Wine Picks LCBO VINTAGES Release Mar. 16, 2019: Southern France + Spirits

The upcoming LCBO VINTAGES Release on March 16, 2019 features the sunny wines from Southern France as the main theme, while the mini-theme looks at fine spirits made with either grape or grain. All of these wines, plus many others from this Release should be available on LCBO VINTAGES shelves across Ontario by this Saturday.

We'll begin with the main theme that looks at wines from Southern France, a sunny area that stretches along the Mediterranean from the Spanish border to Nice. Of the eleven wines featured, five delicious wines are included among my top wine picks. The "DSM" wine is a blend of 30% Syrah, 27% Carignan, 23% Grenache, 14% Carignan, and 6% Lledoner Pelut from fairly old vines and altitudes 600 to 1300 feet above sea level. The Bastide Miraflors is a blend of 70% Syrah and 30% Grenache, while the Tautavel consists of 70% Syrah, 20% Grenache, and 10% Carignan. The rosés from the South of France are also famous, as is the version from Gérard Bertrand that consists of Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah, and is now a VINTAGES Essentials listing. Lastly, the bubbly is a dry sparkler made with Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, and Mauzac.

Red wines from the rest of the Release include a Merlot dominated blend from Bordeaux, while the Super Tuscan from Italy is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Alicante, Sangiovese, and Cabernet Franc. Single varietal wines include an excellent Xinomavro from Greece and a Shiraz from South Africa. From Australia, there's a lovely high-end Shiraz, as well as a nice Cabernet Sauvignon.

Among my white wine picks from this Release, the only blend is from Portugal and it consists of Antão Vaz, Arinto and Alvarinho. The rest are all single varietals, including lovely returnees to VINTAGES - a Chardonnay and Riesling from Ontario.

Enjoy my wine recommendations this from this Release! Cheers!

Red Wine:

• FIRRIATO CHIARAMONTE NERO D’AVOLA 2015 - IGT Terre Siciliane, Sicily, Italy (#121145) (D) - $15.95
• DUNCAN SAVAGE UNTAMED SHIRAZ 2017 - WO Swartland, South Africa (#634659) (XD) - $16.95
• CHÂTEAU HOURTOU CÔTES DE BOURG 2015 - AC, Bordeaux, France (#630038) (XD) - $18.95
• HEARTLAND WINES HEART & SOIL SHIRAZ 2014 - Langhorne Creek, South Australia (#632539) (XD) - $19.95
• BASTIDE MIRAFLORS SYRAH/VIEILLES VIGNES GRENACHE 2015 - AP Côtes du Roussillon, France (#320499) (XD) - $19.95
• SOUS LA MONTAGNE DSM VIN D’ALTITUDE 2016 - AP Côtes du Roussillon-Villages, France (#647925) (XD) - $20.95
• WAKEFIELD JARAMAN CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2015 - Coonawarra/Clare Valley, South Australia (#142398) (XD) - $24.95  89 pts  wine review
• VIGNERONS DE TAUTAVEL LES VINGT MARCHES TAUTAVEL 2015 - AP Côtes du Roussillon-Villages, France (#645358) (XD) - $29.95
• POGGIO VERRANO DRÒMOS 2010 - IGT Maremma Toscana, Italy (#107383) (XD) - $43.95
• 1879 BOUTARI LEGACY 2007 - Naoussa, Greece (#590497) (XD) - $60.00  FE  93 pts  wine review
• BAROSSA VALLEY ESTATE E&E BLACK PEPPER SHIRAZ 2014 - Limited release, Barossa Valley, South Australia (#731620) (XD) - $89.95  93 pts  wine review

White Wine:

• HERDADE DO ROCIM MARIANA BRANCO 2017 - Vinho Regional Alentejano, Portugal (#631507) (XD) - $13.95
• LAKEVIEW CELLARS VIOGNIER 2017 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#646307) (D) - $18.95
• TE AWA LEFT FIELD PINOT GRIS 2017 - Hawke’s Bay, North Island, New Zealand (#630525) (XD) - $19.95
• ERRÁZURIZ ACONCAGUA COSTA SAUVIGNON BLANC 2017 - DO Aconcagua Costa, Chile (#462614) (XD) - $19.95  89 pts  wine review
• HIDDEN BENCH ESTATE CHARDONNAY 2016 - VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#068817) (XD) - $29.95  90 pts  wine review
• CAVE SPRING CSV RIESLING 2016 - Cave Spring Vineyard, VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#566026) (XD) - $29.95  93 pts  wine review
• SAINT CLAIR WAIRAU RESERVE SAUVIGNON BLANC 2017 - Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#415653) (XD) - $32.95
• DOMAINE LAROCHE LES VAUDEVEY CHABLIS 1ER CRU 2017 - AC, Burgundy, France (#416057) (XD) - $38.95

Rosé Wine:

• GÉRARD BERTRAND CÔTE DES ROSES ROSÉ 2017 - AP Languedoc, France (#373985) (XD) - $18.95  89 pts  wine review

Sparkling Wine:

• ANTECH EXPRESSION BRUT CRÉMANT DE LIMOUX 2015 - Traditional method, AC, Languedoc, France (#068239) (XD) - $19.95

Fortified:

• QUINTA DO CRASTO VINTAGE PORT 2015 - Bottled in 2017, DOP, Portugal (#644880) (375 mL) (S) - $29.95