Perfect Holiday Chardonnay; Clos du Bois

There is nothing I love more over the holidays than entertaining, except of course, not entertaining. While the holidays are a perfect time to connect with family and friends, they’re also a good time to connect with the person you crawl into bed with every night. I try to make a point of having at least a couple of uninterrupted evenings in front of the Christmas tree with my husband to just sit and catch up.

Once the kids are in bed there’s no better time than Christmas, when work is minimal, to sit and connect in front of the tree. Just like I’d go out of my way to treat guests in our home, I make a point of treating us. During the holidays, there’s nothing I love more to serve to guests and us, than smoked salmon with a thick and rich dill spread. Paired with a perfect white chardonnay like Clos du Bois, this is the perfect party or sit-around-the-tree duo.

I am a big lover of California wines and Clos du Bois, is a definite favourite. Founded by Frank Woods in 1974, every bottle of wine produced by Clos du Bois is inspired by French winemaking traditions. It’s ooh la la meets California glamour.

The Clos du Bois winery was founded on the principle of marrying the best of California’s fruit-forward wines with the undeniable elegance of those produced in France.  Attention to detail and Old World winemaking techniques bring out the best of their California grapes, and has resulted in decades of approachable wines whose lush, fruit flavours can be enjoyed from coast-to-coast.

The grapes in Clos du Bois’ 2013 North Coast Chardonnay come from the Russian River Valley, which closely resembles the Burgundy region in France.  To produce the wine, fruit is harvested in cool temperatures and gently pressed to preserve its pure flavours.  Next, the wine is partially barrel fermented in a combination of French and American oak for six months to encourage maximum flavour development. When complete, the Chardonnay – a beautiful straw yellow in colour – showcases, intense aromas of apple blossom, ripe pear and sweet lemon drop, complemented by toasty oak, spice and cream and a long, fresh finish.

Whether you’re planning a holiday get together or a quiet moment around the tree, pick up Clos du Bois as the perfect complement. Pair it with this simple, but delicious, recipe for Smoked Salmon with Dill Spread.

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Perfect Smoked Salmon with Dill Spread

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds smoked salmon
• Pumpernickel bread

For Dill Spread

• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup soft cream cheese
• 1 tbsp whole grain mustard
• 1/3 cup fresh chopped dill
• 1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 2 tbsp chopped capers
• 2 tbsp chopped dill pickle

Instructions

1. Whisk mayonnaise and cream cheese until well blended. Stir in remaining ingredients. Refrigerate overnight.
2. Serve dill spread with smoked salmon and pumpernickel bread. Perfect for Christmas soirées or tête-à-têtes by the tree.

Recipe Notes

Note that 1 1/2 pounds salmon will serve 8. If you are serving for two, I like to buy the individual packages at Costco and thaw according to needs.

“This blog post was sponsored by Clos du Bois but the opinions are completely my own based on my experience.”