I’ve had this one for a number of years and it is consistently good. The wine is dark in color mild on the nose with some oak and some dark berry smells. On the mid pallet are some well balanced fruit flavors with deep cassis coming through. On the finish are some pronounced oak, and some mild tannins on the milder side of medium. This is a nice well balanced Malbec. I would give it an 89 or so. Quite good.

From the LCBO web site:
ALAMOS MALBEC 2008 Mendoza (The Wines of Catena) TASTING NOTE: This red has a wonderful dark blackish purple colour. The nose shows ripe black fruits black peppery spice and floral notes. The palate is full yet soft and supple with black raspberry and currant flavors with notes of sweet spice and a touch of leather. The finish is long with soft sweet tannins. Great value. Score – 89. (Bruce Stephen North Shore Outlook (B.C.) June 10 2009) 467951 $13.95
Featured 8/29/2009

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A while back I did a write up on a number of Chilean Sauv Blancs that I tasted at the Chilean wine event. At the event I tasted a number of Chards but did not find too many I enjoyed. Bargains were hard to find. I like Chards. I find them a challenging food match but enjoy the variety and complexity of chards. This one is pale in color mild on the nose. The bouquet is varietal chard. On the mid pallet are some lovely varietal chard flavors with some slight butter and creamyness. On the finish the wine has some lovely tartness. The finish is medium in length with oak and alcohols well under control. This is a very good chard and when you factor in the price this is a bargain. I would give this an 89 or so. Give it a try if you like chards!

From the LCBO web site:
SANTA JULIA RESERVA CHARDONNAY 2008 VINTAGES 932368 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 13.95
Wine, White Wine, 13.5% Alcohol/Vol. Sugar Content : D

Made in: Argentina, Argentina By: Familia Zuccardi

Release Date: Jan 23, 2010

Tasting Note
This is a flavourful and vibrant Chardonnay with a pure fruit profile in perfect harmony with its oak character. The aromas speak of apple, ripe pear, buttered toast and tropical fruit. It’s dry, round and full-bodied with the ripe fruit, toasty oak and buttery flavours kept in line by zippy acidity that enliven the palate and make the taste buds pop. There’s good length on the finish, too, making it the complete package. Serve with grilled prawns, crab legs or herbed chicken. (VINTAGES panel, Nov. 2009)

From winecurrent.com:
Santa Julia Reserva Chardonnay 2008 Mendoza. 13.5% alcohol This is named after owner Don Zuccardis only daughter who was instrumental in the expansion of his export business. Its pale gold bright and aromatic with rich ripe tree fruits vanilla and traces of toasty oak. Flavors of ripe pears sweet apples and honeyed oak are balanced with fresh acidity to create an appealing and vivacious wine. Well balanced the finish is long and buttery. Its paired perfectly with take-out rotisserie chicken. This gained its final ½ star on value. (Susan Desjardins) Fortified Wine (932368) $13.95 Featured 1/23/2010. 4.5/5 stars

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I am off to Australia in a few hours, I will try and get some reviews of Aussie wines up while I am gone.

See you in two weeks

CWG

Sometimes you need to go off the reservation and choose a wine from some rater you’ve never heard of before. That was my though when I grabbed this one. What the heck. The wine is deep in color with a lovely nose of dark fruits. On the mid pallet are some flavors to match the bouquet with blueberries coming through but not at all fruit forward. Just about right for my tastes. On the finish the wine has some lovely tannins, quite a bit of dryness, some pepper and a medium finish. There is a nice bit of complexity to the finish coming off in nice layers of flavors! This is a well made typically Aussie edgy wine with the oaks and alcohol well under control. I would give this a 90!

From the LCBO web site:
GEMTREE VINEYARDS TADPOLE SHIRAZ 2008 VINTAGES 142034 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 16.95
Wine, Red Wine, 14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D

Made in: South Australia, Australia By: Gemtree Vineyards

Release Date: Jan 23, 2010

Tasting Note
… a deep coloured, thick textured wine with lovely richness and generosity to the fruit, as well as good definition and a bit of meaty savouriness. It’s one of those bottles that gets finished pretty quickly because it has that quality of deliciousness. Really superb effort, and I rated it as high as 90/100 for its lovely purity and relative complexity that you don’t normally find at this price point. Buy some now! Score – 90. (Jamie Goode, www.wineanorak.com, Aug. 26, 2009)

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Ratings are a subjective thing. There are raters that I find I align with very well, and raters whose tastes are very different than mine. The key is finding the difference. Gord Stimmel and I taste VERY differently. That’s just one of those things. When I saw this one I thought, heh, give it a try. Every now and then Gord and I like the same wine. I would love to say that was the case, but that just ain’t gonna happen with this one, but I am getting ahead of myself. On the nose the wine has some really distinct wood, and some black fruit. On the mid pallet are some varietal snagiovese flavors but they are quite overwhelmed. On the finish the wine is dominated by wood, and a strong alcohol flavors. The tastes did not improve at all with breathing. Even two days later the wine had not improved. This is one of the first wines in a while I fed to the fish (poured down the drain). I have no idea what Gord tasted, or what appealed to him, but this is the kind of flavors I would expect in an $8 or $9 bottle of wine. If were to give this an 86 I would be out on a limb. I suspect by now you are gathering I won’t be running out to grab more of these and you would be spot on!

From the LCBO web site:
GIORDANO VESPERO 2005 VINTAGES 72421 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 16.95
Wine, Red Wine, 13.5% Alcohol/Vol. Sugar Content : XD

Made in: Tuscany, Italy By: F. Giordano S.P.A.

Release Date: Jan 9, 2010

Tasting Note
This Tuscan IGT red is 100 per cent sangiovese. Aromas are subtle, with tea leaf, black cherry and exotic spice. The flavours are sumptuously styled, with black cherry, sandalwood and blueberry depth. Food suggestion: Tomato and sausage penne. Score – 90. (Gordon Stimmell, The Toronto Star, Sept. 20, 2008)

This little bottle has sat in the CWG wine fridge for almost 3 years, while not expensive originally (~$30) it did however have some cellaring ability that led me to keep it safe and sound. This wine use to be in the Chianti Classico classification but still a super tuscan I was hoping that this modestly priced wine from the huge producer (Antinori) would be a ‘hidden gem’. So what did we get?

A super Tuscan blend with an oaky nose and hints of ‘black’ fruit to start is what you get. Take that oak and make it leathery with a sniff of vanilla. The wine is ready to drink. The balance is there, the tannins pronounced but not too overwhelming. The fruit can be a bit subdued, not a bad indication of a wine I left too long. This is a bit surprising as this is only a 2003, young enough that it should still be fruit forward. Shame as almost everything else was spot on. Overall, a nice wine, worth the money and worth having a whirl if you can still get you hand on it. A pleasant surprise from such a large producer (which most know is never a plus for me).

The CWGSR is 88 out of 100. An almost perfect blend of the $$.

Tags: antinori, canadian wine guy, Tuscany, wine review

Hope everyone is well, making homemade Pizza and sipping some white wine.

Here is a nice little read on a GTA-Golden Horseshoe scammer that hits home. Feel free to pass it on.

Enjoy your Sunday, we will get a review up tomorrow.

-CWG

Tried this one at the Keg last night. The wine is quite deep in color mild on the nose with the typical black fruits coming through and a hint of oak. On the mid pallet are some very nice fruits to match the bouquet. Some blueberries and the like. Not too sweet just right. On the finish the wine has some nice complexity, some subtle tannins and a medium finish. I quite enjoyed this one and paired it with a filet mignon and it went very well. This turned out to be a good choice. I would give this an 89-90. There are Almansa wines at the LCBO but I can not tell if it is this one or not. If your at the Keg and enjoy Tempranillo’s be sure and give this one a try …

We had this wine at Politica last night. Pale in color, varietal on the nose there are some well under control bouquets of lemon and grass but quite subtle. On the mid pallet the tastes match the bouquet this is a smooth well made Sauv Blanc with grassyness and lemon dominant but not overpowering. This is a very food friendly wine. The wine is on the lighter side of medium. The alcohol is well under control. I would give it an 89 or so. Very nice wine. I paired it with a pasta dish with steam and shrimp in a red sauce and it went quite well. All in all, a lovely meal complemented by this very nice wine! Not surprising that this is a J Lohr. I find I really enjoy all there wines. Unfortunately, not available in the LCBO.

Winery write up

I was wandering in an LCBO store and they were sampling this wine so I said why not. I was thoroughly surprised by it, and bought a bottle. They also were sampling the shiraz but I didn’t care for it. This wine is quite pale in color and has a lovely lemony, grassy bouquet. On the mid pallet the wine is quite varietal in flavor for a sauv blac with lots of lemon and grass to go with the bouquet. The wine is quite zesty with a medium finish. All in all this is a reasonably well made tasty sauv blanc. Nice and dry. I would give it an 88-89 or so. I paired it with pan fried steak and kidney and it went well, holding it’s own. Give it a try you might be surprised!

From the LCBO web site:
FISH HOEK SAUVIGNON BLANC LCBO 129726 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 9.95
Wine, White Wine, 12.0% Alcohol/Vol. Sugar Content : 1

Made in: South Africa, South Africa By: Western Wines Ltd.

Tasting Note
Pale straw yellow colour; aromas of lime, green fruit and herb with a slight rustic note; dry, medium bodied, spritzy with pleasant nettle and herb flavours; good acidity on the finish.

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This wine caught my attention as a Bordeaux under $20 with a good write up. The prices on Bordeaux’s are really continuing to creep up there. The wine is quite dark in color with a note of oak and black fruit on the nose. On the mid pallet there are some very distinct sharp flavors coming from deep cherries and the like. Then comes the finish. If you like your wines smooth and easy drinking … this so is not a wine for you! This is a big bruiser. Wimps need not apply. The finish is dominated by some lovely thick pallet sticking tannings and some puckering dryness. This is a bold Bordeaux. The finish seems to me to be dominated by Cab Franc (although I am not sure there is any in it). There is a hint of alcohol on the finish but nothing too overwhelming. The wine is quite complex as well with lots of layers of flavors going on in your mouth and on the long finish. Wow, very nice 90-91 in my boat. Yum … Be sure and try this without food and pair it with something milder to totally appreciate this wine to it’s fullest! We paired it with a pork chop and it was a good combination albeit not the best. The dessert was a chocolate brownie and again it went ok but not fabulous.

From the LBCO web site:
CHÂTEAU SAINT-NICOLAS 2006 VINTAGES 138602 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 18.95
Wine, Red Wine, 12.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content : XD

Made in: Bordeaux, France By: Diva Sarl

Release Date: Jan 23, 2010

Description
A Gold Medal winner at the 2008 Concours de Bordeaux – Vins d’Aquitaine.

Tasting Note
This is principally Merlot, and the aromas and flavours ably bear that out. Cherry, plum, oak and berries dominate. Dry and rather lush with supple tannins for balance. This medium-bodied wine will please both admirers of the European or New World style of wine. Enjoy it with roast beef or veal tenderloin. (VINTAGES panel, May 2009)

Fast note on this Italian red since I am a tad short on time but wanted to share.

Fruity nose, medium tannins, soft finish. This is not a home run but a solid double-triple (mid winter baseball reference there for you). A tad rough to start but polishes out evenly. You will get cherries and raspberries, a tad smokey. you can still find bottles at the LCBO. Enjoy.

CWGSR is 87 out of 100

Tags: sportoletti, wine review

I expect a certain amount of discipline and elegance to a Rhone Village wine. This wine is quite dark in color with some dark fruits coming through on the nose. On the mid pallet the wine displays some fruit forward sweetness with some dark fruits coming through. On the finish on opening the 14% alcohol comes through fairly prominently. Off to the decanter for this one. The finish is fairly dry with some tannins. While not a terrible wine it is by no means a great wine. After an hour in the decanter the alcohol was still the prominent taste in this wine. I would give it an 88 or so. I won’t be running out to grab more that’s for sure.

From the LCBO web site:
ORTAS TRADITION RASTEAU 2008 VINTAGES 998716 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 15.00
Wine, Red Wine, 14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D

Made in: Rhone, France By: Cave de Rasteau

Release Date: Jan 9, 2010

Description
A Gold Medal winner at the 2009 Concours des Grands Vins de France in Mâcon.

Tasting Note
This blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre displays an attractive nose of wild berries, black fruit, pepper and a hint of tar. This dry, soft-textured, medium-bodied wine features juicy black fruit and hints of leather and pepper. Very pleasant match indeed for comfort foods like lamb stew, shepherd’s pie or beef casserole. (VINTAGES panel, Aug. 2009)

What winecurrent.com had to say about this wine:
14.0% alcohol Another French gold medal winner this wine wears a bright cherry robe with hints of purple. The nose is redolent of petits fruits—blackberries and raspberries—along with the wonderful herbs producing garrigue. With flavors consistent with the aromas its a dry medium-bodied wine that has a seam of refreshing acidity and perceptible tannins. A hint of berry tartness and pepper linger on the warm finish. A hearty winter stew will do. (Susan Desjardins) (998716) $15.00 Rating 4.5/5.

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The wine is deep inky in color, mild on the nose. On the mid pallet this wine has some deep fruit flavors but this is by no means a fruit forward or a sweet wine. This wine is all about the finish. The finish displays some slightly sharp tannins, some oak, some nice complexity and some nice dryness, all packaged in a long finish. This is one well made cab. The 14.5% alcohol is well under control. I suspect it will age well too. For the money this is a good deal. I would give it a 91. Yumm …

From the LCBO web site:
GROVE STREET CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2006 VINTAGES 161190 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 17.95
Wine, Red Wine, 14.5% Alcohol/Vol. Sugar Content : D

Made in: California/Californie, United States By: Girard Winery

Release Date: Jan 9, 2010

Description
Grove Street Winery has been producing superb wines for over twenty years in the picturesque town of Healsburg, in the heart of Sonoma.

Tasting Note
This is truly an exceptional value for Cabernet from Sonoma. Opaque ruby in colour, it’s bursting with layered aromas of ripe cassis, raspberry, plum, cocoa and vanilla. It’s dry, with ample body and intense black fruit and spicy oak flavours supported by supple tannins, all culminating in a long, smooth finish. Very easy to love. (VINTAGES panel, Aug. 2009)

Here’s what winecurrent.com had to say about it:
14.5% alcohol A deep red this wine offers a plethora of aromas—black currant attractive leafiness cedar and hints of eucalyptus. Its beautifully structured and well integrated with tangy acidity and silky drying tannins. Loads of lush dark fruit rush across the palate and carry through on the lingering finish that teases with hints of toasty oak and cocoa. (Susan Desjardins) (161190) $17.95 Rating 4.5/5

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We went to a food and wine charity event last night at The Stop. The event was coordinated by Danielle with funds being used to run their projects. Thirteenth St wines were served during the event with Peter from 13th along to enthusiastically talk to us a bit about the wines and the winery. The Stop has a greenhouse that provides all the herbs and some of the vegetables used for the evening. The food was prepared by a volunteer crew who were attentive and very friendly throughout the evening. The event was well done. Here was the menu for the evening:

Menu
Various Hors d’œuvre were served along with THIRTEENTH STREET JUNE’S VINEYARD CABERNET ROSÉ 2008 . I didn’t really think much of this wine. It wasn’t terrible, but not to my tastes. I’m really not a rose person, and a bubbly Rose is even less to my tastes.

· Braised rapini with a poached mini egg over a pickled garlic sauce
13TH STREET PREMIER CUVÉE BRUT 2004. I quite enjoyed this Brut which is made in the traditional champagne style. Lots of Chard flavors, just the right amount of bubbles. I’m not a big Champagne person but I enjoyed this one and would have it again. I would give it a 89 or so.

· Elk ‘PHO’ – Carpaccio of elk over braised cabbage with raw mushrooms and horseradish surrounded by spicy broth
Funk Vineyard Riesling 2007 (Not available in the LCBO right now). This is a quite nice semi sweet Riesling with a good varietal structure to the wine, some honey, some apricot. The sweetness was about right for a food friendly wine.

· Juniper scented risotto with hot ricotta and smoked prawns
Gamay Noir Sandstone Old Vines 2007 (Not available in the LCBO). This was quite an interesting wine. It was quite a fruit forward Gamay with some tannins and structure on the finish. There’s a fair bit of sweetness to the wine so one would need to be careful with the food pairing. This particular pairing was not bad but frankly I would have reversed the Riesling and the Gamay. I would give this one an 89-90. I quite enjoyed it.

· Crispy duck breast over celery root puree and mulled wine sauce
Meritage 2006. I must admit I am not a big fan of Meritage blends. This one was not bad displaying only a little of that “Niagara terroir” to it. I would give it an 87 or so. The fruit in it was fairly well done and the Niagara tannins were well under control. Medium in finish the wine seemed to go Ok with the duck.

· ‘Smores’ shooter

· Lemon almond cream cake with mascarpone mousse and a warm sage emulsion sauce
13 Degrees Below Zero Riesling 2008. I have to admit again, I am not a big fan of Ice wines. This one was pretty good to my tastes. It was not as sweet or syruppy as some. They were well under control. It made a nice finish to the evening.

All in all it was a nice evening, very well done by the whole crew at The Stop and Peter did a great job of giving us just enough information about the wines and the winery! He was very enthusiastic about what he does, was very knowledgeable and stopped by each of the tables during the evening to discuss the wines, the winery and anything else that might have been on our minds!

About The Stop Community Food Centre:
Located in the Davenport West neighbourhood in Toronto, The Stop works to increase people’s access to healthy food in a manner that maintains dignity, builds community and challenges inequality.

The Stop’s Green Barn is a satellite site of The Stop located in the Artscape Wychwood Barns at St. Clair & Christie. It includes a year round greenhouse, sheltered garden, bake oven, compost demonstration project, community kitchen, a classroom and a weekly farmers’ market.