Wine Picks LCBO VINTAGES Release Mar. 2, 2019: Napa + Award-Winning Ontario

The upcoming LCBO VINTAGES Release on March 2, 2019 features wines from Napa Valley in its main theme, while the mini-theme looks at award-winning wines from Ontario. Both of these themes are on the small side. All of these wines, plus many others, will be on LCBO VINTAGES shelves across Ontario by this Saturday.

We'll begin with the main theme that focuses on wines from the 2015 vintage in Napa Valley. The year was marked by very dry growing conditions and low yields. However, it produced many quality wines, albeit in lower quantities. Of the ten wines featured in this theme, only one is included among my wine picks - a Chardonnay from Robert Mondavi.

Of six wines featured in the mini-theme on Award-Winning wines from Ontario, there are two beauties among my wine recommendations. The first is an excellent 50/50 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay sparkling wine from Niagara's 13th Street Winery. The second wine is a Marsanne, one of the few (perhaps only?) plantings of the grape in Ontario.

From my red wine picks, the Kékfrankos, as they call the grape varietal in Hungary, is also known as Blaufränkisch or Lemberger in other parts of the world. It is rare to see 100% Colorino, as we find in the Piazzano Colorino from Tuscany. Also from Italy, the Rubesco is a blend of 90% Sangiovese and 10% Colorino, while the Riserva Chianti Classico is a blend of 90% Sangiovese and 10% Merlot. The Chianti Classico from Isole e Olena is a blend of 80% Sangiovese, 15% Canaiolo, and 5% Syrah. Lastly, the lovely Amarone is a blend of 50% Corvina, 30% Corvinone, 15% Rondinella, and 5% Oseleta.

Among my white wine picks from the rest of the Release, the above $20 category features only Chardonnay - two from Burgundy, one from Ontario, and one from Russian River Valley. Under $20, there is a nicely dry Alsatian white that consists of 41% Sylvaner/Pinot Blanc, 19% Pinot Gris, 18% Gewurztraminer, 17% Riesling, and 5% Muscat, while Rioja white is a blend of 70% Viura, 10% Malvasía, 10% Tempranillo Blanco, and 10% Garnacha Blanca that spent 3 months in new French oak barrels. If you like some sweetness in your wine, there is a Gewurztraminer; for more sweetness look to the Niagara Riesling.

Enjoy my wine recommendations from this Release! Cheers!

Red Wine:

• CAMPOS DE ENANZO BASIANO TEMPRANILLO 2017 - DO Navarra, Spain (#644484) (XD) - $11.95
• NEDERBURG MANOR HOUSE SHIRAZ 2015 - WO Western Cape, South Africa (#068775) (XD) - $16.95
• TÚZKO KÉKFRANKOS 2015 - Hungary (#588806) (XD) - $18.95
• LUNGAROTTI RUBESCO SANGIOVESE/COLORINO 2015 - DOC Rosso di Torgiano, Umbria, Italy (#368548) (XD) - $19.95  89 pts  wine review
• VIÑA LEYDA SINGLE VINEYARD LAS BRISAS PINOT NOIR 2016 - DO Leyda Valley, Chile (#632919) (XD) - $19.95
• SIDEWOOD SHIRAZ 2015 - Adelaide Hills, South Australia (#446146) (XD) - $19.95

• MAZZEI SER LAPO RISERVA CHIANTI CLASSICO 2015 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#288530) (XD) - $23.95  90 pts  wine review
• SOUTHBROOK LAUNDRY VINEYARD GAMAY NOIR 2017 - VQA Vinemount Ridge, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#646323) (XD) - $24.95  90 pts  wine review
• UNDURRAGA TERROIR HUNTER CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2015 - Cauquenes, Maule Valley, Chile (#630350) (XD) - $24.95
• ISOLE E OLENA CHIANTI CLASSICO 2015 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#704346) (XD) - $34.95
• PIAZZANO COLORINO 2015 - IGT Toscana, Italy (#455675) (XD) - $35.95  91 pts  wine review
• SARTORI CORTE BRÀ AMARONE DELLA VALPOLICELLA CLASSICO 2011 - DOC, Veneto, Italy (#225540) (D) - $53.95

White Wine:

• PALATINE HILLS RIESLING 2016 - VQA Niagara Lakeshore, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada (#520395) (M) - $15.95  89 pts  wine review
• HUGEL GENTIL 2016 - AC Alsace, France (#367284) (XD) - $18.95  89 pts  wine review
• KEW MARSANNE 2016 - VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#485334) (D) - $19.95
• IZADI BLANCO 2017 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#586396) (XD) - $19.95
• BARON DE HOEN RÉSERVE GEWURZTRAMINER 2017 - AC Alsace, France (#377721) (D) - $19.95
• MÂCON-LUGNY LES CHARMES 2017 - AC, Burgundy, France (#983098) (XD) - $21.95
• ROBERT MONDAVI NAPA VALLEY CHARDONNAY 2015 - Napa Valley, California, USA (#310409) (XD) - $29.95
• DOMAINE DU CHALET POUILLY POUILLY-FUISSÉ 2016 - AP, Burgundy, France (#295717) (XD) - $33.95
• SOUTHBROOK ESTATE GROWN SMALL LOT WILD FERMENT CHARDONNAY 2017 - VQA Four Mile Creek, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada (#644625) (XD) - $35.00  91 pts  wine review
• GIRARD RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY CHARDONNAY 2015 - Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California, USA (#276675) (D) - $39.95

Sparkling Wine:

• 13TH STREET PREMIER CUVÉE 2012 - Traditional method, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#142679) (XD) - $34.95  91 pts  wine review

Fortified:

• DOW’S QUINTA DO BOMFIM VINTAGE PORT 2005 - Bottled in 2007, DOC, Portugal (#515544) (S) (375 mL) - $28.95  FE