Practice Port

I'm sure that most of you know what Practice Port is but in case anyone doesn't I'll explain - it might save someone a lot of grief.

Picture the scene. It is Christmas evening and you've done the whole "eating your own body-weight in turkey" thing. It's time to collapse on the sofa to enjoy whatever Simon Cowell decides we should be watching and you decide to enjoy a piece of Stilton with a glass of Port. Now this might sound idyllic but going straight for the Port without adequate preparation is like trying to climb the Eiger wearing carpet slippers. To fully enjoy that special Christmas moment needs training and preparation. If you haven't already had a few warm-up bottles of Port I advise that you grab a bottle tomorrow and get into fighting trim.

On the subject of Christmas - I hope you've got the sprouts on a rolling boil by now; don't want them to be too hard on Christmas Day.