Christmas food is famously varied and there’s no right or wrong answer to the question “what should I drink with my Christmas food?” As a rule of thumb, however, think about partnering lighter wines with delicate starters, medium-bodied reds with turkey, and richer wines for bold meats or sweet desserts. If you’re hosting, offering something sparkling, a versatile red like Pinot Noir, fruity whites like Chardonnay and a sweet wine for dessert will cover most bases.
Here’s what the team at Duncan Murray Wines has picked out for their festive favourites.
Duncan: “It probably won’t come as a great surprise to people who know me, but I’m having sausages on Christmas Eve. What will I drink with them? Well, at the moment, it’s Fer de Soif Marcillac from South West France. Gluggable!”
On Christmas Day, I know this is controversial, but for me it’s all about the brussels sprouts. I’m partnering my favourite winter vegetable with one of my favourite white grape varieties – Chardonnay – and I’ll be drinking Pierre Antonin Chardonnay. It’s fresh with lovely, ripe fruit that’ll match my sprouts perfectly. Of course, if I was going all out and having a full roast, it’d work great with that as well.
On New Year’s Eve, we’re having a quiet night in with some spicy prawns and a small glass of wine. My choice for my glass of red is Sta Tresa Cerasuolo Vittoria. A smashing Sicilian with bright fruit and soft tannins that will work fantastically with the spice. Megan’s choice is also a magnificent Cretan! She’s going for a sip of Diamantakis Diamantopetra White. The combination of full-flavoured yet crisp apricot and vanilla flavours will stand up superbly to a robustly spiced gamberoni!
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Nick: “On Christmas Eve, we’re having Boeuf Bourguignon. There’ll be a lot of chatter around the table as we catch up with family, so I’ve chosen two wines that are great accompaniments to lively conversations and casseroles!
For the white wine drinkers, there’ll be Picpoul de Pinet and for the red wine drinkers there’ll be Povero Cabane Langhe. This velvety Italian red is perfect with hearty stews. Cheers!
On Christmas Day, I’ll be serving my famous 3 bird goose. I’ve chosen two favourite wines from the Languedoc to go with this: Vieux Parc Selection Red and Vieux Parc Selection Blanc. Both wines have wonderfully generous and irresistible flavours – just like my goose!
On New Year’s Eve, it’s all about the fizz and I’ve treated us to a bottle of H. Blin Vintage. Fantastic bubbles to sip with loved ones. A wonderful way to welcome in the New Year.
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Jake: “For the main event on New Year’s Eve, it’s a big buffet and lots of friends in my house. We’ll need a couple of real crowd pleasers. To keep us refreshed while we’re doing the hokey cokey, I’ve gone for Stiegl lager and for white wine drinkers, there’s the crisp and fresh Bardos Clea Verdejo – a great Spanish alternative to Sauvignon Blanc. Ole!
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Rod: “Our Christmas Day meal is roast turkey and all the trimmings and I’m hoping my family will have picked up my huge hints and clubbed together to get me a bottle of Guntrum Pinot Noir Reserve. When I tried this for the first time it blew me away. One of those wines that evokes very happy memories.
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