Providing a Unique & Affordable Selection of High Quality Red Wines and White Wines for Your Enjoyment. Also featured: Rosé, Port, Icewine, Champagne and Sparkling Wine for Special Occasions. Cheers!
Last month, we held a birthday party for my toddler daughter and a few of her close friends. And for the adults - there was wine!
The dry rosé was easily the most popular wine at the party, while the Riesling and Shiraz were a close second. All three wines are fairly recent releases to VINTAGES, so you should be able to pick up a bottle at your local LCBO. Full wine reviews are provided below.
Tasting Notes:
GÉRARD BERTRAND CÔTE DES ROSES ROSÉ 2017 - AP Languedoc, Midi, France (#373985) (XD) - $18.95
Glass enclosure. The medium+ intensity nose has appealing aromas of grapefruit, citrus, spring meadow and herbally notes. On the medium+ bodied palate, it has clean and crisp acids with nice texture. Herbally and grapefruit flavours on the dry flavour profile. Touch honeyed, with some bitterness on the long finish. Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah. Enjoy over the next 18 months. Part of the VINTAGES Essentials collection and released as part of the May 12 LCBO VINTAGES Release. Score: 89 pts
REDSTONE LIMESTONE VINEYARD SOUTH RIESLING 2016 - VQA Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Escarpment, Ontario, Canada (#381251) (M) - $19.95
Screw cap. Lovely limestone mineral and petrol aromas mingle with white peach and citrus. It's medium-sweet with nicely balanced acids and flavours with white peach, orange zest, citrus, and green apple flavours with hints of mineral. Tart fruited, lip-smacking finish, with very good length. July 21 LCBO VINTAGES Release. Score: 89 pts
DANDELION LIONESS OF MCLAREN VALE SHIRAZ 2016 - McLaren Vale, South Australia (#357475) (XD) - $21.95
Full wine review here.
is celebrated every , so I'm a couple of days late in celebrating with wine review of a locally-made Cabernet-Merlot blend from Niagara that honours our Canadian Artists.
Produced by Niagara's Lakeview Wine Co. (a division of Diamond Estates Wines & Spirits Ltd.), the McMichael Collection of wines were created in celebration of McMichael Art Collection's 50th anniversary.
The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is located in Kleinburg, just north of Toronto and is renowned for its collection of stunning Canadian art, including works by the Group of Seven. This line of Niagara wines were created to pay tribute to the artists that were part of this group. A portion of the proceeds from each bottle helps support the preservation of the art collection.
This red wine is available for purchase at the winery and at your local LCBO. Additionally, it is currently on promotion at the LCBO until , where you will receive 7 bonus Air Miles with every bottle purchased.
Tasting Note:
MCMICHAEL COLLECTION GROUP OF SEVEN CABERNET MERLOT 2015 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#456590) (XD) - $14.95
A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Cabernet Franc, and 20% Merlot that was aged in French and American oak barrels for 10 months. Screw cap. It's light on the aromatics, featuring hints of red berry, earth, oak vanillan, and herbs. It's medium-bodied and more savoury on the palate, with hints of black cherry, herbs, and oak flavours. Dusty tannins are well-integrated, with some grip mid-palate. Balanced acids keep everything nice and fresh. Good length on the finish. Simple, easy drinking. Score: 86 pts
wine review is an Australian Shiraz that arrived in LCBO VINTAGES on .
Like the 2016 Wakefield Cabernet Sauvignon that I enjoyed in June, this red wine is produced by the family-owned and -operated Wakefield Wines. This particular red wine is part of their Jaraman Collection - a selection of premium wines that represent the celebration the regional diversity, bringing together two of Australia's finest wine regions in a single varietal wine.
This is a blend of 63% Clare Valley fruit and 37% McLaren Vale fruit. Clare Valley experienced low, but timely, rainfall, while flowering conditions were ideal. Combined with the vines being stress-free heading into winter, this led to the vintage being called one of the greats. In McLaren Vale, there was low rainfall leading up to the growing season, as well as lower than average rainfall during vintage and long dry spells in between. However, intense rainfall over two days in early February helped increase yields. Overall, it was fairly dry year in McLaren Vale, which is ideal for Shiraz.
Tasting Note:
WAKEFIELD JARAMAN SHIRAZ 2016 - McLaren Vale/Clare Valley, South Australia (#377036) (XD) - $24.95
Screw cap. The richly spiced nose has aromas of blackberry, dark cherry, mocha chocolate, and vanilla oak with hints of black plum. It is full-bodied on the richly concentrated and ripe palate with blueberry and blackberry fruit flavours. There is some jamminess on the flavour profile, but it's backed by earthy, mocha, and savoury notes with hints of pepper spice, putting the jamminess firmly in the background (which I like). Acids are fresh, while tannins are smooth, supple and well-integrated. Very good finish length. Score: 88 pts
The upcoming LCBO VINTAGES Release is a mono-thematic release titled "The Grand Tour" and features wines from Europe's top Benchmark wine regions. In addition, there are many fine values to be found as we head toward the busy holiday season. It is also a very good release to re-stock your cellar if it was depleted during summer. All of these wines will be on LCBO VINTAGES shelves this coming .
We'll begin with The Grand Tour from Europe's top wine regions that lists fifteen wines, four of which are included among my top wine picks. From Bordeaux, there is a nicely matured 2006 red that is a Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend. From the Rhône Valley, the Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a blend of 65% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre, and 5% Cinsault from vines that are 60 years old. From Tuscany, the Chianti Classico is a blend of 90% Sangiovese and 10% Merlot. And lastly, if you're looking for something quite sweet, from the Mosel is a lovely Riesling Kabinett.
Among my red wine picks, the Rubus from Spain is a blend of roughly equal parts Garnacha and Syrah, and 20% Tempranillo, while the Cannonau di Sardegna is commonly known as Grenache in other parts of the world. It's rare to see a Ripasso Valpolicella on my list of recommended wines, but there is a good one made in a dry style from Albino Armani that is a traditional blend of Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella. The red wine from Puglia is a blend of 65% Aglianico, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 10% Syrah, while the Roussillon red is a blend of 50% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 20% Carignan. Last but definitely not the least, the Australian red is a blend of 60% Shiraz and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon.
My top white wine picks are all in the dry spectrum, save for the aforementioned Riesling. The Portuguese white is a blend of Encruzado and Malvasia, while the Sicilan white is made from the Carricante varietal that is indigenous to Sicily, with the grapes for this wine coming the volcanic slopes of Mount Etna. And lastly, the Loire white is made with Sauvignon Blanc, while the white Burgundy is Chardonnay.
There is also a fine selection of dry rosé wines in this release. The Tavel is a blend of 50% Grenache, 45% Cinsault, and 5% Syrah, while the rosé from the Languedoc is mostly Mourvèdre with some Syrah and Cinsault. Both rosés from Provence are primarily Mourvèdre, with Grenache and Cinsault in support. You'll want stock up on these as this just might be the end of new release quality rosé in our market until next spring.
Enjoy my top wine recommendations from this Release. Cheers!
Red Wine:
ZUCCARDI SERIE A MALBEC 2016 - Uco Valley, Mendoza, Argentina (#167619) (XD) - $16.95 88 pts wine review
wine is another new release that will be coming to LCBO VINTAGES on .
It is produced by Bodegas Jesús Romero in partnership with San Alejandro's winemaker, Juan Vicente Alcañiz. Together, they purchased a three-hectare vineyard of 70-year-old Garnacha in Báguena, Aragón. They also work together on a nearly four-hectare plot of 10-year-old vines at 980 metres altitude.
The name "Rubus" was chosen for this red wine for two reasons. Firstly, it is a nod to its origins in the municipality of Rubielos de Mora (in Teruel, Aragón, Spain) and secondly, it refers to Rubus Ulmifolius, a species of wild blackberry that evokes its aromas and defines the landscape of the area.
Tasting Note:
BODEGA JESÚS ROMERO RUBUS 2016 - DO Aragón, Spain (#575944) (XD) - $18.95
A blend of roughly equal parts Garnacha and Syrah, and 20% Tempranillo completing the blend from vines on pebble soil with sandy loam texture, in a mountainous area between 900 and 1000 metres elevation. All raised in stainless steel and concrete tanks, and spent 5 months on the lees. This is quite fragrant in the glass with blackberry, red berry, and spice aromas accented by earthy mineral. It is medium-full bodied on the fresh, clean, and ripe palate that is fruit forward with blackberry, dark cherry, and spice flavours with a smoky mineral underpinning. Tannins are fairly soft and dusty, offering a nice textural character, with just a touch of grip. Fresh, juicy acids. Long, blackberry and spice finish. Enjoy over the next couple of years. Score: 89 pts
This rosé wine is produced by the Lavau family that has been involved in winemaking for several generations and settled in the Rhône Valley in 1964. Today, brothers Frederic and Benoit Lavau are rapidly building a reputation for excellent, value-oriented and critically-acclaimed wines which embody their savoir-faire and respect of terroir, including the many Lavau wines I've enjoyed over the years.
The vines producing this rosé average 30 years old and are located on the slopes of the right bank of the River Rhône, between the famous Pont d'Avignon and the Pont du Gard bridges. The soil type consists of sand, marly-limestone, and pebbles. Grapes are harvested at night (to keep the grapes cool) and are immediately pressed and transferred into stainless steel vats to undergo slow fermentation.
Tasting Note:
LAVAU TAVEL ROSÉ 2017 - AC, Rhône, France (#556175) (XD) - $18.95
A blend of 50% Grenache, 45% Cinsault, and 5% Syrah. Fresh strawberry and raspberry with herbally hints from the cork. In the glass, this has a medium+ intensity nose featuring pretty aromas of ripe strawberry, raspberry, and cherry notes sprinkled with herbs. It's medium-full bodied and somewhat structured on the palate with vibrant, juicy acids that gains body in the mouth. The dry flavour profile is clean and richly concentrated with cherry, strawberry and raspberry flavours. Nice chalky texture. Hints of cran-cherry on the lingering finish. Score: 89 pts
In , I had the pleasure to taste the latest wines from Burgundy's Henri de Villamont with Pierre Jhean, Winemaker and Director at the winery. Having met Pierre and enjoyed the wines from Henri de Villamont in , I was excited to see what he had to offer this time around.
Pierre is always experimenting and trying new strategies and techniques to produce
fine wines. One of the most interesting things I learned was that the Macon-Villages was aged with oxygen only and had no barrel contact. Combined with long lees contact, this Burgundian white wine seemed like it saw some time in barrel.
This small, exclusive tasting was held at The National Club, in the Financial District in downtown Toronto and approximately ten people were in attendance. Ten wines were presented at the tasting, and the five below were among my favourites.
For availability of these delicious wines, please click on the six-digit LCBO product code, as some of these may be available at the LCBO or might be arriving soon. Alternatively, you can also contact the Agent Eurovintage Fine Wines & Spirits for availability.
Tasting Notes:
HENRI DE VILLAMONT MACON-VILLAGES 2015 - AC, Burgundy, France (XD) - $21.95
Unique process with long lees contact, oxygen ageing, and no barrel ageing. Fragrant and ripe with nutty, pear, apple, and white flower aromas. The palate is medium+ bodied with nicely balanced aroma replays with some creamy texture. Acids are fresh. Mid-palate just a touch warm. A touch reductive with hints of mineral, while the finish is long and nutty. Score: 89 pts
HENRI DE VILLAMONT CHASSAGNE MONTRACHET 1ER CRU LES EMBAZEES 2013 - AC, Burgundy, France (#524041) (XD) - $89
Beautiful, gorgeous aromas of sweet nut, lemon citrus and oak emanates from the glass in a nicely integrated fashion. The medium-full bodied is structured with chalky mineral notes, very nice aroma replays. Acids are clean and very nicely balanced. Mouthfeel has finesse. The very long finish is juicy with some nut and earthy notes. Beauty! Score: 92 pts
HENRI DE VILLAMONT SANTENAY LES CHAMPS-CLAUDE 2015 - AC, Burgundy, France (XD) - $21.95
The medium+ intensity nose is oak spice driven with red cherry, wild berry, and strawberry tones, and hints of earth. The palate is medium-full bodied and ripe with nice aroma replays, if a touch candied. Acids are very good, while the tannins are supple and smooth. Complex, dark berry finish with very good length. Still young, this will drink well to 2025. Score: 89 pts
HENRI DE VILLAMONT SAVIGNY-LES-BEAUNE LE VILLAGE 2015 - AC, Burgundy, France (XD) - $35
This has a medium-to-high intensity nose that's very savoury with mushroom, forest floor, wet earth, dark berry, and currant aromas. It's medium-bodied with dark berry and well-integrated oak flavours on the palate with refined tannins that gain some grip with time, as well as some chalkiness mid-palate. It has balanced acidity and very good finish length. Score: 91 pts
HENRI DE VILLAMONT CORTON GRAND CRU LES RENARDES 2015 - AC, Burgundy, France (#561225) (XD) - $104.95
Open and highly aromatic, this offers sweet oak spice surrounded by ripe and perfumed black cherry aromas. The medium-full bodied palate is structured with smooth, refined tannins that have some grip. Very fine aroma replays with sweet herbs, and hints of mineral, cassis, and blackberry joining the fray. Fresh acids lift the palate. Excellent finish length. Elegance in a glass. Score: 93 pts
Sunday, September 2, 2018
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