DECEMBER 2022
Coolnaugh Haze on the gallops at Philip Hobbs
Happy Christmas!
This is our last newsletter of 2022 so may I take this opportunity to thank all of our share owners for your wonderful continued support over the past year. It’s been an extraordinary season with prizemoney earnings world wide of over £3,400,000, a record for Highclere, and this in our 30th anniversary year. Cachet’s Qipco 1,000 Guineas (Gr 1) victory was of course the highlight but there have been many others too along the way including Durston’s Caulfield Cup (Gr 1) win in October. We have a seriously exciting group of two, three and four year olds going forward and looking at the current crop of yearlings surely there are more black type winners lurking amongst them! They have been seriously well received by their breakers and most will soon be with their new trainers as their careers begin in earnest. If you haven’t already committed to one of these do take a look at those syndicates where we still have shares available and of course feel free to call me or my team. Having just seen them all ridden away we are bursting with excitement to shout about them!
From all of us at Highclere may we wish you a very happy and healthy Christmas and here’s wishing you all possible success with your horses on the racecourse in 2023.
Harry Herbert, Chairman
On The Track
By Frances Howard
Beau Balko
It has been a particularly quiet time on the track due to the freezing weather which has meant several race meetings have been abandoned. From just a small handful of runners however, we have celebrated two winners. The first of which came from Beau Balko who improved on his excellent debut at Chepstow when making all to win at Hereford last month. It was a stylish performance on just his second attempt over hurdles – unfortunately followed up by a lacklustre handicap debut at Taunton yesterday but that was far too bad to be true and I am sure there is much more to come from this 4yo in the Spring.
Mount Tempest
Another with a big future is the Dan Skelton trained Mount Tempest who somewhat surprised us all with a very impressive victory at Leicester in a two mile novice hurdle. He jumped and travelled superbly through the race and overcame a strong challenge from the favourite in the last furlong to win well. It was a gutsy performance and one full of promise – he is a big scopey horse and there will be plenty more to come from him. There are a couple of share’s remaining. Click here for more information and please get in touch with one of the team if you are interested.
Lime Avenue
Lime Avenue, having blown us all away with her emphatic bumper victory at Chepstow – was then turned over at odds-on on her hurdles debut at Wincanton next time. It was thick with fog and impossible to see anything more than the hurdle in front of the stands but Lime put in a head-scratching performance to finish 2nd and a very disappointed Harry Cobden told us that she didn’t jump at all well and never travelled with much enthusiasm. Hopefully one to put a line through and I am sure we will see much better from her next time – she very much remains one to watch this season.
Nollyador
We saw promising seasonal and hurdle debuts from Nollyador and Treyarnon Bay earlier this month who both performed better than their finishing positions suggest. Nollyador looked the winner approaching the second last flight in his 2m novice event at Aintree but his jumping let him down and he will surely fair better next time with that experience under his belt.
Treyarnon Bay
Treyarnon Bay travelled strongly at the head of affairs in a 2m maiden at Huntingdon but the early pace took its toll at the business end of the race and she finished very tired in mid-field. She works very well at home and Nicky Henderson has always held her in high regard so she is another we can expect to see much better from next time.
Rolf’s Rambling’s
![Rolf[69].jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61f12359c76c4c234ba9a355/1671720372982-05Q1VND86OGEQX6N2E4W/Rolf%5B69%5D.jpg)
By Rolf Johnson
Racing has deep roots in Mauritius – there’s life on Champ de Mars
If only we had the volcanic soils of Mauritius with their water retaining properties and their encouragement to root growth, maybe we wouldn’t have so many walkovers. Then again fracking would take off here and give our Clerks of Courses even more headaches than climate change.
Champ de Mars racetrack, slap bang in the middle of the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius’s capital of Port Louis, is ringed by extinct volcanoes. Mauritius is the second oldest race club in existence. When the British kicked out the French in 1810 they had racing up and running in two years. Golf only arrived forty years later. Racing’s survival on this tiny island, slightly smaller than Tenerife, is thoroughly remarkable. It could have died out as easily as the island’s ubiquitous symbol, the Dodo.
At 1298 metres circumference Champ de Mars would fit in Hyde Park (less the Serpentine). There are four hundred horses in training – on the track where township meets turfistes. The 84-page full colour race book, which begins in English soon opts for French. It is the most comprehensive I’ve ever come across, complementing the crowd’s social mix and uninhibited enthusiasm.
Champ de Mars however, struggles for breathing space with something of the air of Hong Kong’s Happy Valley, the harmony of both threatened by interests competing to grab a share of their invaluable real estate. There are even two winning posts on Mauritius’s racecourse, owned by different parties, about a length apart.
Crowds of 100,000 have been known to arrive - they don’t depart so easily: parking is ad lib and on the day we were invited, 36th of the season in late November, the only way in was blocked on the way out. Exit depended on patrons taking matters into their own hands, literally, picking up cars and motorbikes and depositing them ‘elsewhere’ to provide passage.
The Club deserve apologies from visitors who describe the racing as ‘Mickey Mouse’. I’ve been privileged to race at eccentric venues: Hong Kong Island’s Happy Valley caught in the same metropolitan playground trap; Garrison Savannah on Barbados, a Caribbean island a quarter the size of Mauritius; St Ouen on the cliff tops of Jersey a quarter the size of Barbados; Chilivani, Sicily’s one racetrack, an island into which these venues would fit comfortably; and not least Ooty high in the splendour of the blue Nilgiri Hills of South India and Pompadour in central France – a place of beauty in the lee of its chateau and a model for Champ de Mars.
Their individuality must be preserved – as integral to the sport as the world’s monolithic courses whose banks of spectators can be remote from the action. The enclosed bijou Mauritius parade ring is shaded by a canopy of immense primeval Banyan trees, planted before the course was thought of.
Mauritius has an eclectic mix of races though French is the language of four newspapers all of which devote a couple of pages to racing, The 84-page raceday full-colour programme begins in English before switching to French and is the most comprehensive document of its ilk that I have ever seen.
A majority of the island’s 1.25m population is of Indian extraction. Indeed it is the only country in Africa where Hinduism is the largest practised religion. It would be stretching a point to say that the gambling is split - Indian punters versus Chinese bookmakers - but even Happy Valley’s fanatical bettors would be drowned by Champ de Mars’ eruptive polyglot mixture, with just a sprinkle of tourists. The conglomeration is a frothing mix and the racing, if not of the highest quality is competitive and absorbing. The horses are generally ageing geldings but by no means pensioners looking their age.
Some sources try to claim our former champion apprentice Salem Golan (he shared the title with Hayley Turner) as a product of Mauritius though he was born in London of Mauritian parents. Mauritius, quarantine station for much of the Southern Hemisphere, hold annually an International Jockeys meeting at which the likes of Frankie Dettori, William Buick and Christophe Soumillon have turned up.
The late November afternoon we attended, top South African jockey Bernard Fayd’herbe rode the unsuccessful favourite in the big race, the Duke of York Cup won by ex-South African (source of most competitors) five-year-old Walls of Dubrovnik. David Probert was there on holiday not a little ‘relieved’ he wasn’t invited to race round wall of death bends. Eight races went by without mishap. There was drama enough in tight finishes – an even bigger one should have been war-size pall of black smoke rising above Port Louis from an accidental blaze of old tyres. But as the cloud drifted away south-west towards Madagascar, it was barely remarked.
First prize money for the races rose to £50,000 (in Mauritian rupees). The land on which racing takes place is as valuable for development as Happy Valley or Mahalaxmi in Mumbai, or lost British metropolitan courses Alexandra Park and Hurst Park. Extinction is a threat.
The flightless Dodo was wiped out over three hundred years ago. Recreated in Alice in Wonderland and Jurassic Park ‘dead as a dodo’ entered the English language. Racing in Mauritius is alive and kicking but like everywhere in the world is a threatened species. Most everywhere else I’ve raced I’ve bumped into Highclere owners. If you haven’t been yet, put Champ de Mars and rest of this hospitable island on your ‘to do’ list – before it’s too late.
Highclere Yearlings
Lord Chamberlain
The John Constable Syndicate
Here is our striking colt by Masar out of Privacy Order. For only 30,000 gns we simply couldn’t believe our luck when we managed to secure him at Newmarket back in October. He will start his career with David Simcock and then head on to Australia at the end of his three year old campaign where Chris Waller will take over. We think he has the potential to be a proper middle distance horse in the making. The Trainer couldn’t be happier with his progress so far and has said that he is finding it all very easy. Watch out this colt could take Newmarket by storm!
Trainer: David Simcock
Defiance
The Claude Monet Syndicate
This stunning Camelot Colt out of Alouja is quite special. He has gone through the breaking process with flying colours and is a faultless individual. Camelot is a great racehorse winning the 2,000 Guineas and the Derby and he so nearly pulled off the Triple Crown only just failing to win the St Ledger. He will be heading to the Trainers yard soon after the festive period and we are so excited to see what Roger thinks of him.
Trainer: Roger Varian
Tuneful
The Matisse Syndicate
What a gorgeous filly this is by Blue Point who was a top class racehorse winning the Diamond Jubilee (Gr1) and Kings Stand (Gr 1) in the same week at Royal Ascot. She is out of the Rainbow Quest mare Pretty Face who has produced 6 winners from nine runners and is full or half sister to eight group or listed winners and her half sister Midsummer is the dam of champion Midday who won six Group 1 races! If this daughter of Blue Point can gain black type herself then she is worth a fortune!
Trainer: George Boughey
Soprano
The Leonardo Da Vinci Syndicate
Here is a lovely Starspangledbanner filly out of Lealas Daughter who is three parts sister to the blisteringly quick son of Choisir, who won the Breeders Cup Turf Sprint (Gr1) and over £1,500,000 in prizemoney. The filly has a fabulous physique and the most beautiful head and outlook and she has settled in very well with George and we are really excited to see how she progresses.
Trainer: George Boughey
Mannerism
The Rembrandt Syndicate
Everything about this Caravaggio Colt out of Bright And Sunny oozes class and we couldn’t be happier with his progress so far. He is a magnificent colt who has all the powerful looks of his impressive Scat Daddy sire line. He moves like a panther and as he looks to be a proper summer two year old in the making. Karl thinks he is really special and is very pleased with his progress.
Trainer: Karl Burke
The Francisco Goya Syndicate
Quantum Force
Tonight
Land Force Colt ex High Luminosity - Quantum Force (left)
These two cracking individuals make up out two horse syndicate and we couldn’t be more excited about them both. This Land Force colt out of High Luminosity is from a great family of two year old speed and George is very happy with his progress and he is settling in well.
Waldgeist ex Leenavesta - Tonight (right)
The Waldgeist filly is the perfect choice for France, being by a son of Galileo who won the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe! We can’t wait to take our Owners out to Chantilly to see her in training wit Nicolas Clement.
Trainer: George Boughey & Nicolas Clement
Western
The Edgar Degas Syndicate
This Magna Grecia Colt out of Murhibaany looks to be very precocious and he has a fabulous pedigree being the second foal out of the Elusive Quality mare Murhibaany and black type literally fills the page with 1,000 Guineas winner, Shadayid, being the third dam! His sire Magna Grecia won the Vertem Futurity (Gr 1) as a two year old and the 2,000 Guineas at three! He has a terrific chance of being a very good stallion being a son of sire of sires, Invincible Spirit and let’s not forget his is also eligible for the Goffs Million.
Trainer: Richard Hannon
Three Treats This Christmas
By Alex Smith
As the days start to cool and the nights draw in, I begin to look for something different to warm the cockels. These are wines which are often (unfairly in my opinion) blamed for the hangover the next morning but are a real delight at this time of year, particularly over the Christmas period.
“As You Like It”. A absolutely scrumptious sherry which I find irresistible. For an Amontillado It’s at the sweeter end of the spectrum but has rich dried fruit flavours which have mellowed during barrel ageing. I find it impossible to just have one glass (usually before lunch) and it would also go well with blue cheese. At around £30 it’s a gem and available in Waitrose (and the Wine Society)
No Christmas would be the same without a glass of port. I am a particular fan of the aged Tawny port which tend to be lighter and more elegant than a full blown vintage but also have plenty of complexity. The best are called vintage Colheita and Kopke, the oldest Port house, was founded in 1638 and continues today to use their unmistakable hand painted bottle. They have always specialized in Tawny Ports which are gently matured in cask over many years. This Colheita Port has been ageing in seasoned oak barrels in Kopke's cellars since 1999. This fine wine is bottled only by demand to ensure the freshness of style and uniqueness of character. It’s honestly a steal at £29.99 from Waitrose.
And finally, if you want something lighter and more elegant for the Christmas pud, there are so many sweet wines on offer but here is something very different and stylish. Canadian Icewine is made in tiny quantities. Only a very small amount of the sweetest juice can be squeezed from frozen grapes which are left on the vine. The result is nectar; tropical fruit flavours give this a real freshness and vitality, a perfect foil for the rich pudding and mince pies. If you are passing Fortnum & Mason (as many of us do at some point before Christmas!) drop in for a half bottle of Inniskillin “Gold” Vidal Icewine-Liquid gold!
Clodagh’s Christmas
By Clodagh McKenna
Mascarpone Winter Berry Trifle Recipe
INGREDIENTS:
Serves 4
250g bag frozen mixed berries
40g golden caster sugar
100g Madeira cake, sliced
100ml mascarpone cheese
250ml tub vanilla custard
150ml double cream, softly whipped
METHOD:
1. Place the berries and sugar in a saucepan over a low heat and simmer for 5 minutes, then set aside to cool.
2. Place a layer of madeira cake at the bottom of a trifle bowl or divide between 4 glasses, and spoon 2/3 of the berry mix on top.
3. In a mixing bowl whisk together the mascarpone, and vanilla custard until smooth but make sure it doesn’t get to runny, you want it to remain slightly thick. Spoon on top of the cake and berries, followed by the whipped double cream.
4. Chill for a couple of hours in a fridge and just before you serve pour the remaining berries on top.
Christmas Cream Liqueur Cocktail
Ingredients:
Makes 2
60ml Irish cream liqueur
30ml vodka
30ml espresso
50g cooked chestnuts
1 tsp fresh nutmeg, grated
20g dark chocolate
ice cubes
METHOD:
1. Start by placing the ice cubes in the cocktail glasses that you are using to serve the cocktail in. This will chill the glasses while you prepare everthing else.
2. Puree the cooked chestnuts with 1 tablespoon of water, and melt the dark chocolate.
3. Pour the Irish Cream Liqueur into a jug or cocktail shaker with the espresso, vodka, melted dark chocolate, grated nutmeg, pureed chestnuts, and ice cubes (that you use to chill the glasses). Whisk together (if in a jug) or shake (in a cocktail shaker).
4. Then pour into chilled glasses using a strainer to hold back the ice and finish off with some more grated fresh nutmeg
The Times Luxx Magazine Christmas Gift Guide
Even Better Than A Reindeer
Highclere Thoroughbred Racing, share in a racehorse from Europe’s leading racehorse syndication company, from £6,000, highclereracing.co.uk
The Christmas Issue Gift Guide for Country Life
Where are they now?
Nugget
Nugget has had three starts in Australia, beginning with a first-up second at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day before two emphatic wins over a mile in Sydney. He was actually favourite for a $2 million Group 2 mile at Randwick last weekend but he failed to gain a start (he was second reserve) and so he went to a restricted race on the undercard which he won handily. He is expected to step up to another restricted mile, the equivalent of a race like the Balmoral Handicap in a couple of weeks but he is expected to be contesting black type races come the Australian autumn in March and April. In fact, he is already on the third line of betting for one of our most historic races, the Gr.1 Doncaster Mile in early April.
Immaculate
Immaculate, formerly trained by Mark Johnston for the Juliet Cursham syndicate is in foal to Ghaiyyath due in February 2023.
![Immaculate before Yarmouth 20.10.20[14].jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61f12359c76c4c234ba9a355/1671720061654-CTWBLOGO70QQTMCQWKVC/Immaculate+before+Yarmouth+20.10.20%5B14%5D.jpg)
Out and about with the Highclere camera
