Pelee Island Pinot Noir 2010 (non-VQA)

Pelee Island Pinot Noir 2010 $10.95. Pelee Island Winery makes two different Pinot's: a VQA (all Ontario grapes) and a blend of Ontario and international grapes. This wine, which I tried at a friends' house, is the non-VQA. Although I’ve yet to try a pinot that I really enjoy, I found this to probably be the best one yet. It had notes of raspberry and a smooth taste. However, the finish was too short and dry for my liking. JC85

Two Wines over the Christmas Season

Merry Christmas to all of you who celebrate and Season's Greetings to all of you who don't. Over the past number of days I have been enjoying the season by eating and drinking more than usual, as tends to be the case during gatherings with family and friends. The two wines below are ones I enjoyed with my family over the holidays.

Valpantena Amarone Della Valpolicella 2008 $34.95. Hint of spicy notes and after getting some air into it, there were some oak notes as well. It was a nicely made wine with a long finish. JC87

White House Riesling Pinot Grigio 2010 $12.95. This wine has nice floral aromas with a somewhat sweet finish. I enjoyed it with my Christmas turkey dinner. JC86

Negrar Amarone

Negrar Amarone Classico 2008 $34.95. I had a free sample of this wine at the LCBO. It was quite alcoholic at 15.5%, and I could taste the alcohol. It’s a powerful wine that would be nice with red meat. Decanting for an hour before serving would probably soften it somewhat. Notes of oak and a smoky flavour. JC84

Greatwall Cabernet Sauvignon

Greatwall Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 $15.95. I had some extra peach schnapps, so I thought I’d exchange it for this wine, the first I’ve tasted, let alone seen, from China. It didn’t have much of a scent to it. The taste was fairly one dimensional with a hint of cardboard at the finish. I enjoyed this wine more than my fiancée who did not care for it. It had a fairly smooth taste and was drinkable. I’m glad I tried it, because it’s from a new region, but I won’t be running back to the store to buy more wines from China. JC83

Southbrook Connect Red

Tasted December 2011: Southbrook Connect Red 2009 $14.95. This is an organic wine from Niagara-on-the-Lake. Although it does not say on the bottle, it is a combination of cab sauv (73%), cab franc (20%) and a little bit of Merlot (7%). It had an oaky/murky scent to it and the taste was fairly smooth. It wasn’t a terrible wine, but not really too enjoyable. JC82

Jackson Triggs Cab Sauv

Jackson Triggs Proprietors’ Selection Cabernet Sauvignon $9.95. This wine was given to me as a gift. I normally wouldn’t have bought it because it is a blend of Canadian and international grapes. Although it does not specify where internationally. Also, there is no vintage year on the bottle, another giveaway that it is not a high quality wine. I’ve grown up to think that if an Ontario wine is not VQA, meaning 100% of the grapes used to make the wine came from Ontario, it is a low quality, less than satisfactory tasting product. This wine is sold at Wine Rack locations in Ontario, which the parent company Vincor operates.

Upon opening the bottle, I found the wine in need of some air, which is usual for a cab sauv. It had a nice, fairly smooth taste to it. Notes of black cherry. Overall this was a nice tasting cab sauv that was an alright value. JC85

Delaforce – A Force To Be Reckoned With

Last Christmas, I received a Delaforce 1994 vintage port as a gift. I have yet to open it, and hopefully I can control myself from opening it for some time. In 2002 Roy Hersh reviewed the ‘94 vintage and said it may just be the best Delaforce since the 1963 vintage.

Somehow the LCBO got their hands on a limited number of the 1963 vintage and released them for sale in late October as part of the vintages release. The bottles were priced at $215 and less than a month later, there are no longer any available.

The food and wine expo had LCBO vintages available to sample. The ’63 Delaforce was 14 tickets (aka $14) for a sample. I wasn’t going to spend that much on one small sample. As luck would have it, my fiancée found 33 tickets on the ground. She surprised me by telling me that she wanted to get it for me after I had been eying it.

Back in 1989, James Suckling of the Wine Spectator rated the ’63 Delaforce a 93, saying it was the best Delaforce in three decades and that it will continue to improve. After tasting this, I tasted my idea of perfection. It blew me away with subtle scents of caramel and sweetness. There was a very nice balance between caramel, sweet and alcohol. It was smooth and mature. JC100

The Gourmet Food & Wine Expo – Cali Cabs and a Couple of New Countries

Beringer Knights Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $34.95. Beringer makes a lot of different Cab Sauv’s at different price points. This is the ‘fourth level’ (from the bottom) on their offer. There were strong scents of floral mixed with wood; plum and cherry notes on the palate. While drinking this, I could sense that it was well made, however it didn’t taste as good as I had hoped given the price level. JC86

Liberty School Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $18.95 at the LCBO and US$14.00 on the Liberty School website. This wine had a nice oaky scent. It was a fruitful wine with a smooth finish. Enjoyable! JC92

Gnarly Head Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $14.95. This Californian cab has a tomato sauce smell. There are strong tannins and it is not a smooth tasting wine. JC85

The same winemaker also makes a Zinfandel that is sold at the LCBO for $16.95. Unfortunately by the time I got to this booth, the zin was sold out.

The following two wines are from a relatively small Argentinean winery. Neither of these wines are available at the LCBO and the price quoted for the Melbec is the price the distributor told me. Ontario residents are able to purchase this through the distributor in half cases at minimum.

Vina Amalia Gran Reserve Malbec 2006 $28.95. There were notes of coffee and plenty of fruit taste, however it was a dry wine. JC89

Vina Amalia Gran Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2007. Tastes of black cherry and a nice smooth finish. An enjoyable Cab. JC90

At the expo there was a large display of wines from Georgia. I’m pretty sure I never had a wine from this country before, so I thought I’d give it a try. The wines tend to use grapes local to the country that were new to me. I tried the Besini Mukuzani 2006, which used the Saperavi grape. It had nice oak and floral scents with a rich smooth taste that reminded me of a nice cab sauv. Overall I was impressed. JC89

Another country that I had not previously tried a wine from was Austria. I had heard positive things about the gruner veltiner grape. There are some very highly rated expensive Austrian gruner wines. I tried an entry level wine: Grooner Gruner Veltiner $13.30. From the subtle floral notes, it reminded me of a sauvignon blanc. It was a nice white, although I didn’t love it. I’m curious to try a more pricy gruner to see how it compares. JC86

Ideally, when you taste wine I think it’s good to go into it with no expectations. However this can be difficult if you know details of the wine beforehand, such as where it’s from, the type of grape(s) used, the vintage and the price point of the wine. Because of this, sometimes I will try a wine that I have high expectations for, such as the Beringer Knights Valley, and be disappointed that it didn’t meet them in the end. Other times I will try a wine like the Besini Mukuzani from Georgia and be pleasantly surprised as my somewhat low expectations were blown out of the water.

Other times I will go in with high expectations and will still be blown away. That’s what happened with the final sample from the Expo that I want to share on my blog. Stay Tuned!

The Gourmet Food & Wine Expo - Continued

Victoire Brut Prestige Campagne $39.95. This French sparkler had pleasant apple notes and maintained a nice balance of not being too sweet or too dry. JC90

Santa Margherita Prosecco $17.95. This Italian sparkling wine is in the Vintages Essentials at the LCBO. It has tasting notes of peach and is somewhat sweet. It smells sweeter than it tastes. I would personally look for a dryer sparkling wine, but it was decent. JC85

Paumanok Assemblage 2007. This is the first wine I can recall having from New York State. It is not sold at the LCBO. The Assemblage is a blend of three grapes: 69% Merlot, 22% Petit Verdot and 9% Cab Franc. It has scents of plum and oak. It tastes full of fruit and with a nice smooth finish. JC93

Ravens Wood Zinfendel 2009 $17.95. I believe this is a Vintages Essentials at the LCBO. I’m not too familiar with Zinfendel as it tends to come mainly just from California. I’m not aware of an Ontario winery producing it. There was a jammy scent, a smooth taste and it was a little sweet. JC87

More to come...

The Gourmet Food & Wine Expo (Toronto, ON)

This weekend I went to the expo for the first time and quickly realized that it is the best event held in Toronto. There was a massive floor of exhibitors with a ton of wines, lots of food and also a good selection of beer and spirits. On the Friday I volunteered at the event and got to scope out all the vendors and figure out what I wanted to hit up the next day.

Entrance tickets were $20 at the door, or $15 beforehand online using a promo code. I had first obtained my tickets online, but then found out about a special alumni deal through my undergrad university. It was $30 for a ticket that included entrance to the event and a Tutored Tasting – Vitners’ Barrel Tasting by four top winemakers in the Niagara Region, a $70 value.

On Saturday, I got to the event with my fiancée at noon, when it opened, and went to a few places that I had been wanting to try out from the day before. One of note was Jack Daniel’s Honey. This product had a smoother, easier drinking taste than the original JD. I enjoyed the sample, although I’d be interested to see how it tasted with coke or if I get sick of it after a couple of drinks.

At 1pm we attended the Vitners’ Barrel Tasting. The first winemaker was Paul Pender of Tawse Winery. We got to sample both the 2007 and 2010 Cabernet Franc.

2010: Intense floral scent, not a strong tasting wine but smooth. JC88

2007: Deeper scents, minty, fruitier taste, not as smooth but still very nice. JC86

The second winemaker was Derek Barnett from Lailey Vineyard. Similar to Paul, he also picked Cabernet Franc to showcase. However Derek decided to bring 2010 and 2002.

2010: Subtle floral smell, very smooth, not a lot of flavour yet. JC89

2002: Strong smell, ashy, very smooth, a bit of a vegetable taste, a lot of sediment in the glass. JC86

The third winemaker was Emma Gardner from Thirty Bench. Emma picked the 2010 and 2007 Red. The Thirty Bench Red uses the same three grapes as the Trius Red and other traditional French-based meritage wines: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot.

2010: This wine had a composition of 62% Merlot, 19% Cab Franc and 19% Cab Sauv. It had a smoky scent; it was a nice tasting wine with notes of cherry and a little bit of green vegetable. JC88

2007: The wine had a composition of 65% Cab Sauv, 18% Merlot and 17% Cab Franc. It had a leather smell, with blueberry tasting notes. Again, it was a nice smooth wine with a long finish. JC88

The fourth winemaker was Ann Sperling of Southbrook. Ann selected the 2010 and 2007 Whimsy Cabernet Sauvignon.

2010: Strong floral scent with a nice fruitful flavour. It was very tasty. JC90

2007: There was a not unpleasant whisky smell; the wine was very smooth with red cherry notes. JC91

It was a really nice tasting event. All the winemakers seemed really down to earth and were great answering all the questions people had.

Other than the 2007 Southbrook Cab Sauv, which retails for $33.95, none of the other wines from this tasting are currently available at the LCBO. The tasting finished at about 2:30. Now it was time to go back to the exhibitors at the expo and sample some more products!

A lot more material coming as I get a chance to write it...

Summerhill Sampling

I went to my favourite LCBO (Summerhill) today to buy some different beers to enjoy tonight at a friends' potluck, but had a stop by the sampling area for a couple of tastes.

Simi Landslide Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 $44.95. This wine smells delicious. It had somewhat spicy flavours and was slightly sweet. A good balance and well made. JC90

Warres Warrior Reserve Port $15.15. This port had a very sweet smell. It was easy drinking, and smoother than other ports I’ve had in this price range. It was also a lighter tasting port than what I was used to. JC86

Monte Antico

Monte Antico 2007 $15.95. A wine from Tuscany, this is part of the Vintages Essentials at the LCBO. This wine is made up of 85% Sangiovese, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Merlot, therefore a Chianti style of wine, however not labelled as such. This wine had ripe cherry and plum scents, with a nice smooth full fruit taste of raspberries and cherries. I enjoyed it with pork tenderloin as well as roast chicken the next night. JC88

Drinking wine with Friends/Family

Enjoying a new bottle of wine with friends and/or family over a nice meal is often a pleasant experience. However, the one problem I find is that it is usually hard to get a good sense of a wine's characteristics when I am with others. When I'm engaged in conversation I don't want to look rude and pull out a pad and pen and start writing notes on the wine I'm drinking. I recently tried a couple of different wines at a family gathering that I don't even remember. Perhaps they weren't worth mentioning if there was nothing memorable about them, although I still would have like to mention which ones they were.

Two other wines I've recently had with companions are described below. There is not a whole lot of detail because, again, it was hard to fully concentrate on the wine when I'm listening and talking to others.

Two Oceans Cab-Merlot $9.95. This South African wine has black cherry scents and a fairly strong oaky taste mixed with fruit. This was a decent wine, but didn’t blow my socks off. JC84

Malivoire White 2008 $12.95. This is a nice, easy drinking white. However it is not a light white, such as a sauvignon blanc. It is made from mostly chardonnay, with some Riesling and gewürztraminer as well. I found this wine too sweet for my liking. White wine drinkers may enjoy this. JC83

A Trip to the Summerhill LCBO

After a long week of work, I decided to treat myself and go to the Summerhill LCBO and pick up a couple of bottles, namely Montes Limited Selection Cabernet Sauvignon Carmenere 2010 and BV Coastal Estates Cabernet Sauvignon 2009. While there, I got a couple of free samples as well as a couple of paid samples at the tasting bar. The first free sample was Crown Royal Black (CRB).

I’ve never done a liquor review on this blog before, and I don’t think I’ll make a habit of it, but I wanted to comment on CRB. Both it and regular Crown are currently $2 off the normal price. What surprised me was that CBB is regularly $34.45 vs $28.45 for Crown, a $6 difference! There’s only $3 between Jim Beam white and black. I found CRB to be smoother and a little sweeter than Crown and taste more like bourbon. CRB is matured in charred oak barrels instead of white oak for Crown.

My second free sample was from South Africa: Oatley Tic Tok Cabernet Sauvignon $15.95 (on sale for $13.95). It was a nice wine, but didn’t wow me. Tastes of red cherry. JC85

 

The Tasting Bar

The nice thing about the tasting bars at certain LCBO locations is that I can try out wines (limit of 2) that may be priced well above what my budget would allow for.

Domaine Du Vieux Telegraphe La Crau Chateauneuf-Du-Pape 2008 $72.95. This wine, besides the long name, was a release from the Oct. 15 LCBO vintages. This is the first C-D-P that I have tried, as bottles are priced at $30 and up.  This wine had very nice fruit scents and favours. It was smooth, slightly sweet, light and delicious. An excellent wine that left me wanting more. JC92

Taylor Fladgate 20 Year old Tawny Port $67.95. Taylor Fladgate knows how to make good port. I have had the 20 year once before, but before I started writing about what I drink. This port is superb, with a golden-red hue and caramel scent. The taste is caramel and sweet. Unlike younger ports I have had, it goes down well. Truly enjoyable. JC95

Dan Aykroyd Sauvignon Blanc

Dan Aykroyd Sauvignon Blanc 2010 $12.95. I had bought this wine a few months ago and hadn’t gotten around to drinking it. I had it with shrimp and fettuccini alfredo, and really enjoyed this wine. There was a nice balance of being not too sweet, but also not bitter. It was a light wine that went well with my food and also on its own afterward. JC89

Sampling Two Reds

I was back at my second favourite LCBO this afternoon (Avenue and Lawrence). There is a tasting bar that offers some of the new vintage releases, however unlike the Summerhill LCBO, the bar is not constantly staffed and you have to flag down an employee to pour your samples. After debating (not seriously) whether to try a sample of the famous Opus One (selling for $340/bottle), I decided that $15 for a small sample was not in the budget for today. Instead I tried a couple of samples for $0.75 each.

Apothic Red 2009 $15.95. This California red is a blend of zinfandel, merlot and syrah. It has a somewhat sweet taste to it. Hints of red cherry. It would be a nice wine with an appetiser. JC84

Koyle Royale Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 $19.95. To me this tasted more like a Cab Sauv from California than from Chile, where it is actually from. This wine has a lot of nice fruit flavours with a hint of vanilla and oak. My favourite Chilean Cab Sauv to date. JC87

Mouton Cadet

Mouton Cadet 2009 $14.45. This is a wine made by the famous Chateau Mouton Rothschild, most known for their signature wine, Mouton Rothschild which is selling for $585/bottle and up (depending on the vintage) at the LCBO. This wine tasted strong, although at 13.5%, it’s within the normal range for red wine. It wasn’t bad, there was no noticeable odour. I recommend this with a hardy red meat meal. JC84

P.S. It's been awhile since I last posted. This is mainly due to unfortunately not drinking much wine and also the wine I have been drinking is wine I've reviewed on this site in the past. I love trying new wines, but it's also nice having those wines again that really made a good impression before.

An Ontario Baco Noir and a Merlot

Pelee Island Baco Noir 2010 $10.95. I saw some positive reviews of this wine and decided to give it a try. I was intrigued because I had never had wine made from the baco noir grape before. This is a dark coloured full body wine. I suggest decanting for 30-60 minutes before serving. I had this wine with steak, which it went well with. Notes of blackcurrant. JC86

Konzelmann Merlot 2009 $11.95 – This was the red wine offered at the wedding I was at yesterday. It’s from the Niagara region from a winery I had not heard of before even though it has been around since 1984. Usually at weddings you see wines from Italy because these tend to be around $7/bottle. This was a nice change. I enjoyed this wine, it was easy drinking. JC87

Two Santa Wines in Montreal

Tasted September 2011: Santa Cristina Sangiovese 2009 – I had a bottle of this wine in Montreal. It is not sold in Ontario but I did find it on saq.com (Quebec liquor store) for $14.95. There were notes of black pepper, oak and red cherry. The wine had strong tannins and probably could easily spend another few years in the cellar. JC84

Tasted September 2011: Santa Teresa Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 – This is another bottle I had while in Montreal. Again, not a wine that is available in Ontario. I didn’t find it on the saq.com either. It took a while to open up. It was a nice accompaniment to our dinner at Le Grain De Sel. JC85

Two Niagara Wines

Tasted August 2011: Coyote’s Run Cab Merlot 2008 $16.95 – I had this wine tonight at my parent’s house. There were notes of oak and black cherry. It was a pleasant wine, but I didn’t fall in love with it. JC85

Tasted August 2011: Straight Up White 2010 $12.95 – This wine originally caught my attention at the Summerhill LCBO due to its label. There is a bunch of writing on the bottle basically saying how it’s not trying to be something fancy or confusing, but essentially something “straight up” that can be drunk whenever you feel like drinking white wine. I bought it a short while later and hope to try the Straight Up Red in the not too distant future. This is a new release and I still don’t think it has been distributed to that many locations yet. I enjoyed this wine. It tasted fresh and didn’t have any distinguishing odours or tastes that my novice palate could detect. It doesn’t say what grapes are in it. It’s not too sweet and goes down nicely. JC88



3 Wines on the Weekend

Over the weekend I was in Ottawa visiting family. I was able to taste a few new wines that my relatives had purchased.

Equifera Pinot Noir $14.95 – I’m not too familiar with Pinot’s, it seems like people either love them or can’t stand them. I tend to be in the latter category. It tasted a little better after the first few sips, but still not a nice full-bodied red wine that I tend to enjoy. Hints of red cherry and plum. JC84

Whitecliff Sauvignon Blanc $14.95 – This New Zealand wine had a black pepper scent and finish to it. It was a nice smooth sipping wine that wasn’t too sweet. It had a nice long crisp finish. JC87

Henry of Pelham Cab Merlot $14.95 – This wine had a strong oaky taste to it. I had it with chicken and then cookies for desert. I think it would have been better with red meat. JC85

Carmenere – Chile’s Grape

Carmenere is to Chile what Malbec is to Argentina. It was originally brought over from France and is often mistaken for Merlot due to the similarities of the grapes. In fact, according to the Wine Bible, sometimes a wine from Chile labelled as Merlot is in fact carmenere.

Santa Rita Reserva Carmenere $13.95 – I had never tried wine made from the carmenere grape before. I had heard that often carmenere can taste too “green” as in green peppers. This wine from Santa Rita was one of the top rated value wines on winealign.com. I was eager to try and decided to enjoy it with a nice steak and baked potato. It went well with the meal. It reminded me somewhat of a Cab Sauv, however with less scent. In fact I couldn’t distinguish any scent from this wine. However, I thoroughly enjoyed this wine. It had fresh vegetable and black pepper tastes and a nice smooth finish. JC 90

Loving Port

I recently (this year) started getting into port. It is often drunk after dinner, with desert or with some cheese or nuts. I like it in the evening. I’ve tried a few different ports so far, including Taylor Fladgate 10 year and 20 year tawny, which are both excellent.

Tasted August 2011: Graham’s Late Bottled Vintage 2005 $16.95 – This is a very nice tasting port. I saw the good score on Wine Align, and thought the price was right. Wine Align gives this port a 90, I would have to agree. The nice thing with this style of port is that you can enjoy it over a number of weeks after opening and it will still taste good. JC90

Montalto Nero D’avola Cabernet Sauvignon

Montalto Nero D’avola Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $8.95 – I was excited to try this wine because it’s the only wine at the LCBO, to my knowledge, that has a combination of nero d’avola and cabernet sauvignon grapes. I found this wine to be very rough when I first tried it right from the bottle. I decanted it for about 30 minutes and it opened up somewhat, however it still finished rough. There were notes of black cherry and raspberry. I was hoping for better things from this wine because I like both grapes in it. JC82

2 More Italian House Wines and the 2nd Best LCBO

So after Summerhill, the next best liquor store in Ontario is the one on Avenue north of Lawrence. There is a tasting bar, however not as extensive as Summerhill. It’s also the first LCBO I’ve seen that is on two floors.

Beringer Alluvium 2007 $39.95 – I sampled this wine at the LCBO on Sunday. It had a smooth oaky taste with a hint of vanilla. It reminded me somewhat of Trius Grand Red. I thought Alluvium was a type of grape at first, but this wine is actually made up of 5 different grapes. Then I thought that the name was a take on “all of them”, but it turns out it is a Latin word meaning sand by a river or something along those line. Whatever it means, I enjoyed it. JC87

Sterling Vintners Chardonnay 2010 $14.95 – A free sample at the LCBO. There were notes of apple and pear. I liked this wine and could see it going well with a light fish or chicken dish, or perhaps appetisers. JC86

I “sampled” two wines at a wedding on Saturday:

Cavallina Pinot Grigio 2010 $7.35 – I thought this wine was nice, but a little too sweet. JC85

Cavallina Nero D’avola Syrah 2009 $7.45 – This wine took a while to open up. At first I didn’t like it too much, but as the night rolled on it went down easier. JC84

Review Archive #4

 

Tasted April 2011: Tarlant Rose 2001 ~$70. I was given this bottle as a gift just before Christmas, and decided to save it until buying our first home. The LCBO sells the 1999 version for $71.95, however does not carry this version. They may taste similar, but I’m not in the financial position to buy a bottle just to find out. This is the best tasting Champagne (or sparkling wine) I’ve ever had. Fruity undertones of peach. JC95

Tasted June 2011: Trapiche Malbec 2010 $9.00. I had this wine with pasta and stuffed chicken, then later on by itself. It’s not a bad wine, however it comes out strong. Given the powerful flavours, I recommend having it accompany a hearty meat dish. I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much sipping it by itself. JC 84

Tasted June 2011: Mitolo Jester Shiraz 2009 $21.95. The 2008 received 89 from Wine Align. I had a glass of this at a company function before switching over to beer for the remainder of the event. I am generally not a fan of Shiraz but based on the price of the bottle and the WA rating, I decided to give it a try. It was probably the best tasting Shiraz I’ve had, however I was still not a big fan. It starts out nice, but has a spicy finish which did not go over well. JC 84

Cusumano Nero D’Avola

Cusumano Nero D’Avola 2009 $9.95. I had been wanting to try this red wine from Sicily for awhile because it is made from the same grape as the Cent’are I had back in May and which I rated as 92, one of my favourite reds. Also, on winealign.com, this wine was rated 87, compared to 85 for Cent’are. Unfortunately, this wine wasn’t as good as I was hoping for. It had notes of cherry and blueberry, starting out smooth but finishing a bit rough. JC85

Make-Your-Own Wine

At my future sister and brother-in-law’s wedding last weekend, they provided each guest with a bottle of Chianti that they had made at a make-your-own wine place. We had the opportunity to try this wine last night. I haven’t gone to one of these make-your-own places before, mainly because I was concerned I would end up being stuck with 100 bottles of wine that tasted like vinegar. I was pleasantly surprised by the taste of their Chianti. It was a nice smooth taste, good with red meat, pasta or just sipping on. JC87

I tasted two Italian house wines at the LCBO yesterday. I had not heard of either of these wines before, however I was told by the man pouring the samples that they’ve been around for a long time, and in fact someone had come by earlier and commented that these wines were served at his wedding 30 years ago.

Fontana Di Papa Colli Albani $7.45. A white wine made with four different grapes, according to the man pouring the samples. I only noticed two names on the label, which didn’t mean anything to me. There were notes of citrus and raspberry. It was dry wine, which I enjoy. JC86

Fontana Di Papa Castelli Romani $7.45. A red wine made with Sangiovese and Montepulciano d’Abruzzo and perhaps one or two other grapes as well. This wine had a lot of flavour to it, coming off a little strong. JC84

Wolf Blass Cabernet Sauvignon

Wolf Blass Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $16.55. I had been wanting to try this wine for some time now, ever since I saw an advertisement saying it was the #1 selling Cab Sauv in Canada. It surprised me at first, but then I realized that a number of restaurants carry it. I had this at a work function, so I didn’t have to pay for the bottle, which is always nice. I thought it had a smooth taste at first, but finished a bit rough. Notes of cherry, subtle vanilla and lemon. I liked it more than the Chilean Cab Sauv’s I have tried, but not as much as ones I’ve tried in France, Canada or California. JC86

I have fallen in love...

Taking the subway to my future sister and brother in-law’s wedding ceremony, I needed some reading material. I went to my local LCBO (liquor stores in Ontario) and grabbed the latest vintages magazine. For those of you unaware of what the LCBO vintages are, it is a release every two weeks of new wines from around the world, which are typically $15 and up. There is often a separate area of the store that holds the vintages wines. These include the new releases that are available for a limited time, and the wines that are available year-round.

After the ceremony, I needed to kill some time before the reception, so I decided to check out the Summerhill LCBO, at Yonge & Summerhill in Toronto. This is the “flagship” LCBO and the largest liquor store in the province, if not the country. Upon entering, I immediately fell in love. There was more selection than I’ve ever seen before! They also have a full kitchen for conducting classes and a tasting room of new vintages arrivals! I was able to taste three wines for $2. The price depends on the price of the wine, and ranges from $0.50 to $2 per taste. It was neat that I had read about a couple of the wines I tried just a few hours beforehand in the magazine. Here are the three I tried:

Louis Bouillot Perle D’Aurore Brut Rose $18.95. This wine is from France, if you couldn’t guess from the name, however since it is not from the Champagne region, it has to be called sparkling wine. I have grown fond of rose sparkling wines/champagnes ever since my fiancée and I bought a few to celebrate our engagement. It also helped that the best sparkling wine I’ve ever tasted happened to be a rose. I did not smell or taste much on this wine. It was very dry, which I usually prefer to the overly sweet wines. JC85

Carte Noire Rose 2010 $13.95. Another French wine. This wine was a very pale pinkish colour. It had perfume and floral notes. It was a very light wine. It would be nice sipping on the patio, or maybe with appetisers. It’s too light for an actual meal in my opinion. JC86

Palazzo Dei Signori Amarone 2006 $37.95. I have never tried an Amarone before. This is probably because I haven’t seen a bottle for under $20. This wine had a spicy smell and a not unpleasant oaky taste. I was a nice medium-bodied wine. Vintages suggests pairing it with meat-based pasta or grilled lamb chops. I think either of those would work well with this wine. JC87

At the wedding, the two house wines being served were:

Velletri Centurio 2008 $7.05. This Italian red is a mix of Merlot, Sangiovese and Montepulciano d´Abruzzo. It was a nice smooth-tasting wine, which went well with both the pasta dish and the meat dish. JC87

Velletri Superior Villa Ginnetti 2010 $7.05. This white wine was too sweet for my liking. JC82

All in all, a good day!

Review Archive #3

Tasted June 2011: Yvon Mau Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $8.95. The 2008 received 83 from Wine Align. I bought this wine because it was a cab sauv from France for under $9, plus 5 air miles! It tastes how a cab sauv should taste at this price level. There is nothing special about it, however it is an enjoyable drink before dinner or with a steak. Jammy flavours and ripe fruit. JC 87

Tasted May 2011: B.V. Century Cellars Cabernet Sauv $10.95. This tasted similar to J. Lohr Seven Oaks, however half the price. I thoroughly enjoyed this wine, sipping before dinner as well as eating fajitas on a patio in Toronto. JC 90

Tasted May 2011: Monarch Red 2009 from Pelee Island Winery $10.45. The 2008 vintage of Monarch was one of my favourite wines. I would give it a 93. The 2009 vintage, which we had first tried shortly after it was released, was noticeably sweeter, however still a nice smooth taste with a little more flavour than an Italian house wine. My partner didn’t like it at all, while I still thought it to be a decent wine, it wasn't nearly as good as '08 probably only an 86. We are cautiously optimistic for the 2010 release. 

A White and a Red

Trius Sauvignon Blanc 2010 $13.95 One of the wines that we got from our trip to the Hillebrand winery. This had peach and honeydew scents. It was sweeter than I typically like my wine to be, but it was a nice drinking wine that went well with the bbq chicken and roast potatoes that we had. JC86

Antane Chianti – This wine is not sold at the LCBO. I had this yesterday at a restaurant. It had a smoky favour to it at first, but gradually as more air got into it, there was a smoother taste. I had this with pizza. Not a bad wine, but nothing special about it. JC84

(No picture available)

Another Rhone Valley Wine

Carte Noire Cellier des Dauphins 2008 $10.95 A Rhone Valley wine that tasted quite a bit different from the La Vieille Ferme Recolte. This one consists of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and 10% Cinsault. Other than the Syrah (Shiraz), not household grapes. It comes in a shorter and fatter bottle than the normal shape. Based on the bottle shape and label style, this looks like a much more expensive bottle. The wine had black cherry notes with spices. Hints of cinnamon and nutmeg with a long finish. I did not love it like my partner did, however it intrigued me, tasting different than most other wines I have experienced. JC85

I tried this wine again today, after opening it yesterday. This time I chilled it in the fridge for 15-20 minutes beforehand and had a nice steak dinner with it, compared to chicken fried rice yesterday. I thought it had a smoother taste and enjoyed it more today, however my partner did not, to each their own I guess. Perhaps this wine should have been decanted and chilled yesterday as well. I would give this wine an extra couple of points, so JC85-87.

Review Archive #2

Tasted February 2011: PKNT Cabernet Sauvignon, Chile $10.95

Notes: The bottle with the big red chilli on the front. This winery offers a full line up of wines, but unfortunately the LCBO only carries the Cab Sauv. It is full bodied with a sharp taste. I tried this with tacos and on its own. I enjoyed it, but I didn’t love it. Would give this an 84.

UPDATE: The LCBO now carries the Carmenere as well. I have yet to try this wine.

Tasted May 2011: Duca Di Castelmonte Cent'are Nero D'Avola 2009 $13.95 (sale price $12.95). The 2008 was rated 88 at Wine Align. Notes: I really enjoyed this wine. Nice flavour and good with chicken and potatoes or just sipping. This will become one of my go-to wines. JC 92

Fun Summer Wines

Given that it is Canada Day today and Independence Day for the U.S. in a few days, here’s a couple of summer wines that may be nice to try this long weekend.

Tasted June 2011: Botter Puglia Moscato $9.95. Interestingly no vintage year on this bottle. Moscato is the “it” wine for this summer, or at least the LCBO is pushing it as this. This wine made a good après dinner beverage. It was sweet and bubbly, however not overbearing and quite pleasant to drink. I enjoyed this wine as a “desert” wine and would also be nice sipping on a patio in the afternoon. Only 8% alcohol. JC 87

Tasted March 2011: Fresita, Chile $13.90 (85)

Notes: Sparkling wine infused with strawberries. The strawberry flavour adds nicely and this is not too sweet. Thoroughly enjoyed it, a great summer beverage. Would give this a 90.

I sampled this wine yesterday, although not particularly a summer wine:

Tasted June 2011: Callia Alta Melbec 2010 $11.00 – A nice tasting Melbec. A smoother taste than others I have had. This wine went down well. JC87

Review Archive #1

Here are a few wines that I reviewed in March and am sharing with you now. I've tried to increase the description in the reviews since I started in February. As I post them, you will notice that some are more detailed than others.

March 2011 - Tasted the following at a restaurant: Forrest Sauvignon Blanc. Unfortunately this New Zealand wine is not available at the LCBO. I would give this wine a 90.

Tasted March 2011: Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $10.95 (JC87). Nice wine after getting some air into it. A structure to it with a smooth finish. Had it with roast pork and vegetables. I'm looking forward to trying some more pricy Cab Sauv's by Beringer in the future.

Tasted Samples Mar 2011: Baron Herzog Cabernet Sauvignon (JC85) and Baron Herzog Chardonnay (JC85). Nothing special about these wines. They weren’t bad but may not be worth the $15-17 price. They were a little too sweet. Not a typical Cab Sauv.

Toronto Wine & Spirit Festival

I attended the Wine & Spirit Festival 10 days ago, but since this blog is new, and I didn't try any new wines today, I figured I would write some highlights about the festival.

The good:
- It was held in a large open area, so there was a lot of room to move around and get to the vendors we wanted to sample from.
- There was a good variety of wine, beer and spirits represented, as well as a variety of food options.
- There were some interesting classes that were available as part of the admission fee, such as whiskey tasting and the steps on reviewing a wine. ($25).
 The not so good:
- It was unclear exactly where and when the free shuttle bus was picking people up from. We had to wait for a TTC (public transit) bus, which took too long to show up.
- The event was hosted at Polson Pier, which was out of the way, making it a little challenging to get to.

The wines:
We tried a number of different wines at the event. Any price I put after a wine is the price the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) sells a bottle for at their store.

Fuzion Alta Reserva Cab Sauv $9.95. This was my favourite of the show. It tasted how a good cab Sauv should taste and could easily sell for $5 or $10 a bottle more. It was smooth going down with cherry flavours. JC89

Fuzion Alta Reserva Melbec $9.95. This was a nice wine, although I’m not a big fan of Melbec, especially when I’m drinking it right after a Cab Sauv. JC85

Fuzion Alta Torrontes Pinot Grigio $8.95. A nice tasting white. It’s not dry, but not too sweet either. I would purchase this wine for a seafood or chicken dish. JC88

Emeri Pink Moscato $14.95. An Australian wine. This was my second time trying Moscato. This was a light, bubbly, sweet wine. It would be good as a desert wine. I probably couldn’t drink more than a glass maximum. JC86

Domaine Hatzimichalis Cab Sauv. A Greek wine that is not sold at the LCBO that I can tell. I did not enjoy this wine. I’m not sure why it tasted odd, but it did and not in a good way. JC80

Barefoot Cab Sauv $9.95. A Californian wine from industry giant E & J Gallo. This is a wine that tasted a big rough on it’s own, but I could see complementing a nice steak quite well. Wine Align rates this as 85, and I would agree. JC85

Citra Sangiovese $7.45. Definitely a solid deal at the LCBO. Similar in price to the Farnese wine of the same grape. This goes down nicely, however not quite up to par as Farnese. JC85

Fazi Battaglia Titilus $9.95. This white wine with the little scroll attached to the bottle has caught my eye before. I don’t recall if I’d ever bought it before though. I didn’t enjoy the taste of this wine. JC80

Rosehall Run Pinot Noir $19.95. The winery on Lake Erie’s north shore tends to have a little higher priced wines. This was the first one that I have tried from them, and also the first Pinot Noir I have reviewed. This is a lighter red with good character. This may be good with chicken or appetizers. JC86

Colchester Ridge Estate Winery CREW 2007 Meritage. Another wine not available at the LCBO. This wine reminded me a lot of my future father-in-law’s home-made wine. It goes down quite easily. It wasn’t a bad wine, but there wasn’t a whole lot of character. A traditional Bordeaux blend of Cabernet franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and retails for $20. I would spend the extra $1.95 on Trius Red, which uses the same grapes.  JC84

Trius Art of Red - Blending Experience

I made the 1.5 hour journey to the Niagara region today. I started off the trip with a 7km hike along the Bruce Trail, then after lunch went to the Hillebrand Winery. This is a beautiful winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake. There is a very nice restaurant, a large gift shop/tasting center, and a number of different tours/experiences that people can do. Hillebrand makes wine under their own name, as well as the Trius label.

My significant other and I decided to partake in the Trius Red blending experience. However before I get to that, we tried a few wines before the experence started. The first wine was the Trius Brut Rose. As the name suggests, a pink sparkling wine. It had a clean, crisp taste. A dry bubbly that is not overly flavourful, yet goes down nicely and tastes very good. The wine retails for $29.95. JC88

The second wine was the Trius Grand Red 2008. This is a wine that is not sold in LCBO stores and other than the winery, I'm not sure where else you can get it. It is made only in years that have produced grapes up to the standards for this wine. It is still a young wine and could easily age for a number of years. There was an oaky taste and a nice finish. This wine was retailing for $55, with the 2007 retailing for $60. JC90

The third wine was the Trius Red 2006. This is an older vintage than what is available at the LCBO (2009), and each year the wine-maker determines the blend that will be used between Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc. A combination of these three wines have been used every year since 1989, except for 2008 when Malbec was used for 3%. JC87

The Trius Red Blending Experience
We were brought into a room with a long table, bottles of the three wines in the Trius Red: Merlot, Cab Sauv, and Cab Franc. There was also paper for recording our findings, and a couple of different measuring cups. I almost felt like I was in a science lab about to do an experiment. In a sense, I was.

We got to try all three types of reds on their own, then got to mix them to determine what combination we wanted for our own personal bottle of Trius Red. We weren't told beforehand what the combination that the wine-maker actually used in the 2009 vintage (45% Merlot, 48% Cab Franc and 7% Cab Sauv), however I knew from talking to a staff member beforehand. Personally, I don't care too much for Cab Franc in general. I probably liked the Merlot the best, with the Cab Sauv coming in a close second. I decided to mix 45% Merlot, 40% Cab Sauv and 15% Cab Franc. I thought it tasted like heaven, and I am ready to quit my day job. If only it were really that easy to make good wine!

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Hillebrand. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable. In addition to my partner and my custom Trius Red bottles, we purchased a bottle of Trius Rose Brut and a bottle of Trius Sauvignon Blanc 2010. Everyone is saying that 2010 is expected to be the best year yet for both white and red wine in the Niagara region. I am looking forward to finding out!