Who is Joshua Greene you may be asking? Mr. Greene is Editor, Publisher and President of Wine & Spirits Magazine. Why am I calling him out? The atrocity that is his 23rd Annual Guide is the reason. In this annual magazine that lists in his, and his staffs, viewpoint top 100 Wines, Best Buys and Wineries you will not see a single mention of a Canadian wine/winery or winemaker. This is of course not shocking as Mr. Greene is a Californian centric writer who is proving once again that his magazine is good at in-depth looks at American wines, while wines outside of the USA better come from a big well known house ‘or else’. It is not tremendously difficult to rank Latour, Cheval Blanc, Krug, Louis Roederer and Pierre Morey in your top 100 without much thought or worry, who will challenge you? Ranking 28 American wines in your top 100 on the other hand, including an icewine, is nothing more then ridiculous, slanted and bias. 28% of the world’s best wines come from the USA? To make it even more of an insult towards the Canadian wine industry is that every country included in the top 100 (including Austria and Greece) each had a top red and white, yet there were no entries from Canada.
Mr Greene, you and your staff/panel could not do the same justice to Canadian wines as it did to the other 13 nations, I personally find that insulting, apologies are in order.
I was given this wine as a Christmas present from my sister. Thanks Caroline! Ah what’s in a name? I have no idea what to think about the name of this Winery Organized crime. Should I be intrigued, offended, sleeping with the fishies? I am even more perplexed by the label. What should I think about that?
Is there a statement here that somehow the Church is Organized Crime? And reading the description on the web site about the feuding churches I still don’t get how that has anything to do with Organized crime.
Ok let’s just say I don’t get it.
So enough of that, onto the wine. The wine is pale in color mild varietal reisling with a hint of sweetness on the nose. This wine is quite interesting. It takes each element of it to the limit and then stops just shy of being too much. On the mid pallet there are some noticeable sweet flavors, I would say more honey, apricots and the like. But just before you start to think it’s too sweet it stops. At just the right point. Then comes the finish and it does it again. There are some lovely well balanced tart flavors coming from the acidity of the wine. And again they stop just before they are too much. The wine is on the medium side of finish. It does not go on as some Rieslings can, it manages to stop at the right point. The wine is extremely food friendly. I paired it with a roast chicken leg with chocolate brownies for desert and it went quite well. As you regular readers know I as well as CWG find the Cave Springs Estate reisling to be the bench mark. This one comes quite close. A very well made wine. Goofy name and label aside I enjoyed this wine. I would give it an 89-90 with extra marks for the way the wine always stopped just before being too much! Unfortunately it is not in the LCBO so you will have to go out to the winery to get some. Maybe while there you can ask them to explain the bottle/name of the winery and educate me. The wine is $21 at the winery.
Dinner with wine used to be simple. The rule was white wine with white meat and red wine with red meat. But most of us don’t just eat meat and potatoes or drink claret and chablis these days.
With modern fusion cuisine and wines from new regions around the world, the choices – and confusion – are great. One new school of thought is that any wine goes with any dish. However, most of us don’t put ketchup on our ice cream for the same reason as we don’t drink a delicate white wine with a hearty meat dish or a powerful red wine with sole – they are mismatched flavors and textures.
When the marriage of food and wine works well, each enhances the other, making the meal greater than if you had consumed them separately. That’s why the following classic matches have survived the changes in food fashion: stilton with port, foie gras with sauternes, boeuf bourguignon with Burgundian pinot noir and goat cheese with sauvignon blanc.
It helps to start with the basic principles of food and wine pairing as they still provide a basis for experimenting with new world cuisine. One of the most important elements to harmonize between wine and food is flavor. For example, a tangy tomato-based pasta sauce requires a wine with comparable acidity. Without this balance between the acidity of the dish and the wine, the partner with lower acidity tastes flabby and dull, while the other, too tart.
To find an acidic wine, you can chose one that is made in the same area as the food. Years of matching the regional cuisine and wine as well as similar soil and climatic conditions make this a safe bet. For example, you could pair a tomato sauce fettuccine with a Tuscan chianti. Or you can select a wine from a cool climate where the grapes don’t ripen to great sweetness, and maintain their tart, tangy edge. Crisp New Zealand sauvignon blancs and French chablis serve these dishes well.
Acidic wines also work well with salty dishes. For example, oysters are both salty and briny with an oily mouth-coating texture that can smoother most wines. However, a sparkling wine from California, a Spanish cava or French champagne can both refresh and cleanse your palate when eating fish. Bubblies also work well with spicy foods. Hot spice in Asian, Thai, curry and chili pepper dishes can numb the palate. Many of these foods also have high acidity from citrus ingredients such as lime juice as well as sweetness. Therefore, you need a wine with an acidic backbone as well as a touch of sweetness such as an off-dry California sparkling wine with lots of fruit.
While off-dry, acidic wines go well with many dishes, the two most difficult wines to pair with food are also the two most popular: chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon. New World chardonnays can be oaky, buttery, flavorful wines that overwhelm many dishes. But you can still enjoy chardonnay with your meal. Pair it with butter and cream sauces to marry similar textures and flavors.
Conversely, cabernet sauvignons can have bitter dark fruit flavours with mouth drying tannins (the same sensation you get from drinking well-brewed tea). Therefore, they find their happiest match in foods with juicy proteins such as a rare steak. The protein softens the tannin making the wine taste smooth and fruity. Steaks done with crushed black peppercorns sensitize your taste-buds, making the wine taste even more fruity and robust. However, the way in which the dish is prepared also has an impact. A well-done steak, for example, may taste too dry with a tannic cabernet.
Proteins are also at work with the marriage of wine and cheese, the cocktail classic. Red wines tend to go better with hard cheeses such as blue cheese as they can accommodate more tannins. However, whites suit soft cheeses such as brie and camembert as the creamier textures require more acidity for balance.
Game birds such quail, pheasant, turkey, duck, squab and guinea hen have earthy flavors that are more robust than chicken. Wild game often goes better with racy red wines that have a gamy quality to them, the classic being Burgundian pinot noir. The flavors of pinot noir — plum, cherry, mushrooms, earth and even barnyard (that’s a positive adjective) – accentuate the same gamy flavors in the food. Other wine options for game birds include Spanish rioja, Oregon pinot noir and lighter-style Rhône Valley wines such as Côte-Rôtie.
When it comes to barbecued and grilled dishes, go for robust reds, such as shiraz, cabernet sauvignon and barolo. Argentine malbec is the Ultimate Summer Barbecue Wine. With it’s fleshy black fruit, dark spices and smoky notes, malbec muscles in beautifully beside most grilled fare: it’s a sizzling combination.
One of the most challenging flavors to balance is sweetness. Dishes with a touch of sweetness such as glazed pork do well with off-dry wines such as riesling and chenin blanc. However, rich desserts such as chocolate and crème brulée demand a wine that is sweeter than the dessert, or the wine will taste thin, even bitter. Sweet wines such as sauternes, Canadian icewine, late harvest wines and port will work not only for their sweetness but also for their unctuous texture.
Your best source of food and wine matching is your own palate. Experiment with different combinations to discover not only what makes a perfect pairing for you, but also to broaden your range of possibilities. As the author Alexis Lichine observed, “There is no substitute for pulling corks.”
Canadian Wine Guy is excited to announce that we are getting another contributer if only from time to time. Natalie MacLean, the Canadian author of the bestseller Red, White and Drunk All Over, offers a free wine newsletter at her website (which is found in our links section). Not only is she a clear voice in the wine world, she is also a great source of some of the best food & wine pairing advice the web has ever seen. Despite her busy schedule, she has offered to contribute on occasion.
A good spot to start off with for this review is to state that Thirty Bench is a winery that is owned by the same group that owns Hillebrand, Trius and Peller Estates, Andrew Peller Ltd. Despite the fear that a big operation the size of Peller might corrupt or ruin the feel of a small specialty vineyard, they have done neither with Thirty Bench. In fact the opposite is true, this little gem is turning out to be a top 5 Canadian Winery. Initially dedicated to Rieslings (and still their primary focus and strength), they have started to turn out a fantastic Chardonnay as well as a Red blend and Pinot Noir. Their small lot mentality has very much grasped the idea that terroir and small (but well tended to) yields can produce remarkable wines. The 2006 Small Lot Chardonnay received a great deal of praise and with the 2007 vintage being considered one of the best of all time in Niagara it was with great anticipation that this bottle (plus a few more) was purchased. On to the tasting!
This barrel fermented Chardonnay was aged sur lie before being bottled. With it’s honey colour capturing the eye, you instandly get a nice caramel toasty smell. A few good sniffs and you are getting more of that and a bit of vanilla with underlying peach. The first few sips will give your mouth a nice crisp sensation with a polished ‘velvety’ feel. This is rather surprising as many Chardonnays achieve this through malolactic fermentation (that buttery taste/feel) which this wine has not gone through. The balance of acidity, fruit and smooth oak work well and the winemaker Natalie Reynolds has done a great job in bringing a Burgundy style to her wine. The fruit is understated throughout but still evident, with hints of peaches and pears running on your tongue. Overall this is a very good offering, in fact when we went to the winery to do tastings I was pleasantly surprised by it, figuring, as I often do, that I knew what I was going to purchase well in advance (and a Chardonnay was not in the ‘plan’). This wine has the structure and taste that allows me to recommend grabbing 6 bottles and putting them away. Two to three years minimum will really make this go from very good to great in my humble opinion. As it is now, for $30 (from the vineyard) you will richly reward if you drink it now or put it down. A great Canadian wine.
Please note, while I was pleased overall with the entire experience at Thirty Bench (and yes this is nitpicking) I was rather shocked that a $10 tasting charge was added to a wine purchase totaling well over $250. This is the first time in my wine tasting life, anywhere, that a tasting charge was actually added to a purchase bill. I fully understand that a charge needs to be applied to the free wine slurp hounds that jump from winery to winery looking for free stuff with no purchases, but when you buy significant wines I have always found the fee to be waved. I know, petty, still Thirty Bench when you read this, you can do better then that.
Hope everyone had a great weekend. We entertained good friends over the weekend. The meal was uniquely southeast Asian. It featured Vietnamese spring-rolls, mango-ginger salad, amok, red curry pork and tom kha gai soup. The wines were a bunch of repeats from the CWG side (two Chardonnays and then a delicious port after dinner) while our friends brought a nice Penfolds Bin 28, which if it was not the 3rd bottle of the evening would have warranted a review, since it was so deep and so mix with the spices of the dinner, no fair nor accurate review can be done. Instead I give you a recipe, this one was passed on from a much savier Thai foodie then I, special props to Stewart Hawkins for this fantastic little gem. As with all Thai dishes you are best to balance the meal with flavours, Tom Kha Gai should be medium in the ‘spiciness’ scale, and can be (in fact is usually served) with many other dishes. A good way to do Thai is: a relish, a soup (listed here), a curry and a salad.
Most of these ingredients they are probably best found in locations where Asian foods are sold, in Toronto you can get all of the ingredients from anyone of the many Chinese ‘supermarkets’ in China Town on Spadina Ave. Of note: Tom Kha Gai means soup of chicken and galangal, galangal looks similar to ginger but is very different.
Bring coconut milk to a gentle boil in a large saucepan. Add lime leaves, lime juice, fish sauce, galangal, sugar, chilies, lemongrass. Cook 5 mins. Add chicken and mushrooms, cook another 10-15 mins until chicken is done. Take off the heat and chuck in a handful of Thai basil and corriander. Leave overnight. Re-heat, and add more Thai basil and coriander. You can garnish with crispy fried eschalotts if you could be bothered.
Burgundy, France, is the epicenter of the Chardonnay grape’s world, but the world itself has taken on this white grape as it’s own. Chardonnay is one the most widely grown grape varieties in the world and can be found pretty much anywhere wine is made. The problem with this, of course, is a bunch of plonk has gone off and dragged this noble Vitis vinifera down in many drinkers eyes, this is always a downfall of popularity. Add to this a huge surge in the past few decades of over-oaking and over-creative winemakers and it leads to even more difficulty in gaining respect. I have found that all of my white-wine drinking friends fail to list Chardonnays in their preferences, most times because they simply have had too many poor bottles. This wine I am reviewing today is definitely not one of the aforementioned ‘misses’.
Tapanappa may be best described as a perfect reincarnation for the Croser family. After having started up and successfully cultivated Petaluma into such a hit that it was purchased from them, they have since started their second fine wine franchise. Luckily (or extremely intelligent) they were able to manage to secure rights to part of the Tiers Vineyard Chadonnay production which was planted in the late seventies by the Crosers. Already the source for the brilliant Petaluma Tiers, the thoughts were the Crosers would choose the ideal portion of Tiers and make a classic Chardonnay. So far those beliefs have all come true. The 2005 vintage has gotten nothing but huge praise and the 2007 growing season is said to have been similar, if only a slight bit warmer. With that said I was very pleased to have purchased a pair of these back in August on a visit down under. While I slightly overpaid at a more ‘touristy’ wine store (I should have known better to have waited to go to the regular shop on Crown in Redfern, but I was impatient) with the $95 price tag I was not scared off, especially having tasted and bought Petaluma Tiers before. Needless to say Mrs CWG and I were very eager to give this bottle a whirl, and so we did in late December. Here are the impressions!
Wow. I could just leave that there and it covers all that needs to be said. Wow. A fantastic wine. The acidity is perfect, the balance in your mouth is harmonious, the fruit is complimentary, the minerality conjures up thoughts of 1er Crus from Burgundy, and the finish lingers long enough to be pleasant not a pest. Lemons and peaches play together nicely while vanilla and honey occasionally join the party. Maybe I should have just stuck with Wow! Overall this is a classic Chardonnay that with a bit more time in the cellar will be mentioned in the all-star category. If you have the opportunity to purchase a few bottles ensure you do, you will be rewarded.
As the 15th of January quickly approaches it is probably a good time to remind everyone of the upcoming 2010 Niagara Icewine festival. From the 15th to the 31st the entire Niagara region and it’s vineyards will be celebrating the gold that is Icewine. If you have time to make the voyage, I recommend spending a few days and enjoying a unique wine experience. There are so many different events, some community, some festival organized and a great many winary specific that you are recommend to check out the calendar to mix and match what is best for your trip.
A few events Mrs CWG and I will probably attend:
The Niagara-on-the-Lake Icewine Experience
Queen Street, NotL
January 23 & 24 11am to 5pm
Join us outdoors in the Heritage District for ice carving demonstrations, superb cuisine and, of course, wonderful Icewine!
Winterfest in Market Square
January 23, 2010 7:00pm to 11:00pm
Sip and savour the magic of winter in St. Catharines. Join us, as we celebrate Winterfest in our historic downtown. Presenting live music, gourmet cuisine, artisanal cheeses, and delectable VQA wines. Purchase tokens for wine and food, and a commemorative glass. Free admission. For information, call 905-688-0212.
then jump off to:
Niagara-on-the-Lake Icewine Cocktails
January 23, 2010 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM
Taste the most unique combinations created by the finest restaurants in Niagara-on-the-Lake. You be the judge and compare your favourites with our celebrity judges, outdoors in the Heritage District.
We will also do many of the winery specific events as possible, but as we are not sure which wineries we will leave that out for now. I cannot wait to do a follow up on the event, as well I’d love to hear from regular readers on their experiences.
J. Lohr Cab and a Mouton Cadet ‘reserve’ with the folks. The 06′ Lohr was to be expected, about avg for the price: good balance, long finish, good nose/fruit. The MC was less then stellar, a tad muted, medium bodied and soft finish, I expect more from the reserve version of an over-hyped ‘classic’
Tomorrow I will touch on the Niagara IceWine festival, which is upcoming, until then, sip well!
2009, a great year to love food and wine, really it was. Of the 170+ restaurant meals and 350+ bottles of wine consumed there was much choice and many memorable moments, but it was the following that ‘hit the spot’ for the Canadian Wine Guy. Hope you get a chance to try a few of my ‘best’s of 2009’ in the upcoming year and send me a note when you do. Here are the First Place recipients:
Restaurant: In Sydney there are at least 10 restaurants you can go to and be blown away with style, quality and flavour. Of all the cities I have traveled to, this one on the opposite side of the world ranks first overall for total experience. Sydney’s truly diverse culture and heavy south-east Asian influence leads to great creativity, but mostly the quality and innovativeness comes from the demanding locals. You would be hard pressed to find a larger concentration of ‘foodies’ then you would on this sun-drenched paradise. Fusion of all sorts can be found throughout: Thai, Malay, Chinese or even weird twists on good old fashion English style cooking (try and picture that!).
After my second visit this year I could have easily chosen two or three Sydney restaurants as the best of 2009, but when you have one restaurant that stands out so much further then the others, it may indicate well enough that one choice is sufficient. For this choice, the 2009 Top CWG Restaurant is the Spice Temple. Neil Perry has taken his reputation as an outstanding chef and restauranteur and lived up to it. The decor, the intriguing specialty cocktail list (named after the twelve Chinese zodiac signs), great tea selection, striking presentation and scrumptious food, all of this equates to something simply not found in Canada yet. If there was one thing I’d like to export from Sydney this one would give the weather and beaches a good run for the money. If you are in Sydney, get on the phone, make reservations and ensure you get to the Spice Temple at least once.
Inexpensive Wine: As a true lover of wine it is hard to go through all the bottles and choose a wine from a category with many worthwhile candidates as ‘the best’. For this selection I decided to go for a wine that we simply cannot grow tired of. In our house there are many different wines that could classify as the regular ‘vin ordinaire’, we have whites and reds of that genre for sure. If you were to ask many close friends of mine, they’d probably guess a Bordeaux style red would land itself in this spot, best inexpensive wine of 2009, but this year that would be presumptuous. This year we are going with a terrific little find from Burgundy, the best inexpensive wine of 2009, Alain Gras’ Saint-Romain Blanc 2006. This 100% Chardonnay wine is all I’d expect from a wine two to three times it’s cost. Good fruit, solid acidity, hints of minerality and overall just an amazingly polished Burg. To get all this for only $24 is remarkable. Mrs CWG has deemed it an essential part of our white selection and I am still intrigued that you can find it in Toronto to this date as the wine-maker does not produce in high volumes. If you get a chance, and like white Burgundy’s, you need to go out and get one of these. If you already have some, feel fortunate as you will also be rewarded with cellaring.
Expensive Wine: Well then, on to the really fun category. We have tossed back quite a few expensive bottles this year, not sure if that is a good thing or a bad one (nah it’s all good). We’ve had some great Bordeaux’s, a top house Margaux stands out. We have suffered through a few bold Italian reds (I hope you feel for us) that went down faster then expected. We have had to endure a few amazing Californian Cabs that left us wanting for more. Despite all those fantastic wines (and sadly a few pure stinkers) we ended up choosing a white (!?!) as our 2009 expensive wine of the year. A WHITE, me, a self-proclaimed Bordeaux man, pure travesty I say. Well if you had the 2007 Tapannapa Tiers Chardonnay you might as well throw a few bottles aside for it. To state that this is one of the world’s finest Chardonnays may be brash, it may sound silly, but truly it is. Brian Croser has outdone himself with his signature Chardonnay. It is everything you can ask for, balanced, velvety, good fruit, good length. The terroir of the Tiers plantings (who’s brother/sister wine the Petaluma Tiers shares fruit) is one of the best in the world, the Adelaide Hills area is ideally suited to grow Chardonnay and Croser has made the most of it. I think it is hard for me to admit that the best wine I have had during 2009 was a white wine, really it is, but I am very proud to have bought several bottles of this (and the Petaluma) and will ensure that going forward I will make a dedicated effort to collect future vintages as outside of Penfold’s Grange you will be hard pressed to find a more ‘wow’ wine coming from the land down under.
Desert Wine/Port: Well Icewine had to make it’s appearance somewhere on this list, if not someone may revoke my ‘Canadian’ card, eh! 2009’s best desert wine/port was without a doubt the Peller Estates 2005 Signature Series ‘Oak Aged’ Icewine. With over 5 international medals (with a gold at the prestigious Concours Mondial de Vin (Brussels)) this wine has done it’s job to get the wall-hangings. What it has also done is bring forward an icewine that is more then just sweet and fruity. It is silky smooth with a long finish. It is chewy with hints of caramel while showing great citrus fruit. Lastly it is simply delightful. As with any icewine of good quality, this wine was not made to simply accompany a crumble pie, it can be had with hearty cheeses or on it’s own by the fire. If you have never actually had icewine you are doing yourself a disservice as it is not a one-trick pony. So often the wine Canada has perfected is pushed off by serious oenophiles, do not let their upwards turned noses get the better of you, go out and spend the money to taste liquid gold, in this case Peller Estates has produce one such wine.
That wraps up 2009, I hope that in 2010 I can get back to a schedule that allows for more regular reviews and wine thoughts/information. Until then, please enjoy each wine, one sip at a time.
As a continuation of this piece today we will cover those things that ranked second in CWG’s 2009.
Restaurant: Spuntini’s on Avenue Road in Toronto is probably better known as being the place upstairs from Soto Soto. One of the more intimate Italian restaurants in the city, Spuntini’s does not force itself on you. Nowhere will you get the sense of being overwhelmed by an overly complex menu or perturbed at plain old ‘mama’s’ italian ravioli. A solid menu is reinforced with a stronger wine selection. Top off that balance with a professional staff and attentive owner Fernando who remembers casual regulars by name, and you are getting a small gem in a very crowded ‘T.O.’ restaurant scene. Mrs. CWG heavily endorses this pick!
Inexpensive Wine: Cave Spring Cellars is one of those little vineyards in Niagara that often gets lost in the crowd. Located on the Beamsville Bench this winery has made a name for itself for it’s mastery of Riesling. From Icewines to Off-Dry table wines, odds are pretty good if you like Rieslings then you should be giving their full range a whirl, especially their CSV product which is worth the price. But this ‘award’, or designation, is for it’s 2007 Riesling. Mrs CWG’s favorite summer white has all that is required of it to take a place in the Inexpensive Wine category, excellent balance, good fruit, solid acidity and the hint of that Riesling-petrol. We have had several bottles throughout the year as the $14.95 price tag is hard to beat as well as reviewing it early in February. Overall I am time and again pleasantly surprised with every bottle we have had, not much more I can ask for.
Expensive Wine: This category was the hardest to choose three wines in as there was a solid list of 20 that came to my lips at the mere mention of a ‘best of’. As it is, I narrowed my list to 7, and from there was stuck, which truly was the best? Or which did I remember as a favorite. At the end of the day the choice that falls into the number two slot was on the final list of each re-write. 2000 Joseph Phelps’ Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is without a doubt one of the best of 2009’s. This Californian Bordeaux style blend (80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 6% Petite Verdot and 4% Malbec) hits home with all the right features that makes it’s price ($60-$70) seem inexpensive. Great body, good character and luscious flavours make this one special wine. Having drank many ‘expensive’ Californian Cabs this year I can honestly say I have not had better then this bottle. I know there are gems out there, but this Phelps offering was done brilliantly.
Desert/Port: Having honoured a port in the #3 spot, it is logical to jump into Icewines for the top two spots. Well, logical I am not. The #2 spot goes to the Château des Charmes 2007 Late Harvest Riesling. This wine won gold at the 2009 Ontario Wine Awards for Late Harvest and as many of the estate’s previous vintages it remains a perfect alternative to the pricier Icewine category. Amazing fruit, good acidity, nice sweetness (in the 10 range) and a reasonable price ($22) make this a must not miss. If you are craving a nice desert wine I highly recommend this Château des Charmes offering, Mrs CWG insists on keeping three bottles around at all times!
This wine is quite pale in color, mild on the nose with a hint of grassy, lemon. On the mid pallet are some lovely lemon/grassy tastes to go along with the bouquet. This is a smack on vaietal New Zealand Sauv Blanc albeit on the milder side. On the finish the wine is on the lighter side of medium with it building nicely on the taste buds. All in all it was a nice experience. I would give the wine a 89 or so. I paired it with a poached cod and it went very well. Unfortunately, it is not available in the LCBO.
2009 was a good year in the CWG household. While I was away for just over half the year (mostly on business) some great wine and food were consumed, and some great sights seen. The year started in Rome and ended in Toronto, with stops in Moscow, Yakutsk, Hong Kong, Sydney, Vancouver, San Diego, San Luis Potosi, Paris, just to name some of the bigger locales. One thing that is consistent with such travel is you need to eat, and of course drink Wine (toss in an occasional beer and martini for good measure). With so many wine magazines, blogs and articles going over their top 10 lists for 2009 I thought I’d do my top 3. For the top three I will do restaurants, cheap bottles, expensive bottles and sweet/ports that we drank during the year. Some of these may be purchasable still at your local liquor/LCBO store, some you may need to travel to in order to experience their great culinary delights, and some you may just curse me and tell me to go away due to lack of availability!
Today’s post are the wines & restaurants that came in at #3:
Restaurant: Chez Janou in Paris. Located in the Marais portion of Paris (3ieme) this restaurant is neither fancy-dancy nor Michelin starred/recommended. What it is, is a good Provencal meal in a great atmosphere. In 2009, despite some great restaurants visited this remains a highlight for the entire experience. If you are ever in Paris and want a nice casual evening out, head to this location and enjoy!
Inexpensive Wine: This category is for the everyday ‘Table Wine’ wines. Some vineyards might find it a tad offensive to be in this category at all, but modern day wine drinkers should agree with me that wines in the $5-$39 range are common everyday wines to be drunk with guests or meatloaf (or both). With all that said the wine that came in at #3 this year was a Canadian offering, Trius 2007 Red. Trius, a brand from the Canadian giant Hillebrand has in recent years perfected this Bordeaux style blend which is the little brother/sister to the Grand Red (in good years). At roughly $22 a bottle this wine brings big potential for a small price tag. As with all the Trius Red vintages, you will enjoy now but be richly rewarded if you lay it down as this truly will enrich with 5 years on it’s side. It is difficult to say this about many low priced wines. A gem for your cellar for sure.
Expensive Wine: This category is difficult to define, what is expensive and to whom? Mrs CWG and I agree that with the current wine market anything over $40 is a good definition of ‘expensive’. We could have used $50, $75 or $100+ but at the end the average wine drinker (not those bottomless wallet types that drink Cheval Blanc with spaghetti) rarely drinks a wine in the +$40 on a nightly basis, thus making this the point we chose to start the Expensive Wine category. So if we want to jump into it, we are going with a 2003 La Fiorita Brunello di Montalcino. This Tuscan Sangiovese came to us from a small wine shop in Montalcino in late 2008, priced at or around $66 after exchange rate. A polished long finish, rich fruit and subtle coffee/espresso notes, it wow’d our mouthes. We had expected to keep it a tad longer, but having two bottles it made most sense to try one as our cellar was out of room, we were quite overjoyed that we did. This is not offered in Canada, but you can buy it online, if you are willing to deal with customs and shipping. Like most well done 2003 Brunello’s you will be pleased with your purchase from this strong Tuscany wine region.
Desert/Port: Since Canadians live in the best Icewine region in the world it is not hard to fine 3 Desert wines that can make a yearly list, between our Late-Harvests and regular Icewines there is no shortage of great options. But what about Ports? Often times ports are just ignored or drank with some pungent cheese and nuts. Forgotten for some, but not CWG! Let’s be frank (or george or william), a good Port is without a doubt a delight on the palate and senses. So our 3rd overall choice is just that, a Port, our 2001 Fonseca Quinta do Panascal vintage was so nice, we bought a second. At $50 it is not a ‘cheap’ port, but nor is it overpriced. If you like chewy, deep plum and rich fruits to compliment that fantastic blue cheese or brie, this will greatly satisfy your craving. As with any good vintage port you should be rewarded with laying this down, if you can somehow avoid drinking it all.
Thus wraps up third place in the CWG 2009 wrap up: a French Restaurant, Canadian Red, Italian Red and a Portuguese Port, so far so yummy!
This wine is a blend of 65% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha and 5% Mazuelo and Graciano according to their web site. The wine is inky dark in color with a lovely nose of dark fruits. On the mid pallet are some deep cab like cherry flavors with some noticeable oaks. On the finish the wine has a lovely bit of dryness and some complexity. Oaks and alcohol are well under control. This is a quite a nice wine, well made. We paired it with a steak and it went quite well. I would give this easily a 90. Very nice. Not available in the LCBO unfortunately.
From their tasting notes:
Color: Black cherry with bright red shades. Tasting: Rasberry, roasted jammy flavors. Well assembled with nuances of new oak. Taste: Delicately astringent, complex and well balanced with sweet sensations.
Well 2009 was, to say the least, a busy year. It saw me go on an unexpected sabatical of six months with John picking up the slack. Despite being away half a year, wine was still drunk and some great ones made it to a special list, the top CWG wines of 2009. I will start tomorrow with number 3 and then work onwards to number 1 over the next week. In the meantime, happy new year and I hope 2010 turns out wonderfully for all our readers.
Critter wines are all the rage, put some silly animal on the label and some folks will buy it. This one is medium dark in color very fruity on the nose. Lots of sweet almost Merlot like smells coming off it. I was getting excited. Perhaps I have found an inexpensive easily available Merlot! On the mid pallet this wine is all about fruit forward flavors but not in a good way. Picture grape juice. Concord, Welches to be exact. That’s the dominant flavor. On the finish the wine dies out fast with little going on. This has the dubious distinction of being one the first wines in a while I poured down the drain. Yuk. I would conservatively give this one an 85.
From the LCBO web site:
YELLOW TAIL MERLOT LCBO 625350 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 11.95
Value Added Promotion 750 mL bottle comes with FREE Ornament until Jan 2, 2010 or while supplies last!
Wine, Still Table Wine, Red Still Table Wine 13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: South Australia, Australia By: Casella Wines
Tasting Note
Medium ruby red colour; candied fruit, vanilla, light spice aromas and flavours; not quite dry, medium bodied, with sweet fruit centre and a soft, lush finish.
Another wine from the Wine Spectator top 100 of 2009 it came in at #55 and they gave it a 91 for $18US. The wine is quite pale in color, mild on the nose with some varietal Riesling bouquet. On the front of the tongue are the hints of some sweet flavors, apricots come to mind. On the finish the sweet is immediately matched with some nice tart almost Sauv Blanc like flavors. The two tastes went okay today and all in all it was an alright experience. The wine was medium in finish with oaks and alcohol under control. I would give this one an 89 or so. Not the best Riesling I’ve had but always good to try something new.
From the lcbo web site:
TRIMBACH RIESLING 2007 VINTAGES 734517 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 19.95
Wine, White Wine, 13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: Alsace, France By: F.E. Trimbach
Release Date: Nov 7, 2009
Tasting Note
This subtle version offers a finely woven mix of white peach and crushed pine needle flavors, with hints of brine and smoke. There’s racy acidity, but it’s well-meshed, and a mineral note lingers on the delicate finish. Drink now through 2015. Smart Buys. Score – 91. (Alison Napjus, www.winespectator.com, Nov. 15, 2009)
This is another wine from Wine Spectator’s top 100 of 2009 and it came in at #39 and they gave it a 92 for $19US. The wine is quite pale in color mild on the nose with some varietal Viognier smells. This wine turned out to be very sensitive to temperature. When I first took it out of the fridge it was too cold and the wine lacked much depth. It was very watery. As it warmed up the mid pallet showed some mild varietal viognier flavors but mild. On the finish the wine displayed a tart finish that did not integrate at all. My GF described it for her as bitter. This really was a disappointing wine. I would give it no more than an 87-88. I’ve had much better Viognier’s for less money. Skip this one for sure …
from the LCBO web site:
YALUMBA VIOGNIER 2008 VINTAGES 954644 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 22.95
Wine, White Wine, 14.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : D
Made in: South Australia, Australia By: Negociants International
Release Date: Nov 7, 2009
Tasting Note
From the masters of Viognier comes another great value edition. This bouquet is full of peach and apricot fruit and mixed spice, which surge through the palate with great concentration, a very long finish and great balance Score – 93. (Tyson Stelzer, www.wine100.com.au, June 2009)
This wine is #28 on the Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2008 (well the Reserve is). We don’t get the reserve so I thought I would give it a try. Wine Spectator gave the reserve a 92 at $18US.
The wine is pale in color, classic New Zealand style Sauv on the nose, albeit a bit mild. On the front pallet there are some very slightly sweet pineapple flavors, with the mid pallet dominated by zesty, grassy flavors. Not overpowering, just right. On the finish the wine has a reasonable length to it, slightly on higher side of medium. I paired it with pan fried steak and kidney with Oyster mushrooms and it went VERY well. It cut through the olive oil I used to do the pan fry. My Mom always made liver and kidney and I hated the liver part. So I made my own recipe! Mom never would have bought a mushroom that cost as much as the meat 🙂
All in all a very nice wine. A good solid 90 so I guess the reserve is just that much better. For the price this is a good deal! This has more grace and finesse than some of the Chilean Sauv blancs I’ve blogged about lately and a lovely finish. I will definitely grab a few more of these. Yumm …
Here is what Winecurrent.com had to say about this wine:
The ’07 wines are receiving incredible accolades and this from a region that experiences very good vintages virtually every year. Savoury notes and herbaceous nettle aromas form the pungent nose of the medium-bodied and gorgeously-textured gem. The robust and focused flavours include herbs (dill and lemon grass) pink grapefruit and passion fruit. The finish is clean and refreshing making seared scallops a great pairing. (VH) (129528) $14.25 Rating 4.5/5
From the LCBO web site:
BRANCOTT MARLBOROUGH SAUVIGNON BLANC LCBO 129528 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 14.95
Wine, Still Table Wine, White Still Table Wine 12.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Made in: New Zealand, New Zealand By: Montana Wines Limited
Tasting Note
Pale straw yellow colour; intense aromas of grass, pear, gooseberry, fresh herbs, with notes of passion fruit; dry, light and clean palate with a zesty, fresh, pink grapefruit, lime; mouth-watering finish.
If your looking for that wine that will not offend (or delight) anyone a Pinot Grigio might be right up your alley. This particular one is pale in color mild on the nose. On the mid pallet are some pineapple flavors, slightly sweet, but not too much … On the finish it dies out pretty quickly so this is quite a food friendly wine. I would give it an 88 or so. Quite an easy drinking wine that would go fabulously well on a hot day on a patio. For a light cheap quoffer this might not be a bad choice 🙂
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to one and all. May your table be blessed by a much better bottle of wine than this one!!
From the LCBO web site:
BAREFOOT CELLARS PINOT GRIGIO LCBO 53983 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 9.95
Value Added Promotion 750 mL bottle comes with FREE Barefoot Holiday Jingle Toes until Jan 2, 2010 or while supplies last!
Wine, White Wine, 12.9% Alcohol/Vol. Sugar Content : 1
Made in: California/Californie, United States By: E. & J. Gallo Winery
Tasting Note
Pale straw with aromas of pineapple, citrus and floral. Dry, light to medium-bodied with notes of pineapple and hints of citrus ending with a very crisp finish.
The wine is quite dark in color, on the nose are a mixture of lovely dark fruits. On the mid pallet are some very nice fruit forward cherries and cassis. There is a hint of oak and tobacco on the wine but nothing overpowering. On the finish the wine has some nicely balanced tannins and some complexity. For the price this wine is a good deal. I would give it an 89 or so. We paired it with a meat lasagna and it held up well but some of the subtle flavors of this wine are masked by food. Be sure and sip it on it’s own first. The wine needed no breathing, and I suspect this is a drink now style of wine so don’t plan on cellaring this one.
From the LCBO web site:
CONCHA Y TORO CASILLERO DEL DIABLO MALBEC LCBO 94060 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 12.95
Wine, Red Wine, 13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: Chile, Chile By: Concha Toro S.A.
Tasting Note
Aroma: Perfectly integrated wood and fruit; black cherry, black berry as well as spicy and subtle smoke tones. Palate: Good body, excellent fruit-wood balance. Smooth tannins and a velvety finish.
This one came to my attention as #62 on the Wine Spectator top 100 wines of 2009. They gave it a 90 for $12US. It is fairly available so I grabbed one. The wine is quite pale in color. On the nose are some mild varietal Riesling smells. On the mid pallet the wine is slightly sweet, somewhere in between a Kabinett and a Spatlese. The finish is on the lighter side of medium side. I would give it an 89 or so. It’s a little sweet for my tastes but quite nice none the less.
From the LCBO web site:
DR. LOOSEN DR. L RIESLING 2008 VINTAGES 599274 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 13.95
Wine, White Wine, 9.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : MD
Made in: Moselle/Saar/Ruwer, Germany
By: Weingut Dr Loosen
Release Date: Oct 24, 2009
Description
‘Dr. L’ is the exceptional entry-level Mosel Riesling made by the dynamic Ernst Loosen. If you are a Riesling newbie, this is an excellent place to begin. It shows all the bright fruitiness and refreshing acid one should expect from the grape. Wrapped up in a very easy-drinking style, it can be enjoyed as a sipper or paired with a seafood pasta dish.
This one came to my attention as #54 of the top 100 Wines of 2009 from Wine Spectator. They gave it a 91 for $16US. The wine is quite dark in color, very fragrant with lots of cassis and cherries leaping out at you. On the mid pallet are some lovely flavors to match the bouquet with cassis dominant. I don’t get the leather the rater below got and I find the oaks and tannins are well under control. The wine has a nice dryness to it. There are no peppers on the finish and this is a relatively smooth wine, but there are some vinegar flavors on the finish. I would give it an 89 or so. Perhaps I do not have the exact wine they rated.
From the LCBO web site:
PETER LEHMANN BAROSSA SHIRAZ LCBO 572875 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 18.40
Limited Time Offer Was: $ 19.90 Now: $ 18.40 Save: $ 1.50 Until Jan 3, 2010
Wine, Red Wine, 14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: Australia, Australia By: Peter Lehmann Pty. Ltd.
Tasting Note
Very deep ruby colour; intense aromas of sweet plum, cassis, oak and leather; dry, robust with forward fruit flavours, moderate tannins and great length.
This wine was being served at a party I was at. The wine is VERY interesting. On the mid pallet it is a VERY fruit forward Malbec. Lots of jammy flavors, strawberries and the like. On the finish the Shiraz kicks in and there are some slight pepper flavors with noticeable tannins. I was totally shocked to find out what the price this wine is. It’s quite impressive for the money. I will have grab a bottle to try on my own but wow. I would give it an 89 or so!
From the LCBO web site:
FUZION SHIRAZ MALBEC LCBO 83188 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 7.45
Wine, Red Wine, 13.3% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1
Made in: Argentina, Argentina By: Familia Zuccardi
Tasting Note
Pale ruby purple colour; aromas of crushed berries and spice; dry, medium-bodied, flavours of candied berries and black pepper.
We stopped by Seaons in Oakville for a little birthday celebration and the proprietor treated us to this bottle that he has had in their extensive wine cellar for a LONG time. The wine is dark in color mild on the nose. On the mid pallet are some mild classic cab flavors with black fruits. On the finish the wine has some tannins but they are well under control, and there is no pepper to be found on the wine as some Aussie cabs can have. Alcohol has become VERY well integrated and there is a slight tartness to the finish but not aweful by any means. This also eased as it breathed. There are some oaks but they too have become integrated. This wine is by no means fruit forward and in fact likely through the aging the fruit has become quite subdued. While I would not say that it is past it’s prime, I can’t imagine this getting any better. I paired it with a lovely rack of venison and it went very well …
From the LCBO web site for the current vintage (not the one I had)
ALKOOMI CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2005 VINTAGES 904227 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 17.95
Wine, Red Wine, 13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: West Australia, Australia By: Alkoomi Wines Potter & Campbell
Release Date: May 2, 2009
Tasting Note
Ruby-red. Vibrant red- and blackcurrant aromas are complicated by musky tobacco, cedar and underbrush; very cabernet. Bitter cherry and licorice add firmness to the sweet berry flavors, with dusty tannins contributing grip. The tannins gain strength on the finish but the wine maintains freshness and a sweetly seductive personality. Score – 90. (Josh Raynolds, International Wine Cellar, July/Aug. 2008)
New Guest Contributor – Natalie MacLean
Canadian Wine Guy is excited to announce that we are getting another contributer if only from time to time. Natalie MacLean, the Canadian author of the bestseller Red, White and Drunk All Over, offers a free wine newsletter at her website (which is found in our links section). Not only is she a clear voice in the wine world, she is also a great source of some of the best food & wine pairing advice the web has ever seen. Despite her busy schedule, she has offered to contribute on occasion.
Please help me in welcoming her!