Here at Maggie Beer, we’re more than keen for any excuse to celebrate, but especially so when the warm weather of Spring reawakens our social calendars and sees a particularly enthusiastic circle around the first Tuesday in November.

And because we believe the words ‘celebration’ and ‘compromise’ should never appear in the same sentence, we wholeheartedly raise our glasses to Maggie’s Sparkling Ruby Cabernet for the simple fact that it allows celebratory bubbles to also be alcohol free, so no Spring Carnival turns into a headache!

For Maggie, any chance to entertain follows her golden rule of keeping things simple to let the produce shine; a long standing common thread that runs through so much of what she loves - it all comes back to gathering around the table to share good food, great conversation and wonderful company. And never one to turn down a spontaneous, or well-planned, social opportunity, over the years Maggie has developed her own fool-proof approach to making sure beautiful food need never be threatened by time restraints.

“My entertaining always follows the golden rule of keeping things simple to let the produce shine. Using ingredients that are in season and prepared ahead of time makes all the difference - a stressed host is never fun! I always start with a welcome drink and a platter of nibbles no matter what the occasion, and my fruit paste and pate have long been centre stage of that. Now with my new range of cheeses to complete the picture, it’s very easy to deem the idea of a well balanced platter as a meal in its own right, and spend the rest of the ‘cooking time’ enjoying the company of my friends and family instead!”