Closson Chase Vineyard Chardonnay 2014 (Ontario) - Wine Review (Bottle 1)

Tonight's wine to ring in the New Year is this wonderful Prince Edward County Chardonnay that I recently ordered through the VINI wine app that's available for iOS and Android. The selection of wines available in the app is rather small, but features high-quality wines that are somewhat hard to find. At the time of this post, I see there is a good list of wines from Ontario...

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Menguante Selección Garnacha 2012 (Spain) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine was a parting gift I received after the Garnacha Day tasting in September. It is produced by Viñedos y Bodegas Pablo, a family-owned winery located in Almonacid de la Sierra, Zaragoza, in northeastern Spain. The winery dates back to the 18th century, but the winemaking traditions of this family go back even further - to 1760. The fascinating story begins with...

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Abbazia di Novacella Müller-Thurgau 2014 (Italy) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine is more suitable for summer time drinking rather than a Christmas dinner in winter. Nevertheless, this is what's in my glass tonight. This white wine was purchased in the summer from the July 9 VINTAGES Release and, surprisingly, a few bottles are still available at the LCBO. Tasting Note: ABBAZIA DI NOVACELLA MÜLLER-THURGAU 2014 - DOC Valle Isarco Alto...

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Niagara Wine Festival Review 2016 - Day 1 of 2

The first day of my 2-day visit to Niagara for the annual Grape & Wine Festival was on September 17. We visited 4 wineries on this day, two in Twenty Valley and two in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Our first stop was at Magnotta Winery to whet our appetite with a fresh Caprese Salad that was paired with 2 wines - 2015 Magnotta Pinot Noir Equus Rosé ($9.95, 87 pts) and the 2014...

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FRESH Wines for the Holidays

Tonight's wine reviews are a pair of wines from the FRESH brand produced by Diamond Estates. The focus on FRESH is about fun, creative wines for wine drinkers who want to explore and try something different. The two wines reviewed below fit into the brand very nicely as the Riesling/Gewürztraminer blend and the Sparkling Wine made with Riesling are both relatively uncommon...

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Lamberti Santepietre Pinot Grigio 2015 (Italy) - Wine Review

Last night I opened up this easy drinking Pinot Grigio from Northern Italy. This wine is produced by Cantina Lamberti, a winery that was established in 1964 and is named after one of the oldest noble families of Verona. The grapes for this wine were harvested from Trentino and Veneto vineyards along the Adige Valley in Northern Italy, and were picked during the last 10 days...

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VINTAGES Release December 10: Top Holiday Dinner Wines

The upcoming LCBO VINTAGES Release on December 10th will be on shelves this Saturday and is another mono-thematic release featuring top wines for Holiday Dinners. This is also the final release of 2016, so if you need something for the holidays, now would be the time to stock up as the next release will be a week into 2017. Featured in this release are 25 wines for holiday...

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La Crema Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2014 (California) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine was released into VINTAGES last Spring and will be back as part of the LCBO VINTAGES Release on Saturday, December 10th. This wine is produced by La Crema, a winery emphasizing boutique, small-batch winemaking and a commitment to sustainability. I had the opportunity to visit this Sonoma winery in October and will be reporting on this in the near future - stay...

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Château Bertin 2014 (Bordeaux) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine review is another sneak preview of a wine that will be in LCBO VINTAGES on December 10th. This red wine is produced by Vignobles Jean-Bernard Saby & Fils, a family-owned winery with a winemaking history dating back to the 18th Century and spanning 9 generations. The grapes for this wine come from Château Bertin, within the town of Lussac, on the right...

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Bodegas Hermanos del Villar Oro de Castilla 2015 (Spain) - Wine Review

I opened up this crisp, refreshing dry white wine from Bodegas Hermanos del Villar last night. After having tasting their 2014 Oro de Castilla at the Rueda Tasting in May, I was very excited to try the latest vintage of this wine. The 2015 vintage in Rueda was marked by a lack rain, causing a delay in sprouting by 15 days and resulting in lower than usual yields. However,...

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VINTAGES Release November 26: Fine Holiday Wines

The upcoming LCBO VINTAGES Release on November 26 is titled "A Fine Romance" and features 29 fine wines and spirits that are splurge-worthy for the holidays. Wines from this release will be on shelves this coming Saturday. Leaving out the spirits, there are 25 wines included in this mono-thematic release, and a full 9 are included among my wine picks. A local red wine that...

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EastDell Unoaked Chardonnay 2015 (Ontario) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine is an unoaked Chardonnay and, similar to the 2014 EastDell Gamay Noir, is now on LCBO shelves with an updated, modern label that still retains the iconic heron. The 2015 vintage began with unusually cold temperatures throughout Winter and Spring. Fortunately, weather conditions improved greatly during the Summer growing season, with favourable conditions continuuing...

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Celebrating #GarnachaDay

International Grenache Day is celebrated around the world every 3rd Friday of September. This year, the celebration fell on Friday, September 16th and I was invited to an exclusive tasting of a few spectacular Grenache (or Garnatxa as they say in Spain) wines at Archive 909 on Dundas Street West in downtown Toronto. The origins of Grenache are found in Aragon, in northern...

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