I recently added a Twitter feed to the sidebar. You’ll find a few wine reviews in there mixed in with the usual nonsensical Twitter stuff.

In the lead-up to the Winnipeg Wine Festival, I thought I’d share some recent favourites. I hope to actually start posting again in the next few weeks, but this will have to do for now.  First up is a gem of an Argentinian Cabernet Sauvignon from the Michel Torino winery.

The Don David Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve will set you back a whopping $12.08. For that, you get one of the best Cabernet deals I’ve ever come across. The wine (from Argentina’s Cafayate Valley) shows a deep ruby colour in the glass, with lots of berries and chocolate on the nose. These continue in your mouth, where they are joined by toasty oak flavours, some good tannins and a tiny bit of mint on the long finish. It’s got a hint of the rustic flavour I usually associate with Argentinian wines, which keeps it far ahead of the other wines in the $12ish Cabernet range.

It’s worth the price and is widely available through the MLCC, where you’ll also find the Don David Malbec and the new Don David Tannat (neither of which I have tried yet). I’d pair it up with a big steak fresh off the BBQ. And once you’re finished, be sure to head to a private wine store for the even tastier Don David Syrah!

It’s been awhile, but I’m going to slide in a few brief recommendations for the holidays. Time permitting, I’ll post a few more this weekend. And if not, enjoy your holidays and I hope to be back a little more frequently in the New Year.

Most of these wines will show up at my house during the holiday season. Some are wines that I’ve enjoyed before, but haven’t had a chance to review yet. And for my own Christmas table, I’ve got a bottle of the Mission Hill SLC Chardonnay (2004 vintage) and a great California Pinot Noir (Inman Family’s Olivet Grange Vineyard 2004) as well. I will be sure to post my thoughts after I enjoy these.

 On to the wines:

Conde de Caralt Cava ($13.97 @ Kenaston Wine Market)

In my ever-so-humble opinion, Spanish Cava gives you the most sparkle for your buck when it comes to the under $20 range. And this is the best new Cava I’ve come across all year. Highly recommended (with or without orange juice).

DaLuca Primitivo-Merlot ($13ish at private wine stores)

If I was planning to have pizza for Christmas dinner, this is the wine I’d serve. It’s the ultimate pizza wine. Loads of fruit flavours with just enough acidity to go well with food. The price is right too.

Botalcura ‘Il Delerio’ Chardonnay-Viognier ($12.95 @ MLCC)

Holiday meals demand big rich whites and this one works perfectly. 81% Chardonnay, 19% Viognier and packing a 14.0% ABV punch, this has the guts to stand up to the creamiest mashed potatoes. Lots of gorgeous Viognier flavours (peaches mostly) with a base of creamy Chilean Chardonnay. Dee-licious! The Syrah-Malbec blend is also very good.

Flor de Crasto 2004 ($12.99 @ DeLuca’s)

I’ve always thought Spanish wines went well with the typical holiday fare. And for a slight change of pace, I’m happy to recommend this Portuguese red blend. It shows off similar flavours to Spanish wines (not surprisingly, since they share some common grape varieties). But there’s a richness here that is hard to find in Spanish wines at this price point. It’s earthy and rich, with lots of red-berry flavours in the finish.

Adobe ‘Clayhouse’ Red ($23.95 @ Kenaston Wine Market)

Zinfandel is another classic holiday wine, and this blend (Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon) is richer than most. Lots of jammy Zinfandel fruit show up, balanced with some tannins from the rest of the blend. Very tasty.

Nobilio ‘Southern Rivers’ Sauvignon Blanc ($13.99 @ Kenaston Wine Market)

Even though richer whites might work better when the temperature drops, there’s always room for a crisp Sauvignon Blanc in my fridge. Not only is this one well-priced, but it’s also delicious. It’s a classic New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, with lots of crisp herbal and fruit flavours with a long finish.

Penfolds ‘Club’ Tawny Port ($13ish @ MLCC)

Don’t laugh, this is a great Australian port for the price. It’s full of raisins, candied fruit and brown sugar. Sure, it’s not “real” port. But it’s pretty good – especially for the price. I’d say it’s my favourite tawny ‘port’ for under $20.

The holidays came and went without a single post. Quel surprise. It was a busy time with much good cheer (and a few dozen too many of my sister’s decadent English Toffee Squares).  We enjoyed lots of good wine and over the next few days I’ll post some notes on my favourite wines of the 2006 holiday season.

Since our New Year’s Eve dinner was delayed (thanks to the 30 centimetres of snow that blocked our front street and back lane), some of the best wines are yet to come. Including my wine find of the season, a bottle of the Hawthorne Mountain “See Ya Later” Brut ($20 at the Madison Square MLCC).

And a happy New Year to all of my readers!

There has been plenty of wine lately. I brought back some great bottles from BC (and I have a rant about the BC retail market too). But time is in short supply as my day job gets busier and busier. These tasting notes should (ahem) ‘wet’ your appetites for more – which will follow soon.

Franschhoek Vineyards ‘Anvil’ Sauvignon Blanc (South Africa, 2005)

Wow. Tasting notes for a South African Sauvignon Blanc. Who woulda thunk it? This is a well-priced and very tasty wine from a company apparently in the midst of reinventing itself. This wine didn’t appear on their website, but I’m sure it’s just their regular Sauvignon Blanc packaged for the North American market. If I’m wrong, feel free to correct me.

And as for the wine itself, it’s your typical South African Sauvignon Blanc. Lots of acidity, lots of fruit and a nice mineral wash in the background. This is the reason why South Africa is a better choice than New Zealand in the under $15 category (and the $15-20 category too). Before you ask, no, it wasn’t as good as Fish Hoek is. But I loved it anyways. It was great on its own, great with a fresh salad and just as good with the brutally hot chipolte-fuelled BBQ burritos that we concocted on Monday.

For $11ish, you could do a lot worse than this. More information is available from their Canadian distributor. And I’m sure that I’d make good wine too if I got to work in a place as beautiful as Franschhoek (check out that scenery).

It’s available at the Kenaston Wine Market. I’m not sure if it’s exclusive to them or if other private stores carry it too.

Snoqualmie Sauvignon Blanc (Columbia Valley, 2004)

This wine was a bit disappointing. I tried the Snoqualmie Syrah at the Winnipeg Wine Festival and loved it. So when I saw this wine on the shelf at the Kenaston Wine Market (not sure if it’s available elsewhere), I had to pick it up. At $14.95, it seemed like a good deal for a Washington State wine, and I’m always ready to try a new Sauvignon Blanc.

Not sure, but I do believe that Snoqualmie is owned by Chateau Ste. Michelle, although their website doesn’t advertise it. My Spidey sense tells me that CSM is involved, due to the web address on this tasting sheet.

Enough conspiracy theories. How was the wine? I guess disappointing would be the nicest way to put it. It’s well-made but the taste and texture was more in line with some of the bigger, riper Sauvignon Blancs coming out of California. It was aged on its lees, which gave it a creamier texture and riper taste than I expected.

The nose was full and ripe, and I swear I could pick out peaches in there. In the mouth, it was rich and creamy without too much acidity. More fruit (cantaloupe?), but no crispness. It was good, but not for me. I own my bias here. I really do prefer crisp, acidic Sauvignon Blancs and this didn’t fit the bill at all. If anything, it reminded me of a good (if light) Pinot Gris.

So I’ll pass on this in the future. But if you’re a Chardonnay fan looking for something different without straying too far afield, this would be a nice wine to try.

The Langhorne Crossing Dry White (2004 vintage) is a blend of Chardonnay, Riesling and Verdhelo from the Langhorne Creek region of Australia. I’ve always thought their Cabernet/Shiraz blend was a great value, so I was happy to find this one on the shelf at my local MLCC.

The nose didn’t show off a lot of character, with nothing more than some vague melon aromas. But in the mouth, it had a nice crisp edge with lots of pears (and more melons) and a very long finish. It was a little higher in alcohol than I expected (13.5%), but it didn’t taste hot. And it was perfect with the hot and humid weather we faced last weekend. If we’d had the courage to face spicy foods in the heat, I think it would be a good match with some curry.

Interestingly enough, the blend seems to change from vintage to vintage. This vintage had a touch of Riesling to it, which the last two didn’t have. According to the tasting notes on the Bleasdale website, the 2003 vintage was composed of Verdhelo, Chardonnay and Semillon, while 2002 brought a Verdhelo/Chardonnay blend.

So is this wine as good as the similar (and excellent) Rosemount Jigsaw dry white? Not really, but for $11.39 (almost $2.50 less than the Rosemount), it’s a good deal for a very nice crisp dry white wine. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

My apologies (again) for the long silences between posts. It’s hard to justify sitting in front of the computer when it’s so gorgeous outside. Anyways, there are lots of tasting notes sitting on the computer. And next week brings another edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday – this time focusing on the wines of the Loire Valley. I tried a very good (and unusual) blend and will be posting my notes on August 2nd.

Just a few observations:

• I hear from credible sources that BC wines might be in short supply this fall and winter. 2005 was a small harvest and apparently 2006 isn’t shaping up to be that great either. If you’re a fan of BC wines and you live in Manitoba, I’d urge you to stock up on your favourites while you still can.
• There’s been quite a buzz around the new Joey’s restaurant in Polo Park. I was underwhelmed by the food when I went there last weekend. But the wine list is well-chosen, if a bit overpriced. I still think Earls wins for both food and wine.
• On that note, Earls has two new house wines on their list. One is from the Rhone (by the Perrin family) and the other is Australian. I’ve only tried the two whites and the Rhone Valley blend wins.
• The remaining excess stock from the Winnipeg Wine Festival is being sold in the Grant Park LC. I picked up a few nice treats there, including a well-priced ($10 and change) Spanish rose by Segura Viudas.
• Best rose of the summer so far? The Fifth Leg Rose, from Australia. It is worth the $20 price tag, and is available at Kenaston (and may also be at other private stores too).
• Incidentally, I thought that the Uncorked column on rose wines from a few weeks back was excellent. He also thought the Fifth Leg was very good.
• Langhorne Crossing makes a nice Australian red blend and their white hit the MLCC shelves in the last few weeks. It’s fairly priced ($11.39) and is a blend of Chardonnay, Riesling and Verdhelo. I’ve got a bottle chilling in my fridge right now and I’ll try and post my thoughts on it this weekend. It is the 2004 vintage though, so it’s over 2 years old.
• DeLuca’s has some excellent Vinho Verdes on their shelves, along with some new Spanish wines. I’ve only tried the Aveleda Vinho Verde in the past (which is so-so at best), so it was a real treat to see what these wines are all about. The names escape me, but they’re up near the cash register. One is around $13 (the one I tried) and the other is about $19 or so. Give them a try, they’re both excellent summertime sippers.
• And last – but not least – Gimli Fish Market is selling wild sockeye salmon until the season ends in August. I’ve had a few meals already and the quality is excellent. Get some while you can.

For this installment of Wine Blogging Wednesday (hosted by Vivi’s Wine Journal , the theme was BBQ wines. Very seasonally appropriate, and easy enough to do, since we now have a brand-new barbeque sitting in our backyard. And it was a long weekend for us as well, so there were plenty of opportunities to grill. To make matters even better, Winnipeg’s notorious mosquitoes are scarce this year, making a night of grilling even more appealing.

We took the traditional route for the BBQ, with two sirloin steaks marinated in red wine, garlic and the Keg’s steak spice. And we served them up with skewered veggies – zucchini, red onions, mushrooms and red peppers – which were marinated in balsamic vinegar, olive oil and rosemary.

To bring it all together, I opened a bottle of J. Lohr’s “Painter Bridge” Zinfandel (2004 vintage). This wine has been a longtime favourite of mine. The price is right ($12.99 – although only available at the private wine stores), and I think it’s a great example of a food-friendly Zinfandel.

This particular vintage is 75% Zinfandel, 23% Shiraz and 2% Petite Syrah. It’s 13.3% ABV, so it’s strong – but nothing like some of the monster Zinfandels that California is capable of. I love the big Zins, but it’s always nice to have some balance as well.

In the glass, the Painter Bridge shows off a beautiful dark purple, almost a stereotypical “wine” colour. The nose is a bit jammy, but you can still pick up the wild berries and spiciness that I always associate with Zinfandel. And in the mouth, it was soft and very tasty. Lots more fruit (raspberries for the most part) and some spice, with a little bit of oak in the background. Surprisingly, I didn’t pick up many tannins at all. And at the end, this wine did remind me a little bit of a leaner Australian Shiraz. But that’s probably an unfair comparison as there is way more spice than jam in this bottle.

And it was perfect with the food we served. I left the steaks on the grill a little too long (I’m still learning), but they were very good anyways. We took the grilled veggies off the skewers and served them up as a warm ‘salad’ with spiced croutons and Bocconcini.

The verdict? Painter Bridge Zinfandel is a great BBQ wine. The price is right, it’s not too jammy or too big and it’s available at your nearest private wine store. There’s enough spice in the wine to balance out the smokiness of the BBQ. And from past experience with this wine, I can safely say that it’s a crowd-pleaser! And I’m also a big fan of the Painter Bridge Chardonnay.

I tasted the Sauvignon Republic Cellars Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (2004 vintage) over the weekend, and it was as good as I had hoped. I’ve already tried (and really enjoyed) their Russian River bottling, so I was curious about this one. And it was worth the $26 I paid (it’s available at several of the private wine stores).

On a side note for a minute, the folks at Sauvignon Republic Cellars are dedicating all of their time and energy to producing Sauvignon Blanc. Given their name, that’s no surprise. They have three wines out right now (NZ, California and one from Stellenbosch in South Africa) and are coming out with a European bottling next spring (likely from the Loire Valley).

The Marlborough was a beautiful golden-green colour, and had nothing but minerals on the nose (more than I had expected from a Marlborough wine). In the mouth, it showed off some very well-balanced citrus and herbal flavours with lots of tangy acidity and a long, almost sweet fruit finish. It didn’t taste as overwhelming as some NZ Sauvignon Blancs that I’ve tried, and that long finish made it a perfect match for food (try oysters or anything with goat cheese for a nice pairing).

I liked the Russian River Sauvignon Blanc a bit more than this one, but I do prefer the California style. But I’m really looking forward to trying the Stellenbosch when (if) it gets to Winnipeg. Keep your eyes on the private wine stores for these wines.

On a side note, I’ll be in Calgary next weekend, and would like to hit at least one or two decent wine stores while I’m there. I haven’t been in Calgary for about three years, so I’d love some advice on interesting new wine stores in or near downtown.

For the twenty-second edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday (hosted by the fine folks at Winecast), the focus is on “lite” alcohol reds. Specifically, red wines with 12.5% ABV (alcohol by volume) or less. Given our less-than-perfect climate, Canada (especially Ontario) is home to a lot of good light reds. I chose to go with an Ontario wine – the Konzelmann Estate Pinot Noir (VQA – 2004 vintage).

Konzelmann is a boutique winery in Ontario which is best known for their Germanic-style wines. Not surprising, given that the owner comes from a winemaking family from Stuttgart. They do a very nice range of Rieslings, an neat Zwiegelt and some nice icewines, including (in good years only) a Riesling-Traminer icewine and a Cabernet Sauvignon icewine. Interestingly enough, they also label wines with both the German and English names. So as you can see by the label, my bottle proudly flew the Spatburgunder flag high.

Enough rambling. Let’s talk about the Konzelmann Estate Pinot Noir. This wine is only 12% alcohol, so fits in perfectly with the theme of this month’s tasting. It’s in the general listing at the MLCC, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find. And it’s well-priced, you can pick up a bottle for $12.30 (CDN) plus tax.

In the glass, it showed a darker colour than I expected, with a strong sour cherry nose and plenty of Pinot Noir funkiness. And beets. For the first time ever, I actually smelled beets in the glass!

Moving past the beets with some difficulty, I found (not surprisingly) sour cherries in the mouth. They were joined by strawberries, more of that gloriously nasty Pinot funk and some very well-balanced tannins with a long finish. This is a tasty, well-priced Pinot that shows what Niagara can do. It’s not the most accessible Pinot Noir (try the Saint Clair from an earlier post), but with some age and the right food pairing, it would be excellent. And longtime readers will know that I do love those nasty funky Pinots.

I’d recommend leaving this one to settle for a few years. I think this is a wine that will improve with some age. If you’d like to drink it now, pair it with food – try some lean wild salmon, duck or even a big plate of sushi. And if you’re going to serve it in the heat of the summer, chill it for ten or fifteen minutes to make sure the Pinot funk shines.