February 17, 2024 LCBO VINTAGES Release Wine Picks: France

Here's my top wine picks from the February 17, 2024 LCBO VINTAGES New Release Collection. It's another small-ish release with 85 wines offered, although a number of these are VINTAGES Essentials products. The feature of the release focuses on the wines from France, and all the wines should be available for purchase by this Saturday.

We begin with the feature that looks at the wines from France. There are nineteen wines as part of the theme, but six of these are VINTAGES Essentials products that are always available. Overall, it is a weak theme with several important categories missing, such as wines from Loire, Rhône whites, and reds from Languedoc. Of the nineteen wines in the theme, only three are included among my top wine recommendations. There are two whites - a Gewurztraminer from Alsace and an Aligoté from Burgundy, while the lone red wine is from Bordeaux, and it is crafted with 50/50 Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Leading the way in the main release among my top red wine picks is Italy with five recommended wines, most of which are from Tuscany. At the top of the list is the Brunello di Montalcino, which is crafted with 100% Sangiovese Grosso, followed by the Rosso di Montalcino that is made with 100% Sangiovese. The Chianti Classico Annata is also 100% Sangiovese, while the Riserva Chianti Classico is a blend with a minimum of 80% Sangiovese. The last wine from Italy is the Wine of the Month - a Valpolicella that is composed of 70% Corvina Veronese, 20% Corvinone, and 10% Rondinella. Red wine blends from other parts of the world include the Niagara Syrah which is actually a co-fermented blend of 99.4% Syrah and 0.6% Viognier, while the Gualtallary red from Argentina is composed of 50% Cabernet Franc, 45% Malbec, and 5% Casavecchia. There is also an Australian GSM that is made with 67% Grenache, 27% Shiraz, and 6% Mataro, as well as the red from South Africa that is crafted with 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Syrah. And last, but not least, the Rhône red is a 50/50 blend of Grenache and Syrah.

Among my white wine recommendations from the main release, all are mono-varietal wines. From Italy, there is a Fiano from Campania, and the Lugana from Veneto is crafted with the Turbiana varietal. The other white wines are a Chenin Blanc from South Africa, and an unoaked Chardonnay from Niagara. If you enjoy decadently sweet wines, the Sherry made with Pedro Ximénez will be right up your alley.

Enjoy my top wine recommendations from this release! Salud!

Red Wine:

• KIR YIANNI CUVÉE VILLAGES XINOMAVRO 2020 - Vegan, PDO Naoussa, Greece (#14151) (XD) - $17.95  90+ pts  wine review
• SHANAHANS THE BARKING DOG GSM 2021 - Barossa Valley, South Australia (#20880) (XD) - $18.95
• HENRY LAGARDE OLD VINES ORGANIC MALBEC 2022 - Vegan, Mendoza, Argentina (#36182) (XD) - $20.95
• DOÑA PAULA 1350 ALTITUDE SERIES RED 2020 - Gualtallary, Tupungato, Valle de Uco, Mendoza, Argentina (#17382) (XD) - $22.95
• CHÂTEAU FONTAINE DE L'AUBIER 2016 - AC Médoc, Bordeaux, France (#35619) (XD) - $22.95
• CASTELGREVE RISERVA CHIANTI CLASSICO 2019 - Sustainable, DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#344416) (XD) - $23.95  90 pts  wine review

• LAVAU RASTEAU 2020 - AC, Rhône, France (#394650) (XD) - $23.95
• GREAT HEART RED BLEND 2020 - WO Swartland, South Africa (#33288) (XD) - $23.95
• IL MOLINO DI GRACE CHIANTI CLASSICO 2019 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#85209) (XD) - $24.95  90+ pts  wine review
• CREEKSIDE ICONOCLAST SYRAH 2020 - Queen's Road Vineyard, VQA St. David's Bench, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada (#471797) (XD) - $25.00  91 pts  wine review
• BERTANI CATULLO VALPOLICELLA RIPASSO CLASSICO SUPERIORE 2019 - DOC, Veneto, Italy (#17777) (XD) - $26.95  91 pts  wine review
• CORTE PAVONE ROSSO DI MONTALCINO 2021 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#550699) (XD) - $28.95  91 pts  wine review
• CARPINETO BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO 2018 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#14857) (XD) - $66.95  92+ pts  wine review

White Wine:

• CANTINA SAN PAOLO FIANO 2022 - IGP, Campania, Italy (#36304) (XD) - $15.95
• TOMMASI LE FORNACI LUGANA 2022 - DOC, Veneto, Italy (#23866) (XD) - $19.95
• JOSEPH CATTIN GEWURZTRAMINER 2022 - Sustainable, AC Alsace, France (#224626) (M) - $19.95
• ROCKWAY VINEYARDS UNOAKED CHARDONNAY 2022 - VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#483891) (XD) - $20.00
• CLOSERIE DES ALISIERS BOURGOGNE ALIGOTÉ 2022 - AP, Burgundy, France (#557728) (XD) - $22.95
• GREAT HEART CHENIN BLANC 2021 - WO Swartland, South Africa (#24764) (XD) - $23.95

Fortified Wine:

• GONZÁLEZ BYASS NECTAR PEDRO XIMÉNEZ DULCE SHERRY - Vegan, DO, Spain (#87577) (S) - $26.95