Christmas!
No matter what rules are placed upon us this holiday season, we shouldn’t forget that Christmas is a time for laughter and time for cheers. We may not be able to have large family gatherings (which might be a blessing for some of us), but we can still have drunken nights over board games and leftover turkey.
Champagne is always a staple in our family Christmas tradition. We always have Champagne on Christmas Eve whilst stuffing our faces with Tesco’s Finest Christmas canapes. Christmas morning starts with Champagne as we open a present for each family member. Then Christmas dinner opens with prawn cocktails and Champagne. More Champagne throughout dinner (as I find Champagne as the best wine to please everyone and pair with almost everything) and when the kiddos and the elderly go to bed, we normally have Champagne with cheese and board games!
I would like to share my love of Champagne and my own family tradition with all of you. I have created a Christmas Dinner Champagne Pack to cover you through the festive day. Don’t be daunted by six bottles of Champagne. You'll be awake for over 16 hours, so that’s only a bottle every 3 hours or so! Easy peasy. Here’s what you should do…
8am JL Vergnon Eloquence as you open presents. The ripeness of the Grand Crus grapes from Les Mesnil will go down as smoothly as a your morning orange juice.
11am Laherte Frères Rose de Meunier for your breakfast/brunch. This spicy 100% Pinot Meunier-based rosé is just what you need for the smoked salmon, scrambled eggs and sausages.
4pm – 7pm Christmas Dinner! You've two bottles to cover you through your meal. From pigs in blankets to roast turkey or glazed ham, Dhondt-Grellet, Dans un Premier Temps and David Léclapart, L'Amateur both have the stamina and the sexy body to stand up to the gluttony of your Christmas dinner table.
8pm Olivier Horiot's Sève Rosé, makes a surprising pairing for Christmas puddings. The Champagne drinks more like a red wine; a great fruity and spicy light Pinot Noir. It is great with those puddings which have an extra kick of cloves or cinnamon.
10pm Cheese time! Personally my favourite part of Christmas day. Never mind the presents, nothing makes me feel more Christmassy than being extremely stuffed but yet so excited to plant my face in that cheese board with Jacob’s Christmas cracker selection box. Marie Courtin Concordance is a 100% Pinot Noir with no sulphur added Champagne. It is wheaty, spicy, refreshing and hugs you warmly from the inside like an embrace from your mother.
But, wait! We’re not done yet! What about the rest of the week and what about New Year’s Eve and the week leading up to it?!?!? Haha, I think of everything! I have also put together an "Easy Drinking Party Pack”. God knows how many times I’ve run out of Champagne during the holiday weeks and boy does that put me in a grumpy mood when it does. So, with ten bottles and a magnum (for NYE of course) of easy drinking, fun, and cheerful Champagnes, it should cover you nicely.
Regardless of what you drink and how much you drink, I do wish everyone a very safe and healthy Christmas this year. Despite the difficulties we have all had to encounter this year, we must not forget the people and the things we are thankful for. I am thankful for my family, my health and this opportunity to be able to share my love and passion for Champagne with all of you. My husband James asked me the other day what makes me happy and I said being able to go to work and pack boxes of Champagne to ship makes me happy. So, cheers to you and your family and everything that makes us happy!
With love, Sandia