Category Archives: France

Around the world in eight Chardonnays

PHOTO: SUTSAIY/FOTOLIA.COM

as seen on canada.com

Chardonnay covers more than 400,000 acres seemingly everywhere and is the most widely planted wine grape on earth. Today marks its fourth annual global celebration. Who knew there was this marketing concept using social media as the thread that connects the global conversation together. If you live in Niagara and have some free time, then you my friend are in the right place. Many wineries (17 at last count) are offering special events and free tastings today, including Flat Rock Cellars, Tawse, Lailey, Hidden Bench, Thirty Bench, Southbrook, Coyote’s Run, Niagara College Teaching Winery, Pondview, Chateau des Charmes, Stratus, 13th Street, Henry of Pelham, Cave Spring, Malivoire and Norman Hardie. Click here for a full list of events.

Chardonnay is cool, especially in Canada, blessed with a quintessential climate for growing the most international and recognizable of the world’s white grapes. Chardonnay comes in all shapes and styles, from unoaked to heavily toasted, aged in stainless steel or concrete vats to barrel fermented. Some styles use wood chips, some Chardonnay is fermented on its lees. Chardonnay is responsible for some of the world’s great Sparkling wines, especially Champagne. Is there a comparable white grape that speaks of its origins in more varied tones? Conversely, can another variety be singled out as having suffered through more international vinification manipulation? So, Chardonnay conjunction junction, what’s your function?  Want to know what Canadians are saying about Chardonnay? Ontario Wine Chat has the answers.

If you are looking to experience the wonders of Chardonnay, from a global perspective, surrounded by experts in a setting designed for relaxation and genuflection, look here:

In anticipation of the International Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration #i4c2013 and to pay tribute to this marketing sensation that is International Chardonnay Day, here are eight great examples from near and far, all available to taste, try and sample somewhere close by.

Clockwise from left: Cave Spring Estate Bottled Chardonnay Musqué 2010, Domaine du Chardonnay Chablis 2011, Southbrook Vineyards Triomphe Chardonnay 2011, Wolf Blass Gold Label Chardonnay 2010, Norman Hardie County Chardonnay 2011, Hidden Bench Tête de Cuvée Chardonnay 2009, Drappier Signature Blanc De Blancs Brut Champagne, and Stratus Chardonnay 2010

Cave Spring Estate Bottled Chardonnay Musqué 2010 (246579, $15.95) from Wines for the Ides of March is fresh in chert, posy aromatic and stuffed with an airy, sense of whipped lemon cream. Salinity and white pepper add kick and spice to this Chardonnay cousin only Cave Spring seems to have mastered.  89  @CaveSpring

Domaine du Chardonnay Chablis 2011 (183574, $19.95) deserves 105 points for the domain name alone but really this is just solid, good fun. Chablis as I expect it to be. Apples and cinnamon, ginger, a hint of macadamia and citrus zest. Minor bitter note trumped by ripe fruit and a clean finish. Really quite good.  88

Southbrook Vineyards Triomphe Chardonnay 2011 ($21.95, 172338) from A wine pentathlon binds FSO2 with jack or durian, febrile fruit. For now hard to figure, like a grey rose or a Pink Floyd. Offers up a creamy warmth in resonant echoes but amplified as if still trapped inside the barrel. The best days remain ahead for this certified and biodynamic Chardonnay, which in two to three years time will “come streaming in on sunlight wings.” 89  @SouthbrookWine

Wolf Blass Gold Label Chardonnay 2010 (606186, $29.95) is about as internationally-styled as it gets from the Adelaide Hills of South Australia. Smells like it’s still inside the barrel, as if the tropical fruit was wrapped up in a smoking, sweat lodge towel. Big on hot rocks, steaming and emitting earthy scents, nutty in every respect, big, big Chardonnay. Nerve, verve and understanding.  90  @WolfBlassWines

Norman Hardie County Chardonnay 2011 ($35, winery only) from Come together, over wine is not merely a window into the vintage but the portal. Bright, golden fruit, freakish level of mineral and longer than the old Greer Road. Norman will always have ’08 but the newbies will be lucky to discover 2011. Who wouldn’t fall for its charms. When it comes to this Prince Edward County Chardonnay, “one and one don’t make two, one and one make one.” I call that a bargain.  92  @normhardie

Hidden Bench Tête de Cuvée Chardonnay 2009 ($45, winery only) from Big wines from California and the Bench from HB’s oldest, most highly regarded and meticulously maintained vines shows ravishing and refined restraint in elegance. Warm pineapple and mango coagulation jarred by the vintage’s piercing acidity and immense length. Head of the class, rings the bell, nails the lecture.  93  @HiddenBench

Drappier Signature Blanc De Blancs Brut Champagne (599860, $46.95) continues a VINTAGES string of excellent value in Champagne releases. Made from 100% Chardonnay, this BdB is pronounced in , yeasty dough definition, hinting at agave and unwashed cheese rind. Where there’s bubbles there’s a way and I like where this one is going. The agave replays in sweet waves, as does the the sour in faint yet discernible sloshes. Much to contemplate in this NV sparkler.  90   @Halpernwine

Stratus Chardonnay 2010 ($55) from Stratus and Momofuku: Modernity incarnate from natural yeast, full batch (bunch) pressing and heeded by Paul’s call to full malolactic fermentation, this fruit was picked on November 15th, a day “you had to go run and pick fast.” Groux is not trying to make California or Burgundy but make the best in Niagara. Clarity and sun drenched hue, tropical fruit dominance, sweetness, malo-butterscotch obviousness. Some tart orchard fruit late but certainly warm vintage wine. Not the most arid Chardonnay but blessed with great length.  91  @Stratuswines

Good to go!

Go Gamay Go

Beaujolais at Acadia Restaurant Photos: (DANIEL YAM/WWW.DANIELYAMPHOTOGRAPHY.COM)

Beaujolais at Acadia Restaurant
Photos: (DANIEL YAM/WWW.DANIELYAMPHOTOGRAPHY.COM)

as seen on canada.com

It’s the current war cry by the voices of those who know. A plea and a calling to Canadian growers and winemakers to plant and bottle more Gamay Noir. A proclamation in favour of a great grape and one that forges signature wines out of Canadian soils. I am an ardent supporter of and a willing rider on the Gamay bandwagon, in the name of connaitre and savoir, kennen and wissen, recognition and understanding.

They are ostensibly all climatically cool, the wine regions of Canada. The Okanagan and Similkameen valleys of British Columbia, the Niagara Peninsula, Lake Erie North Shore and Prince Edward County of Ontario, the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia and Monteregie of Québec. But, it’s not just about the weather anymore. Existentially speaking, Canadian wine is cool.

Gamay is the grape of Beaujolais in east-central France and the principal variety of that immediate geographical neighbour to the south of the world’s most influential and serious of all wine regions, Burgundy. Thin-skinned, low in tannin and often in acidity too, Gamay has for centuries played last fiddle and ugly cousin to Pinot Noir. With the rise of the Beaujolais Cru, that is, red wines made from recognized and identified plots within appellations like Moulin à Vent, Brouilly and Morgon, Gamay has left the orchestra pit and is rapidly gaining solo notoriety. Beaujolais is no longer nouveau. It’s old hat.

While I wait for the #GoGamayGo network to convince our councils, marketing boards and vintners to establish a Canadian Cru system, or at least a comprehensive tasting of Canadian Gamay, I’ll turn my attention to our French forefathers.

Anthony Collet discussing Beaujolais Photos: Daniel Yam/www.danielyamphotography.com)

Anthony Collet discussing Beaujolais

On Wednesday, May 15th, The Beaujolais Wine Council, led by Anthony Collet of Inter Beaujolais and with the assistance of the Siren Group, hosted a wine tasting at Acadia Restaurant. Five ineluctable courses ushered in 12 diverse Beaujolais. The patio luncheon featured Indian, Korean, New Orleans and Portuguese barbecue created by chef Patrick Kriss. Chef’s plates are like holorimes, simple yet complex, parts seemingly unrelated yet bound together by rhyming flavours and techniques. Food crucially matched to Gamay ready to be reckoned with. The least of which made for simple, pleasurable drinking, the best as sang-froid, cellar worthy candidates. Here are the notes.

Beaujolais Wines

Beaujolais Wines

Château Des Jacques Beaujolais Grand Clos de Loyse 2010 (11094399, $19.75) from Louis Jadot holdings in Romanèche is shameless Chardonnay, forwardly fruity and straight on the rocks. From a stainless steel ferment, the Loyse gives off a vinous, tart, pressed gas and Hercynian sedimentary note. Soft white, lithe and airy.  88  @liffordwine

CREOLE SHRIMP, anson mills grits

Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Fun 2009 (228155, $10.95, SAQ, 11459482, $14.75) talks turkey, offers a pretenseless picnic of pure Gamay fruit and remains remarkably fresh for a 2009. Puts the FU back into fun against many a challenger. I may be alone in defence of this simple quaff but inveigle against my wine soul if this ‘aint a good deal.  87  @dandurandwines

Louis Jadot Beaujolais-Villages Combe Aux Jacques 2011 (365924, $17.95, SAQ, 365924, $16.70) seems a simple distillation hosting a floating purée of raspberry and cranberry. A sniff of smoldering tree bark keeps it interesting. Nothing to hide from, nor to rush to.  86  @ljadot

Related – A terrific write-up of the event from The Wine Sisters

Acadia Restaurant's Piri Piri Chicken

Acadia Restaurant’s Piri Piri Chicken

 

PIRI PIRI CHICKEN LEG, yogurt

Bouchard Aîné & Fils Beaujolais Superieur 2011 (9431, $11.95) the fresh fruit maker shows some mid-life separation in peppery kick though it’s really quite round. Leads my table mates and I to believe it should be semi-chilled in good ones and over-chilled in less than good vintages.  86

Jacques Dépagneux Morgon Côte Du Puy 2011 (299925, $18.95) is possessed of the appellation’s basic lexical features, that is morphemic, mannish, “spell mmm, aaa child, nnn” linguistics, in smoke, spice and acidity. Goes deeper than non-Cru Beaujolais, if it’s just a bit leaner than when I first tasted it last November. This Gamay speaks in muddy water, beefcake tones now but may not be talking as proud as time goes by. Very good but not quite great example.  89

Domaine Joseph Burrier Saint-Amour Côte de Besset 2009 (11154419, $25.85) confounds by holding out a yes or no answer as to its possible ringer status. Inscrutable Gamay, puckering in dried raisin and cherry, but also sun-dried tomato. Baked, nearly tawny, sullied even. Clearly a child of the searing vintage, hefty and despite the cooked character, it matched quite well with the piquant chicken.  87

Acadia Restaurant's Grilled Eggplant

Acadia Restaurant’s Grilled Eggplant

 

GRILLED EGGPLANT, peanut, coconut & curry condiment

Château De Pierreux Brouilly 2011 (5496, $18.95, SAQ, 10754421, $20.15) is wondrous Gamay, clearly defined by aromas of juicy berries and all things forest. I could enjoy a boatload of this floral Brouilly without ever taking a sip. Further to that it starts out soft, vanilla relaxed, glides in confident refinement then spikes in smoke, tar and heat on the back palate. Could use a chill.  88

Villa Ponciago Fleurie La Réserve 2011 (299917, $21.95) from Champagne house Henriot is the most feminine thus far, expressive of a queen’s terroir, delicate, poignant, pretty. Deserving of a Roy Orbison croon, “ma fleur de lis, je t’aime beaujolais.” Reminds me of blueberry pie, or plum pudding, this PYT, full of aplomb and plume.  89  @WoodmanWines

George DuBoeuf Beaujolais-Villages 2010 (122077, $12.95) is a blast from the past, a parson’s project that wants to be juice but really it’s just pink turning red drink. Pink, red, sugar, water…drink. Certainly the most “nouveau” of the lot, this “catch twenty-two” bottle represents everything the region is trying to avoid and diversify away from. I will admit there is a touch of earthy complexity, just enough so to give it a lifeline and value.  85

Acadia Restaurant's Korean Short Rib

Acadia Restaurant’s Korean Short Rib

 

KOREAN SHORT RIB, crispy rice, sesame & chili

Domaine Manoir Du Carra Juliénas 2010 (290981, $19.95) the pearl finally puts some funk into “an otherwise empty room.” Dandy, candied peony, cracking good, cinnamon scented and jammy in Rhôneish behaviour. More structure than most.  Beaujolais’ daughter.  91

Domaine du Vissoux Moulin-à-Vent Les Trois Roches 2010 (11154427, $24.75) from star winemaker Pierres Dorées is the tasting’s prince, handsome, chivalrous, a lady’s man. Black cherry, duck reductive, sweet and musky. Searches for game, digs for truffles, wants to be seen with slow-cooked meat.  88

Domaine Piron-Lameloise Chénas Quartz 2009 (240481, $22.50) the flamboyant and flirtatious one is like a (clears throat) mini Brunello. Cherry, rose, tea, cedar and sandalwood seem so Sangiovese in a Grosso way. Who knew ’09 Beaujolais could seem so Tuscan.  90

DARK CHOCOLATE GANACHE, chantilly cream, caramel popcorn

Good to go!

Mother’s Day barbecue wines

Barque Smokehouse Dry-Rub Ribs PHOTO: JILL CHEN/FREESTYLEFARM.CA

as seen on canada.com

One year ago to the day, I extolled the virtues of Chardonnay and why it was the wine of choice to drink with mom on Mother’s Day. I would be skirting the channeling of my inner, anti-ABC if that universal variety was left out this coming weekend so click here for an unoaked beauty in stores right now.

Related – more current releases

The sudden dramatic shift in the weather has had an immediate and necessary impact, with all points leading to barbecue. In order to please everyone involved, including mom, dad and carnivorous kin, a range of wines will be needed this coming Sunday afternoon. Being the wine consuming and recommending diplomat that I am, here are four white, rosé and red wines to share time in the proverbial sun and to assist with what comes from the kitchen, off the grill or out of the Mother’s Day smoker.

From left: Muga Rosé 2012, Colaneri Estate Riesling ”Stellucha” 2009, Balbas Reserva 2001, and Domaine Thomas & Fils Cuvée Grand Chaille Sancerre 2011

The grapes: Garnacha, Tempranillo and Viura

The history: Rioja winery so famous for its rich, red wine tradition

The lowdown: Perennial quality in Spanish rosé always priced to please

The food match: Barque Smokehouse Smoked Shrimp, Smoked Salmon, Bacon and Eggs Tapas

Muga Rosé 2012 (603795, $12.95) offers up honest to goodness, straightforward value. Pale pink grapefruit, gentle spice and dried roses marked by juicy acidity. “It can’t be too grand,” just as it shouldn’t be. No dinosaur here, no disguise, no bones, just simple, tasty and amenable. Afternoon sipper.  87  @bodegasmuga

Barque Smokehouse Smoked Shrimp, Smoked Salmon, Bacon and Eggs Tapas (Photo: Jill Chen/freestylefarm.ca)

The grape: Riesling

The history: Winemaker Andrzej Lipinski is a Niagara pioneer in Appassimento-styled wines, made by adding modified kiln-dried grapes to the ferment

The lowdown: Was worth the price of admission at $15.95 upon release. Now it’s a steal. This is quite full-bodied for Riesling but low in alcohol (11.3 per cent)

The food match: Scallop Ceviche, grapefruit, orange, pickled wild leek, basil, olive oil

Colaneri Estate Riesling ”Stellucha” 2009 (279778, $13.15) is built on 70% (John Howard) Beamsville Bench and 30% (estate) Niagara-on-the-Lake fruit. Exceeds expectations, acting as bridge from day to night. Works the midnight sky in a passion momento while a “shimmering crescent moon recedes into working dawn.” Faint apple, peach pit, high in citrus and a fulgor accent of lit kiln. Time has been and will continue to be a friend to this lily of the midnight sky.  89 @ColaneriWinery

Scallop Ceviche, grapefruit, orange, pickled wild leek, basil, olive oil (Photos: Michael Godel)

The grapes: Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon

The history: Founded in 1777, this may be the oldest winery in Ribera Del Duero with the most modern approach to winemaking

The lowdown: A $20 bottle of wine in a $40 suit. This is without a doubt the best deal in Spanish wine since the December 7th, 2001 VINTAGES release of the Montecillo Gran Reserva 1991 at $18.95

The food match: Chicken Breast and Top Sirloin Shish Kebabs, cremini mushroom, wild leek pesto marinade

Balbas Reserva 2001 (85183, $20.95) while mature is so alive and grooved by a Beckian beat you would be hard pressed to blindly consider it 12-years old. Deep purple fruit with a hint of caramel, cedar and cigar. Qué onda Duero? I’ll tell you what’s happening. Aged Ribera, structured, in balance and very much alive for $21. Makes me want to “sing a banda macho chorus.” Screaming value.  91  @DrinkRibera

Chicken Breast and Top Sirloin Shish Kebabs, cremini mushroom, wild leek pesto marinade

The grape: Sauvignon Blanc

The history: True SB from the southern Loire Valley run by a ninth generation husband and wife team, Jean and Ginette Thomas

The lowdown: Limestone, clay and silica form a flint and sand mixture known as silex, making these Loire vineyards one of the premier growing soils in the world

The food match: Barque Smokehouse Dry-Rub Ribs

Domaine Thomas & Fils Cuvée Grand Chaille Sancerre 2011 (320242, $28.95) begs for significance and presents a ritual immersion by virtue of its base representation of ideal Sauvignon Blanc. Walks the flint and rocks of two Loire vineyards, marries them, then talks the caulk and chalk of those sites. If just a touch reserved at the moment, the Grand Chaille will grow out of its acidic twang five years forward to realize itself as excellent Sauvignon Blanc.  92 @LoireValleyWine

Good to go!

Go leeks go

Wild leeks, left, and Roast Chicken with Leeks PHOTO: MICHAEL GODEL

as seen on canada.com

Foraging for wild edibles in Ontario’s forests can be a bit of a cat and mouse affair. Fiddle heads unfurl to become ferns in the blink of an eye. Morels and other fungi pop from the loam, air-dry, wither and petrify well-nigh faster than they can be spotted and cut away.  A fragile spring ephemeral’s fleeting emergence is quickly curtailed by nature’s short season, much like this year’s edition of NHL hockey. The Toronto Maple Leafs are certainly destined to follow nature’s folly but that one character win may be all that is needed to sustain and re-energize a hockey-crazed Leafs nation.

The Blue and White (and to a lesser extent, the Ottawa Senators) are the “it plant” right now, the wild leeks of hockey. The playoffs always swell with controversy, like the argument over the pillaging of forests for commercial use. Despite a growing polemic swirl over their use in restaurant kitchens, the eastern part of North America has turned into wild leek heaven. Unfazed chefs will only concern themselves as to whether or not leeks in late spring should be relegated to pickling.

A bit of etymology for you. Allium tricoccum are garlic-like, savoury, herbal and piquant bulbs prized for their subtle pungency and gastronomic versatility. From the Scottish word ramps or ramsh, the Old English hramsa and  the Proto-germanic hramsaz. Also known as ramson (latin) or ramuscium and “chicagoua,” an American aboriginal name for wild leek. Leeks grow in the northeast, mainly in New England, west to Michigan, north to Ontario and also east to Quebec and New Brunswick.

Lake Simcoe Wild Leeks (Photos: Michael Godel)

So what’s the problem? Quebec considers les poireaux des vignes a vulnerable plant and feels their removal is damaging to a forest’s’ ecosystem. A few years back it became illegal to harvest them for commercial use. Endangered and protected in Quebec, but not in Ontario. Harvest Ontario and companies life Front-Door Organics believe the practice is sustainable and if done right there is the possibility for regeneration. Some stick to a 20% removal rule, some 5%. Some take only the leaves, some also remove the purple petiole (stem), others the bulbs but not the roots. Still others go right down to the roots but leave the hardened tuber below. There really is no proof as to what ultimately damages or saves the plant’s community. Discretion is key.

I am blessed and fortunate to have access to a private forest carpeted with millions of wild leeks. I dig up perhaps two hundred each year, moving from clump to clump, carefully selecting one here and there. I move throughout the entire forest, careful not to leave any distinguishable trace or bare patch. Selective thinning is about as far as I take my harvest.

What I have successfully experimented with is the idea that ramps can be cultivated in their native habitats. I have transplanted them to my Toronto backyard in four consecutive years and they have returned each time. Some have even divided and multiplied. It’s an amazing thing to see, my own homemade mesic woods complete with the true harbingers of spring.

Here are four quick wild leek dishes and four current release wines to match.

From left: GreenLane Estate Unoaked Chardonnay 2011, Vineland Estates Chenin Blanc 2011, Domaine Allimant-Laugner Crémant d’Alsace Rosé and Tyrrell’s Brookdale Semillon 2012

Fresh Linguine, padano parmesan, wild leeks

GreenLane Estate Unoaked Chardonnay 2011 (329409, $17.95) out of Niagara’s Lincoln Lakeshore is really good juice. Piques thoughts of juicy, just picked apples, green and white flesh melon. A waterfall of viscid acidity marked by chalk and stone supports my bent for this appellation and the unplugged Chardonnay revolution. Double “L” is the spot for this style and 2011 delivers.  90  @GreenLaneWinery

Fresh Linguine with Wild Leeks

Jamaican Yam, Parsnip and Yukon Gold Potato Mash, wild leeks

Vineland Estates Chenin Blanc 2011 (227033, $18.95) is possessed of a manly musk and the scent of a lit wick. Warm, waxy, lanolic acid bite, long, stratified and along with the bottling by Cave Spring, this is the epitome of Chenin Blanc astride the Niagara Escarpment. The wine occupies white fruit, flowers and honey territory too. Layered in stratum and sub-stratum, like an onion, or a wild leek.  90  @benchwineguy

Root Vegetable Mash with Wild Leeks

Roast Chicken, white wine, tomato, parsley, wild leeks

Domaine Allimant-Laugner Crémant d’Alsace Rosé (319939, $19.95) from 100% Pinot Noir announces its versatility from sip number one. Lucent and vivid Alsatian sparkler, crisp, creamy distilled raspberry, red apple and vanilla pureé. Good verve, nuance and I love the understatement. All you really need on the patio, with mom next weekend and with a piquant wild leek preparation. 89  @NLaugner

Eggplant, fiddleheads, basil, wild leeks

Tyrrell’s Brookdale Semillon 2012 (269316, $19.95) is vividly green, as in young and inexperienced and not yet ready to tell you its story. From the outset it asks for five plus patient years so it may flesh out and open its library doors. Though only in hints, there is green plum, craggy salinity, zinging spice and stonking lanolin spiked by lemon juice and zest. Put some away and wait.  91  @TyrellsWines

Good to go!

Top 10 wines for May Day

PHOTO: FABIOBERTI.IT/FOTOLIA.COM

as seen on canada.com

If April was the cruelest month (and in 2013 it certainly seemed like it was), May has just got to be better. A good, proper and solid bottle of wine would go a long way towards fashioning sunny and warmer days. Wine stores can seem like a waste land, filled with a sea of monochromatic bottles from which it’s impossible to choose from. You might ask your local product consultant, “what branches grow out of this stony rubbish?”

Related – More Spring wine releases

Fear not, for the answers to your mayday distress calls are answered. Here are ten current releases to pour at tonight’s May Day table.

Clockwise from left: Angels Gate Sauvignon Blanc 2011, Lionel Osmin Mon Adour Madiran 2008, Smoke & Gamble Reserve Cabernet Merlot 2010, Wittmann Riesling Trocken 2011, Domaine Du Petit Métris Les Fougeraies Savennières 2009, The Good Earth The Good Wine Betty’s Blend 2011, Il Marroneto Brunello Di Montalcino 2007, Hidden Bench Terroir Caché Meritage 2009, Rainoldi Crespino Valtellina Superiore 2006, and Loan Wines Unwooded Special Reserve Semillon 2004

Angels Gate Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (277590, $13.95) in comely, pale gold flesh and peach blossom nose is well designed if not grape-specific “correct.” And I thank her for that. Leads like a Jack Johnson ballad, gathering then tempering the vintage’s acidity and finishing with a soulful refrain. Outright proper Beamsville Bench white wine, even if it bears little resemblance to the Loire or Marlborough. Good on her, this angel, “she gives me kisses on the lips just for coming home.”  88  @angelsgatewines

The Good Earth The Good Wine Betty’s Blend 2011 ($17.95, 327791) led by Bench earth that simply knew is front ranked by Chardonnay trailed by reserves of Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. Crafted from a ukase towards “petite lot, low yield” production, this laundered and commendable blend is tart in a sour key way. Fleur de sel and aquatic chalk add seasoning and texture. An umami latté.  87  @goodearthtweets

Loan Wines Unwooded Special Reserve Semillon 2004 (301127, $15.95) from Australia’s Barossa Valley is nearing fruit nugatory at nearly 10-years old. Lands right where aged Semillon should be, dry as the desert and tonically restorative. The colour of crystal gold and soda suppressing, spirited if not so sound fruit. Continues to speak in stinging tongues. I wouldn’t overlook its history.  89  @LeSommelierWine

Lionel Osmin Mon Adour Madiran 2008 (246850, $17.95) is no shrinking violet, in pitch, weight, cassonade (14.5 per cent abv) and tannin.  Tannat of an acute purple demanding in ocytone to match its spices and baked heat. A thick and syrupy southwestern French river of tar. Balks at brother Malbec and asks, “who’s the boss?”  89  @OsminCie

Smoke & Gamble Reserve Cabernet Merlot 2010 (332825, $18.95) just makes you want to head on down to Norfolk on Lake Erie’s north shore and set up camp. Roast some game by the campfire echoed by this satellite St. Emilion-styled blend’s aromas of licorice, smoldering cedar stick and plums poaching in the earth and acidity of the wine.  Gotta love the fitting rustic and campy label.  88  @DoverVineyards

Wittmann Riesling Trocken 2011 (320366, $20.95) may just be the driest Rheinhessen ever released. While there are no bubbles this Qualitätswein is like soda under immense pressure, inculcate of so much tension and threatening spontaneous combustion. Profound gold bouillon colour and the right amount of jolt to match the sec. Will magically quench any thirst, not leaving you hung out to dry.  88  @sir_neville

Domaine Du Petit Métris Les Fougeraies Savennières 2009 (319855, $23.95) screams “I am Chenin Blanc,” in honey on the pedal and maximum mineral metal. Aggressive, pursuing machine “stealing honey from a swarm of bees.” Petrol stinky, tangy thick, sticky with honey oozing everywhere, in comb and sweet-smelling suckle. Seriously huge and flashy. Will be stunning when it settles down.  92  @Savennieresaoc

Rainoldi Crespino Valtellina Superiore 2006 (316331, $31.95) is composed of 100 per cent Chiavennasca (Nebbiolo) from Lombardy. Grace, flowing ruby robe, striking. Lit by cherries bathing in a silica and gravel mineral bath, tightly wound in a swirling pensieve of real vinous thought. Elevated by cool, altitudinous breezes and gothic, statuesque like a Mantegazza. Northern, alpine and proud.  93  @VinumValtellina

Hidden Bench Terroir Caché Meritage 2009 ($32.95, winery only) is akin to a Canadian dining experience; like the highest quality smoked meat sandwich, or rare, lean game, fruit purée and demi-glacé. All in a wine. From my previous note: “Occupies hallowed Beamsville Bench middle ground between the beastly corpulence of 2008 and the rich, voluptuous 2010. Puzzling blend. Approachable and formidable. I sip and sip and sip her majesty in spite of her necessary acidity and tenacious tannin. “I want to tell her that I love her a lot but I gotta get a bellyful of wine.”  92  @HiddenBench

Il Marroneto Brunello Di Montalcino 2007 (190108, $46.95) in a tight, rusty-red dress flirts like a good ’07 should, sets her table with a bouquet of roses, dried fruit and herbs. She’ll be a star in five years,  reprising her role in alluring, candied rose perfume, cherries and fine leather.  92  @ConsBrunello

Good to go!

Cloudy with showers, more wine expected

Barque Smoked Miami Beef Rib PHOTO: JILL CHEN/FREESTYLEFARM.CA

as seen on canada.com

This one’s for the floodwaters ravaged and oppressed in cottage country and to a much lesser extent, the city dwellers, this morning’s sunshine respite notwithstanding, faced with a few more days of wet April doom and gloom. There is always wine to cheer you up. County in the City presented by Wine Align  is a must not miss event tonight at the Berkeley Church.

For the rest of you keeping score at home, here are five sure bet $20 wines guaranteed to get you through the last week of April showers.

From left: Clos De Nouys Demi-Sec Vouvray 2011, Huff Estates Pinot Gris 2011, Clifford Bay Pinot Noir 2010, Stratus Vineyards Wildass Red 2011, and Eos Estate Winery Petite Sirah 2011

The grape: Chenin Blanc

The history: From one of the oldest Loire wine-making estates (Pierre Chainier) in the Vouvray A.O.C.

The lowdown: Loire Chenin Blanc ranges from dry to sweet and creamy sparkling. This is designated semi-dry but it tends dry because of a strong limestone mineral component

The food match: Basque Pintxos

Clos De Nouys Demi-Sec Vouvray 2011 (322669, $19.95) has already begun to stun in citrine and a petrol whiff plays the stage while the other aromas wait in the wings. Earthy for a white wine, a vin tuffeau-jaune if you will, no doubt imparted by the creamy, calcareous-argillaceous limestone soil. Sweet pear and the stuff of almonds lurk in the shadows. To taste there is little cloying danger and even a touch of cheese rind. It’s really quite dry, like Großes Gewächs German Riesling, but its balance is impeccable.  91  @imbibersreport

The grape: Pinot Gris

The history: Prince Edward County born and bred proprietor Lanny Huff teams with Burgundy born winemaker Frédéric Picard

The lowdown: Really a white and sparkling specialist (though they do grow Merlot), Huff’s Pinot Gris is a character study unlike any other PEC peer

The food match: Agedashi Tofu

Huff Estates Pinot Gris 2011 (134221, $19.95) initiates contact in a fusty, gamy way, not unlike some of my favourite reds in Montalcino and Châteauneuf-du-Pape. But this is Alsatian-styled Pinot Gris we’re talking about here. Fortunately a huff and a puff blows the dank aside and it gets peachy in West Indies pepper sauce after that. Lots of piquant character in this Prince Edward County charmer.  90  @HuffEstatesWine

The grape: Pinot Noir

The history: From the eponymous body of water at the eastern entrance of the Cook Strait and the Tasman Sea, separated by the White Cliffs from the more famous Cloudy Bay

The lowdown: From grapes grown in the Awatere Valley, this is essentially cool climate Pinot Noir and it shows

The food match: Barque Smoked Miami Beef Rib

Clifford Bay Pinot Noir 2010 (309500, $19.95) with its bright lights, big acids is spanking, aromatically clean. Raspberry fruit driven, big barking red dog, tart balanced (13.5 per cent abv) and full of pluck and punch. Would go nicely with the Barque of smoked meats.  89  @cliffordbaywine

The grapes: Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Tannat

The history: The Wildass line of wine from Stratus Vineyards seems to say “always look on the bright side of life.”

The lowdown: Laid back brand in appearance from J.L. Groux and team but this assemblage is no couch potato

The food match: Whole-Wheat Penne, spring greens, sausage

Stratus Vineyards Wildass Red 2011 (86363, $19.95) is a trailing vine of sweet ever-bearing, toffee coated candy strawberry. A wolf steppin‘ out of its Niagara comfort zone, reminding me of a red wine made by The Foreign Affair, in dried fruit (not jam) as if it were made in the appassimento method. It’s simply J.L. coaxing maximum concentration from vines in a balanced vintage and frankly this is better than most Veneto Valpolicella at the same price. This Wildass is “like a true nature’s child,” born to be wild.  89  @Stratuswines

The grape: Petite Sirah

The history: Also known as Durif, a black-skinned variety developed by Dr. Durif, a French nurseryman living in the south of France in the late 1800’s

The lowdown: California has embraced the grape and although it remains much maligned, when acidity and balance play their part, it can be so much more interesting than Cabernet Sauvignon, especially in Paso Robles

The food match:  Beef Shanks braised in red wine

Eos Estate Winery Petite Sirah 2011 (317677, $19.95) is certainly Cabernet-like with its rich berry fruit forward first step but it never goes over the top. The alcohol (13.9 per cent) remains in check, it’s minty and eucalyptus cool and white pepper gives it good bite. Exotic, smokey edge.  90  @EOSwinery

Good to go!

Masters wines in purple, yellow and green jackets

Photo: Melinda Nagy/Fotolia.com

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White and red. These are the two descriptors that separate and define wine. But the pigmentation in wine runs a colour spectrum way beyond the black and the white. Whites wines can appear pale or silvering, in platinum and argentate. They can be yellow and gold, in marigold and saffron. They can also be green, in jade, malachite and patina. Red wines are so often purple, in magenta, amethyst and amaranthine. They are also black, in slate and in charcoal. I employ this word salad rubric all the time, because that is what I see.

Have you ever really taken the time to look closely at the actual colour of your wine? To do so, the first order of necessity is a proper wine glass with a good-sized bowl and certainly not smaller than 16 ounces. Increasing the viewing area allows you to not only see hues but also nuance and variegation, especially when a wine has some age on it. The visual aspect of wine is huge. Don’t let it pass you by.

There will be many colours and golf attire styles on display this coming weekend at The Masters. You’ll see the Luke Donald Ralph Lauren GQ. The Ian Poulter English plaid, retro-kitsch. The Sean O’Hair Ashworth Nantucket. The Freddie Couples Masters green. The Ben Crane Hugo Boss, Mad Men yellow, green and orange. The Ricky Fowler Puma, day-glow yellows and greens. The Masters offers a sensory experience focused on colour unlike any other made for television sporting event. So many shades of green and so many moments of reflection. Reminds me of wine.

I’m certainly not suggesting to revolve your purchasing decisions around fashion and colour, but the next time you pour a glass, take note of its sheen. I guarantee it will add to the experience. Whether or not you care at all about the golf, here are six masterfully made drops to look for this coming weekend.

Clockwise from left: Hinterland Whitecap 2012, Dr. Hermann Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese 2007, Fielding Estate Cabernet Franc 2011, Resta Salice Salentino 2009, Viewpointe Estate Auxerrois 2011, Bachelder Bourgogne Chardonnay 2010

The Silver

Hinterland Whitecap 2012 (332809, $22) looks like lustrous sterling and that visual promotes a feeling of confidence. Tender spindrift and a Vidal, honeyed sweetness to smell. Waxy Muscat balm and a hint of draff. Riesling ties it all together in a well-structured sparkler crafted by Prince Edward County winemaker Jonas Newman. Like top quality Prosecco. Please do not mock the Charmat. Versatility be thy name!  89  @hinterlandwine

The Patina

Viewpointe Estate Auxerrois 2011 (327239, $14.95) is something completely different, unique and intriguingly surprising from the Lake Erie North Shore Appellation. Nice nose, despite a wet, though not a record rainfall season. Notes of stone fruit, flowers, equatorial like Gewürztraminer but not in lychee, candied but not cloying. Downy glycerin texture with nutty overtones and even key lime pie. Indicates a decemberist, classic, off-dry style. You can “rake your thumbnail across the stretch of the patina” but what you will find is balance and restoration.   88  @viewpointewines

The Marigold

Bachelder Bourgogne Chardonnay 2010 (272005, $29.95) oozes gossamer oak at the outset. Golden like an organic egg yolk, flocculent, thick and rich. Bests the ’09 with more smokey verve and struck stone guts. This one is very neurological, in colour, texture and feel.  90  @Bachelder_wines

The Jade

Dr. Hermann Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese 2007  (313528, $16.95) clocks in at a mere 8 per cent abv and is a nasal microchamber filled with dry ice but taste it and be soothed by its unguent goodness. Minerals, spice and everything nice out of red sandstone, slate soil and just barely beginning to act its age. OK, it may be a touch disjointed but at $17 they are giving it away. I could drink it like wheat grass all summer long.  90

The Charcoal

Resta Salice Salentino 2009 (324731, $14.95) is a modest Negroamaro mouse of currant, coal, olive and terrene. Powdery, cretaceous limestone and leather make this Puglian painfully arid and yet it is remarkably juicy. Funk monster too. “My brain’s the burger and my heart’s the charcoal.”  For lounging at closing time.  88  @DavidBowlerWine

The Magenta

Fielding Estate Cabernet Franc 2011  (36194, $21.95) sets the pepper mill on speed dial and certainly knows the inside of a barrel but what more could you possibly ask for? Unabashed, unbridled purple goodness. From my earlier note: “…has to be the best yet from Richie Roberts.  From a 35-acre Grand Cru (Five Rows) vineyard in the making in the heart of the warmest Niagara locale (St. David’s Bench). Zanthoxylum, capsicum and pencil shaving. Ropy grain, chewy, sylvan charm. On the card at Barque.  90  @FieldingWinery  @RichieWine

Good to go!

Part Two: A 30 march of value reds

PHOTO: MONKEY BUSINESS/FOTOLIA.COM

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Today’s date may read April 5th, 2013 but as far as I’m concerned, it’s still March. Winter chill hovers like a suffocating raft over a simmering cauldron of consommé. We are the suds, the weather our nimbus and we can’t wait to rent our effervescent clothes, break free from the mackerel sky and walk into spring.

Related – More March wine reviews

The coming weeks worth of frosty nights and their refusal to hightail on out of here must then be quelled by belly warming, hearty meals shared in kind with big, bold red wines. Here is a 15-strong list available now and in a store near you.

From left: Domaine Les Yeuses Les Épices Syrah 2010, Calmel + J Joseph Faugères 2009, Château Gadet Terrefort 2010, Herdade Penedo Gordo Vinho Tinto 2010, and Otazu Premium Cuvée 2007

The French

Domaine Les Yeuses Les Épices Syrah 2010 (177584, $13.95) is a remarkable price for a Vin Pays d’Oc acting as a ringer for a Mark Kent (Boekenhoutskloof) Franschhoek meets the Northern Rhône. A dish of roasted pork belly, boar musk, lacquer, black olive and sun-baked earth would work. Good follow-up to the 2009 Septaguanarian of pork perambulations. Impossible balance for a pittance.  87

Château Agnel Cuvée Phillipe Minervois 2009 (309195, $15.95) is no pretender, this disciplined study in equilibrium. Blessed with a freestyle swimmer’s ability to master strokes in one varietal medley. More Grenache than Syrah, more Yannick than Michael. Exercises a learned rusticity, acts “old enough to face the dawn.” An angel of the morning bursting forth in floral scents and reaching out with a graceful length. Languedoc red as microcosmic study in an Olympian, southern French pool.  88  @FrontierWine

Calmel + J Joseph Faugères 2009 (310193, $16.95) conjures up full-on hedonism in roasted mutton, garrigue, black raspberry jus and a shot ‘o java. Full-bodied, mochafied richesse, juicy, easy to consume if  never to be seen again. All for $17.  89  @LanguedocWines

Château Gadet Terrefort 2010 (307231, $20.95) waltzes out in empeltre olive, plum sangria and creamy chocolate. Turns roast meaty in gritty tannin, struts great intensity for Médoc, like a “black-haired flamenco dancer,” de color rojo oscuro, not unlike modern Montsant. “Pass me a bottle, Mr. Jones.”  90  @ProfileWineGrp 

Château Senejac 2009 (193037, $28.85, 11350145, SAQ, $26.85) walks a rustic, oxygenated Bordeaux tightrope threatening to fray but an earth, tar tincture and Mediterranean sense of longevity keeps this Haut-Médoc wound tightly together. Olive, licorice and Sambucan spice infuse in smokey tones.  91

The Portuguese

Herdade Penedo Gordo Vinho Tinto 2010 (218339, $13.95) from Alentejo, Portugal is very modern, full of lush, dusty berry fruit and void of hard lines. Licorice tang, suet roasted meat built on local grapes (Alicante Bouschet, Touriga Nacional, Aragonez and Trincadeira). Refines the nature of its origins.  87  @winesportugalCA

Quinta Do Penedo 2009 (313676, $18.95) of Syrah-like sheen jonesing to purple sets out muted but after a swirl opens to black cherry bubble gum. Alfrocheiro and Touriga Nacional work effortlessly together to fashion a Dão whose “white clouds have turned it black.”  This one can come away with me anytime.  88  

The Spanish

Otazu Premium Cuvée 2007 (313809, $16.95, SAQ 11387298, $18.70) plays an intense, gritty Navarran riff full of earthy expletives. Addictive, salty, marinated olive, black cherry plethoric red that stops you in your tracks. Makes use of Tempranillo, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Reminds me of the Hecula or the Manga del Brujo but is so much edgier, crazed, frantic. Wild stuff.  88  @bodegaotazu

Beronia Gran Reserva 2005 (940965, $32.95) has smoothed its cigar smoked extremities with vanilla cream. The sour cherry tang is a necessary advocate for balance and structure. This classic and classy Riojan is ready and willing to sit at the dinner table along side Chorizo, Jabali and stuffed Piquillos.  89  @WoodmanWines

The Argentines

La Puerta Reserva Bonarda 2009 (67801, $18.95) is a serious, brooding, dark and mysterious gem from  Famatina Valley in the north-west of the Province of La Rioja. Red stone fruit, vanilla bean and an Andean rock face of tannin. Once you go cool-climate, altitudinous Argentinian Bonarda, you may never go back to Malbec.  88  @LaPuertaWines

Versado Malbec 2010 (317008, $24.95) takes on Argentina by way of Southbrook (Ontario) and Sperling Family Vineyards (British Columbia) in the estimable hands of winemaker Ann Sperling. Husband and oeno-guru Peter Gamble joins forces to beeline straight for Luján de Cuyo typicity in deep cherry, pitching to black, solder spice and herbs smoldering in oak.  Cool and minting in its alveolate void. Interesting to say the least.  88  @VersadoWine

Versado Reserva Malbec 2009 (316984, $59.95) seems to travel a Hobbsian path laid out like Cobos cobblestone. At nearly two and a half times the cost of the Versado normale you might expect a revelation and you get one or two, if you allow your senses to drift out-of-body, into a lead crystal, Malbec state of consciousness. Tons of charcoal clouding the infundibular annals of the wine. Emerges as a scherzo in velvety tones, texture and structure.  90  @ArgentinaWineCA

The Californians

Langtry Guenoc Petite Sirah 2011 (19935, $17.95) is a more than commendable example out of the less than glamorous Lake County. At only 13% abv, the Langtry is modest and shy by PS standards, heavenly scented by blueberry, white chocolate and eucalyptus. California PS can be formidable stuff but here “I got a California rainbow to come give them thunder clouds a rest.”  87  @LangtryGuenoc

Highway 12 Highwayman 2010 (319186, $27.95) is a proprietary blend of Cabernet Franc (50%), Cabernet Sauvignon (30%) and Merlot (20%) from Sonoman Michael Sebastiani. Present but not overbearing 14.3% alcohol, decadent despite its roots but tempered by good chocolate, olives and herbs. The kind of brambly, inky blend you might swear had some Zinfandel or Syrah in the mix but straight Bordeaux it is. A whack of wine for $28 originally released down south at $42.  90  @highway12winery

The Australian

Dandelion Vineyards Lion’s Tooth of McLaren Vale Shiraz/Riesling 2010 (311233, $19.95) is not a typo or a joke. Riesling does round out this McLaren Vale Shiraz, not Viognier. Only an Aussie would take this risk and help me Rhonda if it doesn’t work. “I can give you lots a reasons why” this works and number one is balance. The dash of white kicks the red into gear – it may be a strange sensation for which there is no prior frame of reference, but boy if it don’t put me on a beach.  88  @mrkcstr

Good to go!

Part one: A 30 march of wines

Photo: Comugnero Silvana/Fotolia.com

as seen on canada.com

March ends in madness. Sydney Crosby breaks his jaw. The Toronto Maple Leafs are on their way to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Wichita State is heading to the final four while a Canadian star guard leads Michigan to the same dance. Mass hysteria. Soon cats and dogs will be living together. Thank goodness for wine.

An atomic march of wine ushers in a change of season, a greening of the grey, a fresh start. Wines from all over this grape growing planet have hit the shelves. There is much to choose from, from sparklers and great whites to fresh, fruit-driven reds. Come back in a couple of days for a second list of 15 big, bold red recommendations.

Allow me another peculiar exegesis. I have touched on the health benefits of wine before. This time my concern centers around the 30th element on the periodic table. Zinc is needed for the proper growth and maintenance of the human body. Zinc deficiency can be a nutritional issue and studies indicate something in red wine enhances zinc absorption but no, it’s not the alcohol. According to two Hawaiian nutritionists, good diet and a moderate, appropriate amount of Zinc can help prevent Prostate Cancer. One way to introduce number 30 to your body is through bioactive polyphenols, naturally occurring chemicals found in foods, including fruits, some types of grains, wine, and tea. BP’s found in wine are reported to add health benefits for a variety of disorders, including cardiovascular diseases, various cancers, diabetes, obesity, and neurological diseases. Sounds like a plan.

This further cements an attitude as to why wine is my eminent companion. Of this I am counseled, not in shadowy reminiscence, but by a regular show of good fortune, through the generosity of others. Good Friday morphed to Great Friday thanks to my good man G, marked at the precise meta tasting moment of this phenomenal Sicilian.

Girolamo Russo Feudo 2010 (218479, $48). The last of the great Etnas in full volcanic, mineral splendor, dipping lentil into chocolate, a jam session of ripe cherries verging to black. Creamy development in butter, vanilla and pearl. “All five horizons revolved around her soul.”  94

On March 27th the good folks at Lifford poured a couple dozen wines from seven New Zealand producers at Soho House in Toronto. A fleeting moment of pathetic fallacy aside (after being reprimanded by a whining club staffer for taking a bottle photo), “there are no photographs allowed in this private club,” the event really was a treat to attend. The compositions of Ata Rangi, Carrick, Craggy Range, Felton Road, Mountford, Neudorf and Staedt Landt collectively impressed with finesse and refinement. Martinborough Chardonnay (Ata Rangi 2010, 91) will have a bright future, along with Syrah out of Hawkes Bay (Craggy Range 2010, $44.95, 91). Pinot Noir has been thrust into the Kiwi spotlight and the world is there for both stage and oyster taking, if only the price of admission matched the product. These two Pinots stole the Lifford show.

Felton Road Cornish Point Noir 2008 (2011 – $84.95) has developed more than a modicum of animale and mineral old world charm. Juicy black cherry, red licorice, fragrant spice, tea and rose petal tessellate in a weightier way than the lithe, elder Block 3 ’04, thanks in part to vines with more age. Quite refined.  92  @feltonroadwine  @liffordwine

Mountford Pinot Noir Estate 2008 ($80) is an overflowing bowl of ripe cherries so dramatic in aroma the 100% new oak is almost unnoticeable. Welcome to Waipara Pinot, wholly unique to the New Zealand landscape, prettier and graced by an unparalleled elegance. Made by blind winemaker C P Lin.  93  @mountfordestate  @liffordnicole

Now get out there and have a look for these just released wines.

From left: Mountford Pinot Noir Estate 2008, 13th Street Premier Cuvée 2008, Joseph Cattin Hatschbourg Pinot Gris 2010, The Foreign Affair Riesling 2009, and Erasmo 2006.

The Sparkling

Argyle Brut Sparkling Wine 2008 (258160, $29.95) is a rolling stone with diamonds on the soles of its shoes. So much chalcedony minerality, along with soda pop, russets blooming across pale cream, lime and ginger. Sings a “be bop a lu la.”  90  @ArgyleWinery

13th Street Premier Cuvée 2008 (142679, $34.95) continues to impress with its linear, rising and crescendoing attitude. Lavish like the finest pâté spread on buttery brioche. From my earlier note: “perpetuates the apple theme but here it is subdued, sweet and with blossoms too. There is honeycomb, citrus and an herbal, grassy component no other wine has shown. Lean, perhaps but that’s the minerals talking. Very pretty.”  91  @13thStreetWines

René Geoffroy Premier Cru Brut Rosé De Saigneé Champagne (245878, $55.95) is a strawberry cream, ice cream dream, if you know what I mean. Pinot Noir and nothing but Pinot Noir. A cool vintage marked by sweet pink grapefruit welling the vitrine, lit by laser acidity. Rocking rosé.  92  @ericbelchamber

The Whites

Mil Vientos Torrontés 2011 (307504, $15.95) is a tight, chunky, San Juan affair. Moscato-like, sugar sweetened, liquid lemon candy nose, followed by a taste of white toffee. Expressive Argentine and full of tang.  87

Joseph Cattin Hatschbourg Pinot Gris 2010 (260240, $19.95) is a flat out ridiculous, Alsatian Grand Cru deal at $20. The apricot jam, bon-bon, white nettle and redolent resemblance to SGN or Sauternes is uncanny. The palate remains dry, the finish on the side of absinthe. I remain transfixed by its intellect.  90  @DomaineCATTIN

Konrad Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (616243, $19.95) goes long on all that is typical and necessary for the survival of Kiwi SB. Asparagus, gooseberry and passion fruit in All Blacks formation, chanting, fierce, intimidating. Present alcohol though surprisingly light in body, huge in stature if gentle as a giant. Acts more nervy than many South Island peers and scores by trying.  89 

The Foreign Affair Riesling 2009 (127290, $24.95) retrofits 20% NP dried grapes in the Venetian appassimento method. The dehydrated drupe adds dye and sherbet texture, like the yellow and pulp of  Ataúlfo mango. The acqua turns rich, as if 1-2-3 jello were to meet candied lime and pear Gewürztraminer, with its mind centered on the holy varietal mystery. The outré oeuvre of winemaker Ilya Senchuk.  90  @wineaffair

Le Clos Jordanne Claystone Terrace Chardonnay 2009 (56929, $40.00, SAQ, 10697331, $41.50) sonars with a stealth shark attack of char and a cold, arctic shiver. Great Ontario white with full on spiced oak if nicked by unctuous platitude. Best LCJ Terrace in years from winemaker Sébastien Jacquey.  90  @LeClosJordanne

Bachelder Saunders Vineyard Chardonnay 2010 (324103, $44.95) is a wine to learn from yet feel humiliated by its eloquence. Creamy, buttery, lightly toasted soft seeds or nuts, like a melding to halavah or marzipan. White flower aroma, viscous exempt, a study in equilibrium. Thought this the best Bach yet when tasted back in February, that is until the “stuff of dreams” Wismer appeared as a silvered stone in bright dancing patches at Cuvée 13.  91  @Bachelder_wines

The Reds

Featherstone Cabernet Franc 2011 (64618, $16.95) hits the Ontario watermark with pinpoint ’11 attribution. Firm, fruity red currant spiked by peppercorn, slow-smoked and lacquered with tar. Spot on and one of the best Niagara Peninsula CF values.  88  @Featherstonewne

Paso Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 (161141, $19.95) is a breakfast special of thirst quenching vanilla shake, bowl of berries and smoked bacon. Well-rounded Paso Robles fruit forward Cab, long and lean. A worthy California detour to a county not oft visited.  88  @PasoCreekWine

Erasmo 2006 (311837, $21.95) is a soldier home from war. Wounded, bruised but not beaten. This unfiltered, pure, natural and wild Chilean blend of two Cabs and Merlot is so Bordeaux and not so Bordeaux. Acts more austere and rustic like old Brunello or Nebbiolo with a vibrant, currant, pepper and balmy funk. Not so peculiar considering producer Francesco Marone Cinzano is the man behind Col D’orcia in Montalcino. Time in the glass unfurls gorgeous, opaque fruit. I’d like to see it evolve over the next five years.  91  @FMaroneCinzano

Good to go!

The Wine Diaries: Grapes and Peaches

Má Pêche, Momofuku – Duck Two Ways PHOTO: GABRIELE STABILE

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If I had my little way

I’d eat peaches every day

Eat a peach. Listen to the music. Taste wine. Feel like a president. My wine codex is in full, binary cross-cultural mode. These days I can’t help myself singing (in a quiet whisper) Dave Grohl songs – I’m not even such a big fan of his music! Maybe it’s because he seems to be everywhere; in tweets about the SXSW Festival, on the cover of Delta’s in-flight magazine, on satellite radio in the rental car. Recent wine events and food experiences have left me with the distinct impression that “it’s times like these you learn to live again.”

Passionate chefs, exceptional “100km” wines, and a good cause are a triumvirate for success. Also, a city that never sleeps, a superstar chef’s empirical outpost, and sublime food are a second triad for victory. And what do these two scenarios have in common? Grapes and peaches.

BAAH! The Great Lamby Cook-Off, Thursday, March 21st, 2013, Imperial Ballroom, Fairmont Royal York Hotel

BAAHTony Aspler knows more about wine than just about anyone I know. That he has taken his knowledge, his craft and his contacts in the food and wine world to champion a noble cause, well that is something to be admired. The organization he gives time to is called Grapes for Humanity, globally providing much needed relief to those less fortunate. Mr. Aspler organized yet another memorable GFH event, to benefit a child’s education by constructing a needed school in Guatemala. Twelve chefs, 12 lamb dishes, 12 wine pairings. You couldn’t spit without hitting a sommelier or a local oenologist. Chef Michael Pataran took home the top prize for his Goan Lamb Shoulder with a coconut, chili, lime chutney and paddle skewer. The best wine pairing went to the Henry of Pelham Baco Noir Reserve 2010, poured alongside Pataran’s “curry”; a double win. Stock Sommelier Zoltan Szabo directed the room with tireless energy.

Here, my favourite three wines at “BAAH”, plus a gorgeous Gigondas tasted in NYC on Saturday night.

From left: Rosewood Estates Merlot 2010, Tawse Merlot ‘David’s Block’ 2010, Norman Hardie ‘County Unfiltered’ Cabernet Franc 2011, and Domaine du Gour de Chaulé Gigondas 2007

Rosewood Estates Merlot 2010 (211896, $22.00) on this night walked a Niagara Wallendian tightrope of balance between heft and deft, sidling effortlessly up to Barque Smokehouse chefs David Neinstein and Tony Starratt’s ‘Mici‘ and travelling further on up the evolutionary road past “enjoyable if unremarkable.” From my earlier note: “Continues to show a reductive note in the form of vanilla and maple syrup, no honey actually, but all signs point to further excellence. High quality chocolate spiked by cherry, orange and a peppery, nasal tickle open up beautifully and expressively towards the dusty, berry main event. Knock your baby’s socks off with this double-stuffed Oreo and let the night unfold.  89 @Rosewoodwine

Tawse Merlot ‘David’s Block’ 2010 ($49.95) from certified organic and biodynamic estate fruit puts the double ‘L’ back in lush. Endowed of a caressing cashmere. Could act as spokesperson for Niagara Merlot announcing, “there are 10 kinds of people in the world, those who like Merlot, and those who don’t.” Calm, confident and marked by an insouciant nature. Earlier note: “Suffers no stenosis and instead flows as a sanguine and savoury riverine expression. Olives and the smokey whiff of yeasty bread on the grill. Not surprising considering the quality of Pender’s lees so often collected and added back to the next generation’s barrels.”  91  @Tawse_Winery  @Paul_Pender

Norman Hardie ‘County Unfiltered’ Cabernet Franc 2011 ($25) rolls the barrel out from a velvet underground into the Prince Edward County sun, pours singular Foster Vineyard fruit over crushed limestone then infuses the juice with ripe cherries. The warmth of 2010 lingers on in the ’11 CF’s pale blue eyes. Makes “the world as pure and strange as what I see.” Persists as the definitive expression of this grape in The County.  91  @normhardie

Dinner at Momofuku, Má Pêche, 15 w. 56th street, New York City, @momofuku

Má Pêche knows how to treat a lady, the President of the United States, and me. David Chang’s midtown eatery located in the Chambers Hotel opened in April, 2010. The Executive Chef is Paul Carmichael, a Barbados native who transmits Chef’s vision through elegant, restrained and poetic flavours. Carmichael and Chef de Cuisine Johnny Leach compose dishes as colourful canvasses but they are never over-painted nor monochromatic abstractions. Food of distinction and singularly distinct from plate to plate. Vegetables, many of the root kind, are succulent, glossy, al dente, and clearly defined. Service offers no pretense, no hovering, no massaging. Casual and professional. No hipster attitude neither.

Má Pêche AppetizersPhoto: Michael Godel

Má Pêche Oysters
Photo: Michael Godel

Oysters, especially New Brunswick Hurricane and Salt Pond Rhode Island are fresh makers, like spirits moving through the ocean. Washed those suckers down with 21st Amendment “Bitter American” Extra Pale Ale. Spanish Mackerel is a smokey, charred wave of umami with crisp, crunchy romaine and a silken tofu sauce, like citrus-spiked tahini. Barnegat Light Scallops are buttery, whispering, ethereal.

Appetizers

Má Pêche Appetizers

Chatham, MA Cod is foam cloud-enveloped, braised fish and brussel sprout ‘chips’ attenuated by malt vinegar. Jurgielewicz Farm, PA Duck two ways is perfect pink breast accented by candied orange rind and also piquant mici-like sausage, bucked by peppery spice. Provitello Fams, NJ Veal is fall apart, rosy neo-osso bucco, soft, supple and flat out delicious. The only non-wow moment comes from Barnegat Light, NJ Monkfish which shows indifference and a dry, dusty mole that barely mingles with needs to be further-rendered skin.

The wine list is more than thoughtful, embracing many needed food companion varieties, like Sylvaner, Trebbiano, Scheuerebe, Cabernet Franc, Nerello Mascalese and Teroldego. I opted for a southern Rhône Grenache blend imbued with just the perfect amount of age.

Domaine du Gour de Chaulé Gigondas 2007 ($31, Menu: 375 mL $32) of black/crimson mephitic and inky berry blush and lush, full-on sun-drenched fruit has reached full resolve. Licorice, kirsch and stony, meta-anthracite show off in the wine’s perfect window.  Decadent Gigondas.  92

Good to go!