Written by Vic Harradine, Profession. School of Hospitality and Tourism
Vic Harradine has been teaching wine appreciation for a number of years at Algonquin. An avid wine taster, he samples about four thousand wines a year.
He writes reviews for about two thousand of them in the free wine e-newsletter: www.winecurrent.com which is published every two weeks to coincide with Vintages Releases at the LCBO. To receive your copy, log onto the winecurrent.com site and subscribe.
In every cloud there’s a silver lining—as the economy flounders, more and more wines come to market at attractive prices. Unfortunately, they don’t all provide value as some are made to fit the price bracket with little concern for quality.
However, the wines here are well priced and provide good value. The criteria applied when I tasted a wide variety was that they show good balance, pronounced fruit flavours and relative to others tasted, deliver the best value. Meant to be drunk now, getting them home from the LCBO unopened qualifies them as ‘well-aged’.
The wines are ordered in terms of their weight and texture—how they ‘feel’ in your mouth—lighter wines at the beginning, more full-bodied and generously textured following.
The first white is very food friendly, matching with a variety of dishes. You may have tried the ‘Fuzion’ red, also good value. The crispest and raciest—code words for acidity—is the Sauvignon Blanc. All wines have acidity and this has lots making it a perfect candidate for pairing with sea food—hence the old saying, white wine with fish. If too crisp and racy for you, squeeze fresh lemon juice on your food; it’ll make the wine taste fruitier, less acidic, and more enjoyable. The final white wine is fruity and dry with good weight, structure and texture; about as good as it gets at this price.
Red wines are seldom chilled as the tannin becomes even more perceptible—more on this later. They’re not commonly drunk with seafood either, as a steely metallic taste often develops. They match up well to meat and vegetarian dishes.
The first three reds are food friendly, pairing with a wide variety of cuisine. The final red has perceptible tannin. Tannin is the reason why some people don’t like red wine; it causes a drying sensation inside your mouth, especially the cheeks. It almost disappears when paired with rare to medium-rare grilled red meat—giving credence to the other half of that old saying... red wine with meat. I’ve provided links to recipes for some of the food pairings suggested in the tasting notes; I hope you find them useful.
Always drink in moderation, never drink and drive.
Familia Zuccardi ‘Fuzion’ Chenin Blanc Chardonnay 2008
Maipu, Mendoza, Argentina $7.45 13.0% alcohol
Following up on the wildly popular red and recently released Rosé, here’s their white blend – it’s now available in most LCBO stores. It’s smooth, mellow, nicely balanced and good value. Look for tropical fruit flavours—melon and sweet pineapple—plus hints of peach and a lovely squirt of balancing citrus tang. It makes for great pre-dinner sipping and pairing to crab cakes and mains.
Francois Lurton ‘Les fumées blanches’ 2008
Vin de Pays du Comte Tolosan, France $11.45 12.0% alcohol
There are herbaceous notes of nettles and cut grass on the nose along with hints of smoke in this Sauvignon Blanc. It’s pungent and zesty on the palate with expressive flavours of gooseberry, white grapefruit and lemon zest—more Kiwi than French. This is medium bodied, nicely textured, well balanced and delivers a mouth-watering lip-smacking finish of citrussy tang. Pour alongside pan-seared fish, prawns or scallops under a squirt of freshly squeezed lemon.
Cono Sur Viognier 2008
Chile $9.95 13.7% alcohol
Add this to your list of the best-value wines in the LCBO. It's herbaceous on the nose with herbs, spice and passion fruit up front. The palate is treated to a gusher of flavours including warm sweet pineapple and melon that's moderated with a stream of bracing mouth-watering acidity. It delivers a superb sweet and tart finish that helps make it a versatile food partner. Pair with pan-seared fish or scallops, lemon veal or roast pork. This offers exceptional value.
Jindalee Shiraz 2008
South Eastern Australia $10.95 14.0% alcohol
Reeling from the recession? Here’s a red that rocks—it’s flavour filled, crowd pleasing and budget friendly. Look for sweet juicy fruit flavours of succulent black cherry and ripe sweet brambly berry. It’s medium bodied, nicely textured delivering a lengthy well-balanced finish of delicious spiced dark berry fruit. Good bang for the buck and it pairs well with burgers, pizza or pasta in this Bolognese sauce.
Casa Girelli ‘Canaletto’ Primitivo 2006
IGT Puglia, Italy $12.20 13.5% alcohol
A famous baroque painter, Giovanni Canal—ironically born in Venice—was known as ‘Caneletto’ – the little Canal. One of his paintings is on the label. Roasted herb, dark berry fruit and whiffs of oak on the nose, this fills the palate with rich flavours of tarry cherry and sweet dark brambly berry fruit interlaced with spice and black plum. It finishes lengthy and involved. It’s amazing that it’s around $12.00. It’s a go-to wine for pasta in a spicy vegetarian sauce like puttanesca.
Viña Santa Rita ‘120’ Cabernet Sauvignon 2008
DO Central Valley, Chile $10.45 13.5% alcohol
When looking for the occasional alternative to that $7 red you’ve been drinking, here’s a beauty. It opens with dark berry and savoury herb aromas then delivers a delicious mouthful of sweet berry fruit—black currant and mulberry—infused with pie cherry and minty notes. It’s medium weight, nicely textured with a long balanced finish. This is well structured and value-priced. Try it with this incredible decadent burger.
Alianca ‘Foral Reserva’ 2007
DOC Douro, Portugal $8.50 13.0% alcohol
This punches well above the price, the price-quality balance tips in your favour. Aromas of mixed spice, currant and black raspberry segue warm rich and ripe flavours—dark berry fruit and mulberry jam—that are interwoven with ripe tannin and good moderating tang. It’s well balanced, nicely textured and sports a lengthy fruit-packed finish. This pairs well with grilled bratwurst, grilled medium-rare steak or aged hard cheese.
Cheers, Vic
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