Are you the Stilton and Port kind? Or is that a bit much and you'd rather settle down to a mellower young Moscatel du Setubal with some easy Emmental? It's the season for a nice rich sweet dessert ...

Are you the Stilton and Port kind? Or is that a bit much and you'd rather settle down to a mellower young Moscatel du Setubal with some easy Emmental? It's the season for a nice rich sweet dessert wine, may be after dinner, or with, or even as an apertif, slightly cooled. We, who'd probably confuse Bordeaux with Badu, have not the wherewithal to advise on this but can in our own way celebrate the loveliness of the very act of winter wine and cheese by committing what else(!) but a jewel to it.

And so this streamlined loha of only three discernible attributes --- smoothness,contrast and character --- is much like any great wine and cheese pairing. You'll notice the glassy burgundy enamel through which the engraving on the gold is just visible juxtaposed against the solid ivory mina that borrows an idea from Wolfgang Laib's famous Milkstone ; you'll see no decoration anywhere on the polished half-pipe in which the iron bangle nestles (here,it isn't fitted in yet) ; and the ridged cuffs are only functional, fusing the body to the two faces fanning out, and reinforcing the joints. If you're in the mood for a change loha as a temporary reprieve from the one you usually wear, and are feeling a little Christmassy, you might consider this. Constant use is not advisable just as too much wine could be a pleasurable danger to health : the enamel might chip if you're careless. Of course, the ornament can be worn as a bracelet as well and then would automatically see less wear.

We'll let you in on a little secret : a certain Mr.Malkani used to make the loveliest of wines in his Park Circus home (where there were always more buckets than chairs) and we were regular patrons, especially of his lighter apple batches. He fondly---and a tad fancifully---called them 'Flavours of Bacchus' and the red 'n' yellow labels on the reused vodka/rum/whiskey bottles declared that with condign pride. Since his passing a few years ago, we've turned to Bow Barracks for our supplies. They used to do a cloying raisin along with the tart ginger and usual grape but this year it's the latter two only, and by no means can they compare to a vintage Malkani. This we have with Kalimpong Cheddar that's a staple in New Market, and there's no reason not to recommend it even if it isn't as lavish in flavour as the Somerset kind. The really magical accompaniment though is the aamer-chutney-filled home-made croquettes, and the sinful and trenchantly un-sharp Druk mango-kasundi is the perfect 'puur' for these ovoid crumb fried 'chops', mostly because it faults on the side of sweetness.That's as far as our wine-drinking expertise goes and now we've made you privy to our private and rather enjoyably pedestrian winter pastime. 

Well, loha or no loha, oenophile or not, we hope this minimalist gem of a jewel stands the test of time. And if it does find its way onto your wrist, you can be sure we'll be the happiest people on earth.

On that note, have a very Happy Christmas and God Bless. And if dear Mr.Malkani's watching from up there, we do hope he approves of his wine inspiring our little ornament.Let's raise a toast to him then,"To you, Mr.Malkani. May you live on forever in our Christmas bacchanalia.Cheers!"