Magnums for Christmas Boozing

...Because two bottles are OBVIOUSLY better than one. So why not get a magnum of wine for Christmas? Or maybe two magnums because that is obviously better than one... or maybe a jeroboam... or two...

This could go on.

Just for now we are going to stick with Magnums though.

If you have a lot of people over, such as a big family christmas lunch or a christmas party, and you are going to be opening a few bottles of wine, why not get a magnum instead? It's just as much booze as two normal bottles and looks bloody brilliant - besides, the flavours of wine from magnums is supposedly better as larger volumes of wine age with more grace.

You could get something like this amazing Rioja Reserva 2004 from Viña Ardanza. Medium to full bodied, this is a silky smooth red with a nice bit of bottle age. The fruit flavours are still there but there is a delicious hint of oak, with earthy notes and warming spice. Perfect for wintry drinking and the perfect size to last one person through the whole of Christmas day...

Rioja Reserva 2004 Viña Ardanza is available by the magnum from Majestic, for £37 - the equivalent of £18.50 per bottle.

If you like something a little lighter in body but still with some serious layers of flavour, you could go for a magnum of Domaine Guy Dufouleur 2002 Nuits-Saint-Georges. This is an epic Red Burgundy that would be an amazing wine with your Christmas lunch. It has delicious red fruit flavours but with a hint of pepper and a touch of coffee. If you fancy something really special, you can pick up a magnum of this Nuits-Saint-Georges from Waitrose for £70 in a really nice gift-box too. So thats the equivalent to £35 a bottle.

If you prefer a white wine, you should try a magnum of Coffele Soave 2011 Ca'Visco, which is available from The Wine Society. This is a really stunning example of Soave and one that would make for some excellent festive drinking. made up of 80% Garganega and 20% trebbiano di Soave, it certainly is a very typical Italian white; Crisp, dry and with a deliciously clean and mineral quality. You can pick up a Magnum for £25.00 from The Wine Society - thats an equivalent of just £12.50 per bottle.

Christmas obviously wouldn't be complete without Champagne. That is a fact. There is no magnum more impressive than a magnum of Champagne. My personal favourite has got to be Perrier Jouet. PJ is famed for it's elegance and finesse in it's Champagnes and it would make the perfect wine for celebrating Christmas.
To be quite honest, if the look of the bottle alone doesn't sway you, then you are dead to me. You can pick up a magnum of this epic Perrier Jouet Brut NV for £61.50 from The Champagne Company - thats £30.75 per bottle so pretty reasonable for such a good wine and the attention that it will get!

So there you have it; four very good reasons why you should buy magnums for Christmas. If the pictures don't look amazing enough, imagine having them all on the table at home.

Go on, you know you want to!