It’s a tough job but someone has to do it, scouring the finest terroirs in the greatest regions of France. Selecting only from the great names in French wine, handpicking wines that will delight your guests and have you transported to that little bistro in Paris that stole your heart.

 

Picture the scene. The table is set with your finest cutlery and glassware. Guests begin to arrive and are handed a glass of the stunning 2011 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs Champagne. The palpable excitement begins to build as they discuss its youthful vibrancy, the interplay of the savoury spice. The seductive mouthfeel. This is a vinous delight that once tasted is never forgotten. This is a wine that will work with almost any dish you’d care to serve as a starter. Feeling classic? Source the very freshest oysters from your local fishmonger. Looking to throw convention out the window? Southern-style fried chicken, a bump of caviar and a glass of 2011 Taittinger Comtes de Champagne… Now that is a devilishly delicious experience you’ll be talking about for years to come.

 

When you’ve been making exceptional wines since 1626 it’s no surprise that you are one of the world’s most well respected wine dynasty’s. The Trimbach family vineyards, now managed with care and sensitivity by the 11th generation of custodians, arguably produces some of the world’s finest wines from its stellar selection of Grand Cru vineyards in Alsace. Hopefully you haven’t eaten all of those achingly fresh oysters, that heady flavour rush of ocean spray with a hint of finger lime caviar would be the perfect foil for the perfectly-aged 2014 TRIMBACH Cuvee Frederic Emile Riesling. Time has added entrancing depth and complexity to this bright and racy regional benchmark.

 

My final two recommendations arrive with a delicious twist. Vitello Tonnato is a signature dish of the Piedmontese, traditionally served as a starter. But give it star billing on the main course centre stage with these next two world class wines. They will respect your boundary-pushing choices and it won’t be long before you’ll be reaching god-like wine geek status with your guests. The beguiling savoury and umami characters of the Vitello Tonnato will heighten the fruit expression and flavour complexity of these superb selections. The purity of the fruit expressed by the 2016 Domaine Trapet Pere & Fils Gevrey-Chambertin Ostréa is jaw dropping, while the 2020 Domaine Belle Les Pierrelles, Crozes-Hermitage is so good it has you questioning why Jeb Dunnuck was so stingy giving the wine 93 points!

 

 

Sharing delicious discoveries with friends and family is one of life’s truest pleasures. As the weather cools, and the leaves turn, the desire to get a little more cosy gets stronger. And there might be nothing finer than getting cosy with a superb wine from one of France’s heralded communes. I hope you enjoy these wines, and can’t wait to share my favourite Winter Warmers in the coming months.

Cheers
Ben Moroney
Wine writer