Bucks &amp; Oxon


<p>Our happy place? A crisp glass of wine, a huge board of cheese, and nothing to do but pig out. It’s the Christmas experience! And as we hurtle towards this year’s party season, when friends and family shall gather for a boozy, fromage-y feast (hey, gotta make up for last year), our thoughts are turning to the million pound question: which products to buy.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Time to seek advice from our local cheese-eating, wine-drinking experts. Here’s what they had to say:</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lynne-levin-levin-wines-chalfont-st-giles">Lynne Levin, <a aria-label="Levin Wines (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.levinwines.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Levin Wines</a>, Chalfont St. Giles</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="929" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.06.15.png" alt="" class="wp-image-140676" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.06.15.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.06.15-800x743.png 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.06.15-400x372.png 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.06.15-565x525.png 565w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>My husband David started <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Levin Wines (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.levinwines.com/" target="_blank">Levin Wines</a> over forty years ago, simply because he couldn’t find half bottles of wine to sell in his hotels. Just from that you can see our dedication to the stuff! As an Australian I’ve always loved wine, and that certainly hasn’t changed with moving to Buckinghamshire. As well as producing our own wines, we sell other great independent wines through Great Wine Estates, so I know what to look for.</p>



<p>If you’re after a really good wine, it’s important to go small-scale. Think about it: a vine only has so many resources and nutrients available, so if a business is straining to get the largest quantity of product possible, you’ll end up with a diluted flavour. This is why we keep our Levin Wines entirely organic. It also makes a big difference if grapes are hand-picked like ours because it means that only the best grapes go into the wine — unlike machine-picked grapes, which pick <em>everything</em>: grapes, bugs, the lot!</p>



<p>When tasting a particular type of wine, you want to think about the varietal characteristics. So if you’re trying a Sauvignon Blanc, for example, you want to get some nice crisp acidity, and a lovely balance of citrus characters. Colour is another good tell: the colour will indicate whether it has been made well, and that it hasn’t had a chance to oxidise.&nbsp;</p>



<p>When it comes to Christmas, our signature cuvées work perfectly with a classic menu. Our <a href="https://www.greatwineestates.com/shop/mister-l-sauv-blanc-cellar-12" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Mister L Sauvignon Blanc (opens in a new tab)">Mister L Sauvignon Blanc</a> goes brilliantly with roast turkey, and our <a href="https://www.greatwineestates.com/shop/madame-l-gamay-cellar-11" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Madame L Gamay (opens in a new tab)">Madame L Gamay</a> goes well with a spiced honey-glazed baked ham. In fact, the Madame L also rolls on well for a bit of after-dinner Stilton. For a starter, I’d actually recommend a rosé — like our <a href="https://www.greatwineestates.com/shop/levin-gamay-rose-17" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Levin Gamay Rosé (opens in a new tab)">Levin Gamay Rosé</a> — to have with smoked salmon. I know a lot of people see rosé as a summer wine, but I think, when you have a properly made rosé, it’s lovely in the winter, and so good with smoked salmon.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lisa-goodchild-the-cotswold-cheese-co-burford">Lisa Goodchild, <a aria-label="The Cotswold Cheese Co. (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.cotswoldcheese.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Cotswold Cheese Co.</a>, Burford</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="796" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.08.34.png" alt="" class="wp-image-140677" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.08.34.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.08.34-800x637.png 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.08.34-400x318.png 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.08.34-660x525.png 660w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption>Nettlebed Creamery&#8217;s Witheridge Hay</figcaption></figure>



<p>My husband and I bought <a rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="The Cotswold Cheese Co. (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.cotswoldcheese.com/" target="_blank">The Cotswold Cheese Co.</a> in 2010, soon expanding into Burford as well as online. The whole team is cheese-mad — you have to be in this line of work!&nbsp;</p>



<p>When examining potential cheeses to stock, we always check that they’re artisanal and handmade, because that’s how you know the quality has been the priority. If you’re tasting a cheese for the first time, there’s several things to take into account: the flavour and balance of it, the texture, and (shallow as you may think it…) the appearance. No one wants to eat a cheese that looks awful — it’s as simple as that. But of course the flavour is the most important element. Actually, a good consistency of flavour across several batches of the same cheese will tell you a lot about the treatment of the cows — another thing we feel strongly about, and that’s helped by buying from small producers.</p>



<p>When it comes to cheese to seek out, I absolutely love the <a aria-label="Witheridge Hay (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.cotswoldcheese.com/products/witheridge-hay-cheese" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Witheridge Hay</a> cheese from the <a aria-label="Nettlebed Creamery (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.nettlebedcreamery.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nettlebed Creamery</a> near Henley. It’s aged in hay, which provides a really amazing, grassy note like nothing else. We also get a lot of attention towards the <a aria-label="Blue Monday (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.cotswoldcheese.com/products/alex-james-blue-monday" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Blue Monday</a> cheese, made by Blur’s Alex James — he’s local to us with a farm in Kingham, and it’s a genuinely excellent, medium blue.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="746" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.09.38.png" alt="" class="wp-image-140678" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.09.38.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.09.38-800x597.png 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.09.38-400x298.png 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/Screenshot-2022-12-15-at-09.09.38-704x525.png 704w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption>Truffle brie </figcaption></figure>



<p>For Christmas it’s fun to go a little luxe, so I always recommend our <a href="https://www.cotswoldcheese.com/products/truffle-brie" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="truffle brie (opens in a new tab)">truffle brie</a>, or for maximum festive notes we sell <a href="https://www.cotswoldcheese.com/products/blu-61" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Blu 61 (opens in a new tab)">Blu 61</a>, which is steeped in wine and studded with cranberries. Christmas in a mouthful! Then when you’re looking for accompaniments, I say skip the standard crackers and go for a panforte — a kind of chewy, nutty Italian fruitcake. It’s a stunning combo. And you can’t go wrong with a bit of charcuterie; we like basically everything made by <a href="https://www.saltpigcuring.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Saltpig Curing, (opens in a new tab)">Saltpig Curing,</a> another local Cotswolds business.&nbsp;</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-holly-morgan-daws-hill-vineyard-near-high-wycombe">Holly Morgan, <a aria-label="Daws Hill Vineyard (opens in a new tab)" href="https://dawshillvineyard.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Daws Hill Vineyard</a>, near High Wycombe</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="717" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/312495589_559671929495771_5748554354735429333_n.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-140679" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/312495589_559671929495771_5748554354735429333_n.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/312495589_559671929495771_5748554354735429333_n-800x574.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/312495589_559671929495771_5748554354735429333_n-400x287.jpeg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/12/312495589_559671929495771_5748554354735429333_n-732x525.jpeg 732w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p><a href="https://dawshillvineyard.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Daws Hill Vineyard (opens in a new tab)">Daws Hill Vineyard</a> was planted by my dad as a retirement project after moving back to Bucks from the Loire valley — it was a way of taking a bit of France with him. We’re unusual in that we’re tiny (only 5,000 vines, which despite how it may sound is indeed tiny), but we have a full winery onsite. That in itself is a bit of a giveaway that we’re sticklers for a properly excellent wine: we have to control the whole process!&nbsp;</p>



<p>Advising how to pick the perfect wine is tricky, as I always say it’s a bit like appreciating abstract art: totally subjective. But I’m also really passionate about sparkling wine that’s made in the traditional process. No, not squelching barefoot in togas: by this I mean a two-stage fermentation, involving a long aging in the bottle, to produce the ‘fizz’ of carbon dioxide. Cheaper wines (like Prosecco) are made in pressurized tanks and go into the bottle already fizzy, which is why I find their flavour to be a bit less textured. All of our wine is made with the traditional process, and I think it’s much better for it.&nbsp;</p>



<p>I would also say it’s really worth seeking out English wines. As a country we’re now producing some genuinely world-class wines, particularly sparkling — beating Champagnes left, right, and centre in the competitions. And at the Christmas table, a glass of English bubbly with your turkey is never a bad idea! Then for the cheese course, our <a aria-label="Daws Hill white wines (opens in a new tab)" href="https://dawshillvineyard.co.uk/product/sparkling-white/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Daws Hill white wines</a> go extremely well with something creamy. We use Bucks-based <a aria-label="The Deli at No. 5 (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.thedeliatno5.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Deli at No. 5</a> for all our cheese and wine pairings, but I can particularly recommend anything made by the <a aria-label="Nettlebed Creamery (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.nettlebedcreamery.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nettlebed Creamery</a> and <a aria-label="The Marlow Cheese Company (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.marlowcheese.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Marlow Cheese Company</a>. They’re a dream on a Christmas cheese board, especially with a glass of <a aria-label="Daws Hill sparkling (opens in a new tab)" href="https://dawshillvineyard.co.uk/product/sparkling-white/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Daws Hill sparkling</a>&#8230;</p>


How to choose the best cheese and wine this Christmas

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