Christmas Like A King

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This Christmas, families visiting the Official Residences of His Majesty The King in London, Windsor and Edinburgh can learn how the Tudors and the Victorians celebrated Christmas and enjoy festive carols beneath magnificent Christmas trees.

The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace

This Christmas, children can enjoy a special storytelling performance bringing to life the tales and traditions of the festive season at the Tudor Court, while exploring the exhibition of Holbein’s works at The Queen’s Gallery. Two performers dressed as Tudor Londoners will give young visitors a glimpse into Tudor life as they prepare for the festive season. Children can find out what gifts were given and what food and drink was consumed at the Tudor Court, discovering how many Tudor Christmas celebrations form part of today’s traditional activities. 

On selected dates, families can also join a Christmas activity day where they can make twinkling, miniature portrait decorations, inspired by the jewel-like miniatures in the exhibition; perfect as a gift or to hang on a Christmas tree.

A Tudor Christmas Storytelling experience takes place on a drop-in basis and lasts approximately 40 minutes.

(Saturday, 16 December, at 11:20, 12:20, 13:30, and 14:30). The Merry Miniatures: A Christmas activity day runs on a drop-in basis (Sunday, 17 December and Monday,18 December, 11:00 – 15:00).

Windsor Castle

Throughout the Christmas holidays, families can participate in craft activities and workshops exploring how the Victorians celebrated Christmas as well as enjoying the beautifully decorated Castle. This year’s displays include a magnificent 25-foot-high tree in St George’s Hall with sparkling Garter Star decorations.

Families can drop by the Castle’s Pug Yard Learning Centre where they can hear all about a Victorian Christmas and even make a special memento to take home, such as a tree decoration, a wreath or an angel, just as Victorian children may have made. They can also devise their own Christmas menu for Queen Victoria and her family to enjoy on Christmas Day or even dress up as an elegant Victorian stepping out on Christmas morning.

As they tour the Castle, children can take a Christmas family trail and then families can treat themselves to a festive menu at the Undercroft Café.

Throughout December, local school and community choirs will be performing a variety of festive songs and music under the impressive Christmas tree in St George’s Hall.

Activities run daily on a drop-in basis, excluding Tuesdays and Wednesdays

(Saturday, 16 December – Monday, 1 January, 10:00–15:00). The timings of choir performances vary from day to day.

Palace of Holyroodhouse

On a special Christmas activity day, families visiting The King’s official residence in Scotland can join special crafts activities and enjoy local choirs performing festive songs. Children can explore the Palace of Holyroodhouse and view the Christmas displays including a magnificently decorated Christmas tree in the wood-panelled Throne Room and a grand Christmas table display in the Royal Dining Room. 

Taking inspiration from the decorations around the Palace and its beautiful 17th-century plaster ceilings, children can make their own clay decoration for their tree at home in the Palace’s Family Room. Many of the Christmas traditions that we know now were popularised by the Victorians and families can learn more as they try their hand at making a Victorian invention, the Christmas cracker.

By the light of the glittering Nordmann Fir Christmas tree, visitors can see the Great Gallery come to life as they enjoy festive performances by the Edinburgh University Renaissance Singers and the Colonies Choir.

Saturday, 16 December, 10:00–15:00. Choir performances at 11:00 and 14:00.

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Icons To Light Up Nocturne Festival

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With 2023 coming to a close, it’s about time we started looking to next year and the fun we can have once the sun returns.

A surefire hit for music fans is Nocturne Festival with runs from 12th – 16th June at Blenheim Palace. The festival began in 2015 and has played host to music royalty over the years with the likes of Elton John, Kylie, Van Morrison, and Nile Rodgers gracing the stage over the years. With some of the headliners only recently announced we have to say we’re really excited about these shows..

Music legend and pop culture icon Chaka Khan will be performing on June 13th. The 10-time Grammy winner, who is touring in celebration of both her 70th birthday and 50th year in music, will be joined by disco legends Sister Sledge and party-starting funk group The Fatback Band.

Three era-defining British pop acts – Sugababes, Melanie C and Shaznay Lewis hit the stage on June 15th.

Sugababes are one of the most successful British girl bands of all time with six number one singles, multiple platinum selling albums, and numerous awards to their name. Since reforming in 2022 with their original 1998 line up of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan, and Siobhan Donaghy, Sugababes have played at Glastonbury and performed live to over half a million fans.

Melanie C needs no introduction, surely. But just in case…she was in the Spice Girls and was known as the slightly less formal Sporty Spice, or Mel C. Melanie, is far fitting for the auspices of Blenheim Palace, isn’t it? As a solo artist she has over 3 million album sales, two number 1 singles, and six top 10 singles to her name.

Shaznay Lewis was in All Saints.

Sugababes are apparently jazzed to be taking part in this year’s festival, saying, “We are excited to be performing next year at the stunning setting of Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire. To get to play alongside our friends Mel and Shaznay is going to make the evening even more special.”

The third date to be announced features Crowded House, Sheryl Crow and Turin Brakes. This show, on 16th June, has all but sold out, with just a few VIP tickets remaining. So, if you have a quid knocking about and fancy a unique dining experience in the State Rooms of Blenheim Palace, followed by Crowded House, head to the Nocturne Live website. You may be required to rattle your jewellery during Weather With You.

Tickets for all events are available here.

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New High Flying Birds Release

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Noel Gallagher revisits his Oasis B-sides for the latest from The High Flying Birds.

It’s a long-known wisdom that if you want to find the real gold in the Oasis canon, you need to dig around in their B-sides. That’s where you’ll find the likes of Talk Tonight, Round Are Way and Half The World Away. Since the band’s split, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds have filled the void for many, but let’s be honest, even Noel’s most ardent fan must hanker for the days when he graced the stage with his younger brother.

Digging back into his old band’s back catalogue, the High Flying Birds have just ‘unveiled’ their versions of Going Nowhere and The Masterplan, both Oasis B-sides. It’s a move which perhaps suggests that even Noel Gallagher is starting to realise that the well has run dry and the songs he wrote as part of Oasis (a naturally fractious and explosive band) were better than anything he’s done since. Surely, it’s time that the brothers Gallagher sorted themselves out and just got Oasis back together?

Whilst it’s hard to deny the anthemic nature of these songs, it’s fair to say that these retreads lack the passion and excitement Gallagher used to infuse his songs with. Back then, it felt like he was one of us, but now, it feels as if he’s going through the motions; disconnected completely with his roots and his audience.  He is of course, extremely rich, as he noted when winning the best video award for Wonderwall, and we aren’t.

The Masterplan was the flipside to what many consider the pinnacle of the band’s career (Wonderwall). The many are wrong. Oasis never topped the relentless glory of Columbia. All that aside, The Masterplan in its original guise did possess a sense of soaring emotion passion as did Going Nowhere which graced the Stand By Me single.

These new recordings do little to improve on the original versions. Sure, they were recorded at Abbey Road and have layers of orchestration, but there’s still something lacking. To borrow a line from Columbia, “what I heard is not what I hear”. But what do we know? The High Flying Birds have received glowing accolades for their latest album Council Skies and their end of year tour has several sold out dates. We still can’t help but think that everyone would rather Oasis put their differences behind them and got back together.

You can hear the new versions of these songs here. Have a listen and tell us what you think.
Or if you prefer you can watch The Masterplan here and Going Nowhere here.

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Festive fortification tipples for all

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Our wine columnist Giles Luckett suggests some great fortified wines for the season of goodwill

Hello. Christmas is a time for traditions. The tradition of opening a present on Christmas Eve just after you’ve put the sprouts on! Of partners asking you to buy them something you think they’ll like with the surprise being they need to ask if you’ve kept the receipt! To not so much as driving home for Christmas as stuck in traffic for Christmas.

OK, so, some traditions we could all definitely do without, but there’s one tradition that the British have clung to since the late 18th century, which is one to be treasured – enjoying a glass of fortified wine over the festive season. From Port to Madeira and Sherry to something from the New World, there’s a world of fortified diversions out there, and here is my pick of this spirited bunch…

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a glass or two of Tio Pepe (Sainsbury’s £10). Some of my generation are wary of Sherry, but wines like Tio Pepe are increasingly finding favour with younger wine lovers, and it’s easy to see why. Pale, fresh, dry and clean, its combination of abundant pear, watermelon, and apple fruit and savoury, creamy yeast make for an easy-drinking yet wholly satisfying glassful. Try this on its own and with smoked fish or creamy cheese canapés.

If you’re in the mood for something sweet, then why not enjoy something truly indulgent? Pedro Ximenez (PX to his friends) produces gloriously sweet wines such as the Adnams X Sopla Poniente (£10.99 Adnams). This phenomenal mouthful of treacle, butterscotch, liquid caramel, and hazelnuts is a joy on its own, but with enough acidity to prevent it from becoming cloying, it goes down beautifully with strong blue and white cheeses or, as I found, liver pâté.

When most people think of fortified wines, they think of Port, and this year, I discovered the excellent Adnams Finest Reserve (Adnams £15.99). This has to be one of the best everyday drinking Ports I’ve ever tasted. Many entry-level Ports struggle to integrate the spirit and have a hot, disjointed finish, along with overly sweet, one-dimension fruit profiles. The Adnams, however, is luscious, packed full of dried black fruits, blackcurrant conserve, and prunes and has a rounded, seamless finish. If you’re looking for brilliance on a budget, give this a whirl.

Another, less well-known style of Port is White Port. While much of this is fine but forgettable, there are quality-focused producers who are breathing new life into this old-style wine. I tasted the Quinta Da Pedra Alta White Port (Master of Malt £17.42) at the estate in the summer, and it blew me away. Fresh-tasting and bursting with white fruits, apricots and peaches in syrup, the way it managed to combine the sugar and the spirit into the body of the wine to create a luscious yet clean and refreshing whole is remarkable. We tried this with tonic, and it made for a delicious long drink too.

My favourite style of Port is a wood Port, wines that are aged for an extended period in barrel rather than in bottle. This long ageing in cask has the effect of leaching colour, accentuating the freshness and adding a lovely nuts and dried fruit tone to the wines. An excellent example of this is the Kopke 10-Year-Old Tawny (The Secret Bottle Shop £23.95). Deep red-gold, the nose offers an inviting mix of preserved cherries, plums, almonds, spices and candied citrus peel. In the mouth, it’s warming, full, and gentle, but with a wonderfully complex mix of dried fruits, nuts, caramel, smoke, and a clean, tangy acidity. Try this with blue cheeses or fruity desserts.

Fancy something a little different this Christmas? I have just the thing, the Zuccardi Malamado (Tesco £9). This is an Argentinean fortified Malbec – so Argentinean Port, if you will – and it’s amazing. At first, it tastes like a great Malbec, all blackberries, blackcurrants, fresh blueberries, and sweet spices, but then a warm wave of sweetness comes in, adding decadent richness and power. You can drink this with food as though it were a table wine or with hard cheeses; either way, it’s a Christmas cracker.

South Africa built their wine industry on fortified wines, and while they’re not as important these days, the best can still be world-beaters. Take the Kleine Zalze’s Project Z (Noble Green £33). Made from a blend of noble white grapes, this luscious golden sipper is opulently sweet (think marmalade) and offers creamy flavours of dried pears, candied apples, and peaches in syrup, with a lovely hit of lemon peel and lime juice to the finish. Enjoy this chilled with fruity desserts or white cheeses.

Madeira is one of the world’s most misunderstood wines. It isn’t a type of Sherry – it’s 700 miles from Spain and made in a completely different way – it isn’t all sweet, and if it’s an old maid’s wine, then call me Old Maid Giles! Madeira is joy as the Henriques & Henriques 10-Year-Old Sercial (Waitrose £18.99) shows. Sercial is the driest style of Madeira and it’s only after a decade or so in barrel that it reveals its brilliance. Dark amber, the nose offers caramel, roasted nuts, sweet coffee, citrus peel, and grapefruit. On the palate, it’s rich, yet tangy, with honey, green fig, and dried orange and pear tones offset by lemon and lime.

My next recommendation is one of Australia’s great wine originals. Take Muscat grapes (a Petits Grains Rouge, in case you were wondering) and leave them till they are raisins on the vine. Pick and press but stop the fermentation mid-way with spirit to preserve the sugar. Then age them in a Sherry-style ‘solera’ system, and bingo, you have wines like Campbells Rutherglen Muscat (Waitrose £13.99). This golden ‘sticky’ as the Aussies call it, tastes of sultanas laced with spiced honey mixed with citrus peel and given a mocha shot. This unique wine is phenomenal and is an after-dinner delight.

I’ll finish my festive fortified feature with what most wine lovers regard as the ultimate fortified wine, Vintage Port. Vintage Port is a rare wine – they make up about 3% of Port production – made only in the finest years that can only spend 2 years in cask before bottling with their sediment. The resulting behemoths can age for decades (the 1955 Taylor (MWH Wine £420) was amazing in 2022) and offer a level of complexity and elegance no other fortified wine can match. For drinking now, try the Niepoort 1997 (Fareham Wine Cellar £57.50). A great vintage, time has softened this, giving it a red-amber colour with a nose of fruits of the forest, chocolate, cherries, and smoke. In the mouth, it is sumptuous, loaded with black and red berry fruits, black figs, plums, sweet spices, and liquorice. Decant and enjoy on its own with good company.

Well, that’s it from me for 2023. I’ll be back in January with some no-and low-alcohol wine recommendations. So, until then have a fine wine Christmas, and here’s to a happy 2024.

Cheers!

Giles

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Farmer Kaleb Cooper star Q&A

Liz Nicholls

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Liz Nicholls chats to Clarkson’s Farm star & dad Kaleb Cooper, 25, whose book Britain According To Kaleb is out now and whose UK theatre tour starts in January

Q. Nice to see you, Kaleb, where are you now? “Well, as you can see I’m currently in a field. I’ve just jumped off the tractor to speak with you because we’re muckspreading just over there, then you don’t have to heart the tractor buzzing away! I do apologise if you can hear a load of beeping. It’s a busy time of year; we’re doing about 114 hours a week – it’s pretty busy, and doing the other jobs that get missed out during the harvest time.”

Q. How do you keep your energy up? “I think I run on adrenaline. I love doing what I do so it’s never hard to stay out all night or all day, not having a lunch break. I have a dream and I’m going to get to that dream eventually. It’s pushing me to that place. In the back of my head I always say to myself: dreams don’t work unless you do. My dream is to own my own farm. I’d love to get to the point where I can wake up in the morning with my little kids and walk out on to my own farm and say: in that field over there, I’m going to plant wheat in it because I want to, not because anyone else told me to… And that’s the dream!”

Q. Would you like your kids to go into farming? “I’ve got a little boy and a little girl now and I would love them to take it ever but I would never push anyone to do anything they wouldn’t want to do. If they decide they don’t want to do farming but try their luck as a hot-shot lawyer in London, then great… I just hope they know that I’ll never, ever visit!”

Q. You love where you live don’t you? “I love it. Chipping Norton for me is the most amazing place in the world and I’ve always said that. I just hope everyone wakes up in the morning like I do & feels ‘I’m home’. This is my home, this is where I’m going to spend the rest of my life, I hope. If a farm comes up & it’s not too expensive and I can stay close to home, I’ll be happy.”

Q. You’re going to be on the road soon, though… are you nervous? “It’s been work hard, play hard all summer, and I’ve just sat down and thought **** me, I’m going on tour soon, I can’t wait for this. It starts on the 25th January and we’re going everywhere. I am a little bit nervous about it, though, yes, but I hope everyone will be really welcoming and if I get a nosebleed on stage just know it’s normal and it will go away. I don’t like crowds and I think everyone knows I don’t like being touched so I think everyone respects that. It’s a miracle I’ve got two kids!”

Q. What hairdo are you going to go for? “I think I’ve got to bring the perm back don’t you? I miss the curly. This year has been so stressful for me – look at my forehead [lifts fringe] – it’s just growing! I hope it will all be ok.”

Q. How’s Gerald? “Yeah Gerald’s really good – he’s got the mullet still! I would never ever get one, because I’ve got the king of mullets standing by my side. I can’t compete!”

Q. One of the things that endeared you to the nation was how blunt you have always been to Jeremy Clarkson and how you were unfussed by ‘celebrity’. Do you and Jeremy get on in real life? “Yeah. I’ve taught him a little bit of farming; it could me more but he doesn’t listen to me. He’s got a little knowledge and that’s dangerous! But I always say this for him: he’s taught me about the world of television and he’s the most amazing man for that because that man is a TV star, he knows what he’s doing in that world. We do quite a bit together – we go to the pub. If we’ve had an argument the day before we might not see each other for two days. We argue – I don’t think that’s ever going to change! But at the end of the day, I’m right and he’s wrong every time so…”

Q. Apart from the hair, have you changed? “People say I’m a celebrity now, well I’m not! I’m out here in the middle of a field, I don’t believe in celebrity format and I’m no different! People freeze up when they see someone famous but when I see a celebrity I just tell them the truth, which is how I was with Jeremy. I’m a chatty guy, I chat to everyone. I still drive my old beaten-up truck and people are lovely & chatty with me. Nothing’s changed!”

Q. You said you didn’t own any books, and that you hadn’t really read one, so how have you now written two?! “I don’t read books, own books… but I have got a book shelf now and it’s building up slowly – I’ve got The World According to Kaleb on it and now I’ve even got [new book] Britain According to Kaleb, and one of Jeremy’s too! I was a bit nervous about writing a book but I’ve got a recorder I keep in the tractor and as I’m going along doing my jobs, I record what I’ve got to say which is a win-win situation. Then, on a rainy day I can write it all up. There’s been a bit more googling for this book, Britain According To Kaleb, so I apologise if my tractor lines are a bit wonky next spring! I was finding out about different places across the country. Scotland, for example, is a phenomenal place. I thought, ooh, I can go on tour and see all these places and see what farming’s all about around Britain, not just here.”

“Dreams don’t work unless you do”

Kaleb Cooper

Q. Any local traditions you love? “Before I got too busy I used to go to the duck racing… Even though my duck lost I was still smiling at the end of the day and happy for the person who won. And that to me is how you sum up these events – it’s the community coming together and being really happy to all be there together. I’m a bit scared to try the wife-carrying – not because carrying my missus will be hard, but more because I know that if we lose, I’m going to get a b******ing when I get home! My other half is very competitive, you see. I can carry hay bales all day long but when you’re carrying someone precious to you it’s quite scary.”

Q. Can you tell us about your love of cider? “Yes, I don’t drink beer so I drink cider. I don’t yet own a farm but I know where loads and loads of apples are which go to waste every year so I thought why don’t I just pick them up and make my own cider? That’s what I do and I’m very grateful that Henry Weston takes the apples in and I can go with 50kg or 3kg in a bag and they still take it and we make some incredible cider. It’s a very dangerous drink!”

Q. You recently launched an agricultural bursary through the Royal Agricultural University which is great. What would you do to help young farmers? “Thank you, I’m trying to use my influence with young farmers’ groups, bursaries and help like that. But, I’m going to say it again: remember dreams don’t work unless you do. Young people who remember this will fly through the industry and do better than I am!”

Q. Do you still love to sing? “Haha! Stick me in a tractor and I just sing – I can’t help it. Jeremy took me to a concert the other day with The Who and I’ll always love The Wurzels!”

+ Britain According to Kaleb, The Wonderful World of Country Life, by Kaleb, is out now in hardback, ebook & audio. His theatre tour starts on 25th January and includes dates at Reading Hexagon on 25th February & G Live Guildford on 28th February. Book your tickets at Kaleblive.com

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Bond: the man, the myth

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In his first column, author and journalist Michael Smith reveals how much truth there is to 007 James Bond and the inspiration for the legendary secret agent

James Bond is undoubtedly the world’s most famous spy. The 14 Bond books, written by Ian Fleming between 1953 and his death in 1964 ‒ and an astonishing 27 films ‒ have created a lasting legend.

MI6 always insists that 007 is nothing like a real secret agent, or more precisely an “intelligence officer”, the official job title for our spies. There are no “Double O” agents here, they say. No-one with a “licence to kill”. But they do admit that Bond “created a powerful brand for MI6”. Sir Alex Younger, a former C, the real-life equivalent of Fleming’s “M”, has admitted that many of the British secret service’s global counterparts “envy the sheer global recognition of our acronym”.

Despite the denials, a remarkable new biography of Fleming himself demonstrates that an awful lot of the stuff that 007 gets up to did happen during the period that inspired the Bond books and Fleming was better placed than most to know how MI6 operated.

Academics have long been a bit sniffy about Fleming’s wartime career in naval intelligence, but as more and more files have emerged from the archives it has become very clear how central he was. As the key lieutenant to Admiral John Godfrey, the director of naval intelligence, Fleming was his main liaison with MI6, in frequent contact with the then “C”, Stewart Menzies, with the codebreakers at Bletchley Park and with the Special Operations Executive, which operated behind enemy lines and was very much “licensed to kill”.

As someone who has written extensively on both MI6 and Bletchley Park, one of the closest links between Fleming’s wartime work and Bond’s adventures comes in From Russia With Love when Bond is tasked to track down a Russian Spektor cipher machine. His frequent trips to Bletchley Park during the war, where Alan Turing was initially struggling to break the German naval Enigma machine, led Fleming to devise a daring plan to seize one from on board a German warship in the Channel. Operation Ruthless was to be led by a ‘tough bachelor, able to swim’, with Fleming writing his own name alongside that role.

The many fascinating examples of storylines in the Bond books based on Fleming’s personal experience working with MI6 are far too numerous to fit into a small article like this. It would take an entire book to do them justice. Fortunately, we now have one. Ian Fleming: The Complete Man by Nicholas Shakespeare is a fascinating book and a pretty good last-minute Christmas present.

Michael Smith’s latest book The Real Special Relationship: The True Story of How the British and US Secret Services Work Together is out now in paperback.

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Care is not just for Christmas

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Almost 1.5 million people feel more lonely at Christmas than any other time, do what you can to make this one full of love and joy

Christmas is a time of great joy and celebration but for many, especially the elderly, it can be an unwelcome time bringing sadness and loneliness.

It’s important to stay connected with any older friends or relatives, invite them to family get togethers and events, how about an uplifting carol concert or a trip to the panto? A simple outing to a garden centre for example with a seasonal display may make all the difference. Some may be content to enjoy just staying in the warmth and comfort of their own home so always make sure your attentions are welcome, they may not want to join in the excesses of the season.

If there isn’t time to pop round in person, pick up the phone, a tech savvy elderly person may benefit from a video call, just seeing a friendly face can make all the difference. Perhaps set up a rota among yourselves to vary the calls and keep in touch.

Help with the shopping, many grandparents will love the opportunity to spoil their young relations at this time of year, they may need help to seek out suitable gifts. Offer to go shopping with them, many will enjoy having some company on their visit to the supermarket, involve them in your shopping visit, if they’re coming to you for the festive season ask them what they would like to eat too.

Consider their mobility too, icy surfaces and wet conditions can make getting out and about tricky and make elderly people more susceptible to falls. Check their home and access to it is safe to walk on, make sure they have any extra walking aids if necessary and if you’re not able to get them out and about, try a ‘dial-a-ride’ service or other community transport scheme.

You may need some extra support at this hectic time of year. There are plenty of companies and agencies who can provide a helping hand. Perhaps you just need someone to pay your relative a visit, as little or as often can be arranged? A live-in carer will help in the home, offering round-the-clock care for them and peace of mind for you. Respite care offers short-term support. Christmas has many demands on time and if you’re going away this may be an option.

Help make this Christmas a little more joyful for an older person.

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Giles Luckett’s Christmas wine crackers!

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Our wine columnist raises a glass to top tipples for the big day

Hello!  Christmas is said to be the most wonderful time of the year and for wine lovers, I’d say that was definitely the case. It’s that time when you can pull a cork at 11am without people raising eyebrows (or organising an intervention!) and when everyday wines are replaced by fine ones. So, to give you some festive inspiration here are the six Christmas crackers I’ll be pulling out this year.

First up, a fizz.  I’m convinced it’s no coincidence that traditional Christmas breakfast fare perfectly partners sparkling wine. Whether you’re having smoked salmon or eggs Benedict, a glass of fizz is a must. This year I’ll be toasting my smoked salmon on toast with a glass of Balfour 1503 (Majestic £21.99). This English sparkler is delightfully fresh, with plenty of green apples and citrus fruit offset by a pinch of pepper and a twist of thyme before the creamy, yeasty finish.

Suitably restored after my daughter’s excited 5.30am alarm bellow, It’s time to cook. For this I need a sip and run wine that will pique my appetite and year after year I turn to Tio Pepe (£12 Amazon). Quite the most civilised sherry I know, with its arresting, Sauvignon-like crispness, generous pear and melon fruit and creamy hit of yeast, it’s the perfect aperitif and goes brilliantly with all types of canapé and Christmas nibbles.

“There’s no point putting wine with Christmas pudding.”

Giles Luckett

Prep done, it’s time to take a well-earned break and share a glass with the family. This calls for Champagne and I’ll be serving Adnams’ 2012 Vintage Champagne (Adnams £41.99). 2012 was a fantastic year in Champagne, and the extended bottle age this has received has imparted a lovely softness that makes it a real crowd-pleaser. From its inviting nose of dried apples, honey, and lemon to its broad, generous, weighty palate of red apples, melon, peaches and digestive biscuits, this is a class act.

The turkey’s resting (no idea why, it’s me that’s done all the work) so it’s time to open the wines for the main event. I like to have a white and a red on the table, the latter being perfect for brown meat lovers, and this year I’ll have the Organist Chardonnay 2022 (£26 Ocado) and the Miguel Torres Vigno Carignan (Waitrose £13.99). 

The Organist cleverly balances intense, bold, fruit tones of baked apple, peach, and grapefruit with a luscious, buttery vanilla imparted by the oak ageing. This allows it to balance the breast’s natural dryness while bringing out the flavour without overpowering it. The Vigno on the other hand is a dark, juicy wine whose ample blackberry and loganberry character cuts through leg and wing’s gaminess while its dried herb tones add another dimension to it.

And to finish. There’s no point putting wine with Christmas pudding. Trust me, I’ve tried everything from Sauternes to Madeira and all get lost like the one of the kid’s presents by Boxing Day. After the pud’s done, however, I’m going to settle myself down with a glass of the Ned Noble Sauvignon Blanc (Ocado £14). I tried this little sweetie earlier this year and I was hugely impressed.  Opulently rich with flavours of barley sugar, pineapple, caramel, and dried pears, it has a cleansing gooseberry and lime acidity that stops it being cloying. Try this with full-flavoured cheeses – if you can find the room!

Well, here’s to a merry Christmas and a fantastic 2024.

Cheers! Giles

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The Christmas Cactus

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Each year the garden centres are brightened up by beautiful houseplants and bulbs to cheer us up as gardening becomes less appealing! Cathie Welch takes a look at one of her favourites, the Christmas Cactus.

In fact this is not a cactus at all but instead an epiphytic succulent which in it’s true habitat grows on trees as do some orchids do. It’s not hardy in this country so is grown as a houseplant. There are two main types grown commercially Schlumbergera truncate and S. x buckleyi which is a species cross. Sometimes you see them named as Zygocactus which is an old name and the one I learnt as a child. If you look carefully you will notice that the leaves vary and they come in an array of beautiful colours now

Caring for your ‘Christmas Cactus’

The reason it is so called is due to the fact that it is stimulated into flower by shorter days and lower temperatures so often naturally in flower at this time of the year. Don’t be surprised it flowers again in the spring when the day lengths are the same again. Then they are sold as Easter cacti.

One of the most important things to know is that they form their buds in the autumn and these can drop off due to changes in temperature such as buying your plant and bringing it home. This can be very annoying but it will adapt to its new environment. After flowering allow it to rest and it can even go outside in the summer. Ideally pot up into cactus compost of a mixture of potting compost with horticultural grit/sand. They need light but not scorching sun as they can shrivel and burn. Remember in the wild they are amongst trees so dappled sunlight best.

Propagation

If you are successful with your plant it will reward you by growing bigger and producing may flowers each year. If the plant becomes congested you can prune out old branches and propagate from the young shoots. Make sure you cut to include full leaves and allow to dry. Pot into free draining compost and place on a light windowsill or in a greenhouse. These should root in a few weeks and then you have Christmas gifts for all your friends and relatives!

CGS Courses

Christmas gift vouchers available for consultancies and workshops.

The course running from January through to Easter is pruning in your gardens and mine but we also do some plant identification on wet days.

Please do come and meet me to discuss courses, volunteering and anything else garden related!

Website www.cathiesgardeningschool.co.uk

[email protected]

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Our wine columnist Giles Luckett raises a glass to the best Champagnes for party season

Hello! I’m in agreement with Andy Williams on Christmas being the most wonderful time of the year – though whether that time starts in October as the shops would have us believe is open to debate. What isn’t up for debate is that Christmas calls for champagne, and in this month’s column I’m running down my top 10 Christmas champagnes. So, without further ado…

10. Waitrose Non-Vintage (£21.99) – in my experience buyer’s own brand (BOB) champagnes can be disappointing – especially when it comes to supermarket wines. For some it seems the main aim is hitting a low price point with the wine’s quality coming second. Waitrose’s, however, is consistently excellent. Medium-bodied with lovely peach and apple fruit, a rich seam of creamy yeast runs through to the clean, red berry finish. This versatile wine makes for a stylish aperitif or goes well with white cheeses.

9. Graham Beck Pinot Noir Rosé (Majestic £18.99) – OK so technically this isn’t a champagne, unless the Champagne AC’s expansion has taken it to South Africa, but this is of champagne quality hence I’ve included it.  Deep pink, the nose offers an abundance of blossoms, cherries, red fruits, limes and biscuity yeast. On the palate its weighty, fruit-laden – strawberries ad raspberries – with a lovely cherry sherbet finish. Serve this with smoked salmon or savoury canapés.

8. Adnams’ Selection Rosé Champagne (Adnams £33.99) – this is a champagne, and a very fine one at that. Produced by Champagne Blin, this is a traditional style of rosé, being full yet refined, fruity, yet dry. Opening with a nose of dried raspberries, strawberries, and buttery brioche, the palate offers pure, slightly savoury, raspberries and boysenberry flavours, followed by touch of blackcurrants and finishing with a taut, chalky finish. This is one of the best value champagnes I’ve seen in a long while.

7. Taittinger Prélude Grands Crus (Amazon £55) – Taittinger’s Prélude is a fascinating wine, and one that’s as much about the mind as the mouth.  Made from 50% Chardonnay and 50% Pinot Noir from Grand Cru vineyards, it all sounds very classical. The twist is that It’s aged for five years in Taittinger’s magnificent chalk cellars (much longer than usual) before release.  This drives a seam of yeast and savoury minerals through the apple, citrus, rhubarb and peach fruits, adding even more complexity and depth. A stylish aperitif, we had this with turkey last year and it was sensational.

6. Gosset Petite Douceur Rosé (Waitrose £59.99) – Gosset’s champagnes are things of rare beauty – and I don’t just mean the bottles – but this was love at first sip. Gosset’s wines are all about precision. Tiny bubbles, perfectly delineated fruit and a balance a tight rope walker would envy. This new wine takes their wines in a new direction by subtly ramping up the sweetness.  Now while this is by no means sweet, there’s a sweeter tone to the red and white berry fruit, as flavours of orange and kiwi come through, and there’s honeyed hint to the long, grapefruit and white peach finish. A superb after supper sipper, it would partner fruit tarts and petit fours perfectly.

5. Palmer & Co Blanc de Blancs Brut (Waitrose £53.99) – the best Blanc de Blancs champagnes – that is ones made from only white grapes – offer a subtler, more delicate style of wine. My recent encounter with the Palmer Blanc de Blancs reminded me that what these wines lack in power, they more than make up for in complexity. From the Palmer’s mid-gold body emerges notes of pears, hawthorn blossom and milk toast. Initially fresh and lively, it soon develops a quiet intensity in the form of baked apples, hazelnuts, peaches, and fresh vanilla cream. Sip this beauty on its own or with seafood. 

4. Champagne Piaff Rosé (Master of Malt £52) has been another delightful discovery of 2023. A blend of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier, it has a very ‘winey’ tone. By that I mean that is it is both full-flavoured and well-structured like a still wine. Salmon coloured, the nose combines fresh strawberries and cherries with savoury strains of beetroot and bread. The palate’s broad, with complimentary tones of red berries, black cherries, and lemons coming together at the finish with a creamy yeast touch. Try this with cold cooked meats or fish pâté.

3. Next I want to recommend a wine by Bruno Paillard. I was going to say try their Première Cuvée (Vinum £46.40) but in the spirit of giving an alternative view, I’ve gone for the Bruno Paillard Blanc de Noir Grand Cru (Wanderlust Wine £66.90). Released this year, this is made from 100% Pinot Noir and marries power with precision. The nose offers an enticing notes of roses, pink grapefruit and smoke.  The palate, while firm and weighty, is precise, rounded, and packed with fruits of the forest, cherries, and loganberries with a hint of clove. On the long finish are fresh red fruits with their signature shot of salinity. 

2. Dom Perignon is one of those wines that every wine lover should try to try at least once. I’ve been fortunate to enough to have had multiple vintages of this exceptional wine, but my recent encounter with the Dom Perignon 2013 (Waitrose £195) left me feeling this was the best young Dom Perignon I’ve ever tasted. Generous and welcoming, everything is perfectly appointed and perfectly rounded.  Soft as a satisfied sigh, the white plum, peach, and apricot fruit mingle seamlessly with gentle spices, highlights of alpine strawberries, and cool minty notes to crisp, nuanced finish. Try this on its own. Or better still, on your own!

1. While all the wines on this list are amazing, the Dom Ruinart 2010 (The Champagne Company £256) is just magnificent. The bouquet blends brioche, white berries, pears, and citrus with yeast.  In the mouth, it’s extraordinarily rich, layered, and full, yet precise and poised. Creamy tones of melon, green pears, apricot, orange, vanilla, chalk, and gentle spices come together to create a mesmerising mouthful. Youthful and sleek, this has a long, long life ahead of it, but if like me you enjoy your champagne young and vibrant, then this is perfect.  Yes, it’s expensive, but for those special occasions, to my mind, this is worth it.

Well, I hope you will have a fine Christmas and enjoy some fine wines along the way.

More soon….

Giles

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