WCOW: Canadian Red Blend Regional Try-outs

Country: Canada
Manager: Liam Carrier

This week we try-out two great BC red-wine blends. Keeping to the rules of the WCOW, the wines are at or under the $20 limit here in the host province of British Columbia. As the manager for Team Canada I want to try-out a number of red blends as I believe this is a category in which Canada will do well and may even win – especially at the $20 price-point.

Wine #1: Jackson-Triggs Vinters 2006 Proprietor's Reserve Meritage
Price: $20
Region: Black Sage Bench - Okanagan Valley
Country: Canada
Notes: Excellent, classic Meritage blend of 44% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Cabernet Franc. Needs 2hrs of decanting.
Full review: Follow Link
Score: 88 points

Wine #2: La Frenz Winery 2007 Montage
Price: $20
Region: Naramata Bench – Okanagan Valley
Country: Canada
Notes: A of Shiraz, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The Shiraz is becoming a signature grape for BC and here adds warmly received spice to the blend. Amazing.
Full review: Follow Link
Score: 90 points

Conclusion: The La Frenz Montage wins and moves on to the National championship stage. It scored higher due to its impressive combination of complexity of flavour and approachability. This is a fantastic wine and a real steal at $20 and it's no wonder the winery sells out every vintage. For availability check their website: www.lafrenzewinery.com

WCOW - The Schedule

November 20th, 2009: For immediate release.

Icon Wines has released the schedule for the 2010 World Cup Of Wine. Consisting of weekly Regional and National try-outs. Coverage of each nation's try-outs will be hosted on BC's premier fine wine website: http://www.iconwines.ca/. Results from each week's competition will be posted on Sundays.

The Managers for each participating country may hold regional and national try-outs to help pick the best wine for each category: Single-Varietal White, Single-Varietal Red, White Blend and Red Blend. View the list of rules here.

The Schedule:

The World Cup of Wine - U20 Division

Icon Wines Presents The Inaugural:
The World Cup of Wine
U20 Division
Vancouver, Canada:
November 2009 – July 2010

Participating Countries:

Due to the current economic conditions, the inaugural Word Cup of Wine will be limited to 8 countries:
Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, France, Italy, South Africa, USA.

The Rules:

1. Each country will submit four wines to compete in The Finals which will be held in June, 2010. The four wines must consist of: one white single-varietal, one red single-varietal, one white-blend and one red-blend.

• All wines must be available and cost $20 or less in the host country of Canada.
• The single-varietal selections must have at least 85% of one varietal.
• The blends may not have more that 70% of any one varietal.

2. Competition will consist of category specific Head-to-Head battles.

3. The 100 point scale will be used to score the Head-to-Head battles.

• One wine must be declared the winner, there can me no draws.
• In the case of a tie following the initial scoring, tie-breakers will determine the winner:
  · Availability. The yearly production of the wine and the public’s access to purchase.
  · Price point. How much the wine costs versus its competitor?
  · X-factor. The judges’ gut reaction to the wine.

4. The World Cup of Wine “Finals” will be contested in June 2010 and will consist of two pools that have been randomly drawn:

• Pool A: Australia, Argentina, Canada and Italy.
• Pool B: Chile, France, the USA and South Africa.

Selecting The Teams:

1. Team Managers will be responsible for selecting the wines for the participating countries.

• Jordan Carrier will be managing Team France and Team Italy.
• Hugh Carter will be managing Team Australia, Team South Africa and Team USA.
• Liam Carrier will be managing Team Argentina, Team Canada and Team Chile.

2. Each Team Manager may hold regional and national tryouts in order to pick the strongest competitors for each country.

• Tryouts are optional.
• Regional and national tryouts will mimic the “Head-to-Head” format of The Finals.
• All tryouts will be covered by the Icon Wines staff. Results will be posted on The Cellar Experiment blog and full reviews will be posted on Icon Scores.

3. Team Managers will be allowed to enlist the help of specialists and of the general public to make their team selections.

• Specialists may include winemakers, wine store experts and critics.
• The general public will be able to have their say online by way of polls and comments.

The Schedule: Coming Soon...

Guided Wine Tastings by Icon Wines

Company principles, Liam Carrier and Hugh Carter, work with the clients to design custom events that can be both entertaining and educational.

Events can range from small, private gatherings to larger, corporate parties. The guided tastings can be tailored to meet the client’s unique demands: showcasing specific wine regions or themes such as “The Best $20 Wines” or “The Wines of BC” to name but two.

Set your budget and the Icon Wines team will provide you with:

• Theme suggestions
• Multiple wine list choices
• Expert advice
• Wine tasting 101 tips
• Tasting note sheets

The Icon Wines' Guided Wine Tastings are appropriate for:

• Holiday parties
• Corporate events
• Private parties

To contact the Icon Wines team and find out their availability for the upcoming holiday season and for pricing information, email iconwines@shaw.ca.

Upcoming BC Wine Events

Event: John Gerum's BC Uncorked
Date: November 7th, 2009 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
http://www.bcuncorked.ca/
Details: Tickets $40-50. Twenty BC wineries featured including Icon Wines favourites: Cedar Creek, Road 13, Kettle Valley and Lake Breeze.

Event: Marquis Wine Cellars: Champagne and Sparkling Wine Tasting
Date: November 14th, 2009 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
http://www.marquis-wines.com/Special-Events.html
Details: Free event. 3rd annual. Tasting: Paul Bara Brut Reserve, Le Brun Servenay Brut and Veuve Clicquot Brut among others.

Coming in 2010… The Icon Wines Tri-Cities Wine Club featuring both New World and Old World wines.