Lavau Vacqueyras 2014 (Rhône) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine is a lovely offering that will be released into LCBO VINTAGES on January 21. Back in 2015, I reviewed the 2012 Lavau Vacqueyras, and that was the last time this wine showed up at the LCBO - until now. The Lavau family has been making wine for several generations in the area ranging from Bordeaux to the hills of Tunisia. In 1964, the family settled in the southern...

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Niagara Wine Festival Review 2016 - Day 2 of 2

My tour through Niagara during the annual Grape & Wine Festival was split over two weekends in September. You can read all about the first day's activities here. Our food & wine adventure on the second weekend began at GreenLane Estate Winery for a Balinese Chicken Satay that was paired with their 2012 GreenLane Riesling ($15.95, 88 pts). I was expecting a sweet...

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VINTAGES Release January 7: Smart Buys

Happy New Year and welcome to 2017! After large (and expensive) VINTAGES Releases in the Fall leading up to the holidays, we arrive in 2017 with the annual "Smart Buys" release. The first release of 2017 is a thin release, with most of the wines listed under $20 and quite contrasted compared to what we saw over the past 3 months. The wines from the January 7 LCBO VINTAGES...

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Closson Chase Vineyard Chardonnay 2014 (Ontario) - Wine Review (Bottle 1)

Tonight's wine to ring in the New Year is this wonderful Prince Edward County Chardonnay that I recently ordered through the VINI wine app that's available for iOS and Android. The selection of wines available in the app is rather small, but features high-quality wines that are somewhat hard to find. At the time of this post, I see there is a good list of wines from Ontario...

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Menguante Selección Garnacha 2012 (Spain) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine was a parting gift I received after the Garnacha Day tasting in September. It is produced by Viñedos y Bodegas Pablo, a family-owned winery located in Almonacid de la Sierra, Zaragoza, in northeastern Spain. The winery dates back to the 18th century, but the winemaking traditions of this family go back even further - to 1760. The fascinating story begins with...

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Abbazia di Novacella Müller-Thurgau 2014 (Italy) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine is more suitable for summer time drinking rather than a Christmas dinner in winter. Nevertheless, this is what's in my glass tonight. This white wine was purchased in the summer from the July 9 VINTAGES Release and, surprisingly, a few bottles are still available at the LCBO. Tasting Note: ABBAZIA DI NOVACELLA MÜLLER-THURGAU 2014 - DOC Valle Isarco Alto...

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Niagara Wine Festival Review 2016 - Day 1 of 2

The first day of my 2-day visit to Niagara for the annual Grape & Wine Festival was on September 17. We visited 4 wineries on this day, two in Twenty Valley and two in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Our first stop was at Magnotta Winery to whet our appetite with a fresh Caprese Salad that was paired with 2 wines - 2015 Magnotta Pinot Noir Equus Rosé ($9.95, 87 pts) and the 2014...

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