All posts tagged Rosé

LCBO Vintages Saturday October 2

by Kato on September 30, 2010 in Vintages Picks, Wine Picks with No comments

THE LOW DOWN: I found something to recommend in all three of the catalogue ‘features’ – Australia, Italy and Thanksgiving. Consider buying my Aussie reds for a snapshot of the four principal wine styles produced in that country.

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.

ladybugROSE
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.

lehmannWHITES
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.

soellerwine 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.

torreswine 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.

yerlingREDS
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.

stJEANwine 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.
valpolicellawine 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.

visanwine 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.
chickywine 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.

wynnwine 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.

fourroadswine 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.

More on Megalomaniac

by Kato on July 21, 2010 in Wine Picks with No comments

MEGJohn Howard was a Niagara pioneer when he opened Vineland winery a couple of decades ago. The stunning location on the mountain in Beamsville is still one of the area’s main attractions. Howard sold out early on and went into semi-retirement, but now he’s back in the business (next door to Vineland) with a new winery called Megalomaniac. Named after himself, of course.

Megalomaniac is a classic cellar door winery, but this is no ordinary cellar. John owns a chateau in Bordeaux and has brought French sensibility and splendor to his Niagara winery. For sure, a must visit. Sue-Ann Staff makes the wines here, and also at her own winery close by.

The first Megalomaniac wine at the LCBO is a white called Homegrown. It has the bowler-hat-guy label of all the other wines, but this time the suit is a Niagara map showing the vineyard location. And just in case you don’t get the message that the wine is homegrown, the bottles neck has a sticker saying ‘100% grown by Grape Growers of Ontario’. The wine is off-dry, low alcohol with the easy drinking character of Riesling. Summer patio sipper.

MEGALOMANIAC 06 ‘Homegrown’, VQA Niagara 183061 $12.95

P.S. One of my favourite local Rosé of the season (so far) is MEGALOMANIAC 08 ‘Pink-Slip’, VQA Niagara. Gorgeous red berry flavours and a little creaminess mixed with refreshment. A hard-to-put-down glass. At the winery only $14.95. An excuse to visit.

LCBO Vintages Saturday July 10

by Kato on July 9, 2010 in Vintages Picks with No comments

THE LOW DOWN: I love my picks from this release. Four very different whites at an average price of less than $15. Best Muscadet ever and the Verdejo would be perfect with your World Cup Paella party. I’ll be wearing orange but probably cheering for Spain.

Wildass Rosé is almost serious and perfect for any Summer meal. As are my Gamay picks. For something more substantial check out a Niagara treat from Nyarai, and my yummy French or Californian offerings.

muscadetWHITES
Wine style: fresh white
MICHEL DELHOMMEAU 08 Muscadet, Loire, France 164624 $12.95
A must try Muscadet. Lemony and loaded with mineral freshness. The perfect hot weather white. Nice price, nice modern label.

tieffWine style: fresh white
TIEFENBRUNNER 08 Chardonnay, Alto Adige, Italy 746545 $16.95
Tasty and refreshing non-oaked Chardonnay. Teasing, elegant and a joy to sip on a Summer evening. Really delightful stuff.

PGWine style: nice & easy white
DI LENARDO 09 Pinot Grigio, Friuli, Italy 173328 $14.95
Lazy time Pinot Grigio. A little richness, a little creaminess and a whole lot of yummy drinkability.

blumeWine style: rich white
PAGOS DEL REY 08 Verdejo, ‘Blume’, Rueda, Spain 166736 $12.95
Not for everyone, but if you’re tired of overly fruity whites check out this earthy character. Bold herbaceous flavours, refreshing, and a solid, old fashioned feeling. Lots of character for the price. BBQ’d chicken.

malivoireREDS
Wine style: lively red
MALIVOIRE 08 Gamay, VQA Niagara 591313 $17.95

Great vitality. So vibrant. Malivoire has turned the usually mild-mannered Gamay into a rock start. Loud and clear. Great Summer red. Lightly chill and have with grilled salmon or white meats.

julianasWine style: lively red
GEORGES DUBOEUF 08 Julienas ‘La Trinquee’, Beaujolais, France 177543 $16.95
The bright flavours of Beaujolais with an assured, confident feeling. Shades of a Pinot – light, lively and gulpable. Charming too. Bring on the bistro food. Anything really. Lightly chill and get the bottle open.

nyraiWine style: rustic red
NYARAI 07 Cabernet/Merlot, VQA Niagara 179739 $18.00
Solid, gutsy, earthy and invigorating. Feels as if it had some Italian blood. A suggestion of Bordeaux too. Wonderful food wine. Steve Byfield of Nyarai is producing wines with lovely pure flavours. And offering them at reasonable prices.

tarassesWine style: rich red
CH. PESQUIE TERRASSES 08 Cotes du Ventoux, Rhone, France 652313 $13.95
The warm, lush, peppery feeling of wines from the South of France. Very chummy, very tasty. But not overly rich. Great value.

parduciWine style: rich red
PARDUCCI 07 Petite Sirah, Mendocino, California 75598 $15.95
Parducci makes wines that have an old-style, honest character. Wines for food rather than show. Get some beef or lamb on the BBQ and tuck into this lovely mix of rustic and rich.

wildassROSÉ
Wine style: rich rosé
STRATUS 08 ‘Wildass’ Rosé, VQA Niagara 71712 $19.95
This is really a light red. With the gamey, peppery flavours found in some Niagara Gamay wines. A bit pricey but an excellent partner for grilled or roasted white meats.

Men in Pink Drinking Pink

by Kato on July 7, 2010 in Billy's World, Events, Wine Picks with 1 Comment

MENinPINKMen in Pink Drinking Pink

My second annual Men in Pink luncheon took place last week on Allen’s patio with Ontario Rosé producers and friends. Beppi Crosariol wrote about it today in the Globe. Read it here.

Pick up a few bottles of Rosé for your next summer meal…it’s terrific with most foods, including Indian and anything spicy, charcuterie and paella…and this hot weather makes it feel all the more wonderful.

More Rosé news coming soon….

Keep cool!

LCBO Vintages Saturday June 26

by Kato on June 24, 2010 in Vintages Picks with 2 Comments

THE LOW DOWN: In whites, I found two lightheared, value-priced wines for summer drinking , a seafood partner, and one of the world’s little gems – ARINTO from one of the oldest regions in Portugal. Pinot Noir and a Sangioveses Rosé would be perfect partners for summer meals or picnics. All my red picks are in the rich style. Buy for the BBQ or winter nourishment.

Slainte. and hope your team wins.
Billy
hiddenWHITES
wine style: fresh white
HIDDEN BENCH 08 Riesling, VQA Beamsville Bench 183491 $24.20
Classic Ontario Dry Riesling. Tart with pure flavours. A must buy for Riesling fans.

terrafwine style: fresh white
BODEGAS AGNUSDEI 08 Albarino ‘Terra Firme’, Galicia, Spain 166751 $13.95
Tart, fruity, ctrussy wine from the col northeast of Spain. Frank, fresh aperitif or seafood partner.

tariquetwine style: nice & easy white
DOMAINE DU TARIQUET 09 Ugni Blanc/Colomard, Côtes du Gascogne, France 175240 $11.95
Zesty, low alcohol white for alfresco lunches or warm day gulping. Lovely carefree feeling. Ultra modern wine from the Cognac region.

grecianowine style: nice & easy white
CASUSO & MININI ‘Terre di Giumara’ 08 Grecanico, Silicy 174961 $11.95
Another light white with spring day fragrance and freshness. Refreshment meets relaxation. The Grecanico grape is a Sicilian speciality.

PROVAwine style: rich white
PROVA REGIA 08 Arinto, Bucelas, Portugal 166587 $14.95
Semi-rich with mineral freshness. Arinto is Portugal’s answer to Chardonnay. It develops huge flavours as it ages…without the help of oak barrels! A natural charmer that’s a must buy for those with a cellar. Give it 3-5 years. But it’s also wonderful now. Could be the bargain of the year in white wine.

yumbalaROSÉ
wine style: dry rosé
YULUMBA 09 Sangiovese Rosé, Australia 169425 $15.95
Quite brisk and refreshing. Shades of a light Chianti. The perfect partner for a platter of salumi. Too tart for party time. Delightful label.

flatrosewine style: dry rosé
FLATROCK CELLARS 09 Pinot Noir Rosé, VQA Twenty Mile Bench 39974 $14.95
Another tart Rosé that’s best with food. The feel and flavours of a light PInot so think grilled salmon or chicken, or paella.

urbanRED
wine style: rich red
URBAN UCO 08 Malbec/Tempranillo, Mendoza, Argentina 166397 $12.95
Silky smooth, slightly sweet and super-rich. If you enjoy blockbusters, this is a great value.

bilaHwine style: rich red
M. CHAPOUTIER 08 ‘Bila-Haut’ Cotes de Roussillon-Villages, France 168716 $15.00
The wild tang of Spain, the silky texture of Grenache and the fruitiness of Corignan. Earthy and soulful – my kind of rich red for today’s BBQ or hearty winter meals.

salchetowine style: rich red
SALCHETO 07 Rosso di Montepulciano, Tuscany 165357 $14.95
Gutsy, vibrant and earthy – the feeling and flavours of Tuscany. Needs the beef or any hearty meal.

gravetwine style: rich red
CELLAR DE CAPCANES 06 ‘Costers del Gravet’, Montsant, Spain 707059 $16.95
Spain’s Montsant region delivers rich, modern reds that also have characteristics of traditional regions such as Bordeaux and the Rhone. This is a great all-rounder – as vibrant as it’s label.

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