Jan. 5 Wine Picks: Smart Buys

Apologies for the really delayed post, as I've been under the weather out here in cold & rainy California! As per the usual, the first Vintages release of the new year is always titled "Smart Buys". New wines will be in LCBO outlets across Ontario on Saturday, January 5. I will keep this short as I really need to get back into bed.

The best buy in the release is a fantastic Barolo for under $30. Italy shines through with 3 other reds as well. In whites, there are 2 German wines, plus a delicious extra-dry Assyrtiko from Greece. It's great to see the Flourish Vidal Icewine back on Vintages shelves - superb QPR at $17.95!

There is also a very nice feature on the Cabernet Franc varietal and it's impact here in Ontario. When I first tasted Ontario Cab Francs many years ago, I did not like them and tended to avoid them whenever possible. But over the last few years, I decided to revisit this varietal and now passionately seek them out. They are quite delicious! Enjoy my picks for this week and Happy New Year to all! I'm off to bed!

Red Wine:

• DE MARTINO LEGADO RESERVA CARMENÈRE 2010 - DO Maipo Valley, Chile (#236059) (XD) - $16.95
• DONNACHIARA IRPINIA AGLIANICO 2008 - DOC, Campania, Italy (#262956) (XD) - $18.95
• LA SALA CHIANTI CLASSICO RISERVA 2008 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#303487) (XD) - $19.95
• ARNALDO CAPRAI ROSSO MONTEFALCO 2009 - DOC, Umbria, Italy (#303065) (XD) - $19.95
• CAVE SPRING ESTATE CABERNET FRANC 2007 - Cave Spring Vineyard, VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#072751) (XD) - $24.95
• LA PIEVE BAROLO 2008 - DOCG, Piedmont, Italy (#213132) (XD) - $28.95
• DOMAINE BESANCENOT BEAUNE THEURONS 1ER CRU 2009 - AC, Burgundy, France (#299909) (XD) - $35.95

White Wine:

• TORRES VIÑA ESMERALDA 2011 - DO Catalunya, Spain (#113696) (D) - $13.95
• WERNER ANSELMANN EDESHEIMER ROSENGARTEN SIEGERREBE SPÄTLESE 2011 - Prädikatswein, Pfalz, Germany (#910554) (MS) - $14.95
• DR. HERMANN ERDENER TREPPCHEN RIESLING SPÄTLESE 2007 - Prädikatswein, Mosel, Germany (#181917) (MS) - $16.95
• SANTO ASSYRTIKO 2011 - PDO Santorini, Greece (#627760) (XD) - $16.95
• FOXGLOVE CHARDONNAY 2010 - Central Coast, California, USA (#262022) (D) - $19.95

Icewine:

• FLOURISH VIDAL ICEWINE 2008 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#222356) (S) (200 mL) - $17.95

Sparkling Wine:

• SCHLOSS WACHENHEIM RIESLING TROCKEN TRADITIONELLE FLASCHENGÄRUNG SEKT - Pfalz, Germany (#301366) (D) - $16.95

Fortifieds:

• TAYLOR FLADGATE FINE WHITE PORT - DOC Douro, Portugal (#069856) (S) - $15.95

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