August 19, 2023 LCBO VINTAGES Release Wine Picks: Summer Smart Buys

Here's my top wine picks from the August 19, 2023 LCBO VINTAGES New Release Collection, which is the annual Summer Smart Buys release. It's a big release with 147 wines featured and 27 included among my top wine picks. All of the wines from the release should be available for purchase by this Saturday.

We'll begin with the theme titled "Summer Smart Buys" and it features nineteen wines that are almost all below $25, and five are included among my top wine picks. The sparkling wine from Burgundy is composed of primarily Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, with Aligoté completing the blend. Among the white table wines, there is a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, and a Chenin Blanc from South Africa, while the red wines include a wine made with the País varietal from Chile, as well as a lovely Pinot Noir from Russian River Valley.

If this release was to have a mini-theme, it would feature the wines of Spain as there are many quality wines from this country in this release. In red wines, the Crianza is made with 100% Tempranillo, while the 2015 Gran Reserva is a blend of Tempranillo and Mazuelo, and, lastly, the 2008 Gran Reserva is crafted with approximately 95% Tempranillo and the rest other native varieties. Other red wine blends include the wine from the Dão region in Portugal that consists of 40% Alfrocheiro, 40% Aragonez (Tempranillo), and 20% Touriga Nacional, while the both of the McLaren Vale and Vinsobres wines are crafted with Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre. The last blend is the Symmetry from Sonoma that is composed of 69% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 12% Malbec,
4% Petit Verdot, and 3% Cabernet Franc. Some of the single varietal wines include a Pinot Noir from Chile, an Aglianico from Basilicata, and a trio of Cabernet Sauvignon wines - two from California and one from Chile.

Among my white wine picks, we start in Greece with an oak aged blend of 85% Assyrtiko, 10% Athiri, and 5% Aidani from Santorini, while the wine from Attica is crafted with 100% Savatiano. The white wine from Abruzzo is a blend of 50% Pecorino, 30% Passerina, and 20% Trebbiano, while the Rhône white is composed of 50% Grenache Blanc, 20% Viognier, 15% Marsanne, and 15% Roussanne. and the Rjoja white is a barrel fermented blend of Viura, Garnacha Blanca, and Malvasía. For wines with some sweetness, look to the off-dry Riesling from Niagara, or the medium sweet Vouvray from Loire which is crafted with 100% Chenin Blanc.

From my pink wine recommendations, both are dry rosé wines, with the rosé from Niagara crafted primarily with Pinot Noir, while the rosé from Provence is a blend of Cinsault, Grenache, and Syrah.

Enjoy my top wine recommendations from this release! Cheers!

Red Wine:

• CABRIZ COLHEITA SELECIONADA TINTO 2020 - DOC Dão, Portugal (#247973) (D) - $14.95  88+ pts  wine review
• D'ARENBERG THE STUMP JUMP GRENACHE / SHIRAZ / MOURVÈDRE 2019 - McLaren Vale, South Australia (#173294) (XD) - $17.95  89 pts  wine review
• BOUCHON PAÍS VIEJO 2022 - Dry farmed, old vines, ungrafted, Secano Interior, Valle del Maule, Chile (#25297) (XD) - $18.95
• CELLIER DES DAUPHINS VINSOBRES 2019 - Cru des Côtes du Rhône, AC, France (#15448) (XD) - $19.95  90 pts  wine review
• ALTANZA CRIANZA 2018 - Vegan, DOCa Rioja, Spain (#114835) (XD) - $19.95
• OLARRA CLÁSICO GRAN RESERVA 2015 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#30225) (XD) - $19.95
• PATERNOSTER SYNTHESI 2018 - DOC Aglianico del Vulture, Basilicata, Italy (#51672) (XD) - $22.95

• SAN PEDRO 1865 TAYÚ PINOT NOIR 2020 - Buchahueico, DO Valle del Malleco, Chile (#16628) (XD) - $23.95
• LA LUNA E I FALÒ BARBERA D'ASTI SUPERIORE 2020 - DOCG, Piedmont, Italy (#627901) (D) - $24.95  89 pts  wine review
• RANCH 32 CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2020 - Monterey County, California, USA (#480269) (XD) - $25.95  90 pts  wine review
• UNDURRAGA TERROIR HUNTER CAUQUENES CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2019 - Valle del Maule, Chile (#24768) (XD) - $26.95  92 pts  wine review
• PUELLES GRAN RESERVA 2008 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#30222) (XD) - $26.95
• RODNEY STRONG ALEXANDER VALLEY CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2020 - Sustainable, Alexander Valley, Sonoma County, California, USA (#350454) (XD) - $34.95
• DAVIS BYNUM RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY PINOT NOIR 2018 - Sustainable, Sonoma County, California, USA (#458893) (XD) - $34.95  91+ pts  wine review
• RODNEY STRONG SYMMETRY 2017 - Sonoma County, California, USA (#641142) (XD) - $74.95  93 pts  wine review
  

White Wine:

• TORRE ZAMBRA INCASTRO BIANCO 2022 - Vegan, sustainable, IGT Terre di Chieti, Abruzzo, Italy (#28121) (XD) - $17.95
• FAMILLE PERRIN RÉSERVE CÔTES DU RHÔNE BLANC 2022 - AC, France (#499509) (XD) - $17.95
• PAPAGIANNAKOS OLD VINES SAVATIANO 2022 - Vegan, PGI Markopoulo, Attica, Greece (#33259) (XD) - $18.95
• MUGA BARREL FERMENTED WHITE 2021 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#958736) (XD) - $19.95
• OTU MARLBOROUGH SAUVIGNON BLANC 2022 - Sustainable, Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#17549) (XD) - $19.95
• DONATIEN BAHUAUD LES GRANDS MORTIERS VOUVRAY 2021 - AP, Loire, France (#140889) (M) - $21.95
• NEDERBURG THE ANCHORMAN CHENIN BLANC 2021 - WO Western Cape, South Africa (#667212) (XD) - $22.95
• CHARLES BAKER B-SIDE RIESLING 2020 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#523845) (D) - $24.95  90 pts  wine review
• SANTO WINES 1911 SANTORINI NYKTERI 2021 - Vegan, PDO Santorini, Greece (#33226) (XD) - $40.95  92 pts  wine review

Rosé Wine:

• BELLES D'EGUILLES ROSÉ 2022 - AP Coteaux d'Aix en Provence, France (#32421) (XD) - $17.95
• MALIVOIRE VIVANT ROSÉ 2022 - Sustainable, VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#498535) (XD) - $19.95

Sparkling Wine:

• LABOURÉ-GONTARD BRUT CRÉMANT DE BOURGOGNE - Traditional method, AP, Burgundy, France (#401018) (D) - $21.95