces that they are flavours that are so often associated with the time of year, whilst also shoehorning in something green, light and actually presenting some degree nutritional benefit.

Salad at Christmas…it sounds almost wrong. Almost as if you’d have to psych yourself up for it. But for me, I always find that once you muster the willpower to pick up the fruit rather than the chocolate bar, you’re instantly rewarded by realising how truly delicious the healthy option usually is, and I’m hoping this Christmas this recipe will offer that same benefit whilst also embracing the flavours of the festive season.

So which flavours? For me, chestnuts are the taste of Christmas. I love them for their earthy sweetness, and there are almost always some of the pre-cooked ones in a packet hidden away in the pantry. Something that I always have in the house in abundance in December – to cover and protect that crucial turkey and wrap those pigs in their required blankets – is top-quality, free range smoked streaky bacon. Stilton is always a staple of the cheese board, there’s always a bottle of whiskey (or two) around and Christmas spices are never complete without cinnamon.

This may be a salad…but it IS still Christmas, so you still have to make it special. Which is where soaking that beautiful free range bacon in a mix of maple syrup and whiskey comes in. Trust me, it’s delicious. When cooked, it will look very dark, but that’s the natural sugars intensifying the flavour of the one of the key stars of this salad – the others being the lightly spiced, warmed chestnuts and a blue cheese dressing.

You can do a fast(er) version of this – marinating the bacon for just a few hours will still impart some flavour of the blend – but if you feel like being organised enough, letting the bacon take on that flavour overnight is even better.

INGREDIENTS

• 5/6 rashers of top-quality, free range smoked streaky bacon
• Salad leaves – I like a mix of baby spinach, rocket and chicory but any would work
• 100g chestnuts, very lightly chopped and drizzled with a little olive oil and a dusting of ground nutmeg and cinnamon, a grating of black pepper and a pinch of brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and 1 tablespoon of whiskey or bourbon, mixed together

Dressing:

• 100g Stilton or preferred blue cheese
• 150ml buttermilk
• Salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

• Lay the bacon out on baking parchment on a tray and brush over the maple syrup and whiskey mix – pour any left over on to the tray (use the parchment to stop it running off at the edges) and leave for a few hours at least.

• When ready to cook, put another layer of parchment on the bacon, put another baking tray on top and weigh down lightly. Cook slowly on low temperature like 180 degrees (fan oven) until the bacon is dark and bordering on crispy.

• Wash and mix the salad leaves and arrange on plates or a platter for sharing.

• Crumble the Stilton into a bowl, add the buttermilk and whisk gently – you want to keep a little texture so that now and then you get a bite of salad with a real punch of blue cheese flavour. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

• When the bacon is cooked, set aside and add the lightly chopped chestnuts and a small wedge of butter to a frying pan and warm through.

• Once cooled slightly, slice the bacon diagonally and scatter the shards, along with the warm chestnuts, across the salad leaves. Drizzle the salad with a little high-quality olive oil. Pour the dressing into a serving bowl and serve alongside.

As well as being smug that you’re having a salad at Christmas, with this recipe you get to enjoy so many festive flavours and despite their contrasting qualities they work together so well. Smokiness with sweetness and that earthy hint of whiskey with the almost caramelised bacon, fresh, crunchy cool salad leaves against sweet and almost melting chestnuts with a hint of festive spice, and then the sharp zing of blue cheese and buttermilk in the dressing… combined they tick off so many flavour profiles and yet despite being a lighter meal, there are many elements here which bring the richness you need at Christmas so you don’t feel that you’re missing out on an opportunity to embrace all the indulgence.

Wine Pairing

To go with this fabulous Christmassy salad, The Wine Tipster is pairing a Pinot Gris Grand Cru Spiegel 2018 Domaine Schlumberger, Alsace, France £17.99 save £2 in mixed case Majestic or Yealands Reserve Grüner Veltliner 2019, Awatere Valley, Marlborough, New Zealand £12.99 down to £9.99 in Waitrose both of which have the palate weight, vibrant flavours and punch to marry up to its fabulous array of tantalising flavours and textures. Both of these wines have their own delicate spiciness, clean acidity, palate weight and a touch of just-right ripeness to complement this magnificent dish, bringing out the smoky, sweet and salty highlights which make this dish such a winning combination.

Thank you again to Christina McElhinney of The Food Waffle for sharing such a great recipe for the festive season, share pictures of your attempts with her on Twitter and Instagram, and don’t forget to tag The Wine Tipster on Twitter and Instagram too. Cheers!

Start the festive season with a bang this year with the highlight of Sandown’s jump racing – the Tingle Creek Festival. For the first Friday and Saturday of December, Sandown hosts two days of superb jump racing, which this year can be celebrated in person by a limited number of spectators. Don’t worry if you didn’t manage to get tickets, they sold out in 17 minutes! However you’re celebrating this year, read on for The Wine Tipster’s Sandown tips.

Friday 4th December

Tingle Creek Friday opens the festival with a top line up of races.

The Wine Tipster is especially excited to see his My Racing Manager Friends runner Funambule Sivola in the 1.50 Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase! Funambule Sivola won impressively at Wetherby on chasing debut last week and is carrying a seven pound penalty for that success today. This is much more competitive contest and his slick jumping will need to come to the fore this afternoon.

My Racing Manager was created by Elli Morgan, and The Wine Tipster is delighted to be involved. My Racing Manager has had two Cheltenham Festival winners with Coo Star Sivola and Flying Tiger.

The race card for Friday:

12:45 – 3m (3m37y) Sandown Park Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap Chase (Class 3) (4yo+ 0-130)

1:15 – 1m7½f (1m7f119y) Handicap Chase (Class 3) (4yo+ 0-125)

1:50 – 2m4f (2m4f10y) Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (GBB Race) (Class 3) (4yo+ 0-135)

2:25 – 2m4f (2m3f173y) Ballymore Winter Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 2) (GBB Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

3:00 – 2m7½f (2m7f98y) Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle (Pertemps Hurdle Series Qualifier) (GBB Race) (Class 2) (4yo+)

3:35 – 2m4f (2m3f173y) Mares’ Handicap Hurdle (Challenger Mares’ Series Qualifier) (Class 3) (3yo+ 0-130)

Saturday 5th December

Tingle Creek Saturday hosts two top class Grade 1 races – the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase and The Tingle Creek Chase. With a history of over 40 years and named after a Jumps racehorse of the 1970s, The Tingle Creek Chase is one of the key races of the season with a purse of over £68,000. Here’s the line up:

12:05 – 2m (1m7f216y) The 1.50 Introductory Juvenile Hurdle (Gbb Race) (Class 2) (3yo)

12:40 – 2m (1m7f216y) “National Hunt” Novices’ Hurdle (Gbb Race) (Class 3) (4yo+)

1:15 – 2m (1m7f216y) Novices’ Handicap Hurdle (Gbb Race) (Class 4) (3yo+ 0-120)

1:50 – 1m7½f (1m7f119y)  Henry VIII Novices’ Chase (Grade 1) (Gbb Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

2:25 – 1m7½f (1m7f119y) Tingle Creek Chase (Grade 1) (GBB Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

3:00 – 3m5f (3m4f166y) National Handicap Chase (Class 2) (5yo+)

3:35 – 2m (1m7f216y) December Handicap Hurdle (Listed Race) (Class 1) (4yo+)

Look out for The Wine Tipster’s Unibet Blog on Saturday.

At Home

• Don’t miss a thing – catch every race live on Racing TV and ITV, and even rewatch highlights from racing history via Racing Replays (available 20 minutes after the winner crosses the line!).
• The Raceday App is a must for the At Home experience. Get your own digital racecard, exclusive content, and access to the Raceday 5 Game with a chance to win a bottle of Coates & Seely Rosé NV and £10,000!
• Get inspiration from others’ At Home Celebration creations here, don’t forget to share yours with The Wine Tipster, Sandown Park and The Jockey Club.
• Need to brush up on your racing knowledge and jargon? Check out Racing Explained for all the confusing terms.
• Keep up to date with all the entertainment events from The Jockey Club with their Content Hub.

Food & Drink

Taking inspiration from The Jockey Club, The Wine Tipster is looking forward to making this week’s featured dish, Braised Shank of Herdwick Lamb with Root Veg, Red Onion Jam and Greens. See the recipe from Senior Sous Chef Lawrie Jeffries here.

For something sweet, why not try a Vegan Lemon Cheesecake from Head Chef Warren O’Connor – a real winner with vegans and non-vegans alike.

To accompany a hearty winter dish this Festival, The Wine Tipster’s Top 5 Red Wines are a must for the cooler months. In particular, Don David Blend of Terroirs Malbec 2019, Calchaqui Valley, Argentina (Co-op £9) has a great autumnal flavours of blackberries and blueberries, with sweet spicy notes and silky tannins.

For another classic red, St. Hallett ‘Faith’ Shiraz 2018, Barossa Valley, Australia (Majestic £16.99 and £14.99 mixed case of six) is a must try, full of bold flavours of pepper and plums – perfect for a roast.

For a true celebration, pop open some bubbly this weekend. Moët & Chandon, official Champagne of The Jockey Club, is always a treat. The Wine Tipster especially loves their Moët Impérial, with its iconic fruitiness and elegant maturity.

Coates and Seely, official sparkling wine sponsors, is also perfect for Jump season. Pop open a bottle of their wonderful English Sparkling Brut Reserve NV for a hit of green apple freshness and a rounded palate.

Lastly, Rosé – a great all-rounder. Château Léoube’s Rosé de Léoube (Daylesford £18.99) is an elegant and dry wine with a perfect combination of minerals and fruit.

The Wine Tipster hopes that whether you are attending The Tingle Creek Festival in person or enjoying it at home, that you have a most wonderful weekend and some wins! Look out for his Unibet Blog on Saturday for tips.

As one of the major highlights of The Newmarket Gold Season, The Cambridgeshire Meeting is 3 days (September 24th, 25th and 26th) of superb horseracing on the Rowley Mile. Unfortunately, racing will remain behind closed doors so let The Wine Tipster guide you through the history of The Cambridgeshire Meeting and his tips for celebrating at home.

Coming up as part of The Gold Season will be the Dubai Future Champions Festival on 9th and 10th October. The Wine Tipster is hugely empathetic to the wonderful team at Newmarket who have dealt with the changing restrictions for The Cambridgeshire Meeting but will no doubt have a fabulous meeting in spite of it all.

Cambridgeshire Thursday – Thursday 24th September 2020

For the first day of the Meeting, Cambridgeshire Thursday sees a range of impressive stakes to get things going. The Wine Tipster is especially looking forward to:

3:00 TATTERSALLS STAKES (REGISTERED AS THE SOMERVILLE TATTERSALL STAKES) (COLTS & GELDINGS) (GROUP 3) (Class 1) (2yo) ITV4

• The Wine Tipster is watching La Barrossa from trainer Charlie Appleby who has a great chance today

3:35 JOCKEY CLUB ROSE BOWL STAKES (LISTED RACE) (Class 1) (3yo+) ITV4

• The Wine Tipster is excited by the 7 year old Withhold who has leading claims to take the race today

Shadwell Day – Friday 25th September 2020

Friday, also known as Shadwell Day, boasts two Group contests, the Group 2 Shadwell Rockfel Stakes and Shadwell Joel Stakes (both on ITV4). It’s a hot card for the day, so check out all of the races featured:

1:15 DERRINSTOWN IRISH EBF MAIDEN STAKES (COLTS & GELDINGS) (PLUS 10 RACE) (Class 4) (2yo) Racing TV

1:50 TASLEET BRITISH EBF ROSEMARY STAKES (LISTED RACE) (FILLIES & MARES) (Class 1) (3yo+) ITV4 & Racing TV

• Previous Newmarket winner Alnaseem will be having her 13th horse race with her 13th different jockey aboard! Jockey Adam Kirby is having a go today. (Courtesy of Andy Stephens of Racing TV)

2:25 PRINCESS ROYAL MUHAARAR STAKES (GROUP 3) (FILLIES & MARES) (Class 1) (3yo+) ITV4 & Racing TV

3:00 SHADWELL ROCKFEL STAKES (GROUP 2) (FILLIES) (Class 1) (2yo) ITV4 & Racing TV

• The Wine Tipster is looking forward to seeing Isabella Giles in this race, trained by Clive Cox who’s been having a great year with his 2 year old.

3:35 SHADWELL JOEL STAKES (GROUP 2) (Class 1) (3yo+) ITV4 & Racing TV

• This is a belter of a race because we have Benbatl against Kameko who are the top two in the market and should make for a cracking race. Kameko has finished 4th in his last three starts in big races following a lot of bad luck, so things will be interesting between the runners.

4:10 EQTIDAAR GODOLPHIN STAKES (LISTED RACE) (Class 1) (3yo+) Racing TV

4:45 SHADWELL FARM HANDICAP (Class 3) (3yo+ 0-90) Racing TV

Juddmonte Day – Saturday 26th September 2020

The finale to The Cambridgeshire Meeting is Juddmonte Day on Saturday – a true spectacle to behold with some top races and great horses to look forward to in all races:

1:15 BLANDFORD BLOODSTOCK MAIDEN FILLIES’ STAKES (PLUS 10/GBB RACE) (Class 4) (2yo) Racing TV

1:50 JUDDMONTE ROYAL LODGE STAKES (GROUP 2) (Class 1) (2yo) ITV4 & Racing TV

2:25 JUDDMONTE CHEVELEY PARK STAKES (GROUP 1) (Class 1) (2yo) ITV4 & Racing TV

• An interesting race – Alcohol Free for an each way bet, and Happy Romance should make this race interesting having previously raced in this race with trainer Richard Hannan

3:00 JUDDMONTE MIDDLE PARK STAKES (GROUP 1) (Class 1) (2yo) ITV4 & Racing TV

• The Wine Tipster likes the look of Method with Frankie Dettori

3:35 CAMBRIDGESHIRE HANDICAP (HERITAGE HANDICAP) (Class 2) (3yo+) ITV4 & Racing TV

• The famous Cambridgeshire Heritage Handicap was established in 1839 at the same time as The Cesarewitch. The two races are known as the historic Autumn Double, with the second leg of this pair being run at the Dubai Future Champions Festival (9th and 10th October). The Wine Tipster can’t wait to watch around 30 horses thunder up The Rowley Mile!
• The Wine Tipster’s excited for his old friend Sir Busker who he’s been tipping up endlessly – they won at Royal Ascot but have been unlucky in other races. Sir Busker is a really good each way selection.

4:10 BRITISH STALLION STUDS EBF ‘JERSEY LILY’ FILLIES’ NURSERY HANDICAP (Class 2) (2yo) Racing TV

4:40 BENTLEY MOTORS HANDICAP (Class 2) (3yo+ 0-105) Racing TV

At Home – Where To Watch

Racing TV will be showing every race live which you can watch on your TV, tablet or mobile. Race Replays will also be available 20 minutes after the winner crosses the line. ITV Racing and ITV4 will be showing a number of races too, with details of the fixtures and broadcasters being available on The Cambridgeshire Meeting website.

At Home – To Do

There are a number of interactive and fun activities to get involved with at home during The Cambridgeshire, don’t forget to follow all the Social Media for Newmarket Racecourse and The Wine Tipster to share your #AtHome celebrations!

• Calling friends and family to enjoy the day with? Why not use a Video Background from The Jockey Club and feel as though you’re really there.
• The Raceday App is a must for the At Home experience. Get your own digital racecard, exclusive content, and access to the Raceday 5 Game with a chance to win a bottle of Coates & Seely Rosé NV and £10,000!
• Decorate your home with The Jockey Club Bunting which can be used throughout The Gold Season At Home.
• Need to brush up on your racing knowledge and jargon? Check out Racing Explained for all the confusing terms!
• Colour and fill in your own Sweepstake Sheet for each of the races.
• Put your knowledge of Newmarket to the test with Raceday Quizzes.
• Don’t forget to keep up to date with the fantastic Competitions available.
• Set the scene for the Meeting with your very own Spotify Playlist.
• Get inspiration from others’ At Home Celebration creations here!

At Home – What To Wear

Feel like you’re spending a day at the races but from the comfort of your own home. Why not put on a fancy dress or a three piece suit and enjoy the day safely at home.

Racing At Home Inspiration Gallery to inspire your creativity and fashion for the meeting. Don’t forget to share your raceday outfits with us on Social Media – Newmarket Racecourse, The Wine Tipster.

At Home – What To Drink

The UK is the biggest market for Prosecco DOC, so what better wine to pop when you celebrate The Cambridgeshire Meeting At Home? The Wine Tipster recommends Ruggeri Argeo Prosecco DOC Brut from Treviso which is available across The Jockey Club Racecourses and from The Great Wine Co. It is a Gold Medal winning bottle with vibrant lemon aromas making this a refreshingly crisp bottle. Prosecco DOCG La Gioiosa Valdobbiadene is seriously elegant and bursting with apple notes – definitely worth a try, available from Majestic.

Why not try Prosecco DOC in a simple cocktail – an Aperol Spritz or Bellini, depending on what you have in the cupboard, go down a treat with these bottles. Don’t forget to check for the Prosecco DOC Certification by looking for the sticker on the neck of your bottles – you’ll be sure to have a quality bottle of Prosecco that way.

For a touch of class at The Cambridgeshire, Coates and Seely’s delightful English Sparkling Wines are a must. The Wine Tipster especially loves their Brut Reserve NV which is a Gold Medal winner and full of depth and complexity.

For those on a budget, The Wine Tipster also recommends 6 wines under £10 as The Jockey Club Catering’s resident wine and food pairings expert. All 6 are smashing on a sunny day and with picnic food.

Fancy a gin? The Wine Tipster enjoys Salcombe Distillery’s multi-award winning ‘Start Point’ Gin with Fever-Tree’s Premium Indian Tonic Water over ice. Delicious.

For a non-alcoholic option, why not enjoy a Luscombe Hot Ginger Beer which really packs a punch worthy of The Cambridgeshire.

At Home – What To Eat

The weather has been spectacular, and what better way to enjoy the racing and the late sunshine than with a picnic at home? Gather your favourite picnic treats such as scones (jam or cream first?), sausage rolls, sandwiches, sweet treats such as flapjacks and lemon drizzle and snacks such as Taste of Game Crisps and local Pork Pies from the Butcher’s. If you’re looking to impress with your picnic, why not try The Jockey Club Catering’s moreish Rosemary Focaccia and Baked Camembert. The Wine Tipster sees this At Home Meeting as another great opportunity to support local and stay safe.

The Wine Tipster is looking forward to enjoying the Powters Original Newmarket Pig Sausages in a delicious casserole, or for a Full English Breakfast to get the raceday off to a cracking start. Dating back to the 1880s, the family run business are still producing their distinctly peppery sausages with a blend of secret spices in small batches for punters.

Did you know? The Newmarket Sausage is a protected food name and has to be made in the vicinity of the town!

For more food inspiration, check out The Jockey Club’s Autumn Inspired Recipes from Midsummer House.

The Wine Tipster hopes that you and your families can stay safe this meeting, and enjoy The Cambridgeshire Meeting At Home. To keep up to date with The Wine Tipster’s blog, subscribe here, and don’t forget to follow him on Social Media for updates and coverage.

Christina McElhinney is a racing producer for Racing TV who has used the 2020 Lockdown to finally give her second passion a platform in the form of The Food Waffle blog – a place where the musings of an amateur home gardener and resourceful cook result in delicious recipes and accessible tips. Here, she debuts on The Wine Tipster Blog with a pasta recipe to solve your courgette cravings and perhaps your abundance of Lockdown garden produce. Tuck in…

It’s fair to say 2020 has been a learning curve; all the things we’ve had to adjust and adapt to, plus a lot of us have had some downtime to work on things that we have perhaps meant to for some time. In my case, this was finally launching The Food Waffle in which to spread a bit of happiness, focussing on fresh produce, varieties of plants, great producers and ingredients, healthy options as well as indulgent ones, and a general love of food, wine and everything that comes with them.

Things have been very difficult for us all, but equally if you’re determined to see the positives, there are things to celebrate. Some of us have spent more – or less! – time with family. Some of us have spent more time in the garden and probably, like me, been very grateful for it. More time to cook, think about our health, seasonality, local producers. I’m certainly not trying to trivialise the overall experience and the trauma it’s caused so many, but it is important to find individual positives.

For me, the garden was a lifesaver for a couple of months. Nurturing young plants, preparing their ultimate homes, indeed enjoying giving some away to people who were trying their first season of growing vegetables like my neighbours or whoever was passing the driveway and helped themselves to a free plant…thinking of all the fresh produce I’d be cooking in the coming weeks and months was a calming mental influence and made me feel that I wasn’t wasting time spent in lockdown, but also that I was producing something that was not only good for me physically, in terms of both food and exercise, but also mentally.

But of course I over-seeded plants as I always do in case nothing germinated, and everything did. So then the courgettes arrived.

So. Many. Courgettes.

They get a bad reputation. The allotment joke every summer. For being a glut of bland, dull things that sit on the side and go to waste and that even if you do use them don’t taste of anything.

Nonsense.

First of all, there are some great varieties out there that just don’t hit the supermarkets. But secondly, treated with a bit of care, or creativity, or both, they’re delicious, they’re not exactly bad for you and they’re a celebration of good old British summer time – along with wasps and either having too much or too little rain – so they’re actually coming out on top.

And I currently have dozens of the things (there’s only so much you can offload to a neighbour), so there have been a few recipes of the more creative variety going on. Courgette fritters currently on foodwaffle.co.uk, a work-in-progress courgette bread that’s really good, but I also wanted to do something that simply, elegantly and lightly showcased the pure, good old courgette for what it can carry on its own. And the obvious plate-fellow for me had to be basil pesto (my recipe will be landing on foodwaffle.co.uk soon).

Not a huge hit of it though – and coupled with double cream to make a light sauce. Just enough of that lovely bright summery basil flavour to still let the courgettes be the star – whatever variety you end up using.

Two of the best ingredients summer throw at you, combined with the incomparable flavours you can only get with goats cheese, toasted pine nuts to enhance that light hit of pesto brought down to a mellow softness with double cream, pumpkin seeds for an earthy texture hit and carried together with a sauce-grabbing pasta. Light enough that it’ll be enough for a hot summer day but equally could be doubled up for a bigger serving on a cooler evening, this is my favourite way to celebrate these gorgeous courgettes that are currently rampaging into the kitchen.

And any meal that can do that needs some beautiful wine with it – and I’ll let Neil do the talking on that front because I’m sure he’ll come up with something ideal.

INGREDIENTS (SERVES TWO AS A LIGHT MEAL)

• 3 tbsp double cream
• 2 tbsp traditional basil pesto – ideally fresh made although store-bought would work fine
• Small squeeze of fresh lemon juice
• Fresh ground black pepper
• Sea salt and olive oil to season pasta water
• 1 x medium courgette, sliced 5mm thick and cut into crescents, lightly oiled
• 200g pasta of choice – I used tortiglioni
• 50g goats cheese, sliced / crumbled
• 1 cup reserved pasta water
• Grated Parmesan or Grana Padano, about ten grams
• Small basil leaves, to serve
• 20g each of pine nuts and pumpkin seeds, lightly toasted, to serve

METHOD

Gently heat the double cream over a low heat. When warmed, add the pesto and the grated cheese. Keep an eye on the mix and keep warm.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to instructions depending on what you choose – something ideal for catching sauces is best here. Make sure the water is generous and well salted – if it doesn’t taste like the sea, it’s not salty enough. Remember, you’re not going to eat it – but what cooking water you reserve is going to help season your final dish. Also add generous olive oil to stop the pasta sticking.

Heat a griddle pan over a medium-high heat. Take the lightly oiled, crescented courgette slices and, when the pasta is near al dente, add to the pan in a clockwise pattern so you know when to turn each one – look for light charring, but leaving the flesh firm and fresh.

Retain a cup of pasta water, drain and add the pasta to the cream, season well with fresh black pepper, loosen with a little of the water as needed.

Serve straight away, scattering with goats cheese, basil leaves and the toasted pine nuts and seeds (lightly toast them on a low heat while the pasta is cooking to have them warm, although cooled is fine – the texture they bring is as key as their temperature and flavour).

Drizzle with a good Extra Virgin Olive Oil for a last hit of summer flavour and enjoy the subtle blend of just-there pesto, soft and mellow goats cheese, sweet courgettes and pungent basil against the crunch of the nuts and seeds for a beautiful and light small plate dish.

With Christina’s delicious seasonal dish The Wine Tipster has selected a couple of fabulous whites to enjoy. The Yealands Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2019, Marlborough, New Zealand, £11.59 in Waitrose has the pure fruit flavours, important crisp acidity and mineral character to pair with the courgettes, goats cheese – a great pairing with Sauvignon Blanc – and the pesto too. Given, white wines work more harmousily with the pesto and the rest of the ingredients in Christina’s lovely dish The Wine Tipster has also chosen another high class white, this time from Lugana in northern Italy, with the fresh and Sauvignon Blanc like Buglioni Musa Lugana 2018, Italy £14.95. Enjoy making Christina’s dish and the wines too. Cheers!

You can find Christina on Twitter and Instagram as well as checking out The Food Waffle for more great recipes.

The QIPCO King George Diamond Racing Weekend is Ascot’s midsummer showpiece, celebrating the best of British summertime as one of the most prestigious race meetings outside of the Royal Meeting. Combining world-class Flat racing with a quintessential English garden party experience, it is an unmissable event steeped in history and synonymous with style. Here, The Wine Tipster shares his tips for enjoying the weekend at home with food, drink and ideas to celebrate safely. 

Races

An enhanced 17 races will take place at Ascot for the weekend, with a nine-race card on the Saturday and eight races on the Sunday. The pinnacle of the weekend’s races  is Saturday’s 03:35 PM The King George VI And Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes (Class 1) (Group 1) 3+ with prize money totalling £400,000 and being run over one mile about four furlongs. The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes was first run almost 70 years ago in 1951, in tribute to Her Majesty the Queen’s parents, and has long been recognised as Europe’s premier, mid-season, middle distance race for all age groups. Since then has had three two-time winners in Dahlia, Swain and most recently Enable, whilst Lester Piggott and Sir Michael Stoute hold the positions of the race’s winning-most jockey and trainer with 7 and 6 wins respectively.

For a full list of the weekend’s races, visit the Ascot and the Unibet websites.

This year, much loved defending champion, Enable, is welcomed back to the Ascot turf as she goes in search of a record third win in The King George VI And Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes.

Where to Watch

The weekend will be broadcast live on ITV & Sky Sports Racing. ITV will broadcast five races on the Saturday on ITV1, including the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes, and four races on the Sunday on ITV4. Sky Sports Racing will show every race of the weekend live.

Throughout the weekend, The Wine Tipster will be on Social Media connecting with audiences and commenting on the live action. Follow him here.

What to Drink

The Ascot Wine Club is Ascot’s new online wine shop, in partnership with Official Wine Supplier, Hallgarten & Novum Wines, and Official Champagne, Moët & Chandon. They are stocked with a range of bottles for every budget to order online in time for the weekend’s races. To help celebrate this great weekend of racing, The Ascot Wine Club are delighted to offer the chance to win a Methuselah (6litres!) of the fabulous Whispering Angel Rosé. This is a wonderful Rosé, and all you have to do to be in with a chance is place an order from The Ascot Wine Club before 2nd August 2020 and you’ll be entered into the prize draw. For more information on this great opportunity, read here. 

Moët & Chandon are the official partner of Ascot and the perfect taste of luxury to celebrate some wins. The QIPCO King George Diamond Racing Weekend is introducing a Golden Ticket Prize Draw for 2020 in association with the iconic Champagne House. To be in with a chance of winning hospitality at Ascot for up to six people, download a ticket and see if it turns gold at 17:43 on Saturday 25th July 2020 (to celebrate the year Maison Moët was founded). Apply here and read T&Cs here.

Why not make yourself a Harrogate Fruit Cup, brought to you by Harrogate Water – Official Water of Ascot. This non-alcoholic fruit cup is perfect for sipping at home during the weekend, and kids will be able to enjoy it too! You’ll need: Harrogate Spring Water, 1 tsp sugar free lemon syrup, 1/2 Teaspoon Balsamic Vinegar, 6 strawberries, 8 raspberries, mint leaves, lemon and orange slices – recipe here.

What to Eat

Test your knowledge of King George winners in this 10-1 quiz. The categories are as follows:

Enable – Queen of the Turf – is one of the greatest horses ever to have graced the turf. The only European-based filly or mare to have earned over £10m in prize money, she has beaten many of the best horses in training on some of the biggest stages in world racing, compiling one of the most decorated CVs in the sport’s history. For fans looking to support this amazing horse or for activities to do over the weekend, check out the Enable Fan Activity Pack which includes bunting, wordsearches and games, flags to wave, and a quiz to do with the family!

Connect with The Wine Tipster on Social Media to share how you are celebrating the weekend, and however you choose to enjoy The QIPCO King George Diamond Racing Weekend, here’s to some wins and some good memories! Cheers! 

Don’t miss a thing – Subscribe to The Wine Tipster’s Blogs here for posts straight to your inbox.

Here we are, about to enjoy a cracking Christmas and wave goodbye to 2018. It’s been a busy year for The Wine Tipster. I’ve seen some great racing at The Jockey Club courses across the country, presented on wine and bubbles to some fabulous audiences and discovered plenty of top tipples along the way.

I’d love to say I’ll be winding down, but as we all know there’s plenty of racing on over the festive season.  Look out for my Unibet Racing blogs on December 19th and December 26th on King George Day for all my latest tips. 

If you haven’t quite finished your festive shopping I’ve got a few suggestions (not all wine-related, I promise). Peter Stafford-Bow is back with a new book set in the world of wine featuring wine buyer Felix Hart. Brut Force is the sequel to Corkscrew and would make a great gift for the wine-lover in your life (Available from Amazon, RRP £9.99, Kindle edition £3.99).

If it’s music you prefer, I can thoroughly recommend The Nightingales. I saw them at a great gig at The Moth Club in Hackney and their new album Perish The Thought is my album of 2018. (Buy from Tiny Global Productions, CD £15, digital version £7).

At Wine Tipster HQ, we’ll be heading out for Christmas this year and I’m looking forward to seeing what will be served up with our slap-up meal. For me, Christmas is a time full of tradition but also a great time to try different things and experiment with something new. I’m usually a big fan of getting into the kitchen and cooking a proper roast, but sometimes with a bit of a differences – maybe goose or venison. I’m also a big fan of fish and seafood as it pairs so brilliantly with some wines, so will be preparing us a platter for those festive evenings when you fancy something a little lighter.

Have you planned your festive tipples yet? I’ve put together my suggestions for a few different wines and tipples you can try this festive season. I hope you all have a wonderful time and here’s to a successful 2019. 

Merry Christmas from The Wine Tipster!

 

1. Prosecco DOC La Gioiosa et Amarosa NV Treviso, Veneto, Italy

Christmas wouldn’t be complete without some fizz and as we all know, I’m a big fan of Prosecco. Owned by the Moretti Polegato family, Villa Sandi always produces impressive, elegant Proseccos and the La Gioiosa is a perfect example.A delicious match with seafood. £11.99. Stockist: Majestic

2. Astoria Prosecco DOC “Galie” Extra Dry Treviso, Veneto, Italy

Another great example of Prosecco, this “Galie” Extra Dry is grown in the hills of the Astoria Estate approximately 150m above sea level, giving it an elegant, fruity and flowery bouquet with a harmonious flavour. Perfect served with canapes, smoked salmon and delicious Grana Padano. £13.75. Stockists: Gerard Steel, Amazon and at York Racecourse

3. Masottina Prosecco DOC Brut, Treviso, Veneto, Italy 

Masottina founded in 1946 in Conegliano, produce a range of high quality award winning Proseccos, including this award winning Brut, which won a gold medal in the Decanter Wine Awards. Stylish, smooth, with floral and fruity notes, this is top class. £11.99 Stockist: www.winedirect.co.uk www.fmv.co.uk

4. Ridgeview Bloomsbury Sparkling NV, Sussex

Based in East Sussex, Ridgeview is a great example of an English sparkling wine – a brilliant alternative to champagne during the festive season. These are great celebration wine, or pair well with seafood and fish, so try a glass with your salmon at Christmas. £28.99. Stockists: Waitrose

5. Vilarnau Cava Brut Reserva Rosé NV, Sant Sadurni d’Anoia, Spain

This is a high quality, dry pink Cava with an intense crimson colour, red fruits and citrus flavours, which will definitely impress over the Festive period as will the brilliant packaging. £12. Stockists: Tesco, Ocado, Cafe de la Post

6. Croft Twist Fino Spritz

When I first tried Croft Twist a couple of years ago, I thought it was wonderful. A modern British take on Spain’s rebujito cocktail, it mixes cask-aged Croft Fino with sparkling water, English elderflower and lemon and mint cordial. At 5.5% ABV, it’s great for Christmas if you’re after something a little bit lighter. It’s also a great wine to surprise people with. Don’t tell them what it is and see if they guess… For the perfect serve, pour over ice and garnish with a twist of lemon peel and a sprig of fresh basil. £7.00. Stockists: Ocado, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s

7. Chapel Down Bacchus 2017, Kent

One of the most popular English whites around at the moment, Bacchus is a great example of a white wine. And more English still white – Bacchus, Chapel Down. Ironically Bacchus won at Royal Ascot, tipped up by The Wine Tipster! £13.99. Stockist: Waitrose

8. Beronia Rueda Verdejo 2017, Spain

This is a fantastic easy-drinking white from the Rueda region of north-west Spain. You’re bound to be entertaining during Christmas and there’s always someone who says they don’t like Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay so it’s a great one to add to your selection of wines on offer. £8.99. Stockist: Waitrose

9. Peter Yealands Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2017, Awatere, New Zealand

Yealands are a great example of environmental and sustainable winemakers and their crisp, Reserve Sauvignon Blanc with flavours of passionfruit, mango and citrus is perfect on its own or with fish and buffets over the festive period. Try their Land Made Sauvignon Blanc across The Jockey Club racecourses. £11.59 on offer to £8.49. Waitrose

10. Côtes de Provence Rosé de Léoube 2017 Château Léoube, Provence, France

This is a top-class, bone dry rosé. Well balanced and with flavours of strawberry and white peach. It works well as an aperitif but would also go well with lighter festive dishes or a Boxing Day buffet of seafood and cold meats. £17.99. Stockists: Daylesford daylesford.com Oxford Wine Company, Charlbury Deli & Cafe, Waddesdon Manor

11. Les Dauphins Côtes du Rhône Villages 2017, Rhône, France

This wonderful Côtes du Rhône red is so truly French in style with ripe fruit aromas and wonderful spicy fruit flavours. This is great value and always does so well in tastings. A must for Christmas. It also pairs brilliantly with vegetarian dishes so is a great one to pull out when you’re entertaining. £9.99 down to £7.49. Stockist: Waitrose

12. Wirra Wirra Church Block Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot 2015 McLaren Vale, Australia 

This great example of a New World red from McLaren Vale is an Australian favourite and I’m rather partial to a glass too. Approachable yet with an element of consistency, it’s a great one to serve with a full festive roast dinner, or even just a few drinks on its own. £13.49. Stockist: Ocado

13. Louis M. Martini Sonoma County 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon, California

This is classic, intense Cabernet Sauvignon is packed with ripe, concentrated and complex flavours of blackcurrant, plum, with sweet spice, subtle oak and a tremendous finish. A classic! Another one that pairs brilliantly with a roast dinner, making it perfect for the festive season. The Jockey Club has also just started listing this wine across its courses, so if you’re heading to Kempton Park on Boxing Day, make sure you look out for it. £19.95. Stockists: Uvinum.co.uk greatwesternwine.co.uk

14. Château Peyredon Lagravette, Haut-Médoc Cru Bourgeois 2010, Bordeaux, France 

Cru Bourgeois wines offer a tremendous opportunity to get some great value, complex clarets and this wine from the outstanding 2010 vintage just does that. This Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend has lovely, classic Cabernet blackcurrant fruit, with spice and savoury character. Definitely a wine to decant and enjoy with beef or game over the festive period. £14.50. Stockist: The Wine Society  

15. Royal Tokaji Late Harvest 2015, Hungary

If you’re looking for something a bit sweeter over the festive season but want to try something different, head for Hungary for a Tokaji. From the Tokaj wine region in Hungary, this wine has a wonderful balance of sweetness and acidity,which makes it a great pairing with lighter desserts and particularly blue cheese. I think it tastes great on its own too! £11.99 on offer to £9.99 (50cl) . Stockist: Majestic

16. Gonzalez Byass Matusalem Oloroso Dulce Muy Viejo VORS, Jerez, Spain

Who doesn’t want a tot of sherry on a festive evening. This stunning sherry, which gets its dark colour from thirty years of ageing in sherry butts should be on every Christmas table and all year round, for that matter! Matusalem Oloroso (ABV 20.5%) has aromas of dark chocolate and prunes, with delicious, rich, complex, nutty character on the palate. A lovely match with Alex James’ delicious Blue Monday. Stockists: The Oxford Wine Company, Waitrose. £19.99 per 37.5cl.

 

At this year’s Qatar Goodwood Festival, The Wine Tipster spent the five days presenting for Goodwood TV and Radio, and Racing UK. As well as sharing his tips for the Festival, The Wine Tipster was also involved with the Stewards’ Cup draw on Thursday ahead of Saturday’s big race. He represented Mick Easterby, who had Hoof It and Perfect Pasture running, and managed to draw good numbers for both horses – Hoof It in Stall 4 and Perfect Pasture in Stall 17.

The 10 year old Hoof It, a former winner of the Stewards’ Cup, ran a fantastic race and finished 6^th, while Perfect Pasture didn’t run as well as expected given some of his recent form, but given his listed win earlier in the season, he is well worth supporting on his next appearance.  

Overall, it was an amazing five day festival of racing which demonstrates the depth of the racing, and which The Wine Tipster believes will only continue to grow in terms of racing quality throughout the five days. The spectacle and setting of the Festival make this an exciting and unique racing occasion, and a must for true racing fans and those looking for their first racing experience.

The Wine Tipster’s personal highlights included Expert Eye in the Qatar Vintage Stakes on the Tuesday, who ran a great race and has a good chance for the Guineas Festival next May. On Ladies’ Day, Winter showed what a brilliant filly she is by winning the Nassau Stakes in ground that was far too soft for her to show her real class, but she is undoubtedly an outstanding three year old.

In the Qatar King George Stakes on Saturday, Battaash showed that his Sandown performances had been no fluke as he always travelled like the winner to beat a very strong field, showing that he really is a top class sprinter.

The Wine Tipster had a great time broadcasting with Lee McKenzie and Anthony Kemp on Goodwood Radio, as well as doing exciting features on Course TV with Rupert Bell and Hayley Moore. Racing UK also broadcast The Wine Tipster and his regular partners in food and drink crime, Tom Stanley, Rishi Persad and Niall Hannity.

Food and drink highlights included the Gin Garden, featuring Bombay Sapphire, Hendricks and Goodwood’s own gin. The Secret Garden offered a great buffet experience with wonderfully presented food and a great ambience – a must-go at the course.

Coates and Seely were a great feature with their Sparkling English Wines which have deservedly won numerous awards, rightly so given that the wines are Group 1 performers.

It has to be said that the Goodwood team did an amazing job when faced with such a mixed week of weather, coping with 35ml of rain on the Wednesday. Seamus Buckley, the retiring clerk of Goodwood described the day as the most difficult he has had to deal with in 23 years of working at the racecourse. Despite the weather, the team coped brilliantly and Buckley can certainly retire on a high.

The Wine Tipster enjoyed a wonderful few days of racing, and is looking forward to presenting more at the Haydock Rose of Lancaster Stakes Day this Saturday.

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