All posts tagged Ravenswood

LCBO Vintages May 23, 2009

by Kato on May 21, 2009 in Vintages Picks, Wine Picks with No comments

THE LOW DOWN: New Zealand reds are the feature and I found three to recommend. The style could be likened to our local reds – bright, lively and appetizing. South African Shiraz and Californian Zinfandel are my favourite BBQ reds – check out Linton Park and Ravenswood. Pelham’s Cuvee Catharine is inching its way towards Champagne in style and quality. Something to celebrate!

A lovely Niagara Pinot Gris, an exuberant Riesling from New Zealand and a knock-out Gewurz from Italy are the pick of the whites. Finally, I recommend you work a little cider refreshment into your summer with Clos Saint-Denis from Quebec.

Cheers!
Billy

P.S. Loved the wine name ‘Hazyblur’, too bad this Aussie red is not worth the $35 price tag.

malivoireStyle: EVERYDAY NICE WHITE
MALIVOIRE 08 Pinot Gris, VQA Niagara 591305 $18.95
Lighthearted, everyday white. Crisp enough to refresh and pleasant enough to gulp. Stylish new packaging. Perfect hostess gift.

kimcrawfordStyle: EVERYDAY NICE WHITE
KIM CRAWFORD 05 Riesling ‘The Mistress’, New Zealand 90134 $24.95
Lemon fresh with delicious fruity sweetness. And the explosion of flavour that happens with aged Riesling. Rich and concentrated enough for supper, but also lively enough for the cocktail hour.

gewurtz1Style: RICH WHITE
CANTINA TRAMIN 07 Gewurztraminer, Alto Adige, Italy 117028 $19.95
Super rich Gewurz from the home of that grape. Gorgeous, exotic flavours. A late summer evening sipper. Sexy stuff.

catharineFRESH SPARKLING
HENRY of PELHAM Brut ‘Cuvée Catharine’, VQA Niagara 616441 $29.95
Austere, stony dry in the Champagne style. ALmost no flavour but full of character – a high note that leaves you hanging and wanting more. Outstanding aperitif. Best batch yet of this wine – and possibly the best ever Brut out of Niagara.

REDS
coopersStyle: (ALMOST) RICH RED
COOPERS CREEK 07 Syrah, New Zealand 120808 $19.95
Fruity, peppery Syrah in the French style. Bright, lively, fun and very gulpable. Great Summer red. Moderate alcohol level.

lintonStyle: RICH RED
LINTON PARK 04 Shiraz, Paarl, South Africa 910844 $15.95
Juicy, peppery, lively and delicious Shiraz for the BBQ season. A little smokiness, a lot of yummy drinkability, and good value. Go get it.

falestateStyle: RICH RED
PALLISER 06 Pinot Noir, Martinborough, New Zealand 120766 $28.95
Spicy, sweet, seductive New World-style Pinot. A charmer for sure. Good with everything. Could spice up your life.

carrickStyle: RICH RED
CARRICK 06 Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand 919837 $39.95
Serious Pinot in the Burgundian-style. Bone dry, firm – traditional red wine character. Could use another year in the bottle.

ravenswood1Style: RICH RED
RAVENSWOOD 06 Zinfandel ‘Vintners Blend’, California 359257 $17.95
Big, bright, spicy Zin. Ton of flavour but not dense or weighty – could have some Beaujolais genes. Fun stuff for all your summer BBQs. Permanently available at all major LCBOs.

saintcrossCIDER
Style: REFRESHING CIDER
CLOS SAINT-DENIS 07 Cider, Quebec 89490 $15.95
Dry cider that kicks in at 10 percent alcohol – a sipper. Refreshing appley flavours with the earthy character of Calvedos. The tartness would hit the spot on a hot afternoon. Lovely cheerful label.

The Original Zin

by Kato on May 14, 2009 in Vintages Picks, Wine Picks with No comments

zinfandelwebThe sweetish pink wine called White Zinfandel will soon be doing the rounds at summer parties, so let’s gets the facts straight about Zinfandel. It’s a red grape and its purpose in life is the be a red wine, not some frivolous candy sweet pinko.

The Italian immigrant farmers that lugged this grape the whole way to California would not be too happy to see it commercialized into pop wine. And if all this wasn’t distressing enough, Zinfandel is not even the wine’s proper name – it’s Primitivo. But those Italian immigrants had more pressing things on their minds than remembering the name of the grape vines hidden in their luggage. Someone in California – no one knows who – came up with the Zinfandel name.

What we do know is that Zinfandel is a fantastic red for the beefy BBQ season coming up. It feels somewhat like Merlot but is wilder and livelier. It can be a little rustic too.

Fetzer’s Zin is all of the above, and there’s no mistaking its Italian heritage. Lots of spunk and vigour here – get some food on the table, and open another bottle.

Ravenswood is more Californian – or Latino. The flavours radiate like a brilliant sunset, but it’s not heavy or dense. This guy’s more into play and charm,  and just wants to have fun. Equally at home with red or white meat.

I was going to recommend an excellent Primitivo wine from the heel of Italy but the LCBO just delisted it. Rats. But at least you know it’s the original Zin.

FETZER 07 Zinfandel ‘Valley Oaks’, California 234617 $14.95
RAVENSWOOD 07 Zinfandel ‘Vintners Blend’, California 359257 $17.95 (Vintages section, continuously available)

 

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