What top sommeliers were uncorking over Christmas
Christmas is the perfect excuse - if ever one was needed - to open a bottle of something really special. Whether it's vintage Champagne or Bordeaux Grand Cru, it’s that time of year when its (almost) acceptable to start drinking in the morning – and who are we to object? We caught up with some top sommeliers and leading wine experts, including several of Star Wine List’s ambassadors around the world, and asked them what they were planning on opening over Christmas - and who they'd be sharing it with. This is what they revealed about their drinking intentions for the festive period.
Eleftherios Hanialidis, MS, sommelier and Star Wine List's Greece ambassador
It’s a very busy time of the year in Greece, and we are used to not celebrating like others. We knew it going into this line of work and we enjoy it in a way! We celebrate after service with close friends and family in our houses. Special bottles we intend to open include: Bruno Paillard Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru, Weingut Nikolaihof Vinothek Riesling “Fass Severin” 1997, Thymiopoulos Kaiafas 2017, Château La Lagune 2010, and Domaine Huet Le Mont Moelleux 2006. Guests tend to open a wide variety of different wines at this time of year, and of course sparkling wines are the most popular though a lot of red wines are also drunk at this time.
Kathrine Larsen-Robert, Master Sommelier
My go-to wine on a night off is usually champagne - it is refreshing and uplifting, and at the same time can be enormously complex. For Christmas Day, it will definitely be Champagne, but also red Bordeaux which is my comfort zone wine - in my opinion when good the most balanced complex and enticing of reds.
Eros Teboni, sommelier, Italy
Christmas for me is 100% family time, spending peaceful moments together and sharing dinner and lunches with the people I love most. The choice of wine will be made by walking through the cellar the day before, I know where I have hidden ready-to-drink vintages, and depending on the menu, I always try to choose something appropriate.
Matteo Montone, MS, group wine director, Estelle and Gleneagles
This year I will not be working over Christmas but will be spending a week in the Dolomites with my wife and kids. At the moment I am really into Montalcino which I believe is the most exciting wine region right now and is producing some of the best wines in the world. I have placed an order to be shipped directly to the flat where I will be in the Dolomites and this will include some Rosso and Brunello from my favourites producers Marroneto, Stella di Campalto, Cupano and Ragnaie. I think that on Christmas day I will probably open a Brunello and on the other days some Rosso di Montalcino, which I also particularly like, though it is often overlooked in favour to Brunello.
Aitor Maiztegi, head sommelier at Azurmundi in Bilbao and Star Wine List’s ambassador for the Basque region
Fortunately we are on holiday every Christmas. I will be drinking Champagne with family and friends to continue the Christmas tradition as well as some good red wine. I honestly haven't thought about exactly which other wines to drink yet, but I'm sure we'll choose something special. As for guests, we always accompany our meals with sparkling and red wines.
Former sommelier Doug Wregg, now sales and marketing director of importer, distributor and agent Caves de Pyrene
I always enjoying drinking a good brut nature grower’s champagne on Christmas day and this year will be no different – it will be a Blanc de Noirs from biodynamic producer Hugues Godme. When I am cooking, I’m afraid I’ll be guzzling it like lemonade. For Christmas lunch, I will start with a glass of fizz, then to accompany a smoked fish starter, a delicious Chablis shimmering with tension (the wines of Alice & Olivier de Moor are firm favourites). I will decide on the day for the main event, but it will probably be a red Burgundy or an Oregon Pinot Noir from my friend Kelley Fox, nothing complicated or heavy, but one with bags of red fruit. I avoid anything full-bodied, obvious, or oaky – wine is in the background rather than the foreground of Christmas celebrations!
Erica Taylor, general manager, South African Sommeliers Association and Star Wine List's Cape Town ambassador
I am joyfully off work for the holidays and I will be sipping some lekker South African white wines to keep cool! A few favourites in my stock are Chris Alheit’s Gone South, Keep on Punching from Craig Hawkins of Testalonga, and one of my faves, the Ava Marie from Restless River.
Heidi Mäkinen MW, Star Wine List's Finland ambassador
I will be relaxing with the family over Christmas, hopefully being able to exercise everyday as well - running, skiing and snowshoeing! My Christmas wines will compose of bubbles, German rieslings and some fuller-bodied reds my family likes. Not to forget sherry, which is one of my favourite wine styles! I love sipping dry sherry after the meal whilst snacking on cheese.
Job Seuren, co-owner of Zoldering Restaurant in Amsterdam and Star Wine List's Netherlands ambassador
Over the festive period we serve a lot of aged Bordeaux (we bought quite a few cases of Rollan de By 2000, La Grave a Pomerol 1994, Certan de May 1996, Haut Brion 1985, Moulin St Georges 2009 and 2010 and many other things, and I love to drink it for Christmas too). We will be celebrating with friends who come over from France, and we have a 1966 Fonseca port lined up for our own Christmas dinner, as well as a Brunello from Santa Maria 2007, Puligny-Montrachet 2007 from Carillon and a 1990 Montrose. In other words: the classics. The rest of the week we will be in Valencia, so I’m sure many Spanish wines will come by, and looking forward to discovering new things at Ca Pepico. For New Year’s Eve lots of Champagne will be on the menu, with Krug being a big favourite, though we love serving one of our favourite small scale producers Marguet, Lagille and Seleque.
Emma Farrelly, director of wine and beverages, State Buildings, Perth, Australia, Star Wine List ambassador
It’s looking to be a hot one here in Perth with a current expected forecast of 37 degrees Celsius. This means early swims at the beach, followed by a long lunch of cold seafood and fresh salads, Porchetta on the rotisserie and plenty of fresh cherries! I always start Christmas Day with Champagne and will move onto fresh Italian whites such as Lugana and Verdicchio. In the evening I will most likely move to Victorian or Tasmanian Pinot Noir with a light chill.
Arvid Lundström, sommelier at PM & Vänner in Växjö, and Star Wine List’s ambassador for Southeast Sweden
This Christmas I have been taking a few days off to spend with family and friends. Instead I will work for New Year's which is a lovely night at PM & Vänner when we welcome guests from far and wide. It is a great night for work, everyone is in a festive mood and we tend to open a bunch of great Champagnes! As for myself as a Swede the aquavit will not be far away. We celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve, and in my family we get together the night before for a small gathering with a three course dinner at our place. Christmas is a time for heartful food and soulful wines so this year I am going to cook poulet à la moutarde which I will pair with the lovely 2021 Alberto Orte, Tintilla 'Vara y Pulgar'. Might this be my combination of the year? I certainly think so! On the 27th me and a couple of fellow chefs and sommeliers will have an eight hands dinner where the chefs prepare the food and the sommeliers pick some bottles that we have savoured for special occasions to go along. This time I am especially looking forward to open inga bottle of 2001 Clos des Papes, Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
Ketil Sauer, Star Wine List ambassador for Denmark
My wife, Nina, and I will be volunteers attending "Ønskejul" - (Christmas Wishes), a yearly charity event where families in need of support are treated to a Christmas Eve with all the trimmings. The charity was founded by Rasmus Munk at Alchemist and has been operating together with charity organizations, volunteers, and sponsors since 2012. Therefore I don’t actually know what we will be serving or drinking since it depends on the sponsors!
Amanda Barnes, Star Wine List ambassador for Mendoza
I'll be working over Christmas and on the 25th I'll be up at the crack of dawn to take the 1,200 km trip from Mendoza by air and dirt road on land to the tippy top heights of the Andes in Salta, where I'm visiting Colome winery to interview the owners. So I'll likely be celebrating at high altitude (their vineyards reach over 3,100 m.a.s.l.!) with a perfumed Torrontes followed by rich, mountain Malbec. No doubt there will be steak involved at some point too.
Antoine Lehebel, sommelier, Star Wine List Brussels ambassador
I'll be away for Christmas with the family, and I have not planned to drink anything special, but on the 31st we are gathering in Brussels with good friends and we will drink a couple of bottles of some good stuff. Obviously they trust me with the wines, and I love to help them discover new things. Favourites include Gusbourne sparkling brut rosé 2018; Cervaro della sala 2017 Chardonnay; DO Calatayud 2020, Vina Alarba from Las Pizzaras. We took over a cellar in Aluenda/Calatayud in Spain 3 years ago and this is is one of my favourite cuvées: 100% old garnachas on slate soils, really brilliant with great potential. And obviously we'll have it in a magnum!
Gunnar Skoglund, communications manager for Vinarius and Star Wine List ambassador for Oslo
I will be enjoying my days off during the festive season and celebrating with my family in the high north of Norway (north of the Arctic Circle). There will be wine, for sure – Champagnes (of course), and my fair share of dry rieslings (pairing really well with Norwegian Christmas dishes), Greek reds most definitely (Thymiopoulos, Lyrarakis and Karavitakis), and also some artisanal Norwegian apple ciders (Hardangergutane).
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