July 5, 2025 LCBO VINTAGES Release Wine Picks: Mediterranean Wines

Here are my top wine picks from the July 5, 2025 LCBO VINTAGES New Release Collection (flipbook here), which highlights Mediterranean Wines for Summer Sipping as the feature story of the release. The mini-thematic features three wines from Austria's historic Winzer Krems, while in Local Talent there is a stellar lineup of Cool Chardonnays. In all, there are 90 wines included in this release, with almost an equal number of red- and white-coloured wines, and everything should be available for purchase by this Saturday, if not already in many stores.

We'll begin with the feature story of the release, which lists twelve Mediterranean wines for Summer Sipping - five of which are included among my top wine picks. Up first are a couple of white wines from Sicily - an Etna Bianco crafted with 100% Carricante, as well as a Grillo. The other three wines are all rosés, including a couple of blends from Provence in France, with the Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence a blend of Grenache, Syrah, and Cinsault. The other rosé is from Greece and a blend of 70% Agiorgitiko and 30% Moscofilero.

The red wines in this release felt a bit like slim pickings, with only nine recommendations coming from just four countries. We'll start in France with the Gigondas, which is majority Grenache, with Syrah completing the cuvée, while the Bordeaux red is 100% Merlot. From Italy, the Vino Nobile is Sangiovese, while the Chianti Classico is a blend of 90% Sangiovese, 5% Malvasia Nera, and 5% Colorino. From Argentina there is a straight Malbec, while the other wine is mainly Cabernet Sauvignon. Spain has three recommendations in this release, with both Riojas crafted with 100% Tempranillo, while the Navarra red is 100% Graciano.

Among my top white wine picks, Cool Chardonnay is the place to start with a quartet of lovely 2022 vintage Chardonnays from Ontario - three from the Benchlands in Niagara and one from Prince Edward County. Tasting the four of these side-by-side would be a lovely exercise for the studious types (or a Saturday evening!). There are two blends among my white wine recommendations - the Côtes du Rhône Blanc is composed of 50% Grenache Blanc, 40% Viognier, and 10% Marsanne, while the South African white is mainly Chenin Blanc blended with Roussanne, Viognier, and Sémillon. Among the mono-varietal wines, there is a Sauvignon Blanc from Margaret River in Australia, the Torrontés from the high-altitudes of Salta in Argentina, as well as the slightly off-dry Riesling from Austria. Lastly, the Orange Wine from Chile is crafted with Torontel.

My lone rosé pick (that wasn't part of the Mediterranean feature) is from New Zealand, and it is a somewhat quirky blend of 48% Pinot Gris, 48% Chenin Blanc, and 4% Pinot Noir.

Enjoy my top wine recommendations from this release! Cheers!

Red Wine:

• AGRAMONT GRACIANO 2022 - DO Navarra, Spain (#37262) (XD) - $15.95
• NIETO SENETINER DON NICANOR MALBEC 2022 - Mendoza, Argentina (#178657) (XD) - $17.95
• MONTEBUENA CUVÉE KPF 2020 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#211029) (XD) - $18.95  88+ pts  wine review
• PALACIO DE PRIMAVERA VENDIMIA SELECCIONADA RESERVA 2020 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#13632) (XD) - $19.95
• CHÂTEAU HAUCHAT 2022 - AC Fronsac, Bordeaux, France (#123489) (XD) - $19.95
• MAZZEI FONTERUTOLI CHIANTI CLASSICO 2022 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#977629) (XD) - $24.95
• PIEDRA NEGRA GRAN LURTON SINGLE VINEYARD CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2018 - IG Los Chacayes, Valle de Uco, Mendoza, Argentina (#980334) (XD) - $24.95  90 pts  wine review
• VECCHIA CANTINA RISERVA VINO NOBILE DI MONTEPULCIANO 2017 - Sustainable, DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#36523) (XD) - $27.95
• DOMAINE DU GRAPILLON D'OR 1806 GIGONDAS 2021 - AC, Rhône, France (#981787) (XD) - $39.95

White Wine:

• LES DAUPHINS RÉSERVE CÔTES DU RHÔNE BLANC 2023 - Sustainable, Vegan, AC, France (#18600) (XD) - $14.95  89 pts  wine review
• GORGHI TONDI COSTE A PREOLA GRILLO 2023 - DOC Sicilia, Italy (#11670) (XD) - $18.95  89 pts  wine review
• AVONDALE JONTY'S DUCKS PEKIN WHITE CHENIN BLANC 2021 - Sustainable, WO Paarl, South Africa (#439554) (XD) - $18.95  89 pts  wine review
• EVANS & TATE WILD CAPE SAUVIGNON BLANC 2022 - Margaret River, Western Australia (#41435) (XD) - $19.95  review coming soon...
• BODEGA EL PORVENIR DE CAFAYATE LABORUM FINCA EL RETIRO TORRONTÉS 2023 - Valle de Cafayate, Salta, Argentina (#489179) (XD) - $19.95  90 pts  wine review
• MATURANA NARANJO TORONTEL ORANGE WINE 2023 - Sustainable, Loncomilla, Valle del Maule, Chile (#556217) (XD) - $24.95  review coming soon...

• TORNATORE ETNA BIANCO 2024 - DOC, Sicily, Italy (#577676) (XD) - $24.95
• WINZER KREMS KREMSER KREUZBERG RESERVE RIESLING 2022 - Sustainable, Vegan, DAC Kremstal, Austria (#44857) (D) - $29.95
• CAVE SPRING CSV CHARDONNAY 2022 - Sustainable, VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#529941) (XD) - $34.95  91+ pts  wine review
• ROSEHALL RUN JCR CHARDONNAY 2022 - Estate Grown and Bottled, VQA Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada (#45615) (XD) - $36.00  91+ pts  wine review
• CLOUDSLEY TWENTY MILE BENCH CHARDONNAY 2022 - VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#16093) (XD) - $36.95  91+ pts  wine review
• LE CLOS JORDANNE CLAYSTONE TERRACE CHARDONNAY 2022 - VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#36806) (XD) - $42.00  92+ pts  wine review

Rosé Wine:

• SKOURAS CUVÉE PRESTIGE AGIORGITIKO / MOSCOFILERO ROSÉ 2024 - PGI Peloponnese, Greece (#25745) (XD) - $16.95  89 pts  wine review
• ERADUS SADIE ROSÉ 2024 - Awatere Valley, Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#43353) (XD) - $19.95  review coming soon...
• CHÂTEAU LA TOUR DE L'ÉVÊQUE ROSÉ 2024 - AC Côtes de Provence, France (#319392) (XD) - $20.95
• SAINT AIX ROSÉ 2024 - AP Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence, France (#451906) (XD) - $25.95