Cosy Up - The Perfect Wines for a Winter Casserole

By Angela Mount

It’s that time of year again, when the frost has begun to set in, and it’s dark by the time you’ve walked outside of the office, so with this winter chill here to stay, it’s time our cooking styles start to change too.  So, it’s out with chilly, leafy salads and in with bowls of warming, comforting stews, and it’s no different with wines.  Those crisp, zippy whites that we loved so much through the summer don’t work quite so well now – it’s time for some warming wine love – wines with a bit more body and texture, which work well with the food we’re eating right now.

Winter casseroles come in all styles and flavours – I’ve picked a few of my favourites which cover just about every base, and matched them with some great wines for winter.

First up is that absolute classic, beef stew. However you cook it, be it with mushrooms, red wine, Guinness, or root vegetables, you need a hearty, full-bodied red.  Beef and Malbec is a well-known classic, so look no further than Tomero Malbec 2012 – this dark, brooding yet velvety red from Argentina hits the spot with its bold, rich, warming flavours, with hints of spice and bitter chocolate.

Another great favourite for a winter dish is braised lamb casserole – especially if you add olives, red wine, and some wild herbs, maybe even a hint of fresh chilli.  This works well with southern Italian reds, which can cope with the natural sweetness of the lamb, and the savoury tang of the herbs.  Well worth a try is one of the very best value reds on the market; the oddly named but deliciously drinkable Biferno Rosso Riserva Camillo de Lellis 2010.  Loved by wine writers and customers alike, it’s an affordable and unpretentious drop of soft and mature Italian red that is brimming with a mix of black cherries, figs and savoury wild herbs with a dash of licorice on the finish – and at a refreshing 13% alcohol, it has a bright freshness to it also.

Spanish reds are always a good bet with stews, and none more so than a top notch Rioja, especially if the stew  or ‘estofado’ as it’s called in Spanish, is a spicy pork stew, involving slowly cooked pork loin, spiked up with chorizo, garlic, red peppers, paprika and butterbeans. You can either enjoy this one with the soft, velvety and berry fruited Marques de Arienzo Rioja Crianza 2010; or  you could add a whack of sherry and a dollop of cream, serve in a very smart pot for guests or loved ones and use as an excuse to bring out the 9 year old, regal, Marques de Riscal Rioja Gran Reserva 2005, with its seductive  vanilla and wild strawberry scents and mature yet vivid, silky soft damson and prune fruit.  A real treat.

Winter menus don’t mean you have to avoid white wines completely, and for those who are cooking chicken or fish, here are a couple of ideas.  For Thai seafood broths and curries, stick to aromatic whites, such as the vibrant, tongue-tingling Frost Pocket Sauvignon Blanc 2013.  If you’re going for a creamy fish stew,  a traditional mussel mouclade, or a succulent chicken, vegetable and herb casserole with white wine and tarragon, opt for a riper, creamier white, such as the deceptively good value southern French Chardonnay Les Mougeottes, Chardonnay  2013.  Rich, creamy and elegant, it rivals a good Mâcon Villages, with its Burgundian style. Full of baked apple, toasted hazelnut and creamy flavours, but with a refreshing citrus kick, it’s a perfect winter warmer in itself.

Close the curtains, turn the fire on, get the one-pot in the oven, open the wine, and relax.