Monthly Picks: February 2012

In February we celebrate Valentine's Day so this month's picks are all sensual wines. The perfect pairing for Romance's special day.

Hillebrand Winery 2010 Trius Cabernet Franc - $15
Not overly complex, but tasty and satisfying with good concentration and moderately intense tannins. The finish is long and balanced with lingering clove spice and a touch of minerality.
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Fort Berens Estate Winery 2010 Pinot Gris - $18
 Mouth watering tartness is refreshing and never overbearing, balancing the perception of sweetness from the fruit and the full-ish texture.
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Tinhorn Creek Vineyards 2008 Pinot Noir - $20
There is a classic Pinot Noir earthiness to the nose of this wine but it is the raspberry, cherry, mint and smoked cedar aromas which take center stage and confuse your mind that you'll be drinking a much more expensive Pinot.
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Wayne Gretzky Estate Wines 2007 Estate Series Cabernet-Merlot - $20
The wine is presented as an interesting New World / Bordeaux cross with the juicy fruit one expects at the forefront of the flavour profile from a North American Meritage wine matched impressively well with the lean, mean, oak-loving style of Bordeaux.
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Stoneboat Vineyards 2009 Pinot Noir - $25
Awarded a 2011 Lieutenant Governor's Award of Excellence, this light garnet hued Pinot Noir from Oliver's Stoneboat Vineyards offers a gorgeous, seductive nose of sweet cherry-cola candy, vanilla, cedar, light earth and subtle oak spice aromas.
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Stag's Hollow Winery 2009 Cabernet Franc - $28
The nose of the Stag's Hollow Cabernet Franc is both subtle and powerful. The power comes from intense concentration of dark berries and French oak aromas accompanied by layers of pleasant, subtle notes of flowers, fresh tobacco and a touch of light chorizo sausage.
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Painted Rock Estate Winery 2009 Syrah - $40
must be quaffed to be believed. It is both seductive and fun with a sweetness to it that feels familiar and safe yet mysteriously absent from memory. Licorice, raspberry, dark cherry, caramel brittle, vanilla, clove and light oak aromas sit playfully in the glass.
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BC Wine Deal: January 11th, 2012

The following wines have been reduced in price at participating VQA wine shops. Some reductions are due to new vintages being released soon and others are simply to help move stock.

Fort Berens Meritage was $28.00 is now $26.99
Inniskillin Pinot Blanc was $13.99 is now $12.49
Inniskillin Pinot Noir was $18.99 is now $17.49
Tinhorn Chardonnay was $17.99 is now $16.99
Tinhorn Pinot Noir was $19.99 is now $18.99

Looking Ahead to 2012

With 2011 now behind us it's time to look ahead what may be in store for us all in 2012. An attempt at forecasting how I believe certain wine topics affecting the Canadian market may play-out this year. Have your say too and leave a comment below.

Screw Cap Enclosures
I don't think there has ever been more cellar worthy wines produced in Canada at any given time than the impressive examples being consistently offered today. However, it remains a very small percentage of the amount of wines produced from our (relatively) young industry using (mostly) young vines (less than 15 years old). Most wines produced are for daily consumption and are presented in a North American-friendly, fruit-forward and lively style. A style perfectly attuned to the freshness-containing, aluminum screw-cap enclosure more commonly used in Australia and New Zealand. Unfortunately, in North America the screw cap (or "Stelvin cap" as it is all too often referred to in a Kleenex sort of way) is still associated with bulk, cheap, "jug" wines and rarely seen on quality, mid-range products like the sorts of wines we save for that special evening which is expected to be fulfilled within the next year or two.

It's a perception that a few influential producers like the Okanagan Valley's Tinhorn Creek are looking to change and who see the screw cap for what it is - insurance that of all the wines that leave the winery, none will come back due to a tainted cork. All of their wines, with the only exception being the winery's 200ml Icewine/Late Harvest bottle, are enclosed with a screw cap. Even their reserve wines which receive an extra year of bottle aging prior to release are sealed with the screw cap. These wines taste fresh upon release, yet, you can taste the benefits of the extra time in bottle. The jury may still be out on the long term effect but some data coming out of Australia is encouraging.

I believe that more wineries in BC and Ontario will adopt the screw cap for their bottom and mid-tier wines. Cork will remain the standard for the cellar dwellars as is my own preference. Hopefully, more screw caps will mean less synthetics - the bane of my wine bottle opening experience.

Prediction: Progress will be made, but item will remain "Unsolved".

Outdated Liquor Board Laws
I certainly support the amending of the current inter-provincial shipping liquor laws for the simple fact that I would like to be able to order wine from the Niagara Peninsula directly from the producer and at the winery door price. However, the Ins and Outs of the details as to how the laws should change I leave to other much more informed folks like @JustGrapesWine @freemygrapes and @TDMulligen.

Reading the tea leaves it feels as though support for some sort of personal consumption exemption is gaining ground with politicians and will not only be changed in our lifetime, but changed this coming year. This is a small victory in the larger battle to change the Prohibition-era laws and the mountain of ridiculous (and often confusing) regulations the antiquated laws support. But a victory nonetheless.

Prediction: Solved (somewhat)

Next page: Signature Grapes & Bordeaux Vintages