Tag Archives: Carmenère

Super Bowl wine prediction: Red 49ers over black Ravens

San Francisco 49ers’ Colin Kaepernick (7) celebrates with Leonard Davis and Daniel Kilgore (67) after the NFL football NFC Championship game against the Atlanta Falcons Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013, in Atlanta.
PHOTO: AP PHOTO/DAVE MARTIN

as seen on canada.com

Three more sleeps before the much anticipated “Harbowl,” a brother versus brother, mano a mano American football war set to play out in New Orleans at Sunday’s Super Bowl XLVII. Forget about the risqué ads, the hype and the hoopla. Break it down to Raven black against 49er red. A wine analogy emerges.

Wine grapes are considered as either white or red. Though many dark-skinned varietals pitch purple, black and blue hues, by definition they are all reds. But we’re talking about football here and the foods that accompany America’s most amplified sports spectacle. Nachos, chicken wings, chili, pizza, hamburgers, and ribs. The purples and the blues don’t cut it. It’s got to be red and black.

My Super Bowl recommendations do not discriminate against any wines of colour but in this case the earth, spice and verve of the reds are a better match to traditional big game fare. They will ultimately triumph over their black opponents. Sorry John and your Baltimore Ravenation, younger brother Jim and his talented San Francisco Red and Gold have got your number. Here are five black and red wines to drink on Super Bowl Sunday.

The Raven

The grapes: Carmenère and Cabernet Sauvignon

The history: Organic and Biodynamic Chilean outfit in the Colchagua Valley

The lowdown: Central Valley grapes, aged for 6 months, 50% in french oak

The food match: Nachos, jack and cheddar cheese, jalapeno, guajillo salsa

Emiliana Novas Gran Reserva Carmenère/Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 (66746, $14.95, NLC, 12168, $16.98) serves up Bordeaux-like tobacco, tar and smoke with roasted espresso-bean modernity. Carmenère as a taut, tight and tough duppy conquerer but softened by Cabernet Sauvignon’s rub-a-dub style. Hits you like a bombastic, Cossellian linebacker then offers a helping hand to get you back on your feet. “Yes, me friend.”  88  @VinosEmiliana

The Reds

The grapes: Sangiovese, Colorino and Canaiolo

The history: From Castellina in Chianti, between Colle Val d’Elsa and Monteriggioni

The lowdown: Exemplary CC, friendly and inviting in every way

The food match: Smoked BBQ Chicken Wings

Tenuta Di Capraia Chianti Classico 2010 (135277, $19.95) puts its best cocoa and red berry fruit foot forward, stepping tenaciously yet gracefully out of its dusty, tufaceous sands. Hints at game, like roasted goat or local, medieval buzzard and is also a touch funky without going off. It’s the red, clay earth soil talking. Classic example.  90  @ProfileWineGrp

The grapes: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz and Tinto Cão

The history: From Portugal’s Sobredos out of the Douro, based in Alijo. Francisco Montenegro of Quinta Nova is the winemaker

The lowdown: Terroir-driven red from the sub-sect Tua Valley, spends 12 months in new and used oak barrels

The food match: Individual Smoked Beef Sheppard’s Pies

Aneto Red 2009 (314930, $19.95) reminds me of the deepest, earthbound southern French reds, like Minervois or La Clape. Stygian and shadowy, the Aneto’s rusticity is borne of xistous terra, baking spice and dried fruit. Puts on her make up for prevailing balance in a show of hydrated, in vogue, darling pretty maturity. She can “heal my aching heart and soul.”  91  @liffordwine

The grape: Pinot Noir

The history: From Marimar Torres, named after her father, Don Miguel

The lowdown: Rare alcohol/fruit/acidity balance for California Pinot Noir. European temperament, California style

The food match: Mini Hamburger Appetizers

Marimar Estate La Masía Pinot Noir 2007 (303974, $34.95, B.C. 711333, $37.99) is downright verdant what with its dry cherry and wilting rose nose and spicy, splintering palate. A smoldering whiff penetrates the maroon fruit, bricking with gold. This is 49’er country, led by a balanced attack and a leader capable of peeling off a Kaepernickian 50-yard run. Victorious Pinot.  90  @MarimarTorres

The grape: Pinot Noir

The history: Beamsville Bench winery and meadery specializes in Pinot, Chardonnay, Riesling and excellent Semillon. Mead wines are out of this world

The lowdown: Rosewood is old-school; the Niagara equivalent to the Italian Azienda Agricola or the German Erzeugerabfüllung.

The food match: Goat Cheese Arancini

Rosewood Estates Natural Fermentation Reserve Pinot Noir 2009 (318345, $39.95) is ageing gracefully with nary a bitter edge. Cranberry, pomegranate, cherry, plum and vanilla all combine to gather and linger in freshness.  My earlier review. “clocks in at 13.2% abv from 20 Mile Bench, Wismer-Ball’s Falls fruit that is whole cluster pressed under gentle, low pressure. So what? It means low phenolic (bitterness) extraction where seeds and skins are shunned and it’s all about “extracting the good stuff.” Fermented from the grape’s own yeasts, this Pinot has perfectly evolved to this point in time. Mushroom, earth and sweet red fruit will see the ’09 through another five years of joy.”  91  @Rosewoodwine

Good to go!

A global Bordeaux six-pack over/under $20

Bordeaux bottles are pictured in a shop in Saint Emilion outside of Bordeaux (photograph by Pascal Le Segretain, Getty Images).

Bordeaux bottles are pictured in a shop in Saint Emilion outside of Bordeaux (photograph by Pascal Le Segretain, Getty Images).

as seen on canada.com

Bordeaux defines wine. To paraphrase the man with the million-dollar palate, “the first duty of wine is to be a Claret, the second is to be a Burgundy.” Bordeaux is the most recognizable ferment on the planet and has become a place of reference for the word château. It’s omnipresence is without parallel in the wine diaspora.

Related – VINTAGES October 27th, 2012 Release

There was a time when a Bordeaux varietal emigration was considered to be a tautological impossibility. The wine world as we know it began to change 40 years ago when inward grapes began to emerge without, having gone mobile, global, in through the out door. In the New World, Bordeaux varietals have been subject to a pop revolution, having been joined by synthesizers, stomping rhythms and heavy, staggered riffs.

Over the past 40 years the grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Carmenère, Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc have migrated to all reaches of the earth. Claret, especially, is everywhere.

Here are six Bordeaux-inspired wines to look for this coming weekend.

The grape: Sauvignon Blanc

The history: Though its greatest French success is in the Loire, SB is a workhorse for the dry whites of Bordeaux

The lowdown: Injuries have reduced the Masters champ to a shell of his former golfing self but if his name can pump out under $15 gems like this, success will continue to follow the great lefty

The food match: Crab and Shrimp Cakes, citrus aioli

Mike Weir Sauvignon Blanc 2010 (686972, $14.95) swings from the left side like its brethren on that side of the Gironde. A game built on concentrated gooseberry juice, tangy green fruit and a streak of chippy acidity. Sneaky long and straight down the fairway.  88

The Grapes: Merlot and Cabernet Franc

The history: From the Cotes (Saint Genes) de Castillon on the Right Bank of Bordeaux

The lowdown: Price has remained fixed, despite the hype of the vintage

The food match: Olivada Crostini, fior di latte, roasted peppers

Château De L’Estang 2009 (191551, $18.85) ventures into more expensive Libournais territory with a level of sophistication rarely seen under $20. Crisp, tart berries, licorice without sweetness, pencil and charred meat go to good lengths. Hard to find better value in Bordeaux.  88

The Grapes: Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon

The history: From the Médoc on the Left Bank of the Gironde River

The lowdown: Merlot less often dominates the Left Bank blends. This wine will open a window into the second wines of the top château where Merlot percentages often increase

The food match: Corn Meal Tartlettes, fig, caramelized onion, benedictin

Château Lestruelle 2009 (295840, $18.95) may show the slightest level of reduction but it’s a beautiful wine. Tar, pencil, tobacco, earth and smoke rally in balance. Ready for the pop and pour anytime.  90

The grape: Merlot

The history: Right Bank Bordeaux principle most famous in Pomerol and St. Emilion

The lowdown: Winemaker Derek Barnett looks to Bordeaux ahead of California for inspiration

The food match: BBQ Beef Brisket Skewers, honey, garlic, bourbon glaze

Lailey Merlot 2010 (591396, $25.00) is focused and linear, with fruit, acid and tannin set up like dominos.  Blackberries come off a touch jammy and the concentration of the vintage shows in colour too. Green and varnish notes are largely diminished in 2010. I’m clapping loudly because Lailey, “you’ve got me on my knees.”  89

The grape: Cabernet Sauvignon

The history: The immortal Claret, cornerstone for all Left Bank Bordeaux reds

The lowdown: One of the top Okanagan Cabs at this price point from a vineyard that gets it

The food match: Delmonico Sirloin Skewers, Cabernet reduction glaze

Township 7 Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 (303735, $26.95) is no Hotel California milkshake, nor Bordeaux neither, but there is big earth and “colitas rising up through the air.” The style is actually more Italianate, “there’s talk on the street, it sounds so familiar.” More akin to IGT Cabernet with sanguine and iron notes. Eagle-eyed with a vision for excellence and Johnny-come-lately tannins. Please welcome this new kid in town.  90

The grape: Carmenère

The history: Reserved in Bordeaux for blending, it has found a single varietal home in Chile

The lowdown: This Peumo Carm is the best in its class (under $50) and even above that mark in most cases

The food match: Crispy Parmesan Cups, flank steak, basil, cilantro

Concha Y Toro Terrunyo Block 27 Vineyard Selection Carmenère 2009 (562892, $29.95) is fit for a king, regal, rich and refined. The crown jewel of CYT’s line as far as I am concerned, I would choose this bottling over the (Cabernet dominated) Don Melchor any day of the week. Smokey, high on warm graphite with a conscious, languorous progression to excellence.  91

Good to go!

The Wine Diaries. VINTAGES June 9, 2012: Reds

Tuscany

Most of the reds from these 23 tasting notes are hearty enough to help with the summer BBQ season.

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/06/11/the-wine-diaries-vintages-june-9-2012-reds/

Dominus Napanook 2008 (212357, $59.95) usually displays more finesse than many Napa Cabernet blends but at $60 the flaws in nuts, bolts and chunks stand out. This was a great $40 “2nd wine.” It was solid at $50. No longer has light in its eyes and yet will sell through by week’s end.  88

Easton Estate Bottled Zinfandel 2004 (281501, $39.95) has seen its glory days but persists as a terrific, lively Zin full of ripe berries, bramble and brush. Shows good depth of fruit but no zinsanity. What an amazing wine the original $23, ’98 was. Looking forward to the dregs of this one setting sale south of $30 later in the summer.  90

Macrostie Pinot Noir 2007 (674911, $24.95) is easy drinking with a nice smile that won’t pick the locks. Sweat lodge of woodsmoke and smouldering evergreen spice notes but certainly won’t make you “weak in the knees,” or land you 30 days in the hole.  A slice of humble pie and a seamless transition from Goat’s Halibut en papilotte to a trio of Strawberry and Rhubarb desserts.  87

Shafer Merlot 2009 (346262, $59.95) will always show its long legs best at 10 years old. A fashionista this Shafer, Napa Merlot incarnate. Olive skin, perfume scent, sculpt make-up and total body tone. Sashays down the runway like a supermodel. Lush and possessed of a masculine-feminine dichotomy.  89

Silverado Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 (111880, $59.95) the paradigmatic Napa trailrunner is positively derivitive, more Marillion than Genesis. Kicks up progressive breccia and calcite aromas, creating energy and power. Chunky liquid viscocity. This one throws many bits at you; berries, currants, crushed fault rock. Less is more. Builds to a crescendo but “whatever rises eventually falls.”  88

Altos Los Hormigos Reserva Malbec 2008 (678987, $27.95) to taste is like sucking on a fig-flavoured Starburst chew dipped in milk chocolate. Heavy juice and cloying welded purple-red dacite.  85  

Anakena Single Vineyard Pinot Noir 2010 (208439, $15.95) nimbly bricks iridian and follows well more serious wines. New and improved new world Pinot order. Eastern spice meets Southern Hemisphere lacquer.  86

Concha Y Toro Marques De Casa Concha Merlot 2009 (939827, $19.95) flaunts Syrah like pitch, baked earth and a bounty of spicy seasoning. A world party of Merlot on a ship of fools.  Get too close and the alcohol burns up the nasal passage.  “Save me from tomorrow.”  86

Mayu Carmenère 2009 (90035, $17.95) certainly elevates the bell pepper status of this grape with a smoulder of imported coffee beans roasting over a cedar fire. A welcome Carmenère more toothsome and bursting with vim than one would expect. Also an elegance akin to Elqui Valley Syrah.  88

Oveja Negra The Lost Barrel 2008 (273979, $24.95) symphonizes Aussie nomenclature, avant-garde Spanish (Terra Alta) blending and Chilean vitality. Malodorous maw meets sugarplum pudding on a lissome frame.  87

Mitchell McNicol Shiraz 2003 (278572, $45.95) persists with furvor nine years on. Classic Clare Valley blueberry fruit, anise, licorice and pencil shavings. No holds barred, Mitch funky bass drum leads, fills and jazz fusion. Successful if perhaps not conventional Shiraz.  91

Château D’angludet 2008 (133082, $39.00) plays a game of concentration, coupling coup de couer colour and smokey, berry concentrate. Weaves a balance of fruit and acidity, is a bit closed but should be great. Wait a few years.  89

Château Fourcas-Dumont 2001 (280016, $19.95) is stuck on brett overdrive. “Filtered through a cow’s skivies” notes the E-man.  NR

Domaine Louis Jadot Beaune Les Avaux 1er Cru 2009 (932855, $52.95) seems agitated in early life. Nose out of joint and not liking the body language. Maybe five years will allow the flesh to eat away at the anger.  87

Henri De Villamont Prestige Pinot Noir Bourgogne 2009 (84616, $17.95) represents good value, actually. But again, what’s with the dumbing down, double designation? The Villamont is equilibrious, slight of body but well made and will work for food.  87

Ramosceto Lacrima Di Morra D’alba 2010 (277889, $14.95) is not unlike the garage band sparkling red Lambrusco. Tony is so right. If you close your eyes you could be sniffing Gewurztraminer. The lychee, the white roses, the salve. Not so much my cup this Lacrima.  86

Marziano Abbona Pressenda Barolo 2007 (276584, $43.95) strips down and readies for the pop and pour. Ad hoc muscles rolling, flexed and waning, Pressenda enters into an enlightened stage where “hours are like diamonds, don’t let them waste.” Drink alongside a muscle shoal, country-soul-tinged Stones record.  90

Pio Cesare Barbera D’alba 2010 (938886, $19.95) of pungent Caciotta al Tartufo slathered on Melba Toast. Of black cherry cordial, Cointreau, orange zest and fennel biscotti. Grainy tannins. Excellent example. 88

Barone Ricasoli Castelli Di Brolio Chianti Classico 2008 (942607, $59.95) grandstands commodious, extracted chroma for Sangiovese. Gargantuan beak of Rosmarinus officinalis, Frantoio olive and ripe blackberries. Polish, discretion and savvy. Everything under the Tuscan sun and more.  For a current splurge.  91

Poggiotondo Bunello Di Montalcino 2006 (276576, $34.95) gifts yet another sub $35 sub-escarpment Sangiovese Grosso out of the vineyard mouth by Tenuta Pietranera. Stands on nani gigantum humeris insidentes, bespoken of an urban diction. Precocious, fruit forward, gold on the ceiling. Onyx gem in the key of black, “a roar at the door.” An oasis of pleasure for present day consumption.  89

Remo Farina Le Pezze Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 2008 (171587, $33.95) underwhelms as a no kicker. Needs no Euro hype nor boozy heft to make itself understood. Modish mocha java speaks fluent huttish, communicating by lingua franca vernacular to the initiated. “Goopta mo bossa!”  92

Fernández De Piérola Reserva 2004 (270579, $25.95) is an oxidized bottle.  NR

Rioja Bordón Tempranillo Reserva 2006 (194753, $18.95) has zest, zing and bling. A freshmaker for ’06, full of mint and Ibex exudation. Needs three to five years to achieve excellency.  89

Good to go!

C’s Get Degrees – Carmenere and Chardonnay From Chile and Califor-ni-a

VINTAGES March 3rd Release

Friday March 2, 2012

http://blogs.canada.com/2012/03/02/vintages-march-3rd-release/

 

Theme here is ‘Made in France, 13 Benchmark-Setting Grapes’ and though I pause over the possibilities of essential Alsatian Pinot Gris, ory Burgundian Chablis and even Northern Rhône Crozes-Hermitage, France today feels an ocean away. Second thoughts choose to sail alongside the emigration of Bordelais rootstock, round the horn of South America and making land where expatriate vines flourish in Chile.

Errazuriz Max Reserva Estates Single Vineyard Carmenère 2009 (273300, $18.95)

Priced in Alberta and British Columbia at $23, Manitoba $29.

While Concha Y Toro’s Block 27 (562892, $29.95) and Montes Purple Angel (062364, $56.95) are two upwardly mobile examples of the varietal, this SV is the wine to buy on March 3rd. My tasting note pulls a number and stands in line behind a battery of critical flattery. My two cents. Rich, textured, unctuous with a hint of Orange Crush, the Max Reserva has got its spine and is typically green, but in a good way. Electric, riveting and made of conscious movement.  90

Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar (90), “…packs a solid punch but this wine is quite elegant and seamless.” Decanter (****, 16.5), “…very harmonious wine with juicy, ripe, succulent red and black fruit layering spice and bitter chocolate flavour.” Anthony Gismondi, The Vancouver Sun (91), “…speaks to what is possible when care is taken…the finish is like a sunset with bits of dried tomatoes, spice, tobacco and ripe tannins.” International Wine Report (90+), “…full body coats your palate while the round polished tannins glide into the silky finish.” Wall Street Journal, “…a superb wine for those cold nights ahead.” Kurtis Kolt, Wine Access, “…brilliant acidity and perfectly integrated tannins. A stunner.” Tracey, 40-Something Life, “..memories of bonfires in England, of smoky cedar wood with a hint of cassis and fresh herbs.” Also WE (88), RJ (88), CT’s (89). 

 Errazuriz Single Vineyard Carmenere 2009

Next an IVR* deal in California Chardonnay here today, gone tomorrow. Act quick.

Marimar Estate La Masía Don Miguel Vineyard Chardonnay 2007 (270090, $19.95) wants to be consumed in the here and now. Progression has reached the optimum wheelhouse core, freshness and pique wound tightly around juicy citrus and mild vanilla buttered toast. In fact the oak is so subtle the medium-bodied fruit remains the star.  90

The Marimar is named after the man himself, Miguel Torres. The price here may be a one-off but not exactly 50% off, more like 30%. Heimoff of WE (90) says “dry, crisply acidic and strong in flavor in its youth.” CC Guide (90) notes, “a complete and involving wine” while David Lawrason is reverent with “riveting and intriguing.” La Masía is on Susan Desjardins’ list as she praises it as having, “loads of personality.” WS (88) and CT’s (88).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other Wines of Note:

Caymus Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 (711663, $119.95)

Antinori Guado Al Tasso 2008 (986380, $89.95)

Clos Del Rey 2004 (154385, $49.95)

Le Salette Pergole Vece Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 2006 (19984, $95.95)

 

 

IVR*  – Vintage Direct Intrigue-to-Value Ratio

 

 

 

Good to go!