We go to so much trouble at Christmas to prepare delicious meals and feed our friends and family.  It makes sense that people go to a lot of effort to select the right wines to go with the food – it really adds to the sense of occasion.  Here’s our guide to selecting wines for your festive needs.

Pre-dinner. The aim of an aperitif is to stimulate the appetite and to make your guests feel relaxed and pampered – something dry and light is required hence the popularity of champagne and sparkling wine.  Budget is likely to dictate your choices, so with a selection of fizz at 15% discount, you are bound to find something to suit your palate and your purse.  If fizz is not your thing, a dry Riesling (such as Donnhoff QbA Dry or Pikes Riesling from Australia) would be just the thing to whet the appetite.  And don’t dismiss the idea of a dry sherry (it’s not just for old ladies) – a glass of chilled dry sherry such as La Gitana Manzanilla is the perfect pre-dinner drink, especially with some olives or salted almonds.

With Starter Smoked salmon is a popular choice at this time of year and it goes deliciously withchampagne, but perhaps more surprisingly with Manzanilla sherry.  For a dry white wine look no further than a Spanish Albariño – a deliciously plump, white fleshed fruit-flavoured wine with delicious purity and a very clean, fresh finish.

Christmas Dinner. It’s quite a tricky job to match a wine to the vast array of flavours going on at the Christmas table.  One thing is certain, you need a wine with flavour and body to stand up to all and not get completely lost.  The most popular choice of white is Chardonnay – it has enough flavour, richness and opulence to cope with the roast potatoes, the turkey and all the trimmings.  If you want something classic and traditional, a white wine from Burgundy is the place to look – our top choices are Beauregard Pouilly Fuissé Classique from the Maconnais region, Patrick Javillier Cuvée Oligocene(vineyards just beside Meursault, a fabulous wine for those in the know), or Vincent Girardin Meursault VV 2006.   If you prefer a fruitier wine from a warmer climate, Dog Point Chardonnay from Marlborough in NZ, Rustenberg Chardonnay from South Africa or the deliciously decadent Rochioli Chardonnay from California are all fabulous wines that will delight your guests.

If Chardonnay is not your favourite wine, you still need something with body and flavour to complement your meal.  Pinot Grigio is very popular but too light to really work with Christmas dinner.  It’s a fantastic idea to switch to a Pinot Gris (which is actually just a different name for Pinot Grigio) from Alsace or even New Zealand.  These are richer, more textured versions of the much loved Italian wines and will work brilliantly with dinner.  Some of our favourites are Olivier Humbrecht’s Pinot Gris Calcaire or Pinot Gris Rotenberg from Alsace or Neudorf’s Maggie’s Block Pinot Gris or Moutere Pinot Gris from Nelson in New Zealand.  All these are soft yet fresh with deliciously pure fruit and a plump, comforting texture.

For a red wine you need something flavoursome, but not too heavy or tannic.  Pinot Noir and Gamay are great wines to go with fowl as they fulfil these criteria perfectly.  The red wines of Burgundy are the classic choice and there are plenty of options.  Vincent Girardin reds are soft and very fruity and suit most palates; his Savigny les Serpentières 09 is a great example of his style.  Jean Tardy’s wines are perhaps more expressive of their terroir – Fixin and Hautes Cotes de Nuits are excellent introductions to his style of winemaking and if you want a real treat go for one of his village wines, whichever is your favourite (mine’s Vosne Romanée if anyone’s interested).  Moving south through Burgundy into Beaujolais you will find a treasure trove of wines that offer really excellent value for money and are similarly softly structured and delicate.  The Domaine Rochette wines are particularly popular with us – try the Brouilly or Beaujolais Villages.

New Zealand is another excellent source of good Pinot Noir; the slightly cooler climates of Marlborough and Central Otago are very well suited to this variety. The wines are denser and exhibit more concentrated fruit flavours but are still low in tannins and soft in texture.  Dog Point, Neudorf, Forrest and Mount Edward all fit the bill.

Post Dinner A glass of something sweet to go with pudding is a decadent treat.  With a fruit based pudding, a dessert wine made from Riesling is an excellent choice.  Dr Loosen’s Beerenauslese is the perfect size for a small dinner party and comes in a very festive enclosure if you’re looking for gift inspiration.  Alternatively, you may want the more honeyed flavours of Cyprès de Climens or one of our Sauternes.

With Christmas pudding and mince pies, a tawny port might be more appropriate. Ramos Pinto 20 year old tawny is far and away the number one choice with JN staff.  It’s extraordinarily versatile and is just as comfortable on its own as it is with chocolate, caramel, toffee, dried fruit, spices or blue cheese.

Whatever you choose to drink this festive season, we hope you have a very merry Christmas indeed.