November 8, 2025 LCBO VINTAGES Release Wine Picks: Festive Wines + Burgundy

Here are my top wine picks from the November 8, 2025 LCBO VINTAGES New Release Collection (digital edition here), where "Wines for Every Festive Moment" is the feature story of the release, while The Bounties of Burgundy is the mini-feature. Also included in this release are a new batch of Online & Flagship Exclusives. While this is a large and fairly expensive release with 145 products offered and the average price per bottle just north of $38, it is a very good release with many fine options for festive occasions - and your cellar. All the wines should be readily available for purchase online and in-stores across Ontario.

We'll begin with the feature story titled "Wines for Every Festive Moment", which could be translated to "Premium Wines for Festive Moments" as each wine is priced at a minimum of $34.95. Of the thirteen wines included in the feature story, five are among my top wine picks. At the top of the list is the Oreno that is crafted with 45% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot, followed by a Gran Selezione Chianti Classico that is 100% Sangiovese, and a Pinot Noir from South Africa. On the local front, there is a lovely Syrah from Niagara, as well as a dry white wine blend from Lincoln Lakeshore that is crafted with 68% Pinot Gris and 32% Gewürztraminer.

My top red wine recommendations from the main release also begin in Tuscany with the Tignanello that is a blend of 78% Sangiovese, 18% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Cabernet Franc. Australia has a quartet of fine offerings, starting with the 2022 Barossa red that is a blend of 45% Grenache, 36% Mataro, 17% Carignan, and 2% Counoise, followed by the 2019 Barossa red that is composed of 57% Shiraz and 43% Cabernet Sauvignon; there are also a couple of straight Shiraz wines - one from Clare Valley and one from Victoria. The only other blend is from Roussillon, and it consists of Syrah, Grenache, and Carignan. From Greece, there are a couple of lovely wines crafted with Xinomavro and Agioritiko, respectively, while Chile delivers another fine Carmenere. On the local front, there is an exceptional Pinot Noir from St. David's Bench in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Among my top white wine picks from the main release, the only blend is the Côtes du Rhône Blanc, which is a blend of 32% Viognier, 28% Grenache Blanc, 24% Roussanne, and 16% Marsanne. Among the mono-varietal whites, Sauvignon Blanc leads the pack with a Sancerre from Loire, and a pair from Marlborough in New Zealand, followed by a pair of Canadian Chardonnays - one from the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia and one from the Niagara Peninsula in Ontario. And lastly, the lone bubbly is the 2016 vintage Champagne, which is a blend of 48% Chardonnay, 34% Pinot Noir, and 18% Meunier.

Enjoy my top wine recommendations from this release! Cheers!

Red Wine:

• TERRA NOBLE AZARA CARIGNAN 2022 - Sustainable, Vegan, DO Valle del Maule, Chile (#44587) (XD) - $18.95
• KILIKANOON GOLDEN HILLSIDE SHIRAZ 2020 - Clare Valley, South Australia (#45346) (XD) - $18.95  90 pts  wine review
• DON'T TELL GARY SHIRAZ 2022 - Victoria, Australia (#632620) (XD) - $19.95
• YALUMBA SAMUEL'S COLLECTION BAROSSA SHIRAZ / CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2019 - Vegan, Barossa, South Australia (#12999) (XD) - $21.95  90 pts  wine review
• M. CHAPOUTIER BILA-HAUT OCCULTUM LAPIDEM 2020 - AOP Côtes-du-Roussillon-Villages Latour-de-France (#643239) (XD) - $23.95

 

• SANTA RITA FLORESTA CARMENÈRE 2023 - DO Apalta, Valle de Colchagua, Chile (#34733) (XD) - $27.95  OFE
• TORBRECK CUVÉE JUVENILES 2022 - Barossa Valley, South Australia (#723940) (XD) - $29.95
• ALPHA ESTATE HEDGEHOG SINGLE VINEYARD XINOMAVRO 2022 - PDO Amyndeon, Greece (#259762) (XD) - $29.95  review coming soon...
• KACABA TERRACED VINEYARD SYRAH 2021 - Vegan, VQA Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#394171) (XD) - $35.15  review coming soon...
• DOMAINE SKOURAS GRANDE CUVÉE AGIORGITIKO 2022 - PDO Neméa, Greece (#94706) (XD) - $42.95  OFE  review coming soon...

 

• BACHELDER LOWREY VINEYARD OLD VINES PINOT NOIR 2021 - VQA St. David's Bench, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada (#361816) (XD) - $55.00  OFE  93+ pts  wine review
• HAMILTON RUSSELL PINOT NOIR 2024 - WO Hemel-en-Aarde Valley, South Africa (#999516) (XD) - $70.95
• ANTINORI BADIA A PASSIGNANO GRAN SELEZIONE CHIANTI CLASSICO 2022 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#384552) (XD) - $80.95
• ORENO 2022 - IGT Toscana, Italy (#735597) (XD) - $99.95  94 pts  wine review
• TIGNANELLO 2022 - IGT Toscana, Italy (#986786) (XD) - $192.95

White Wine:

• IDI DI MARZO SETTE VIZI TREBBIANO 2024 - Sustainable, Vegan, IGT Terre d'Abruzzo, Italy (#45808) (XD) - $14.95  88+ pts  wine review
• PETER ZEMMER PINOT GRIGIO 2024 - DOC Alto Adige, Italy (#95802) (XD) - $19.95  89 pts  wine review
• LITORALE VAL DELLE ROSE VERMENTINO 2023 - DOC Maremma Toscana, Italy (#17703) (XD) - $19.95
• TIRAKI SINGLE VINEYARD SAUVIGNON BLANC 2023 - Sustainable, Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#41802) (XD) - $24.95  review coming soon...
• ANGOVE FAMILY CREST PINOT GRIS 2023 - Adelaide Hills / McLaren Vale, South Australia (#41786) (XD) - $24.95  OFE  90+ pts  wine review
• BROKENWOOD SEMILLON 2024 - Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia (#657726) (XD) - $24.95

 

• LEANING POST THE FIFTY CHARDONNAY 2022 - Vegan, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#578864) (XD) - $25.95  90+ pts  wine review
• VILLA MARIA TAYLORS PASS SINGLE VINEYARD SAUVIGNON BLANC 2023 - Sustainable, Marlborough, South Island, New Zealand (#13901) (XD) - $29.95
• CHÂTEAU LA NERTHE LES CASSAGNES DE LA NERTHE CÔTES DU RHÔNE BLANC 2023 - AOC, Rhône, France (#31174) (XD) - $29.95  91+ pts  wine review
• BLACK BANK HILL FRATERNITÉ 2023 - VQA Lincoln Lakeshore, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#47889) (XD) - $34.95
• JEAN-MAX ROGER CUVÉE LES CAILLOTTES SANCERRE 2023 - AOC, Loire, France (#65573) (XD) - $41.95
• QUAILS' GATE STEWART FAMILY RESERVE CHARDONNAY 2022 - BC VQA Okanagan Valley, British Columbia, Canada (#639641) (XD) - $47.95  OFE
• GOBELSBURG RIED RENNER 1ÖTW ERSTE LAGE GRÜNER VELTLINER 2022 - DAC Kamptal, Austria (#45353) (XD) - $69.95  OFE

Sparkling Wine:

• MOËT & CHANDON GRAND VINTAGE EXTRA BRUT CHAMPAGNE 2016 - AOC, France (#69773) (XD) - $124.95

Dessert Wine:

• FEATHERSTONE FROSTBITE SELECT LATE HARVEST GEWÜRZTRAMINER 2024 - Sustainable, Vegan, VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#39276, 375 mL) (S) - $29.95
• GRAND TOKAJ 6 PUTTONYOS TOKAJI ASZÚ 2013 - Tokaj, Hungary (#46596, 500 mL) (S) - $82.95  OFE