VINTAGES Release January 20, 2018: Chile + Portugal

The value-based releases of 2018 continues with this second release of the year. The main theme of the January 20, 2018 VINTAGES Release focuses on sustainable and green wines from Chile, while the mini-theme highlights the wines from the varied regions of Portugal. New wines will be on LCBO VINTAGES shelves this Saturday, January 20th. Chile shines in this release, with...

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Pierre Amadieu La Grangelière Vacqueyras 2010 (Rhône) - Wine Review

Coming off the lovely 2009 Mas d'Auzières Sympathie Pour Les Stones that I opened last week, tonight's wine is another bottle that has seen some time in my cellar. This delicious wine was purchased from the November 10 LCBO VINTAGES Release - just over 5 years ago. Tasting Note: PIERRE AMADIEU LA GRANGELIÈRE VACQUEYRAS 2010 - AC, Rhône, France (#076398) (XD) - $19.95 Blend...

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Mas d'Auzières Sympathie Pour Les Stones 2009 (Languedoc) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine is the first bottle I'm opening in 2018. It was purchased nearly 6 years ago from the July 7 LCBO VINTAGES Release and no newer vintages have reached VINTAGES shelves since. This red wine is made with Syrah and the name is not only a tribute to the Rolling Stones song "Sympathy of the Devil", but also gives a nod to the rocks (i.e. terroir) in the vineyard...

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VINTAGES Release January 6, 2018: Smart Buys

This first LCBO VINTAGES release of the year always the annual Smart Buys release, and 2018 is no different. After the many high-priced releases leading up to the holidays, this release is filled with mostly sub-$20 wines - a welcome sight to many wallets, I'm sure. This release is also much smaller than the holiday-themed releases from October through December. Nonetheless,...

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Legends Estates Vidal Icewine 2006 (Ontario) - Wine Review

Tonight's wine was opened upon the insistence of my wife, as she wanted to enjoy some Icewine in celebration of the holidays. This Icewine was purchased at the winery in January earlier this year when we visited Niagara to partake in Icewine Festivities. It's rare to see older vintages still available for purchase, so I was surprised when we were offered a tasting of this...

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Ferox Wines Tasting

One evening in late November, I had the pleasure of tasting through the inaugural vintage of wines from a new virtual winery in Niagara - Ferox Wines. Based out of Reif Winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake, this virtual winery is owned by Fabian Reis, the man behind Ferox. He was born into a traditional vintner family in Germany that has winemaking roots dating back to 1893 and...

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Celebrating 40 Years of Roussillon

This year marks 40 years of recognition of the AOC status of Côtes du Roussillon and Côtes du Roussillon Villages. Although winemaking in the region goes back hundreds of years, it was only in 1977 when this southern France wine region was formally recognized as an AOP by the INAO. Moreover, it only achieved this status because of the 40+ years of work by Roussillon producers...

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