Château Ampélia 2005 (Bordeaux) - Bottle 2 of 3 Wine Review

Ordered this red wine back in February 2006, in lots of 3 bottles from the Vintages Bordeaux Futures program and arrived at my doorstep in March of 2008. The intent was to experience the evolution of a wine at various stages as it ages in the bottle. The 2005 Bordeaux's were remarked as possibly greatest vintage ever! The first bottle was, ironically, opened on...

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Hinterbrook Riesling 2010 (Niagara) - Wine Review

Purchased this white wine from the 'Smart Buys' release back in January. This Riesling is made in an off-dry style and is definitely a smart buy if you like wines on the sweet side. HINTERBROOK RIESLING 2010 - VQA Niagara Lakeshore, Ontario, Canada (#270512) (MD) - $17.95 Tasting Note: Screw-top. Aromas: tropical fruit, lemon citrus, stone fruits, mineral and petrol....

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Mar. 3 Wine Picks: Made in France + Carmenère

The next LCBO Vintages release is on March 3 and there are lots of great buys. I am big fan of French wines, and the major feature in this release focuses on 13 benchmark-setting grapes from wines Made in France. Of the French wines that made my list, the Moulin-à-Vent is made using the Gamay grape, which you see quite commonly planted here in Ontario, but is actually not...

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Concha y Toro Winemaker's Lot 54 Syrah 2008 (Chile) - Wine Review

Tonight's red wine was purchased from the October 29 Vintages release and opened tonight with the idea that it would still evolve and taste pretty good on the second day. Why the second day? Because the food pairing on Sunday night will match better than what's on the menu tonight, coupled with the fact that I haven't had a sip of wine since Tuesday. :) CONCHA Y TORO...

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Belje Grasevina 2009 (Croatia) - Wine Review

To celebrate my birthday weekend, I wanted to remind myself that even though I am a year older, it's important to continue to try new things - wine-related or not. Life is too short! As such, I've chosen an off-dry white wine that originates from Croatia. This will be my first time trying a white wine from Croatia - looking through my database I see that I did taste a red...

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Feb. 18 Wine Picks: Customer Favourites + Tasting Terroir + Kosher Wines

The next Vintages release is nearly upon us and will be in LCBO outlets across Ontario on February 18. The main feature of this release is "22 Customer Favourites" and is quite self-explanatory. I honestly didn't find anything too exciting in this part of the magazine and, so, moved to the sub-feature titled "Tasting Terroir". The Bachelder series of Chardonnays from 3...

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Red Knot Shiraz 2008 (Australia) - Wine Review

Received this one last November and was surprised to see the unique cap. Very interesting top with a string-like wrap that you peel off before you simply pull out the re-sealable plastic cork. I've never seen a cap like this! RED KNOT SHIRAZ 2008 - South Australia, Australia (#619395) - $15.95 (on sale now) Tasting Note: Interesting resin cork. Ripe raspberry, herbal...

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