Author Archives: John Galea

Lealtanza Crianza 2004

Posted on May 18, 2009 by John Galea

This wine was the wine of the month and got a good write up so I thought I would give it a go … Crianza (Tempranillo by another name). I always expect these to be big wines. I decanted this … Continue reading →

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CAVE SPRING ESTATE RIESLING 2007

Posted on May 17, 2009 by John Galea

Ah dinner was planned for a spicy chipotle flavored pork tenderloin. A tough food/wine pairing. A Riesling will fit the bill! Ah it’s time to pull out one of our favorites! We always enjoy our trips to Cave Springs. Right … Continue reading →

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SOUTHBROOK TRIOMPHE SAUVIGNON BLANC 2007

Posted on May 16, 2009 by John Galea

I had not heard of this winery before and with such a high score I thought let’s give it a try. It’s an unknown (to me) rater but heh … So with that in mind I dove in. This wine … Continue reading →

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MIKE WEIR ESTATE CABERNET/MERLOT 2006

Posted on May 13, 2009 by John Galea

RANT WARNING: Ok, I am going to digress for a moment. If you aren’t interested in reading the rant, page down, I don’t mind 🙂 Ok thanks for hanging with me. In the last 5 years or so there have … Continue reading →

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CHÂTEAU LE BOURDIEU 2003

Posted on May 11, 2009 by John Galea

This is a classic bordeaux blend from a bouquet and flavor point of view. The wine has some lively tannins and some edgeyness to it. For the price it is not a bad wine 88-89 ish. Not a fabulous deal … Continue reading →

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SANTA JULIA RESERVA CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2007

Posted on May 9, 2009 by John Galea

I’ve had a couple of different Santa Julia wines so I thought I would give this one a try. This wine is a very light cab. This wine is not particularly deep or complex. Missing are the wonderful cassis flavors … Continue reading →

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‘Pirate’ Niagara wine beats world’s best

Posted on May 8, 2009 by John Galea

In case you hadn’t heard, Jordanne’s Claystone Terrace Chardonnay 2005 beat out a number of French and California wines in a blind taste test in Montreal. Read all about it! NOTE: If you do run out to grab one of … Continue reading →

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KENDALL-JACKSON VINTNER’S RESERVE CHARDONNAY 2006

Posted on May 7, 2009 by John Galea

I’ve had this one a number of times now and quite enjoy it. It is a spot on varietal California style Chard. Lovely yellow in color with a typical Chard bouquet. The wine has butteryness but not too over the … Continue reading →

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Wines of Germany

Posted on May 6, 2009 by John Galea

Last night we attended the Wines of Germany event here in Toronto. The event was held at Roy Thompson hall in downtown. The event was very well done with a nice assortment of wine as well as plenty of very … Continue reading →

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MANGA DEL BRUJO 2006

Posted on May 5, 2009 by John Galea

Sometimes a blend just goes awry … This is what this one does for me. The blend does not work well together and the flavors fight. The wine has a jammyness almost like a petite syrah with some strong Blueberry … Continue reading →

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ALKOOMI CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2005

Posted on May 4, 2009 by John Galea

This one came on my radar as a pretty good deal. A 90 rated wine below $20. This is a lovely cab. Slightly different than a California cab. Plenty of deep rich black berry flavors. The finish on the wine … Continue reading →

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HESS CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2005

Posted on May 1, 2009 by John Galea

We had the pleasure of trying this wine as part of a night out for Charity for Canadian Care an organization bringing better lives to those in Guatemala. The wine was a special being offered by Queen’s Pasta . If … Continue reading →

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CHATEAU ST. GERMAIN 2006

Posted on April 30, 2009 by John Galea

I had this wine as the table wine at Moxxies so I bought a bottle. For the price, why not. It is not a bad wine with reasonable depth and complexity for a wine of this price. Not a fabulous … Continue reading →

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MISSION HILL RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2006

Posted on April 27, 2009 by John Galea

I’ve blogged about this one before. We tasted it at the BC wine event a while back. So based on how much I liked it at the tasting I bought one. I was not disappointed. This wine is perfect right … Continue reading →

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CHATEAU SAINT-ROCH CHIMERES 2006

Posted on April 24, 2009 by John Galea

The rating makes on this wine caught my eye, it looks like a bargain. The wine is 65% Grenache Noir, 30% Syrah, 10% Carignan. As usual I find Parker is high in his rating. I believe this one really deserves … Continue reading →

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ROBERTSON WINERY KINGS RIVER CHARDONNAY 2006

Posted on April 23, 2009 by John Galea

This is an absoloutely middle of the road mild chard. Color is typical honey, on the nose this is a light wine. There is a little bit of butteryness but not a lot and no creamyness. There is a bit … Continue reading →

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INNISKILLIN 2007 RIESLING

Posted on April 22, 2009 by John Galea

I had this wine at the Keg paired with King Crab. The wine is a VERY mild Riesling. The finish is quite short and there is not a lot going on here. It is a varietal Riesling but nothing too … Continue reading →

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CATHEDRAL CELLAR PINOTAGE 2005

Posted on April 19, 2009 by John Galea

This was recommended by Gord Stimmel from the star as a good Pinotage. So I thought I would give it a whirl. This is a very harsh wine. Burning the throat when first opened. 1 hour worth of breathing helped. … Continue reading →

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PILLAR BOX RED 2005

Posted on April 19, 2009 by John Galea

I have some of the 2005 and the 2006. This is a big bold classic Aussie wine. The dominant flavor is Shiraz with some edge taken off by the blending grapes. The wine is quite high in alcohol. I recommend … Continue reading →

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WYNNS COONAWARRA ESTATE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2005

Posted on April 17, 2009 by John Galea

This is an absolutely varietal Aussie cab. There are all the typical flavors and aromas of a cab mixed in with a very slight pepperyness on the finish as is typical for an Aussie. Terroir can never be underestimated and … Continue reading →

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TOMÀS CUISINÉ VILOSELL 2005

Posted on April 16, 2009 by John Galea

I bought this wine back in June of last year. Looks like there isn’t any more at the LCBO, which is a crying shame. I actually went back and grabbed more it was so good. Out of the bottle there … Continue reading →

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HENRY OF PELHAM OFF-DRY RESERVE RIESLING 2007

Posted on April 15, 2009 by John Galea

I cracked this one the other night. This is a smack in the middle Riesling. Not too sweet, but also not that long in flavor. It is varietal on the nose, with a pale color. This wine is in the … Continue reading →

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Basics of decanting

Posted on April 12, 2009 by John Galea

To decant or not to decant. A question often asked so I thought I would give my thoughts on the subject. Decanting is all about allowing some oxygen at the wine. Growing up I always thought taking the cork off … Continue reading →

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Waterstone Cabernet Sauvigonon 2005

Posted on April 10, 2009 by John Galea

We attended the California wine event. The majority of the wines were not available at the LCBO. There was a dizzying array of wines at the event and not one of them was bad. I was quite impressed. Never did … Continue reading →

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D’ARENBERG THE CUSTODIAN GRENACHE 2006

Posted on April 9, 2009 by John Galea

I’ve had this one before and has been consistently quite good. Out of the bottle this had quite a bitter taste to it. Decanting 45 min fixed this and left what I have come to expect from this wine which … Continue reading →

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