Jan. 10 LCBO Wine Picks: Smart Buys

The new year is upon us and, as such, we have the annual "Smart Buys" release from VINTAGES that arrives on LCBO shelves this Saturday, January 10th. The magazine is quite noticeably lighter than the massive releases we had in November and December leading up to the busy holiday season. The secondary mini-feature in this VINTAGES release highlights a few Scotches to salute Robbie Burns Day (Jan. 25th).

Of the 28 wines featured in the "Smart Buys" section, only 2 made my list of wine picks. The Famille Lafage from Roussillon is a red wine blend consisting of 60% Syrah and 40% Grenache, and offers excellent value in this release - a "Smart Buy" for sure. The second wine is a Spanish red made with a grape that's normally used in blends, but in this case, the Rio Madre is 100% Graciano.

From the rest of the release, there is a 2010 Bordeaux that is a Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon blend from an excellent vintage that will reward with a couple of years in the cellar. Other blends include a 80% Malbec / 10% Bonarda / 10% Syrah blend from Argentina, and an organic wine from Parés Baltà that is 50/50 Cab Sauv and Grenache. Lastly, from Greece is a 100% Xinomavro from Boutari. In white wines, the Gavi di Gavi is made with 100% Cortese.

That's all for this week. In the next release, wines from Spain, Chile and Argentina are featured - so we should find quite a few very nice wines to recommend. Cheers!


Red Wine:

• BOUTARI NAOUSSA 2010 - PDO Naoussa, Greece (#023218) (XD) - $13.95
• RIO MADRE 2013 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#354753) (XD) - $14.95  reviewed here
• LAFAGE CÔTÉ SUD 2012 - IGP Côtes Catalanes, Roussillon, France (#395236) (XD) - $14.95
• PARÉS BALTÀ MAS PETIT GARNATXA/CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2012 - DO Penedès, Spain (#114264) (XD) - $15.95
• TRIVENTO AMADO SUR MALBEC/BONARDA/SYRAH 2012 - Mendoza, Argentina (#037036) (XD) - $16.95  reviewed here
• OAK BAY GAMAY NOIR 2012 - BC VQA Okanagan Valley, British Columbia, Canada (#392431) (XD) - $17.95
• CASAR DE BURBIA MENCÍA 2010 - DO Bierzo, Spain (#392530) (XD) - $19.95
• CHÂTEAU BEAUSÉJOUR HOSTENS 2010 - AC Haut Médoc, Bordeaux, France (#388298) (XD) - $22.95

White Wine:

• BERSANO GAVI DI GAVI 2013 - DOCG, Piedmont, Italy (#999979) (XD) - $14.95  reviewed here
• ROYAL TOKAJI FURMINT 2011 - Hungary (#653220) (XD) - $14.95
• KEINT-HE VOYAGEUR CHARDONNAY 2012 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#389544) (XD) - $16.00  reviewed here
• ATTEMS PINOT GRIGIO 2013 - IGT Venezia Giulia, Friuli, Italy (#707950) (XD) - $19.95
• ANSELMANN RIESLING AUSLESE 2012 - Qualitätswein, Pfalz, Germany (#391052) (MS) - $19.95

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