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.

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.