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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Montebuena Cuvée KPF 2014 (Spain) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine is a red wine that will be available in LCBO VINTAGES on November 26. Having enjoyed the 2012 Montebuena Cuvée KPF that showed up in VINTAGES in June 2015, I am expecting the 2014 to be equally as good as (or better than) the 2012 vintage to due a harvest that improved in quality. It is produced by Bodegas y Viñedos Labastida, a winery that is part of the...

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EastDell Gamay Noir 2014 (Ontario) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine review is the latest Gamay from EastDell Estates. I tasted the 2010 EastDell Gamay Noir three years ago, but this wine has since undergone a label change and comes to us now with a brand new, modern label that still includes the iconic heron. The summer in 2014 had average-to-cooler than normal temperatures, while late summer and into September brought much...

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VINTAGES Release November 12: Holiday Gifts & Parties

The upcoming LCBO VINTAGES Release on November 12 is a large one featuring just one theme - wines for holiday gifts and parties. All wines will be on shelves this Saturday, November 12. Since there is only one theme in this release, there are 31 wines included as part of the feature, and 12 are included among my wine picks. Most of the wines in this theme are red wines,...

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Château Guillou 2014 (Bordeaux) - Wine Review

Last November, the 2012 Château Guillou landed in VINTAGES. Tonight's wine is the 2014 vintage of this wine and will be in LCBO VINTAGES on November 12. Produced by Jean-Bernard Saby, this family has been making wines for nine generations since the 18th century. Today, the winery's vineyards consist of 62 hectares, yielding well-structured wines that are enhanced by perfectly...

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Chianti Classico Tasting - Celebrating 300 Years

The final wine tasting of May was held at the luxurious Four Seasons Hotel in Yorkville, downtown Toronto. Inside was a tasting celebrating 300 years of Chianti Classico wines. The borders of the Chianti Classico DOCG were formed in 1716 and lies in the territory between the provinces of Florence to the north and Siena to the south. The total area of the territory is 173,000...

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