July 20 Wine Picks: BBQ + Cool-Climate Chardonnay

The next Vintages release will be on LCBO shelves across the province on Saturday, July 20. The major focus in this release is on wines for the BBQ - perfectly timed as we get into the hot days of Summer. Of the 20 wines featured - including a surprising white wine and a rosé - 3 of 20 wines made my list. At the top of this short list of wines for the BBQ is the Portuguese Porca de Murça - a blend of Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, and Tinta Roriz that is perfectly suitable for lamb. Also very good choices are the Tuscan Mazzei Badiola (70% Sangiovese, 30% Merlot) and the Las Moras Bonarda (100%) from Argentina.

The secondary feature is on cool-climate Chardonnays, showcasing 12 wines from various parts of the world, including Ontario, South Africa, Burgundy and Spain. This feature coincides with the 4th annual i4c International Cool Climate Chardonnay celebration that takes place in Niagara. This year, the celebration will take place next weekend, from July 19-21.

Personally, I love Chardonnay, from oaked to unoaked styles. In this release, there are 4 cool climate Chardonnays worth my recommendation. The Château des Charmes Chardonnay Musqué is a highly aromatic clone of the Chardonnay grape and is unoaked. Also of the unoaked variety is the Chablis. For oaked-Chardonnay fans, check out the Hamilton Russell and the Bachelder Chardonnays.

From the rest of the release, the Domaine de Bila-Haut is a blend of Syrah, Grenache and Carignan, while the Vacqueyras is a blend of 65% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and 15% Mourvèdre. The Baron de Ley is 90% Tempranillo and 10% "other". And finally, the Rosé from Loire is made with 100% Cabernet Franc.

As a reminder, you can click on the product code (#xxxxxx) to take you to the Vintages website to view stock levels of the wine you're interested in. It will also show where you can find your wine. Inventory levels are updated daily, so check the next day if you don't see it listed by Saturday.

Enjoy my wine picks for the week and happy BBQ-ing! Cheers!


Red Wine:

• LAS MORAS BLACK LABEL BONARDA 2010 - San Juan, Argentina (#260901) (XD) - $15.95
• SISTER’S RUN EPIPHANY SHIRAZ 2011 - McLaren Vale, South Australia (#269464) (XD) - $16.95
• PORCA DE MURÇA RESERVA TINTO 2010 - DOC Douro, Portugal (#684753) (XD) - $17.95
• COLUMBIA CREST GRAND ESTATES CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2009 - Columbia Valley, Washington, USA (#240093) (XD) - $17.95
• CARMEN GRAN RESERVA CARMENÈRE 2011 - El Peñasco Vineyard, Apalta, Colchagua Valley, Chile (#439166) (D) - $17.95
• MAZZEI BADIOLA 2010 - IGT Toscana, Italy (#662197) (XD) - $18.95
• QUINTA DE VENTOZELO TOURIGA NACIONAL 2009 - DOC Douro, Portugal (#657452) (D) - $19.95
• DOMAINE DE BILA-HAUT OCCULTUM LAPIDEM 2010 - AC Côtes du Roussillon-Villages Latour de France, Midi (#643239) (XD) - $24.95
• ROMAIN DUVERNAY VACQUEYRAS 2010 - AP, Rhône, France (#280966) (D) - $26.95
• BARON DE LEY GRAN RESERVA 2004 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#642496) (XD) - $29.95

White Wine:

• CHÂTEAU DES CHARMES CHARDONNAY MUSQUÉ 2010 - VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada (#640516) (XD) - $16.95
• FRAMINGHAM SAUVIGNON BLANC 2012 - Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#606848) (XD) - $17.95
• DUCK POND CELLARS PINOT GRIS 2011 - Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA (#333286) (D) - $18.95
• ROLLY GASSMANN ROTLEIBEL DE RORSCHWIHR AUXERROIS 2007 - AC Alsace, France (#328872) (M) - $19.95
• CASAL FARNETO CRISIO VERDICCHIO DEI CASTELLI DI JESI RISERVA CLASSICO 2010 - DOCG, Marche, Italy (#326926) (XD) - $19.95
• HAMILTON RUSSELL CHARDONNAY 2011 - WO Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, South Africa (#931006) (XD) - $32.95
• CHARLES BAKER PICONE VINEYARD RIESLING 2010 - VQA Vinemount Ridge, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#241182) (M) - $35.20
• BILLAUD-SIMON VAILLONS CHABLIS 1ER CRU 2009 - AC, Burgundy, France (#330175) (XD) - $35.95
• BACHELDER WISMER VINEYARD CHARDONNAY 2010 - VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#345819) (XD) - $44.95

Rosé Wine:

• COULY-DUTHEIL RENÉ COULY CHINON ROSÉ 2012 - AC, Loire, France (#323360) (D) - $15.95
• FLAT ROCK CELLARS PINOT NOIR ROSÉ 2012 - VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#039974) (XD) - $16.95

Honey Wine:

• ROSEWOOD HARVEST GOLD MEAD 2011 - Ontario, Canada (#346767) (M) (500 mL) - $14.95  reviewed here

The rest of the wines from this release can be found here.