Adventures In Wine

Rather than blockbuster wines for the main event, Jason’s focus for his Christmas 2020 selection is that stalwart behind the scenes, who’s on kitchen duty while everyone else is on the Jenga and the gin. These are wines, he says, that you should have ‘knocking about it the kitchen’; wines that won’t break the bank and will ease those long hours over the brussels but also segue nicely onto the table should the need arise. First up is a bottle-fermented Crémant du Jura, from Valerie and Jean-Christophe Tissot. ‘Creamy, zesty, citrus,’ says Jason. ‘Under-priced,’ says Jancis Robertson. ‘I don’t mind,’ says David. Look on the label of some of the least fine wines on the market and you’ll find that Chardonnay is often the culprit. It’s also responsible for some of the best, though, and Stephane Brocard's 2018 Bourgogne Chardonnay is justifiably, a gold medal winner with a nervy minerality, that’s beautifully balanced with green apple aromas. It may be crying out for oysters, but David’s just crying out for another