Drinks cabinet
Mae West once said: "Too much of a good thing is wonderful." I couldn't agree more. A lovely, rich dessert alongside an unctuous sweet wine, and I'm in heaven.
There are many different styles of pudding wine available, from the heavy liqueur Muscats and heavenly Pedro Ximenez (PX) sherries, through various late harvest offerings from Australia and Chile to the dizzy heights of Sauternes and the Loire. And then, of course, there's Germany. And through my tireless research (all on your behalf, of course), I have come up with a few gems to recommend for your Christmas table.
First, a quick guide for food matching. The only rule is that the wine should be at least as sweet as the dessert, otherwise it will taste thin and tart. And don't feel limited by puddings. Sweet wines also go with savoury dishes, so get out there and experiment. Try scallops with a demi-sec Vouvray from the Loire, or pair your Christmas goose with a German Riesling Spatlese (meaning late harvest.) Inverarity's Kanzemer Altenberg Riesling Spatlese 1996 by Von Othegraven (£14.99 bin end) is drinking perfectly right now.
Geoff's white chocolate mousse is a tricky one to match as chocolate has a habit of coating the palate so that you can't taste the wine. I would try a Muscat de Beaumes de Venise from the Rhone Valley, and Majestic carry the rather excellent Domaine de Coyeux 2002 (£5.99, half bottle) which has attractive floral and honey notes and a beautifully delicate finish.
PX sherry is worth a special mention at this time of year. Forget the dusty old bottle of cream sherry that you keep at the back of the cupboard for Aunt Marjorie, and treat yourself to a bottle of PX Triana (£16.49, Inverarity One to One). Imagine putting a christmas pudding in a blender with a touch of treacle and you're starting to get near the intensity of this amazing wine. Simply pour over a good vanilla ice cream for an easy and satisfying dessert.
German wine labels can appear intimidating, but there are a few things to look out for. QmP on the label is a good start as it indicates a quality wine from a specific region, similar to the French AC system. Spatleses and Ausleses tend to be sweeter, and Trockenbeerenausleses sweeter still. Check the ABV too, as lower alcohol tends to indicate a sweeter wine. Mosel and Rheingau are two areas worth exploring and Ernie Loosen and Johann Leitz are two of my favourite producers. One more thing, if the label mentions Sonnenuhr (sundial), the wine will come from a good south-facing site and the quality will be higher as a result.
Aldi's have an impressive selection of sweet wines at frankly unbelievable prices. Their St Amandus Beerenauslese from Rheinhessen has lovely peachy fruit and decent acidity and comes in at £3.99 for 50cl. Also worth trying is the Chateau Romer du Hayot 2004, a worthy Sauternes at £6.99 a half bottle.
If you only buy one bottle of sweet wine this year it should be Inverarity's Chateau du Cros Loupiac (£8.99, half bottle). As with all sweet wines the most important thing is the acidity balance, without which the wine would be cloying. Also a good all-rounder, the Loupiac is equally at home partnering cheese, foie gras and fish in a creamy sauce.