The end-of-year season is approaching fast. Some of you may have already thought about your meals and table decorations, but what about your food and wine pairings? Christmas is the perfect time to propose your best pairings, from starter to dessert. It’s a time for sharing with friends and family, and what better way to do it than with one of our three wines. For the less inspired among you, as well as for those with foresight, we invite you to discover the perfect Christmas food and wine pairings from our General Manager José Sanfins and our Technical Director Gaël Crespy.
The starter
For José, Alto 2019 will match perfectly with a red mulet filet. Indeed, Alto’s iodine and mineral character will pair with the freshness and sweetness of the mullet. As for Gaël, she’s more tempted by BriO 2018 on a Périgourdine tourtière. BriO’s fruitiness and gourmandise will pair with the tourtière, highlighting the union of duck confit, porcini mushrooms and salsify: a rounded alliance.
For the starter, our two technicians kept things simple, one in a delicate harmony with Alto, the other in gourmandise with BriO.
For the main course
Gaël Crespy suggest a less conventional dish, but just as delightful : a lovely black truffle omelette with Château Cantenac Brown 2015, her favorite vintage at the estate. It’s a simple, effective receipe that brings together flavors in a classy and unforgettable way. As a native of the Périgord region, she confides that her Christmas meal must combine the pleasures of Château Cantenac Brown wines and Périgord gastronomy.
For José Sanfins, the perfect christmas receipe is a warm and authentic one. With a magnum of Château Cantenac Brown 2000 (decanted 1 hour before your meal), he suggests a roast wild boar with a gratin dauphinois. The roast will be sublimated by the spicy, woody aromas of this very fine vintage of the new century. Its velvety tannins will almost give you the impression that it is sweet.
For the main course, you can choose between two styles: a more classic one with a roast, and a more original one that is just as delicious. What is certain is that the aromatic complexity, roundness, silky tannins and fleshy, velvety character of Château Cantenac Brown will delight your guests on the main course, whatever the vintage.
The final touch
Among the gourmets at your Chritmas party will be those who love cheese, dessert or both. For cheese, Gaël Crespy suggests pairing Alto 2021 with cabécou and walnuts. The minerality of Alto will exacerbate the aromas of the goat’s cheese, enhanced by the Périgord walnut. But the dinner doesn’t end here, a great dessert for José Sanfins’ would be an homemade apple tart. This time he decided to turn east and pair it with a Tokai Aszù from the Disnoko estate, a nod to his family meals.
Here are a few ideas that we hope will inspire you for your Christmas parties. We wish you all the best for the 2023 christmas season, and look forward to seeing you in 2024.