SPARKLING

DOMAINE DE VAUGONDY Vouvray Brut, Loire, France
154567 $17.95
A perfect blend of tartness and delicate flavours. Elegant, marble hall feeling. Fantastic aperitif, or as a base for ‘Champagne’ cocktails. Get a case for the holidays.

13th STREET ‘Cuvee 13’ Brut Rosé, VQA Ontario
147504 $24.95
Super refreshing. And good looking. Dreaming of a pink Christmas.

WHITES

Wine Style: FRESH WHITE
DOMAINE BERNARD 08 Chablis ‘Cote de Lechet’, 1er cru, France
17541 $34.95
Austere with mineral freshness and just a trace of flavour. Classic Chablis – which is a rare find. A set-up wine to tease the palate or complement anything out of the ocean. Oysters for sure.

Wine Style: RICH WHITE
CLOSSON CHASE 08 Beamsville Bench Chardonnay. Ontario
230904 $39.95
Blockbuster white. Tons of flavour and richness with the warm, toasty flavours of mature Chardonnay. Very Burgundian, very exotic, and a very wonderful local.

Wine Style: RICH WHITE
KUHLMANN-PLATZ 08 Pinot Gris, Alsace
224204 $17.95
Richness combined with a little spicy/sweetness. Pinot Gris is Alsace’s answer to Chard. Would be a perfect partner for the big bird and all the trimmings. And all the family.

Wine Style: RICH WHITE
DOMAINES SCHLUMBERGER 07 Riesling, Kessler, Alsace, France
61176 $25.95
A must for the Riesling fan. Bone dry and just starting to express itself with intriguing, hard-to–pin-down flavours. Love that. Elegant and a wonderful tease.

REDS

Wine Style: RUSTIC RED
CHATEAU FONGABAN 06 Cotes de Castillon, Bordeaux, France
138735 $15.95
Rustic, invigorating and down to earth. Classic bistro red. Best with beef or lamb.

Wine Style: RICH RED
ROCCA DELLE MACIE 06 Chianti Classico Riserva, Tuscany, Italy
930966 $21.95
I don’t usually like mature Chianti but who could resist the woodsy, fall-day flavours, and charm in this wine. Enjoy with oven toasted anything, and thoughts of Tuscany.

Wine Style: RICH RED
DELAS 09 Cotes du Rhone ‘Saint-Esprit’, France
729962 $14.95
Fruity, spicy flavours combined with a tangy edge and some richness. The Rhone experience. Both heartwarming and refreshing. Good with everything.

Wine Style: RICH RED
GUIGAL 07 Gigondas, Rhone, France
331900 $29.95
Something special and seductive at a good price. Both sexy and solid, and ready to go. Guigal is one of the top producers in the Rhone and Gigondas outperforms most super deluxe wines.

Wine Style: RICH RED
FRAMINGHAM 09 Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand
699322 $24.95
Here’s a lush, exotic edition of Pinot. A charmer. Pamper yourself with a favourite dish, and partner.

Wine Style: RICH RED
SOKOL BLOSSER 08 Pinot Noir, Oregon
748434 $34.95
The Pinot purist will love this combination of delicious berry/spicy and ‘farmyard’ flavours. A bigger than usual presence for Pinot. Would be fab with duck breast!

Wine Style: RICH RED
STRATUS 08 Red, VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake
131037 $44.20
A multi grape blend in the sturdy, earthy Stratus style. Tons of personality and a refreshing change from the world of sameness in deluxe reds. Great local statement.

Wine Style: RICH RED
MASI ‘SEREGO ALIGHIERI’ 05 Amarone della Valpolicella, Veneto, Italy
462812 $69.95
Expensive but really good Amarone. Light on the usual dried fruit flavours but big on the mid palate stuff that makes expensive wines  worthwhile. Sip with after dinner chat. From the estate of Dante – impressive gift choice.

SWEET

LENZ MOSER 08 Trockenbeerenauslese, Burgenland, Austria
729657 375ml/$19.95
Amazing concentration of sweet/spicy flavours in a low alcohol wine. Deep and delicious. The sweet wine buy of the decade.

CROFT Pink Port, Portugal
140871 $19.95
Lighthearted Port for the non Port drinker. And good at it.  Lightly chilled this is a lovely drink for aperitif, party-time, or whenever.

Quintarelli is a wine folk hero and always worth the experience. You are sure to please putting Malivoire’s Rosé on the Thanksgiving table. (And any of my white picks would be popular too.) Chateau St. Jean is a must for Pinot addicts.

ROSE
wine style: dry rosé
MALIVOIRE 09 Rosé ‘Ladybug’, VQA Niagara 559088 $15.95
Delicious fruitiness and some richness. Perfect for Thanksgiving and stock up for Christmas too. Dry Rosé is a great food wine in general.

WHITES
wine style: fresh white
PETER LEHMANN 08 Riesling, Eden Valley, Australia 186361 $14.95
Tart, super refreshing with a tease of citrusy flavours. Unusually understated and low alcohol for an Aussie. Aperitif.

wine style: nice & easy white
SOELLNER ‘Toni’ Grüner Veltliner, Austria 184085 $14.95
Zippy, spicy with a gentle and friendly feeling. Better than a happy pill.

wine style: rich white
TORRES ‘Gran Vina Sol’ 08 Chardonnay, Penedes, Spain 171660 $14.95
Semi-rich Chardonnay with a refreshing tartness. And a solid earthy feeling. Built for food, not glamour. Good value.

REDS
wine style: rustic red
LITTLE YERING 08 Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley, Australia 188094 $14.95
A great buy for fans of ‘barnyard’ Pinots. Raunchy and very Burgundian. Needs food. Check out more value wines from this winery on the regular LCBO shelves.

wine style: rich red
CHATEAU ST. JEAN 07 Pinot Noir, Sonoma County, California 687970 $19.95
Big, lush and seductive. Very Californian. Would impress at a fancy dinner. St. Jean always does well with Pinot.
wine style: rich red
QUINTARELLI 01 Valpolicella, Veneto, Italy 986117 $84.95
Vapolicella that thinks it’s Tawny Port. Lush, spicy, earthy and full of mystery. More exciting, and more rare, than most Amarones or any wine at this price. Quintarelli delivers the goods. Treat yourself, or gift a good friend. Sip after dinner.

wine style: rich red
LES COTEAUX 07 ‘Visan’, Cotes du Rhone-Village, France 179226 $13.95
A yummy, spicy, peppery, rich red for those who missed the Rhone special a few weeks ago.
wine style: rich red
CHARLES CIMICKY 06 Shiraz ‘Trumps’, Barossa Valley, Australia 07383 $24.95
Dark, dense and solid. With a plummy, Port-like warmth. I’d pour this after dinner.

wine style: rich red
WYNNS 06 Cabernet Sauvignon, Coonawarra, Australia 84996 $24.95
Wynns Coonawarra is an Australian classic. Modeled on Bordeaux, it combines boldness with some seriousness. As formal as it gets down under. Needs beef, of course.

wine style: rich red
MAXWELL 08 Shiraz/Grenache/Viognier ‘Four Roads’, McLaren Valley, Australia 57000 $19.95
Cotes du Rhone in style with extra ripeness and richness. Guaranteed to be a crowd-pleaser with any hearty meal.

I will be covering Sparkling, Sweet and other holiday favourites over the next few weeks but you should consider the following for novelty and down right good value. The Chilean Pinot and Chardonnay, or the French Fitou and Vouvray pair would wow most dinner party guests. Grüner Veltliner would be a lively start for your holiday parties and Mas Donis would hit the spot later in the evening. If you’re favouring local, Le Clos Jordanne is a world champ in Pinot Noir at its price point.
Slainte,
Billy
WHITES
Wine style: Fresh white
Markus Huber ‘Hugo’ 08 Grüner Veltliner, Austria 641506 $13.95
Lively, super refreshing and jazzy. Lots of energy. The perfect opening act for your holiday events. Or for after work chilling out. In screw cap. You may never go back to Pinot Grigio!

Wine style: Fresh white
Donatien Bahuaud 08 Vouvray ‘Les Grands Mortiers’, Loire, France 140889 $16.95
Something different. Tart white with gorgeous honey sweet flavours. A yin yang of refreshment and charm. And modest alcohol. A lovely anytime sipper, aperitif or brunch wine.

Wine style: rich white
Tabali 07 Chardonnay ‘Reserva Especial’, Chile 663005 $18.95
The glamour of Chardonnay without the usual overkill. Understated richness and tons of zest. Refreshing enough for an aperitif, big enough for the main course.

REDS
Wine style: rustic red
Le Clos Jordanne 07 Pinot Noir ‘Village Reserve’, VQA Niagara 33894 $25.00
Gutsy edition of Pinot with the earthy character of Burgundy. Bravo! If you enjoy traditional wines this is a super value. And a role model for the future of local Pinot. Partner with bistro-style foods. Or the big bird on the 25th.

Wine style: rich red
Errazuriz 08 Pinot Noir ‘Wild Ferment’, Chile 510396 $18.95
The ripe fruit flavours and richness of New World Pinot combined with something earthy and funky. Lots of vitality too. Pinot to flatter food. Another good partner for Christmas dinner.

Wine style: rich red
Mont Tauch 07 Fitou ‘Tradition’, France
142810 $16.95
A semi-rich south of France red (Syrah, Carignan, Grenache) with lots of flavour – including earth. Wine with a sense of place. The perfect partner for any home cooked meal.

Wine style: rich red
Cellers de Capacanes ‘Mas Donis’ 07 Monstant, Spain 705863 $16.95
A Spanish edition of Côtes du Rhône – with more octane. Delicious flavours, warming richness and vitality. All my favourite qualities in a winter red. Hearty foods.

SWEET/SPARKLING
Inniskillin Sparkling Vidal Icewine, VQA Niagara 560367 375ml/$69.95
One of the most decadent wines on the planet. The exotic tropical flavours of Icewine combined with tingling bubbles. A glorious holiday treat. Chill well and sip slowly. After dinner, or late afternoon before dinner.

August: Bb33 Bistro, 33 Gerrard West (Delta Chelsea Hotel)
September: Niagara Street Café, 169 Niagara Street
October: Reds Bistro, 77 Adelaide West

WINZER KREMS 08 Grüner Veltliner, Austria  589002 $10.85

P.S. This is the only Grüner at the LCBO, but you’ll finds lots in the Vintages section.

You all know the rule about always starting the evening or event with a refreshing wine, but do you know that this is also the time when we are most adventurous? We’re open to new experiences in the beginning – an example being our fondness for trying new appetizers at restaurants. So are you ready for a few novel whites?

1. GRÜNER: The world’s hot new white
Gruner Veltliner is the national grape of Austria. It could be likened to a mix of dry Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. Lots of energy. It dances in the glass. Gets the party started. Excellent aperitif and seafood wine. A decade ago, no one had heard of this wine but now it’s groovy to be drinking Gruner. Many top restaurants offer it by the glass.
WINZER KREMS 07 Grüner Veltliner, Austria 589002 $11.05

2. VIOGNIER & RIESLING: Best new whites of the year
The two best new white wines of the year so far are from Chile. Besides being really good they’re also value priced. Regular readers will know that I consider Cono Sur Pinot Noir to be one of the best ten dollar wines in the world and now I’m delighted to say the same about Cono Sur Viognier.

When winemaker Adolfo Hurato was in town last year I asked him why he was making Pinot and Viognier when everyone else was focused on the more popular varieties. “When the world gets tired of Chardonnay and Cabernet I want to be there with the alternative. An affordable alternative.”

Viognier originated in the south of France and is starting to gain popularity with its charming and graceful personality. I like to describe Viognier as Chardonnay’s young, innocent sister – the Julia Roberts of white wine. A wine with to much talent to remain unknown.

Cono Sur Viognier is a drink anytime wine that will delight both dinner or party guests. They’re sure to think that you have splurged. No one will believe that wine so delicious could cost less than ten dollars. Dry Riesling is also growing in popularity – even in Australia. The Riesling grape is not supposed to do well in very hot climates but today’s winemakers are not bound by traditional beliefs. Case in point is a new-on-the-shelf fabulous dry Riesling from Chile.

Cousino-Macul is one of Chile’s original wineries but their Riesling could not be more modern. It’s got liveliness and delicious tropical flavours. Summer in a glass. One sip and you’ll be happy.
CONO SUR 08 Viognier, Chile 64287 $9.95
COUSINO-MACUL 07 Riesling, ‘Dona Isidora’, Chile 57282 $11.95

3. CHARDONNAY-MUSQUE: A magical summer sipper
Cave’s 07 Musque is their best ever and one of the most delightful local whites I’ve ever tasted. It would rock anyone’s world – novice drinkers and snobs alike. Expect some Chard richness, some Muscat spiciness and a ton of jazzy liveliness. Sure the New World makes something similar – but always overdone. Cave has kept good old Ontario purity in the wine so it’s what the PR folks call elegantly understated. Have your first bottle with a lazy brunch. The other possibilities are anytime you are in the mood for fun. Mastercard would surely call this priceless.
CAVE SPRING CELLARS 07 Chardonnay Musque, Niagara 246579 $15.85