Dominic Regan shares some festive tips on wine, accoutrements & sources
Before dealing with content, a few tips about accoutrements. Wine glasses can be horrifically expensive. My two reliable sources are TK Maxx and IKEA; the latter currently stocks stemless glasses (tumblers) that are similar in shape to the gorgeous Riedel ones but are £2.50, not £15.
Those large lever-action corkscrews which cost over £80 can be bought on Amazon for £20, and are absolutely fine. While on the Amazon site, buy the 2018 pocket sized Hugh Johnson’s wine book for £3.99, rather than for the £12.99 recommended price. It is a work of genius, and has sold more than 12 million copies over the years. It is my bible and gives guidance on vintages, producers and which food goes with which wine. Indian curry and champagne is a decadent combination.
Let us open a few bottles
I shall start with fizz. Decent champagne is always a treat; be wary of very cheap supermarket bottles.
- The best cheap one I know is a Tesco exclusive, Louis Delaunay, at £12. I have served it
