Which wines to serve on Christmas Eve

The tree is up and with only 5 days to go, the excitement levels in children all around the country are rising, matched only by the near hysteria levels of panic hitting those of us who haven't quite got everything organised yet... mums, fellow workers - I share your pain (or I am in serious awe of your powers of pre-planning if you are some of the few already relaxing with a glass of wine watching Christmas movies!

Choosing wine to keep everyone happy at Christmas is never easy;  in order to keep it simple, you may want wines that are crowd pleasing and easy drinking, but wines that have flavour, and character; or you may want different wines for different days and occasions over the festive period. 

Over the next few days i'll be sharing some of my top tips for the festive season when it comes to wine! 

First up, Christmas Eve...

With the shopping done, and hopefully the presents wrapped, it’s time to welcome the family and settle into the festivities with a glass of something delicious. However if it’s a frantic evening in your household, as it invariably is in mine, get the family involved in peeling the potatoes, stuffing the turkey and preparing the sprouts, with a glass of warming red for you!

I like to kick off the festivities with a glass of mulled wine – there are lots of different recipes I have tried over the years, but I’ve now perfected my favourite; you can keep the red wine very simple here, but choose an inexpensive one, with soft ripe fruit, rather than an over-oaked one – warmer ones like Australia and Chile are great!

If you’re entertaining the family on Christmas Eve, you’ll probably be cooking something relatively light and straightforward – fish pie with prawns and salmon, or baked salmon are favourites for me; keep the wines light as well, you don’t want to overdo it before the big day!

My recommendations: Legaris Verdejo from northern Spain is a delightful, zesty take on Sauvignon Blanc style wines, but more gentle; Casillero Reserva Sauvignon Blanc, with its bright, exotic fruit flavours is another favourite.

Bowls of rich stew, or a pasta bake are other easy options for the night before, and both call for ripe, rich, but soft reds (which will also work if you are sitting by the fire wrapping presents!)

My recommendations: The award winning Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet, in all its velvety glory, and the power packed yet soft Cono Sur Carmenere Reserva are my top tips.

My next post will be about Christmas Day and Boxing Day wines.. (if I make it that far - wish me luck!)


Angela x