Feb. 15 LCBO Wine Picks: France + Ontario

The next LCBO Vintages wine release will be in stores on Saturday, February 15th and the major of theme of this release is on benchmark wines from the top regions in France. The secondary theme of the release is a small one, featuring only 5 award winning wines from Ontario.

Overall, I was disappointed with most of the 20 French wines featured as they did not represent good buys. This is likely due to the fact that the 2011 and 2012 vintages were only average throughout most of France; while the two 2010 Bordeauxs featured were not top-notch, as one might expect from that great vintage. On to the positives, three French wines did make my list of wine picks.

On the premium wine side, there is a Champagne from Sourdet-Diot that is off-dry and made with 80% Pinot Meunier and 20% Chardonnay, while the Vincent Girardin is an oaked Chardonnay from 50 year-old vines.

From Midi (aka Languedoc), where great values can often be found, there is a 60/40 Syrah/Grenache blend from Domaine Lambrusques. There's also a classic Muscat wine from Terres Blanches for only $13.95 that wasn't part of the France feature but has wonderful aromas and is made in a dry style (i.e. not sweet).

Not surprisingly, three of the five Ontario award-winning wines featured in this release made my cut. First is the Huff Estates sparkling wine that is 100% Prince Edward County Chardonnay. From Niagara is the lightly-oaked Malivoire Gamay. And last, but definitely not least, is the exceptional Konzelmann Vidal Icewine that I tasted recently at the Niagara Icewine Festival.

From the rest of the release, the Spanish Monasterio is a blend of 60% Garnacha (Grenache), 30% Tempranillo and 10% Cariñena (Carignan). Zinfandel lovers may want to check out the Primitivo - the Italian take on the same grape; careful though, as it's not sweet as the versions you may have tried from California. And finally, the Hess Collection is a blend of 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Malbec, 9% Syrah, 7% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot - all of which come from 19 blocks from their highest altitude estate vineyard on Mount Vedeer.

Enjoy my wine recommendations for this week! Let me know if you try any of these. Cheers!


Red Wine:

• MONASTERIO DE LAS VIÑAS GRAN RESERVA 2005 - DO Cariñena, Spain (#082024) (XD) - $16.95
• MALIVOIRE GAMAY 2012 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#591313) (D) - $17.95
• DOMAINE LAMBRUSQUES ESPRIT SAUVAGE 2011 - AP Pic Saint-Loup, Midi, France (#354142) (XD) - $17.95
• PODERI ANGELINI PRIMITIVO DI MANDURIA 2008 - DOC, Puglia, Italy (#268136) (XD) - $18.95
• ZUCCARDI Q MALBEC 2011 - Mendoza, Argentina (#723478) (XD) - $19.95
• KILIKANOON KILLERMAN’S RUN SHIRAZ/GRENACHE 2011 - Clare Valley, South Australia (#009225) (XD) - $19.95  reviewed here
• CASTORANI AMORINO MONTEPULCIANO D’ABRUZZO 2007 - DOC, Abruzzo, Italy (#366732) (XD) - $27.95
• FONTODI CHIANTI CLASSICO 2010 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#933317) (XD) - $32.95
• HESS COLLECTION 19 BLOCK CUVÉE 2009 - Mount Veeder, Napa Valley, California, USA (#018879) (D) - $47.95  reviewed here

White Wine:

• TERRES BLANCHES MUSCAT SEC 2012 - Pays d’Oc IGP, Midi, France (#653188) (XD) - $13.95
• BOUTARI SANTORINI 2012 - PDO, Greece (#047985) (XD) - $17.95
• TAWSE SKETCHES OF NIAGARA RIESLING 2012 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#089029) (M) - $17.95
• KILIKANOON KILLERMAN’S RUN RIESLING 2012 - Clare Valley, South Australia (#365635) (XD) - $17.95  reviewed here
• VILLA MARIA CELLAR SELECTION SAUVIGNON BLANC 2012 - Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#974527) (XD) - $21.95
• VINCENT GIRARDIN VIEILLES VIGNES CHASSAGNE-MONTRACHET 2011 - AC, Burgundy, France (#364141) (XD) - $55.95

Sparkling Wine:

• HUFF ESTATES CUVÉE PETER F. HUFF 2007 - Traditional Method, VQA Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada (#198754) (D) - $39.95
• SOURDET-DIOT CUVÉE DE RÉSERVE BRUT CHAMPAGNE - AC, Champagne, France (#364752) (D) - $49.95

Dessert Wine:

• AGRI-RONCÃO DR LATE BOTTLED VINTAGE PORT 2000 - DOC Douro, Portugal (#351395) (S) - $24.95
• KONZELMANN VIDAL ICEWINE 2010 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#167866) (S) (200 mL) - $25.10  reviewed here

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