La Gourmandesse

2007 Candidato Tempranillo Garnacha, $7.70. LCBO#523811.

Lately I’m loving Spanish wine. It is coming close to dethroning Italy as my fave source of old world wine. Or maybe I should call it old world with a new world price twist?

This bottle is simple and enjoyable. Medium bodied, a bit oaky, incredibly smooth. Need I say more?

We had it with burgers, which were a great match. It was still tasty to sip after dinner, the smooth finish helps it do well without food.

Overall, I give this wine 8.5/10 for taste and 4.5/5 for value.

2007 Penascal Estate Tempranillo, $9.00. LCBO#343434.

I’ve been wanting to make another forray into Spanish wine for a while now. I went to a wine tasting a few years ago based around Spain and Portugal, and I just loved the earthy robustness of the wines.

I can’t exactly call this bottle robust, but it is certainly interesting. I don’t usually go for Tempranillo, although I love the word, so I don’t know exactly what I should expect from it.  The bottle was a bit earthy/funky upon opening, which never deters me, in fact it usually makes me hopeful that something delicious lurks beneath the stink.

The wine is a deep and luscious purple, making me wish I had a dress or scarf, or something luxurious to wear, in the same shade. Beneath the earthy nose are grapefruit and pepper tastes, with a light to medium body and a dry, tart finish. The LCBO says sour cherry, but I’m sticking to grapefruit. Whichever fruit you choose, this wine isn’t too tart, just sort of zippy and fresh.

I read an article recently about red wines that can be chilled in the summer, and I think this Tempranillo might be a candidate. It’s light and fresh, yet interesting, and probably is best enjoyed in the summer.

Overall, I give this wine 8/10 for taste and 4/5 for value.

2008 Cono Sur Bicycle Merlot, $9.95. LCBO#457176.

I found this bottle in a list from Wine Align. It scored 88/100 for the 2007 vintage, and I thought it was a worthy candidate for the $10 wine list. It is the first bottle from Chile that I’ve tried on my quest for a cheap and worthy wine.

I’m disappointed to report that I found the bottle to be only average. It starts out well, the colour is a deep and satisfying purple, but it doesn’t have much of a nose.  The taste is very even, and the wine is medium bodied and soft, as you would expect in a merlot. I don’t have much else to say about it.

Maybe the problem is that I like things a bit fruitier, a bit deeper and more complex than the average merlot can deliver. There’s nothing offensive about this wine, it’s easy drinking with almost no hint of tannins.  It’s a bit on the dry side, so that might be a turn-off for some, but it’s very smooth and would probably pair well with most food.

I would say this is a decent wine, but not one that’s interesting enough to make it into my wine basket on future trips to the LCBO.

Overall, I give this wine 7.5/10 for taste and 3.5/5 for value.

2007 Gnarly Head Old Vine Zinfandel, $15. LCBO# 678698.

When is wine at its best? When shared with a dear friend, of course. My long-time best buddy Laurel and I drank some of this fantastic Zin one weekend while at her family’s cottage on Brereton Lake, Manitoba.

We went out for dinner at the only restaurant in the area, found at the Brereton Lake Resort. The wine selection consisted of two reds and a white, so when the waitress listed Gnarly Head as an option, I nearly fell off my chair, and then jumped at the chance to order it.

I saw this bottle in a January LCBO Vintages release, and was too slow to get a bottle. That’s my greatest beef with this province’s giant fascist liquor system- they get a bunch of something great, it gets snapped up, and then you have to wait til next year. No ordering it from somewhere else for you, oh no no. Meanwhile, small town Manitoba has cases of the stuff. The injustice!

I love Zin, especially when it hails from California. There’s something about the way they make it out there, the balance of fruit and oak, softness and zip, that nearly always pleases me.  And this bottle lived up to my expectations, and definitely surpassed anything I thought would be offered on a wine list in the middle of nowhere.

The wine is a wonderful dark purple, promising a deep full flavour and ripeness. The nose is a bit musty-dusty, and the taste is fruity, as one would expect, with plums and berries up front. There’s a touch of oak to add some complexity, and the finish has a bit of a spicy bite. Which makes for a perfect glass, full of ripe fruit, with a sweet-tart contrast as you swallow.

When I got back to Ontario, I made one more attempt at getting a bottle of this gem, but was unsuccessful. I did, however, find a bottle of the same winery’s Cabernet Sauvignon for $16.95. I plan to taste it soon in case it is also lovely and I need to stock up.

Overall, I give this wine 10/10 for taste and 4/5 for value.

2009 Sandbanks Baco Noir, $15.05, LCBO#110049 & 2008 Dunes, $13.05, LCBO#110031.

This weekend I went into the LCBO with one thing on my mind and one thing only- to pick up some great wine. Although I continue to have fun trying out new $10 wines, the gems seem few and far between lately. Rather than purchase yet another bottle of affordable disappointment, I thought it was time to splurge on some summer favourites.

For this Wine Wednesday I am sharing my two best Ontario wines- which coincidentally come from the same winery and are 100% Ontario grown. When it comes to home grown wines, I really only feel right buying VQA. There’s just something so silly to me about labels that say “cellared in Ontario,” as if you won’t notice the conspicuous absense of the VQA seal.  If you didn’t grow the grape here, where it got cellared does not mean much to me. Hence my beef with most of the wine WalMart and the Wine Rack carries. By these standards, retirees can start putting “cellared in Ontario” on the crappy home made wine they make in their basements. Maybe WalMart will start carrying that?

I discovered Sandbanks Estate Winery on a Prince Edward County wine tour in May 2009. Our tour had the good fortune to bump into the winery’s lovely winemaker, Catherine Langlois, and I can see how her sunny disposition leads to great wine.  In my opinion, her wine is the best that Prince Edward County has to offer, and I’ve sampled most of the region’s vineyards. I love that I get to buy local and get great wine, and I can only imagine how much better things will get as the vines mature.

Their Baco Noir is one of my go to red wines. It’s exactly what I want in a wine; bold and fruit-forward with a touch of oak. I guess it’s just my luck that baco noir is often grown in more difficult climates like Ontario because it is definitely my kind of grape. That said, I have tried some other Ontario baco noirs and they are nowhere near as good as this one. So I must give some credit to the winery for growing a lovely grape and making a fabulous bottle.

Their other great bottle is Dunes, which is a Vidal Riesling blend. Again, it is a fruity and fresh wine. Not too sweet, with some crisp citrus notes that make it very refreshing. This has been one of Kevin’s favourite whites ever since I introduced it to him last year.

We’re having a small dinner party this week, and I think the Dunes will be a good opener with olives and cheese, while the Baco should partner well with some juicy steaks off the BBQ.  Cheers to great summer sippers!

2008 Spinelli Montepulciano D'Abruzzo, $7.40. LCBO# 454629.

I’m long overdue for a review of a new $10 wine, and have had this one waiting to be sipped and judged for a while. I paired this Italian red with our pizza masterpiece, as it only seemed fitting. Unfortunately, it was far less spectacular than the pizza.

While this bottle comes in at the same price point as one of my Italian favourites (Farnese Sangiovese Daunia, $7.40), it doesn’t have nearly the same body and soul. I know I’m comparing apples to oranges as far as grape varietal, but I’m really comparing value for money and drinkability in the cheap Italy aisle at the LCBO.

Part of this wine’s weakness may be the alcohol content- it sits at 12%, which gives an almost watery quality. While it does go down easy with nothing much to complain about taste-wise, it’s also missing something to make it interesting.

It started out promising, a nice ruby red colour and slightly earthy nose. But the taste is a bit indistinguishable; the LCBO references dark berries, leather and herbs. My palate picked up “mediocre but very affordable red wine.” It also says this is medium bodied, where I would call it light.

I think this is a case of what you’re looking for in a red. When I pick up an Italian table wine, I’d like it to be full and robust, and bring something to the meal. Hence my love of Farnese. However, if you are not a full bodied red kind of person, this wine might be your style. It’s light, easy to drink, and doesn’t overpower the food. It might also be good to drink on its own- not so much flavour that it overwhelms your taste buds.

Overall, I give this wine 7/10 for taste and 3.5/5 for value.

Our 8 economical bottles, ordered from highest score to lowest.

I am very happy to report that last night, a good time was had by all.  We hosted our very first $10 wine tasting, which I hope is only the first of many variations on that theme.

The rules were: you must bring 2 bottles of your favourite $10 wine (red or white), one for tasting and one for the prize basket. The bottles for tasting were wrapped in brown paper bags and were sampled “blind,” ordered from white to red and randomly numbered.  The bottles were scored out of 20 (5 for nose, 5 for taste, 5 for finish and 5 for overall impression). We picked the basics: how does it smell, do you like the taste, how does it leave your mouth, and what do you think of it overall? Here is a copy of the $10 wine tasting score sheet for those who want to host a similar event. The score sheet is certainly not designed for wine snobs and sommeliers, but for ordinary folk who might not be thinking of uppity terms like balance, complexity and bouquet.

Last night we had 13 attendees and 8 bottles (5 white and 3 red). The winner was Beringer California Collection Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, $9.95. Sadly it was not my entry, but a wine I’ve reviewed in the past and been very pleased with regarding quality at its price point. Good choice, Eve & Tomek. Congrats on winning 8 bottles of wine, and thanks for sharing a few with your hosts!

Kevin and I entered our latest favourite white, Sogrape Gazela Vinho Verde 2009, $8.95. Unfortunately it was not a fan favourite, and we came in 6th. I think our crowd enjoyed off-dry whites the most, and weren’t into its crisp dry spritzy quality.  But I still love it!

Here is a list of the 8 wines and where they fell in the ranks:

1. 2008 Beringer California Collection Cabernet Sauvignon, $9.95. LCBO# 113001. (California)

-Soft vanilla and oak flavours, very smooth finish and medium-full body.

2. 2009 Deinhard Green Label Riesling, $11.95. LCBO# 8094. (Germany)

-Off-dry, fruity and fresh.

3. 2009 Ruffino Orvieto Classico, $11.75. LCBO# 31062. (Italy)

-Slightly off-dry, clean and crisp with flavours of apple and pear.

4. 2009 Copper Moon Moonlight Harvest Pinot Grigio, $9.45. LCBO# 158303. (Ontario, Canada)

-Off-dry with flavours of citrus and melon.

5. 2009 Argento Chardonnay, $9.95. LCBO# 591701. (Argentina)

-Fruity with a sweet, almost maple syrup finish.

6. 2009 Sogrape Gazela Vinho Verde, $8.95. LCBO# 141432. (Portugal)

-Dry, light and effervescent. Flavours of citrus and tomato leaf.

7. 2008 Finca Flichman Misterio Malbec, $7.95. LCBO# 28803.  (Argentina)

-Oaky nose and blackberry flavours. Medium-bodied, fruity and toasty.

8. 2009 Funky Llama Shiraz, $9.90. LCBO# 614685. (Argentina)

-Black currant flavours with a hint of oak, medium-bodied.

All the bottles were enjoyed and represented great quality for price. My personal top 3 were the Beringer Cab-Sav (17.5/20), Gazela Vinho Verde (16/20) and Ruffino Orvieto Classico (16/20). Funnily enough they are all wines I have reviewed before and really enjoyed.  Even with a “blind” tasting, I still like what I like!

2008 Ruffino Orvieto Classico, $11.75. LCBO#31062

I am on a white wine kick lately…..must be all the sunshine and blooming bulbs putting me in the mood for summer sippers.  This week’s Wine Wednesday offering comes from Italy, one of my favourite affordable wine locations.  This bottle clocks in at a bit over $10, but is still very affordable at $11.75, and was given to me by my very generous friends, Juliana & Kamary. I am told that this is their go-to bottle of wine.

The wine is a medium straw colour, and has the aroma and taste of apples and pears. Very slightly off-dry, as well as light bodied, clean and crisp.  Definitely easy drinking!  Could be fun on the patio, served extra chilled. Would go well with some spicy Asian food or seafood. We paired it with a spaghetti concoction featuring scallops, roasted tomatoes, olive oil & garlic.  Very tasty, and a good balance for the delicious oiliness of the pasta dish.

Overall, I give this bottle 8/10 for taste and 3.5/5 for value.

2009 Sogrape Gazela Vinho Verde, $8.95. LCBO#141432.

I have a lovely spring sipper to share for this wonderful wine Wednesday. My colleague Shelley recommended that I check out vinho verde, and I am happy I took her advice. I have to admit I picked this bottle because it was the prettiest one I saw in the Portugal section of the LCBO.  Luckily my very unscientific selection method worked in my favour. As well, it fit the under $10 criteria, much to my delight.

Vinho verde means “green wine,” which I suppose is fairly intuitive; it refers to wine that is meant to be enjoyed young. White vinho verde is actually made from green grapes. The name “Gazela” should probably have warned me that it is a sparkling wine….but I am a bit thick at times, so I was surprised by the bubbles. A good surprise, mind you, as the spritziness makes the wine even fresher and more appropriate for spring/summer.

Sogrape’s Gazela is a nice pale straw colour, with crisp citrus notes; it’s very dry, light and refreshing. I often don’t enjoy sparkling wines because they can be on the sweet side, but this bottle is dry enough for me. I would even take it to a celebration in place of an affordable bottle of champagne, because champagne at a price point comparable to this would hardly be drinkable. This would be great for a girl’s night or get together with tapas. I can’t wait to get another bottle of Gazela to pair with some seafood and then enjoy it on my patio under the sun.

Overall, I give this bottle 8.5/10 for taste and 4.5/5 for value.

2007 J. Lohr Seven Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon, $21.95. LCBO#656561.

For this week’s Wine Wednesday, I have a fabulous wine to report on. I highly recommend having a birthday party mixed with a house warming party, because apparently it makes people shower you with lovely bottles of wine. This bottle was given to me by my friend Jung, who has always had impeccable taste in all things gourmand.

This Cabernet Sauvignon definitely falls outside my usual $10 range, but is worth every penny. J. Lohr Wineries has several California vineyards, and this bottle was born at their Paso Robles location. Paso Robles is my favourite California region, and I’ve just added J. Lohr to my mental list for the wine tour I am always imagining. I’m happy to see that the LCBO considers this bottle a Vintages Essential as this is definitely my pick for my next wine splurge.

The wine is a very dense purple with an earthy, toasty nose.  The taste is a berry-plum mix, with lots of soft, buttery oak. It is wonderfully full bodied and would pair well with something hearty and beefy. We sipped it solo and then gorged on crackers and cheese while rather tipsy, and that worked well too.

I would fully endorse this bottle for your next special occasion, or Friday night splurge. Pair with pasta, BBQ, or just savour it on its own. You will not be disappointed!

Overall, I give this wine 10/10 for taste and 4/5 for value.