Opening our homes and sharing a meal with family and friends has always defined the Christmas season. Whether you’re a roast-dinner purist or a modern traditionalist, planning a festive feast is always a pleasure. Here, Gusbourne’s Global Ambassador Laura Rhys presents some gastronomic food for thought – with wines to match – to make this a vintage Christmas to savour.
Our best-selling sparkling wine, balanced and approachable, is a versatile companion for classic and contemporary dishes throughout the season. If seafood is your Christmas Eve tradition, you’ll love the Brut Reserve paired with individual crab and gruyère soufflés served with a simply dressed chicory and walnut salad. Or an indulgent butter-poached lobster with a winter salad of fennel and clementine. Come Christmas morning, smoked salmon and scrambled eggs deserve a glass, and this wine also shines with vegan and vegetarian dishes: a wild mushroom and chestnut pithivier or tempura cauliflower fritters with hollandaise for a Boxing Day snack.
Our sparkling Rosé, with its palate of bright red fruits and a creamy, rounded finish, is an elegant wine that pairs wonderfully with starters, mains and cheeses. Salty, savoury canapés of smoked salmon blini topped with Exmoor caviar. A celebratory salmon en croûte with a dill and crème fraiche sauce. A vegan Boxing Day coconut curry of roasted parsnips and butternut squash. This wine also loves a creamy blue cheese like Irish Cashel Blue, or Brighton Blue from our near neighbours at High Weald Dairy in Sussex.
Pure Chardonnay, elegantly fresh, zesty and mineral. Our Blanc de Blancs is the classic match for fresh native oysters – arguably at their best this time of year. Or a luxurious seafood sharing platter piled with oysters, prawns, mussels, lobster claws, langoustines, cockles… whatever’s fresh from your fishmonger. Other perfect parings: a lightly dressed king prawn cocktail (major on the prawns, easy on the sauce) or a whole roast turbot or Dover sole served with a light and lemony beurre blanc. This is also a wine to be savoured on its own when you’re raising a glass.
We don’t make this wine every year – only when our finest parcels of Pinot Noir deliver the fruit that gives our Blanc de Noirs its richly intense depth of flavour. A stunning match with robust, umami flavours – perfect for Christmas Day roast turkey with all the trimmings, or roast guinea fowl for something a bit different (and smaller). It’s also an excellent pairing with cheese: aged Comté, mature English cheddar, or washed-rind varieties like Brie and Wigmore or a gently warmed, very ripe Vacherin Mont d’Or – excellent at this time of year.
Our refined single-variety, single-vineyard still red wine is bursting with bright fruit, featuring hints of strawberry, plum and redcurrant. Its delicately balanced tannins and light spiciness make it a spectacularly great match with seasonal favourites like venison Wellington and roasted root vegetables. Or game dishes – hare ragout with pappardelle, pheasant and chestnut pie. And pour a glass with a Boxing day truffled omelette and matchstick fries. Indulgent and warming. Now also available in magnum for the first time.
With Chardonnay Guinevere 2019
Our beautifully balanced still white is a gorgeous food wine, its notes of ripe citrus, green apple and lemon balm making their match with a delicious choice of festive dishes. A whole poached trout served with pea and dill velouté. Creamy burrata with roasted pumpkin flesh and seeds, drizzled with new-season olive oil. Easy, comforting Boxing Day dishes like kedgeree or salmon fishcakes. And for those who prefer white wine with their traditional roast turkey dinner, this wine is a superb match. Now also available in magnum for the first time.
With Pinot Noir Rosé 2020 – limited bottles remaining
Our still Rosé is an all-season favourite, and its slightly fuller-bodied style is a very fine match with autumnal and festive flavours – think spicy-sweet dishes that carry a gentle umami punch. A delicious match with spiced ginger and honey-glazed ham. Salmon gravadlax served with cold roasted beetroot and a dollop crème fraiche. Butternut squash and sage ravioli in a herb butter sauce. Or slices of spiced baked pumpkin with a dressed salad of shaved fennel, grated apple and pomegranate. A surprising and satisfying match in cooler months.
When the whole gang arrives for brunch or a spontaneous drop-in, generosity is your motto. Our versatile Brut Reserve 2015 magnum delivers 1.5 litres of celebration in a bottle. Welcome your guests with a glass to go with easy party food: pigs in blankets, fried stuffing balls, vegan sausage rolls, mini Welsh rarebit bites. For a more substantial snack, think garlicky mushroom fricassee on little sourdough toasts. Or Scandi-style open-faced sandwiches of dark rye piled high with dressed cold-water prawns or smoked eel and cucumber. Cheers!
Buying for your table, taking as a gift? Browse our 2021 Christmas packs, featuring pairs, trios and half-dozen collections of our award-winning sparkling and still wines. All presented in beautiful hinged wooden boxes with personalised gift cards on request.
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