A Night of Old Vines Wines (Ontario / Australia)

What a fabulous night of wine.  Three Ontario and one Australian.  A dinner at a friend's house that proved to be just as tasty with food as it did with the wine.  But it's the wine that always impresses me and so that is where our focus will be.

We started the night with a Lailey 2010 Brickyard Chardonnay, it was one of the Brickyard vintages that was not already in my cellar, and a trip to the winery the weekend before revealed that they had only one case left, they had also decided to taste a bottle while we were there ... needless to say we bought a few as it was delicious:  rich and buttery, with lovely grilled peach notes.  A hot vintage Chardonnay that seems to blend the big buttery flavours of California and the acid balance of Ontario.

Next on the list was an Angels Gate 2005 Old Vines Chardonnay ... this one was a real surprise to all of us, though I am sure I tasted it back in its younger days.  The age of the wine and the age of the vines work in harmony to give a lovely balance of complexity:  Toffee, caramel, hint of toasted marshmallow, rich and mouth-feeling with creamy vanilla and spiced pineapple puree, plus there was a real beauty of a long finish.  This was one that was the pleasant surprise of the night and one I wish I had more of because the creamy smoothness and complexity of this wine was amazing; best of all it still retained an element of acidity that kept it in balance.  This was a sipping Chardonnay that we polished off before dinner ... so two bottles down and two more to go.  The first two were a perfect match to the crab dip (see I do remember some of the food).

Our host was thrilled to provide and open the next bottle, because she has been waiting to open it for a very long time, a Reif 2007 First Growth Pinot Noir ... made with the oldest vines on the Reif property; and I would have to say it has held up extremely well.  The nose is full of earthy, cranberry, and black cherry notes; this all follows onto the palate while adding white pepper, currants and toasted oak ... there's also some beautiful acidity that acts as a backbone and keeps this wine upright and refreshing, not overbearing.  Another hot vintage wine that is standing the test of time.

The final bottle was a Torbreck 2005 GSM out of Australia, but not just any GSM, an old vines Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvedre ... and from what I have read this wine is suppose to be a nasty piece of business (according to the folks on CellarTracker) ... but in truth I think the wine just needed more time to finally come into its own.  The nose has nice tobacco notes with a cassis syrup aroma or sorts mixed with black-peppered-raspberries.  The palate was loaded with sweet plum, black cherry, and more of that raspberry-pepper combination.  A delicious end to the evening.

As you can see, if you were a fan of old vines wine this was the night for you ... and since I am this was a great night.

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Butternut 2011 Chardonnay and Catena 2007 Malbec (California / Argentina)

Truthfully there were three bottles of Chardonnay and a Malbec opened this evening; alas one of the bottles was atrocious, but thankfully the others were delicious.  One of the Chardonnays has previously been reviewed on my website, thus leaving me with only two wines to report about.  We invited our Chardonnay loving friend over for a little pulled chicken, Chardonnay and a chat about life, the universe and everything - after all it was a summer Saturday one dies for, not to hot, not too cold, and not a cloud in the sky.  We started our mid-afternoon get together with a bottle of Butternut 2001 Chardonnay, a bottle I picked up on my last foray into the States with her specifically in mind, I was told the grapes were "most likely" Dijon clone - but after reading the website I learned that was not the case, my buddy Dave can't be right all the time.  But what he wasn't lying about was that the wine lived up to its name:  butter and nuts were all over this thing along with caramelized banana, grilled pineapple, maple, and double double caramel Kernels popcorn (if you have never had it its a must try) on the nose ... the thrill of this wine was really the sniffer, on the palate it doled out the same kinda stuff, but the nose is where it was its most interesting - hazelnut, pineapple and butter rounded out the mouth.

After two more openings we served dinner, and with it a bottle of Catena 2007 Malbec ... aged to perfection, if I do say so myself: cassis and raspberry with good acidity to cut through the rich fruit, there was also some cranberry and sour cherry that appeared near the finish along with a touch of white pepper.  This wine delivered the goods and was a lovely match to the chicken.

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4 Wines - 1 Friends - 1 Big Headache (California / Rhone / British Columbia / Portugal)

Tonight we had some friends come over whom we see at least once a year, but thankfully speak to more often ... turns out it was the first time they have visited in the summer so we finally got a chance to sit out on the deck with them.  One of our friends just got her Canadian citizenship so we decided to kick things off with a little Canadian bubbly; but instead of hitting up Ontario for a bottle we picked something from the west coast, British Columbia: Steller's Jay 2007 Brut from Sumac Ridge ... to tell you it was a great starter is an understatement, it was delightful, delicious and a real winner, I think the whole bottle was gone in 3 minutes (poured out) and most, if not all of the glasses were consumed within 15 ... a real tribute to a wine when it's polished off that quickly.  We moved on to try a bottle of one of Ontario's soon to be wineries, Brickyard, and their 2012 Riesling - I will not be reviewing that here but it will appear on my website before too long.

Dinner was steak so red wine seemed in order.  One of our friends is a Pinot Noir fan, so he had a glass of Cattail 2010 Pinot Noir, another wine that will be reviewed on the website in short order.  He also mentioned that he was a fan of Zinfandel, one of my faovurites too ... but more on that in a minute.  The rest of us shared a bottle of Perrin & Fils 2008 Rasteau L'Andeol from the Rhone ... this was a lovely steak pairing wine that had plenty of raspberry and peppery goodness, old enough be smoothing out in all the right places, yet still has enough umph to pair with the smoky, char-grilled steak.  With that bottle down the hatch, and our Pinot-friend finished his glass out from the cellar came a bottle of Ravenswood 2004 Lodi Old Vine Zinfandel, a bottle that is courtesy of my wife and her American roots.  At nine years of age this was a beauty of a Zin that has kept its plum and spice nature while developing other real robust flavours that made it more than a pleasure to drink - at 14.5% it is no shrinking violet of a wine ... it too was consumed with gusto.

Finally, our friends are big Port fans, and so it was decided a bottle must be cracked open so that we could have a glass ... there was some hemming and hawing over a Late Bottled Vintage, but when I said it was a 2000 Late Bottled Vintage suddenly it became a curiosity: Sandeman 2000 LBV - dark chocolate dominated with hints of cherry, spice and a beautiful baked raisin finish.  One glass turned into two, turned into three and then suddenly the bottle was gone.  And we realized that our Pinot-Zin lover had been secreting glasses while we were all engaged in conversation ... we were not aware of this fact till the next morning when our slow moving, hung over friend, heard every pin drop as if it were an a hammer on an anvil.  A good night was had by all - it's just the morning that wasn't as good for one.

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Final Dinner at the ACWC (Germany / California / Italy / France)

It's the last night of the All Canadian Wine Championship and as usual we meet at a restaurant with a BYOW license and many of the judges have something they want to showcase.  The first that shows off something interesting is a bottle of Dr. Hermann 2007 Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Spatlese an absoultely gorgeous Riesling that a real balanced beauty that is just a fabulous pairing with the butternut squash soup (and not bad with the mussels).  The Banfi 2010 Centine is a good bridge wine that seems to be fruity enough to pair with the beet salad; juicy red berries that prove to be supple and succulent.  The main is beef tenderloin and the choice is between the Domaine du Pegau 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape or the Enkidu 2010 Diener Ranch Red Hills, Lake County Zinfandel, both an excellent pairing with the beef.  The Pegau was earthy with plenty of dark fruit, this bottle had plenty of life left in it as it was a 1500ml bottle, so we popped the cork way to early, but all are thankful it made its way to the table (thanks AG).  The Zinfandel was a beauty of a plummy, spicy wine with 15.6% alcohol that was smooth and sexy.  Another great year at the ACWC where I believe Ontario should have done much better than in previous years.  Next year we'll do it all again, with more great Canadian wines and great international bottles for dinner.

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Domaine Boudau 2008 & Finca Las Palmas 2007 (France / Argentina)

Easter dinner with family, it's what the holidays are all about.  A brother who can make a hell of a lamb and another who picks a hell of a good bottle of wine (or three) it's a perfect combination for a fun and delicious evening.  Started with a bottle of the inaugural Tawse 2011 Gamay - could have used a bit of a chill, but it was a nice wine to start the evening.  Next up, a bottle of Domaine Boudau 2008 Côtes du Roussillon Le Clos a beauty full of white pepper, plum, spice and black raspberry - good acidity and some fine tannins round it off.  Even more interesting was the shockingly imperceptible 15% alcohol - this wine packed a hidden punch amongst all that fruit and light-spice flavour.  Also poured with dinner was a bottle of Trapiche 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon, Finca Las Palmas from Argentina, paling in the alcohol department by a full percentage point; but it proved to be an even bigger hit than the Boudau with its chocolate-mocha-coffee nose that followed through onto the palate adding rich dark berries and a silky smooth finish along the way.  I was very happy with the performance of all these wines ... after all they had to match up with the dinner that was cooked to perfection.  I'd say the Boudau has a few more years left under the hood - while the Las Palmas is ready to drink now.

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McKinley Springs 2007 Bombing Range Red (Washington)

It's been just over a year since I cracked the cap of my last bottle of Bombing Range Red (November 2011), enjoyed it then and was planning to enjoy it now ... and I did, a little after the fact ... Upon first pour I thought it a bit too acidic, had the fruit really disappeared in such a short period of time?  I'm happy to report, no.  It took about a half hour in the glass but that lovely rich fruit managed to show itself and then stayed front and center for the rest of the drinking.  Dark berries dominate, a little smokiness with hints of cranberry and plum take a backseat but are most definitely there.  Still a very tasty bottle.

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From Beer to Sweet Wine the Holidays Officially Get Underway (Ontario, France, Lebanon)

Tonight there were eight different bottles opened, well nine actually, but one was corked, as friends came over to kick off the holiday season.  The first thing to be cracked was a bottle of beer, we had made a trip to Oast Brewery in Niagara-on-the-Lake on Saturday afternoon and walked away with a 6-pack of beers (two different) to start our evening off for those who wanted suds with their pigskin (total blowouts the 4pm games were).  Those who wanted to start their evening off with wine chose the Colio 2011 CEV Sauvignon Blanc or the Tawse 2011 Quarry Road Riesling (linked to full reviews on my website).  As we plowed our way through appetizers and on to the main course (pot roast, mashed potatoes, creamed corn, roasted cauliflower, and fresh homemade cast-iron skillet bread - all lovingly prepared by my kitchen maven wife); I offered up dinner wines.  Cave Spring 2011 Dolomite Chardonnay (reviewed on site) was the white of choice but it was the next four wines that proved very interesting and the ones I had not tried in quite some time (if ever).  Kicking off with a Chateau Lagrezette 2000 Cahors (France) ... this was old school Cahors Malbec, before they started making them all drink now, a la Argentina, this needed time - and we gave it 12 years - and it still needed an hour in the decanter to mellow and give it that smooth, lush, black fruit quality with barely a hint of those robust tannins it once had in its youth.  Next up a Lailey Vineyard 2007 Niagara Peninsula Pinot Noir (the first bottle we opened was corked, rats!), this proved to be quite a lovely wine that still has plenty of time in front of it.  An hour and a half in decanter could not subdue the tannins and rough around the edges spices, but the fruit was coming out quite nicely and seem to be holding the middle ground defiantly against the tannins and spice on either side.  This one still needs time and I have a few bottles left so I am quite prepared to give it what it needs ... let's see what happens in two years or so ... my guess and hope is that as the tannins subside that rising fruit quality we found tonight will advance further. The surprise of the night was the Chateau Musar 2008 Musar Jeune (Lebanon), this wine had a sweet fruit edge, middle and core and a youthfulness to boot - it was the wine most asked for seconds of, I only had the one bottle open, I'm sure I could have gone through two or three.  Lastly, with the multitude of desserts served I took a flyer on a non-vintage sweetie out of France: Croix-Milhas Maury - Mute Sur Grains, Vin Doux Naturel ... not sure how this one went over as many did not finish their glass - that should tell me something - so I can only speak for myself here: the wine was drier than expected, with a spicy edge to it that might have been a turn off for some ... when you think sweet you rarely think about a spiciness to go along with it.  Then again with all the wines consumed previous, maybe it was just one too many bottles in a fantastic evening of food, wine and friendship.  Thank you all for coming and let's do it all again next year - with different wines of course.

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Friday Night and Four Wines Down (Chile, Australia, Washington)

Twas the night before my birthday, and into the house, we welcomed some friends to take part in a souse (sousing that should be, and actually it was for dinner it turned into a sousing, for one of us at least).  This evening, four bottles were consumed and one stumble away into the darkness - thankfully his wife was sober enough to get him home.  The evening started with a Chilean Chardonnay (Vina Maipo 2011 Vitral Chardonnay) - turned out to be a very quaffable wine with good acidity, nice fruit, hints of vanilla and a creamy smoothness on the finish.  Next up, to pair with tonight's "classic" pork roast dinner (the "classic" moniker was on the packaging), I pulled out two Penfolds wines: 2005 Koonunga Hill Shiraz-Cabernet and the 2005 Thomas Hyland Shiraz ... I wanted to see how these two wines had aged.  The supposition, before I opened the bottles was that the straight Shiraz would outperform the blend because of its price and quality on the Penfolds scale.  Unfortunately, the Shiraz-Cabernet was never given a fair shot at trying to out-best its pricier counterpart as it was sealed with a plastic cork.  While my guests were generous (to a fault - no pun intended) about the blend it was obvious that the Shiraz was the one more up to the task.  While the Koonunga Hill was slightly oxidized (and got more so with each 5 minutes that passed) and according to my guests, "drinkable as a third bottle" - the Hyland was nicely peppered and spiced with lovely dark fruit and could stand to be aged another few years if not more.  I knew it was time for one more when I saw my guests pour themselves from the skanky-ass Koonunga bottle.  I quickly asked what they would prefer and a Washington Merlot was suggested.  Columbia Crest 2007 H3 (Horse Heaven Hills) Merlot ... what a stark contrast to the aged Aussie.  The Merlot was juicy without being jammy, smooth and mellow, as one expects Merlot to be, with some sweet fruit driven elegance.  Everyone tried at least a sip - the aforementioned wobbler/stagger-er polished off most of the bottle, but all agreed it was one of the best Merlots they had had in quite some time.  Thanks for coming over (and you know who you are) - let's do it again soon, it was a lovely evening ... even if (I am sure) one of us had a massive headache the next morning. 

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Riesling, Two Chardonnay and a Pedroncelli Zin (Ontario / California)

Tonight we had someone coming over to the house, which means bottles of wines will be consumed ... tonight four in total (tomorrow a big headache).  Starting with a new winery's 2011 Riesling, Di Profio Wines just opened here in Ontario (June 15) and we took some wines home with us from the open house.  The wife loved this green apple and lemon laced dry Riesling and it made for a great little wine to sit on the deck in the early part of the evening.  This was followed by two Chardonnays - both from Ontario.  Starting with the incredibly mouth filling Southbrook 2010 Whimsy! Chardonnay (previously reviewed in full) and then followed up by the leaner, but just as equally impressive, Chateau des Charmes 2010 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay (soon to be reviewed).  But for dinner tonight was a mess of pulled-pork and there is but one wine I can think of that goes with that, and unfortunately Ontario does not make it, Zinfandel.  Pedroncelli 2007 Bushnell Vineyard Zinfandel was a perfect pairing for the sweet meat with nicely spiced plums, hints of soft leather, dark cherries, cassis and just a touch of earthiness to ground it (ha ha).  A lovely end to the evening.  No wait, we did open one more, a bottle of Quinta do Infantado Ruby Port ... now the evening was complete ... let the headache, and the midnight nap on the couch, begin.

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World Tour on a Friday Night (France / Australia / Ontario)

Friends from Toronto came over in the evening (9:23pm) and the wine started following - as well some game meat sliders hit the BBQ (wild boar and kangaroo) ... so the big reds seemed to be the ones to bring out.  In honour of the kangaroo the 2008 Stalking Horse Shiraz seemed the good option, plummy, chocolate and dark fruited, big alcohol, really full in the mouth.  For no apparent reason I also opted to open a beauty of a French wine from the Languedoc, Domaine de Bachellery 2007 Grenache Fut de Chene.  The dark fruit shines on this one with touches of vanilla and spice; a seemingly delicate wine that proved to be delicious with both burgers, but still showed power and boldness once you got a few sips in.  The evening ended a few hours later with a bottle of Peninsula Ridge 2010 AJ Lepp Vineyard Merlot (http://ontariowinereview.com/wine-reviews/peninsula-ridge-2010-aj-lepp-reserve-merlot-); which proved to be the best wine of the evening (and I'm not just saying that because I live in Ontario) - it was delicate with mocha and coffee notes on the nose, and proved to be a complete opposite to the big-and-bold-ness of the French and Aussie wines.

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Familia Zuccardi 2007 FuZion (Argentina)

So honestly, I was ready to lambast this wine for being past its prime, after-all you wanna find fault with one of the most popular wines in the world.  Bought for a cheap $7.45 a number of years ago, I pounced on a case the moment it hit the Ontario market - so this bottle is from the first batch that arrived on our doorstep ... and I must be honest, I can't find a fault with it - couldn't then, can't now.  It's exactly what you want in an $8 bottle of wine that is made up primarily of Malbec (70%) with a dollop of Shiraz (30%).  Now 5 years from vintage date it is still showing wonderfully well.  The nose is black cherry with mocha notes, while the palate shows some real complexity with a plethora of black fruits: blackberry, black raspberry, black cherry along with mocha and a touch of white pepper on the finish ... the wine is smooth and still really supple.  I still have a few bottles so I'm gonna hold on just a little bit longer and see what happens ... heck that's another thing you can do with an under $8 wine: cellar aging tests without feeling you broke the bank to do so.

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An old Zin and an older Cab (California)

A frank talking Saturday evening deserves some serious wine ... and we had just that, in both ways.  I won't delve into the conversation but I will tell you about the two wines.  The first was a Cline 2007 Sonoma County Zinfandel, an absolute beauty that is in the prime of her drinkabilty.  Lush plum, black cherry, and chocolate - rich and decadent, the plum screams through the whole wine from start to finish adding in layers of flavour as it goes.  The next was a bit of an older wine that was starting to crest but still good in its own way.  The L de Lyeth 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon started off a little tough, or should I say thin, but that would be expected after the Zinfandel's lushness - but as the night wore on and the conversation grew more serious it started to come into its own and now in hindsight seemed a more serious wine to take the evening in with.  It was smooth with blackberry and black cherry taking the lead and a touch of herbal creeping in from the rim (if you know what I mean).  Both wines made a serious evening more palatable and were worth talking about, here anyway.

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Hecht & Bannier 2007 Minervois (France)

There was no real reason for pulling out this bottle tonight ... it wasn't that it was going to pair particularly well with what we were eating, the label didn't grab me by the throat and compel me to drink it, nor did I feel like a Syrah-Grenache blend ... it was just a bottle of wine that I pulled out of a "save it" case and its time was up.  Dinner was homemade beef pie and salad, so you can see dinner played no part in what I was serving with it.  This wine revealed itself in stages and by the end I can tell you that I am glad to have another bottle stocked in my cellar because this wine has yet to resolve itself, but I think it will for the better ... let me explain.  From the get go the wine smelled smoky with a whole lotta black fruit and spice - the palate followed this to the letter, though it had a roughness that made it a little tough to drink ... too much smoke.  45 minutes later I got the very distinct and perceivable smell of black raspberry and spice, a step above just general black fruit ... on the palate it was peppery with a touch of wood.  Another 45 minutes passed and now I could smell blackberry and nutmeg, but the palate had started to layer itself: with a cornucopia a flavours:  cocoa, nutmeg, cassis, spice with a peppery-wood smoke finish ... and an aftertaste that possessed a bit of a charring effect.  All said and done I wrote down on a slip of paper: "lots of fruit ... tannins ... wood ... and spice - but will it resolve itself?"  And I say yes, a few more years and I think the fruit will blossom and finally push that wood away - we'll check back in 2015 to make sure.

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New Year's Eve: German Riesling & Ontario Bubbles (Germany / Canada)

It was double Riesling night chez moi on New Year's eve ... first we started with a bottle of CH Berres 2007 Riesling Kabinett (Urziger Wurzgarten) and paired it with ordered in Chinese food.  Now before I get to the wine I want to take this moment to remind myself that ordering Chinese on New Year's eve is not a novel idea - no matter what you convince yourself of, in fact I think everybody and his dog had the same idea.  Our usual place took an hour-and-a-half to deliver, the food was almost stone cold and the usual fabulous quality almost seemed pedestrian (the soup even tasted like dishwater) ... so note to self, pick it up next year.  As for the Riesling, it was a delicious accompaniment and also by itself.  It started off with a hint of petrol on the first whiff, but soon that dissipated and we were left with lemon, dried apricot and lime cordial on the nose.  The palate started the same way but righted itself within 15 minutes: sweet citrus notes found their way to the back palate, baby powder nuances along with pear and lemon across the tongue - it had a dry start with a touch of sweetness on the finish ... lovely.

The second Riesling of the night happened to be of the sparkling variety as we opened a Maleta 2005 Old Vines Brut (Ontario) at the stroke of midnight.  This wine has aged very well with baked apple and lemon pith notes on the nose, while on the palate toasted brioche with a slight buttery taste across the tongue gave way to a long lemon and lime pith finish.  Happy New Year.

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Holiday Get Together wines and beer (Ontario / Australia)

The evening started with a growler of beer and ended with a debate over an Ontario Meritage, the middle consisted of two wildly different Tasmanian Pinots.  Sounds like a party, and it was.  

The wife and I decided to invite some friends over to make up for cancelling on the US Thanksgiving get together we were originally planning (I had to go out of town that weekend).  Our drinking started early because of the miracle bird - a turkey that was calculated to need 7 hours to cook somehow only needed 3 to be completely done ... it is our first Christmas miracle.  My wife and I sat on the couch in the living room and knew we needed something to drink ... that's when we pulled out the growler (1.9L) of Niagara College Teaching Brewery Glutton free beer ... yes we wanted a beer but nothing heavy - we had guests coming after all, and this one hit the spot.  

People started to arrive some 3 hours later - the beer was gone but we had plenty more, including a NCTB Oatmeal Stout that proved to be popular with us and a few guests.  For dinner I twisted the cap on a bottle of Josef Chromy 2009 Pinot Noir "Pepik" - which was delightfully Pinot-esque with that sour cherry, cranberry and slight earthy tinge, this was a very good Pinot Noir from a country not known for making great pinot (Australia) but from a region I have grown to really enjoy Pinots from (Tasmania).  I wanted to have a bit of a contrasting Pinot in bottle number two, so I twisted another cap on a bottle of Tamar Ridge 2007 Pinot Noir 'Kayena Vineyard'; another Tasmanian offering but this time from the 2007 vintage, which must have been way hotter because the alcohol was a whopping 14% where as the first was only 12.  This one showed more of a cooked fruit flavour, more robust with more plummy and black fruit qualities - more along the lines of what you expect a delicate grape like Pinot to become in a hot region like Australia ... but there was still some finesse shown in the making of it so it wasn't jammy ... it past muster.

After dinner a debate began over a bottle of Ravine 2010 Meritage - someone mentioned that had seen my review and wondered what wine I had tasted, as they had tried the same wine and was nothing like what I had described.  I quickly ran downstairs and grabbed a bottle and poured some glasses - I was vindicated, but my guest insists that the wine we tried tonight and the one they had tried previously, while labelled the exact same, were not the same wines ... curious.

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Columbia Crest 2007 Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon (Washington)

I would have to say that the Washington wines I have tasted of late have been pretty awesome stuff.  I was really blown away by a tasting of this wine a few months back and now that I got a chance to put this wine into a nice big glass and consume more then a few mouthfuls (without having to spit them), I am even more impressed.  The nose was full of ripe inviting fruit like blackberry and black cherry, but there were also lovely aromas of vanilla, spice and mocha.  The palate didn't disappoint in any way, starting with chocolate and cassis, then moving on to blueberry and black cherry, before allowing pepper and spice to take center stage.  The wine did have some fairly aggressive tannins that seemed to soften with more swirling in the glass, but they kept popping up even after an hour.  This wine shows some great potential for further aging over the next 5+ years, but it sure is drinking well right now.

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McKinley Springs 2007 Bombing Range Red (Washington)

This is a really interesting blend from Washington state that came out just this past weekend at the LCBO (Ontario):  Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah with dollops of Mourvedre, Malbec and Petit Verdot.  I think the last three add the complexity to the wine while the first two give it that typicity we all know and love - thus making it an interesting blend.  The nose starts off with plum and clove, then after about an hour turns into sweet spiced-raspberry (nice evolution) ... flavour-wise you get pepper, spice, cedar, cassis, black cherry and clove all woven into a pleasant drink-it-slow package as it changes on the palate from sip to sip, adding more and more enjoyment to your evening.  The funny thing about this wine is the label - a cartoon drawing of a pilot holding a glass of wine and beside it a three panel cartoon showing a wine bottle being dropped like a bomb - here in Ontario the brain-trust at the liquor board decided it would be a good idea to cover up the glass of wine the pilot is holding in the name of social responsibility; obviously they don't want us to get the notion that drinking and flying (and dropping wine bottles from on high) is acceptable.  Really?  I needed that reminder?  Thank goodness they stepped on on this one.

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Two Whites - One Red (Ontario / Australia)

Pretty simple day really.  Buddy came over after the Burlington Rib Fest and we sat around and drank my booze ... frees up space for more, is the way I look at it; free booze is the way he looks at it.

Started with the Reif 2007 Kerner, which proved to be quite delicious after some time in glass.  My buddy, like myself, is not a huge Chardonnay fan, claiming his favourite was way back in 1992 and was made by JL Groux when he was still with Hillebrand.  I pulled out one of my recent favourites, a Coyote's Run 2008 Black Paw Chardonnay, needed some time to open up but once it did it had all I was looking for, my buddy drank it but claims nothing compares to his '92 - stuck in the past obviously.  Finally we opened a bottle of D'arenberg 2008 D'arry's Original (Shiraz Grenache blend) that had lots of spicy black pepper and dark fruit ... this one needed no time in glass to open up, it was ready upon pouring.

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Don Sebastiani 2007 SKN Cabernet Sauvignon (California)

SKN - what in the world could that mean? Could be Skin minus the I but no, it actually is an acronym for Screw Kappa Napa.  With its eye catching orange label this wine grabs your attention, not surprising the producer is listed as Three Loose Screws ... but forget about the packaging and marketing for a minute, because label will get you to buy a wine a grand total of once, what`s in the bottle will have you coming back time and time again.  This is a relatively easy recommend because most people recognize the Napa brand as being wine of quality (but still crap does come from the region), this is a pretty basic Napa Cab but a tasty one at that.  The nose is full of chocolate, blackberry, black cherry and plum while the palate is dark fruited with pepper and spiced-plum gives length to the finish with just a hint of mocha on the linger ... seemed to go well with the Venison Honey Garlic sausages I paired it with.

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La Puerta 2007 Shiraz (Argentina)

Not everybody agrees with me on the plastic cork issue ... well not everybody that sells wine.  Most winemakers and winery owners know the effects plastic (synthetic) corks have on their product and my own experience has shown me that about 80% of the bottles I open that are closed with plastic or synthetic have some kind of fault.  So when I unwrapped the capsule from this bottle I was skeptical as to what I would find in the bottle.  Thankfully, to a degree, this was one of the wines in the 20th percentile that seem to be, for the most part, unscathed by a bad closure decision.  The nose was mostly pepper and blackberry with a hint of an oxidative quality that was so slight it took awhile to come out.  On the palate more dark fruit and white pepper with a port-like mid palate that may or may not have been produced through too much air getting past that cork.  Not as bad as I anticipated, but once again I wish producers would mark somewhere on their label that they used an alternative closure so I (and you) wouldn't hold onto these bottles past there prime (which is no more than 2 years).

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