Finally staggered down the post-Christmas straight and made it to the new year. Best to all. I hope everyone had a festive season. I did, and it was great.
I love Christmas – not the ill-thought-through presents so much, but the sparkly lights and the silly seasonal drinks hit the spot. I also enjoy turkey, Brussels sprouts, and Christmas pudding. It must be an Armagh thing.
Drinks-wise, there’s always plenty / far too much over Christmas and New Year, but not necessarily chosen by me. I think my only contribution to the Christmas Day wine this year was a bottle of 2007 Les Forges Quarts des Charmes to go with pudding. Delicious sweet chenin blanc which apparently keeps forever. Or for 30 years or so. I’ve one more bottle under the stairs but I can’t see it lasting until 2037. I got it from James Nicholson in the sale a couple of years back – it probably cost less than it should have, so a sincere shout-out to their upcoming (fingers crossed) January sale.
Other silly seasonal drinks included some sherry, some port, some sloe gin, and a bottle of Baileys. The Baileys, as always, vanished over a couple of evenings. Not cool, but definitely delicious. I commend myself on my sloe gin – I’ll share the recipe if you get in touch – but this year’s sherry was a bit of a revelation. I normally drink fino or manzanilla but this year I bought a bottle of medium-dry oloroso from the Wine Society (£11.50, abv largely irrelevant) and it was terrific. Rich, nutty, great with rich, fruity food. Beyond recommended.
Oh, and just to get back to normal drops – neither silly nor seasonal – we’re having a bottle of 2010 Katnook Shiraz (13.5 abv, just over a tenner from Emersons wine store in Armagh) tonight. Oaky, but well-integrated. Not jammy. Good and characteristic. Obligatory fruit-based comparison: damson.
NI Wine 