The Christmas time pilgrimage to Whittard

Every Christmas my wife and I make our regular pilgrimage to Whittard.

We both buy some of the delicious coffees (which we grind in the coffee grinder we bought from Whittard in our first visit more years ago than we care to remember!)  some teas (the instant teas and the loose leaf teas) and some of the drinking chocolates for me (White Winter is my favourite)  as my wife doesn't like chocolate.

We also like to buy some of the other items that one finds on a visit to Whittard. 

Tea and cup trays sets, biscuits and the like and every tray that we own came from Whittard. This includes a pretty yet very functional Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter's Tea Party tray that has done sterling service with numerous servings of tea, biscuits, scones, teacakes and the like down through the years.

This year Whittard have an expanded range of Alice in Wonderland items including a delightfully quirky bone china mug a tea pot and more, besides.

To learn more about what is available, how to buy online or the location of your nearest branch, please visit http://www.whittard.co.uk.

I had hoped to show you a photograph of the Almond Praline gift set, but the taste team forgot to save any for the photoshoot!

Alice in Wonderland Tea Party Teapot £35

Alice in Wonderland Alice Mug £10

Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter Mug with Key Handle £15

From the Gallo Family to your family this Christmas

Several years ago I made a mistake that could have, if not actually ruining Christmas dinner, would certainly not have been quite so good as it should have been.

Just before it was time to start serving Christmas dinner my wife said: "OK, where is the wine to accompany the meal?"

She looked at the expression on my face and said: "Please don't tell me you forgot to buy any?"

Of course, I had forgotten! In my defence I have to say that the life of a journalist can be a bit weird as you are never actually off duty, as such.

"Don't worry!" I said, sounding more confident than I felt. "I'll go to the 24/7 petrol station. They'll be open and I am sure I'll find something there!"

My wife sneered (well, you would, wouldn't you?) and off I set.

When I arrived at the petrol station the expression on my face must have been rather like that of Scrooge in the 1951 version of A Christmas Carol when he was met by the massive feast laid out by the Ghost of Christmas Present in Scrooge's own chamber.

For I saw a chiller cabinet and a large ambient temperature display stand filled with wines and there was a whole range of Gallo Family wines!

An assistant who was busy stocking shelves (he was, of course, wearing a rather fetching elf jumper!) said: "Yeah, the boss always keeps a good selection of wines in. And some bottled real ales, too!"

I made a selection of two suitable bottles of Gallo Family wines (one for the main course, one for desert) and returned home, triumphantly.

So the 24/7 Petrol Station and the Gallo Family helped save our Christmas that year and made me look something of a hero, rather than a forgetful twit!

For this article I am going to look at two wines from the Gallo Family.

The first is an Autumn Red. I am not normally a fan of red wines, but I speak as I find and I find this read wine as being absolutely delicious.

It has a warming, pleasing flavour, which tastes fruity and which reminds me of an Autumn (sorry, Fall!) trip I made to California several years ago, seemingly impossibly warm and sunny, yet still with touches of Autumn to the air.

It's silky smooth, buttery and, as I say, utterly delicious.

The second wine to be tested is a Gallo Family Pink Moscato, also from California.

It's fresh tasting and it is deliciously, wonderfully sweet, yet not overly so.

It is a delightful take on the rose type of wine. The scent is of Californian sunny summer days. Can you hear the buzzing of the bees of California when you open the bottle? Well, no, but you can almost hear them as you take your first sip of this delicious wine.

I have a friend from California (actually from Wine Country, as it happens) who assures me that Californian wines are the best in the world and bearing Gallo Family Pink Mocato wine in mind, I do think that she makes a fair point!

These wines are available from all good wine merchants, the major supermarket chains and at least our 24/7 Petrol Station, too!

Spice Kitchen Mulled Wine

All you need for an excellent mulled wine for your Christmas guests is a couple of bottles of decent bottle of wine (red, usually, but why not be adventurous?) and a packet of Spice Kitchen Mulled Wine.

What you do is follow the instructions that come on the card and the flavour-packed hers and spices in the packet (dried mixed peel, cardamom, cinnamon, black peppercorns, nutmeg, cloves, star anise and ginger) and you will be able to share with your guests one of the best mulled wines you will have tried in ages, perhaps ever, as it really is that good.

In fact, our advice is: Buy the spice in bulk and the wine by the case, because when you share this Spice Kitchen Mulled Wine with your friends and family, you'll be asked to make it time and again!

You do intend to share it? Don't you? Of course you do! After all, sharing is a big part of what Christmas is all about, isn't it?

To learn more about their stunning range of spices, please visit http://www.spicekitchenuk.com/.

Christmas at Wetherspoons

To find out about Christmas dining at Wetherspoons, please click on this link:-
http://www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/home/christmas.

The perfect Christmas present for the car owner in your life

Turtle Wax have been producing the ideal car preparation and detailing products for several generations of careful drivers.

Now they have two new products that are sure to suit the car enthusiasts in your life.

There's the excellent Refine and Shine Clay Bar Kit at £16.99.

It provides the ultimate in vehicle surface preparation. Simply use the non-abrasive clay bar to safely shift hard to remove contaminants to rub over the surface of a newly washed car. There's even a special spray bottle of Clay Bar Lubricant, too. Use it with any Turtle Wax protective waxing product and the difference will be outstanding.

However, as comedian Jimmy Cricket would say: "But there's more!" and there is, in the form of the Turtle Wax Black Box Detailing Kit at £24.99.

Black is again becoming the number 1 colour amongst many car fans most who work hard to keep their black beauty of a motor car in tip top showroom shape.

This is now easier, with the help of yet another fantastic Turtle Wax product, the Black Box Detailing Kit.

What's in it?

Black pre-wax cleaner, special black caranuba blend wax, a black spray detailer, an applicator cloth, a sponge applicator and a microfibre cloth.

Just add some elbow grease and your pride and joy is back with its showroom shine.

Two great Christmas gifts for the driver in your life.

Don't forget the Perrier Water this Christmas!

Please don't forget the Perrier Water this Christmas.

Whilst there are those people who say: Drinking bottled water is ridiculous! You should only ever drink tap water!" I say: "To heck with that!"

Perrier Water is a gorgeous, clean tasting water that tastes the same no matter where you are, at home, in a pub, a bar, a restaurant or in a foreign country.

Tap water, however, can taste like old iron, like chemicals or as if it has been filtered through old socks.

Perrier Water, however, is different. It is a pure. natural spring water that is carbonated at source with naturally occurring carbon dioxide.

So, what does this mean? From the bottle or the can, you get  Perrier Water which can be drunk neat, used as a mixer for both alcoholic or non-alcoholic drinks. 

Should you attempt to use ordinary tap water for such a procedure you could end up with something that has the slight whiff of the swimming baths about it.

So, leave the tap water where it belongs, in the tap, and treat your guests as if you actually like them and treat them... to Perrier Water!

Buy some Blossom Hill Sparkling Moscato for Christmas

Almost everyone loves to have a bottle of sparkling wine in the house for Christmas and for New Year.

One of the recommendations that the That's Christmas Taste Team can make this year is a nice bottle of Blossom Hill Winemaker's Reserve Sparkling Moscato.

It is a high quality aromatic sweet sparkling wine, which is produced in Italy.

It is a clean and fresh tasting wine. There is a predominantly grape flavour which is also suffused with the tang of citrus fruits, but with a softer taste underlying it that reminds one of melon juice.

It is ideal for sharing with friends, perhaps with finger foods and snacks, or good for drinking with Christmas dinner or for seeing the New Year in.

It should be widely available from wine merchants and some supermarkets.

Visit www.blossomhill.com for details.