Wines in the Press December. 13-14

Published: 15 December, 2008

Jancis fortifies her readers with sherry and port suggestions; Jane goes upmarket while Joanna is on a budget - and Tim has the swagger of a man who knows he's getting two Christmas dinners

Jancis Robinson MW, Financial Times, Saturday 13 December 2008
It's the turn of fortifieds in Jancis Robinson's four-part guide to Christmas wines. Equipo Navazos, La Bota de Manzanilla 8 Las Canas NV Manzanilla Sherry is an "intensely thrilling single cask of condensed sea air" (£18, Theatre of Wine) while Sainsbury's Taste the Difference 12 Year Old Oloroso Sherry
(£6.99 for 50cl) is praised for being "ridiculously cheap" and a partial compensation for the retailer's "lacklustre" table wine range.

D'Arenberg's Noble Riesling 2006 "smells of raisins macerated in Earl Grey tea" (£8.99, Hailsham Cellars). Noval 10 Year Old Tawny Port, meanwhile (£15.17, Corks Out) is "exceptionally vibrant and fresh yet as soothing as a head massage".

Jane MacQuitty, The Times, Saturday 13 December 2008
Jane MacQuitty's latest round of festive recommendations ventures beyond the £12 price point. The star white is Mercurey Les Bacs 2005,Château Génot-Boulanger (£20.99, Wine Rack).

MacQuitty is impressed by the small estate's "brilliant" wine, which she suggests could help challenge perceptions of Mercurey as a source purely of red Burgundy. "It's lively, yet lingeringly ripe," she enthuses. "Sweet, hazelnut and glacé fruit flavours make a dreamy festive white."

The star red, meanwhile, is Château Puy-Blanquet 2001, St-Emilion Grand Cru (£15.95, Tanners), which is "a gorgeous, cedarwood-scented red supported by lots of perfumed, plummy, exotic, spiced fruit".

Joanna Simon, The Sunday Times, Sunday 14 December 2008
Simon's budget-conscious Christmas recommendations include beers and ciders as well as two vodkas and a cachaça.

On the wine front, she endorses Autentico Lambrusco Reggiano (£7.49, Marks & Spencer) as "a great party fizz". Among the Champagne recommendations is Veuve Monsigny Champagne (£9.99, Aldi), which has "easy-going nutty, apply flavours". Simon concludes that "nobody can be making any money out of this".

Tim Atkin MW, The Observer, Sunday 14 December 2008
Tim Atkin will be enjoying Christmas dinner twice, he reports - once in his native SW18 and again on the day itself in South Africa.

At both locations Atkin intends to "drink local" and buy locally too. At home, the wine Atkin is most looking forward to is La Rioja Alta Gran Reserva 904, 1995 (£20 each for two, Majestic). "Some people, not least in Rioja itself, might consider this red wine a little old-fashioned," Atkin admits. "To me, it is utterly delicious: scented and gamey with subtle vanilla oak, leafy tannins, fresh acidity and a core of mature, red fruits sweetness."

Among Atkin's South African choices are "the Cape's best Chenin: the rich, exotic, honeyed, nutty, oak-fermented 2007 Ken Forrester The FMC Chenin Blanc" (£16.99, Tesco). Atkin will be focusing on Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin and Syrah. "There will be no room at this particular inn for South African Pinotage, Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay, all three of which are generally overrated," he explains.