A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 702: Versado

Posted on July 16, 2018 by
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Ann Sperling

Wines tasted this week:

  • Black Hills Carmenère 2016 (Southern Okanagan): deep purple colour; savoury, herbal nose of blackcurrants; medium-bodied, dry, blackcurrant flavour carried on lively acidity. (89)
  • Franciscan Estate Chardonnay 2015 (Napa Valley, $25.95): Bright straw in colour; buttery, toasty nose of apples with oak spice; medium to full-bodied, apple and pear flavours with well-integrated oak. A well-balanced wine. (90)
  • Tinhorn Creek Cabernet Franc Oldfield Reserve 2015 (Okanagan, $31.99): deep ruby colour; blueberry and blackcurrant nose with oak spice; medium-bodied, dry, well-structured and firm with ripe blackcurrant and blueberry flavours. (90)

Sunday, July 15th: Ann Sperling and Peter Gamble came to the house to let me taste Ann’s wines from the family vineyard in Kelowna, BC, and the wines they make together from their Versado vineyard in Mendoza. Continue reading →

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A Wine Lover’s Dairy, part 701: Great Tasting Week

Posted on July 13, 2018 by

Monday, July 9th: Tasted CedarCreek Meritage 2015 from the Okanagan: dense purple in colour with a cedary, blackcurrant and blueberry nose; medium-bodied, dry, fruity, blueberry flavour with a light floral note; beautifully balanced and long on finish.

Tuesday, July 10th: John Maxwell and Billy Munnelly’s annual Men in Pink event – a celebration of Ontario rosé at Mildred’s Temple Kitchen.

Men in Pink menu
Men in Pink

Continue reading →

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680 NEWS wine reviews, July 13–15, 2018

Posted on July 13, 2018 by

Château des Charmes Aligoté 2017
Aligoté is a grape grown in Burgundy but it’s overshadowed by its more glamourous sister – the ubiquitous Chardonnay. To my knowledge the only winery in Canada that grows Aligoté is Château des Charmes in Niagara. And what a great job they do with it year after year! Their 2017 vintage is pale straw in colour with minerally, lemon and apple flavours. Light-bodied and dry, it’s fresh and lively on the palate reminiscent of a Chablis with a green pear finish. It costs $15.95 at the LCBO and is perfect for seafood or smoked fish. That’s Château des Charmes Aligoté 2017 from Ontario. For Post City Magazines, I’m Tony Aspler, 680 NEWS. ($15.95, LCBO #296848) (89)

Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon 2015
Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 from Chile is one of those wines that surprises you. You don’t expect the concentration of flavour and elegance of structure in a wine that costs $19.95. Dense purple in colour, this Cabernet from the Colchagua Valley, has an intense nose of cedar, cigar box and blackcurrant topped with a floral grace note. Medium-bodied, dry, richly extracted, ripe blackberry and blackcurrant flavours fill the palate ending on ripe, mellow tannins. You’ll find it at Vintages outlets. Match it with grilled meats. That’s Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 from Chile. For Post City Magazines, I’m Tony Aspler, 680 NEWS ($19.95, Vintages #322586)

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680 NEWS wine reviews, July 6–8, 2018

Posted on July 6, 2018 by

Cave Spring Estate Chardonnay 2016
Ontario makes some crackerjack Chardonnays. Just released at Vintages is Cave Spring Estate Chardonnay 2016. Made in Burgundian style, but unmistakably Niagara, this flavourful Chardonnay is straw-coloured with a green tint. The nose is apple with oak spice and touch of the forest floor. Medium-bodied and dry, you experience flavours of apple and pineapple with well-integrated oak and balancing acidity. It costs $18.95 at Vintages outlets. Serve it with grilled seafood or pork chops. That’s Cave Spring Estate Chardonnay 2016 from Ontario. For Post City Magazines, I’m Tony Aspler, 680 NEWS. ($18.95, Vintages #256552)

Montemisio Offida Pecorino 2016
The trending white wine in Italy these days is Pecorino (which is also the name of a cheese) and there’s a delicious example of Pecorino wine just released in Vintages outlets – Montemisio Offida Pecorino 2016 from the Marche region. Pale straw in colour, it has a spicy bouquet of peach with oak notes; medium-bodied with a smoky, floral, peach flavour, it finishes on a delightful note of lilacs. It costs $17.95 and works well as an aperitif wine or with grilled fish. That’s Montemisio Offida Pecorino 2016 in Vintages’ Italian section. For Post City Magazines, I’m Tony Aspler, 680 NEWS. ($17.95, Vintages #542811)

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 700

Posted on July 1, 2018 by

Oculus bottle close up, showing name and pelican logo etched into glass

Tuesday, June 26th: Deborah and I drove into Toronto, she for a hair appointment and I to attend a retrospective tasting of Mission Hill’s flagship wine, Oculus – ten vintages from 2006 to 2015. The tasting was conducted by Darryl Brooker. The wine started in 1997. Exclusive use of French oak in 2001. 2004, Michel Rolland assisted in the blending till 2010. Now Pascal Madevon consults. First decade it was Oliver-based fruit, the second, Osoyoos vineyard down by the Washington State border which is much warmer. Picking at night to bring in cool fruit. Darryl prefers fermenting in concrete (all-natural fermentation). All of Oculus is basket-pressed. Usually bottle 21–22 months after it’s picked. Continue reading →

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680 NEWS wine reviews, June 29–July 1, 2018

Posted on June 29, 2018 by

Angels Gate Archangel Sparkling Chardonnay
Toast Canada’s 151st birthday with a glass of Ontario sparkling wine. Angels Gate Archangel Sparkling Chardonnay won a silver medal at this year’s Ontario Wine Awards. Straw-coloured with an active mousse of tiny bubbles, wafts of citrus, apple and green melon rise from the glass; medium-bodied on the palate, flavours of green apple and lemon fill the mouth. This attractive bubbly costs $29.30 on the LCBO’s general list. Spoil yourself, after all, it’s the Canada Day weekend. That’s Angels Gate Archangel Sparkling Chardonnay from Niagara. ($29.30, LCBO #227009)

Bouchard Père & Fils Pinot Noir Bourgogne 2015
Red Burgundy is never inexpensive but a good introduction to what might make you a life-long fan is Bouchard Père & Fils Pinot Noir Bourgogne 2015. Ruby in colour, it offers a raspberry bouquet with light notes of violets and oak spice; medium-bodied, dry, red plum and raspberry flavours excite the palate ending with a firm tannic finish. It costs 20 dollars and 5 cents on the LCBO’s general list. Delicious with red meat dishes or lightly chilled and paired with grilled salmon. That’s Bouchard Père & Fils Pinot Noir Bourgogne 2015 from Burgundy. For Post City Magazines, I’m Tony Aspler, 680 NEWS. ($20.05, LCBO #605667)

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680 NEWS wine reviews, June 22–24, 2018

Posted on June 22, 2018 by

Rémy Pannier Rosé d’Anjou 2017
This hot weather makes rosé the go-to wine for the patio or outdoor dining. You can’t go wrong with Rémy Pannier Rosé d’Anjou 2017 from the Loire Valley. Pale pink in colour with a bluish tint, the wine has a nose of pomegranate and red currants. Its medium-bodied, dry, pomegranate flavour is carried on lemony acidity with just a touch of residual sugar on the finish. Until Sunday it’s been reduced by a dollar to $14.95. Chill it well and serve it with charcuterie or cold chicken. That’s Rémy Pannier Rosé d’Anjou 2017 from France on the LCBO’s general list. For Post City Magazines, I’m Tony Aspler, 680 NEWS. ($14.95, LCBO #12641)

Tina Pfaffmann T. No. 9 Riesling Trocken 2016
I find that a glass of dry Riesling is very refreshing on a hot summer’s day. Here’s a wine from Germany’s Pfalz region, currently at Vintages outlets, that really fills the bill: Weingut Tina Pfaffmann T. No. 9 Riesling Trocken 2016. (Trocken is German for dry.) Pale straw colour with a hint of lime, it offers a minerally, green peach nose overlaid with a note of honey; light to medium-bodied, dry, with floral, green apple and green melon flavours; a beautifully balanced wine. It costs $19.95, Serve it with ham quiche. That’s Weingut Tina Pfaffmann T, No.9 Riesling Trocken 2016 from Germany at Vintages outlets. For Post City Magazines, I’m Tony Aspler, 680 NEWS. ($19.95, Vintages #549774)

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