Vintages Release February 2004

By Natalie MacLean   


February 2: Sweet Dessert Wines (all are the half bottle of 375 ml except where noted)

590133 Lakeview Cellars Riesling Icewine 2002, Niagara $49.95: A concentrated sweet nectar with good acidity from the riesling base. Score: 83/100


551085 Inniskillin Vidal Icewine 2002, Niagara $52.95: Surprisingly good balance for a vidal-based icewine. Lots of tree fruit. 89


594010 Jackson-Triggs Vidal Icewine 2003, Niagara $45.95: Lovely aromas of pears and apricots. 86


563247 Kittling Ridge Vidal Icewine 2002, Niagara $42.95: Melons, honey and pineapplefruit fruit. 85


469635 Peller Estates Vidal Estates Icewine 2001, Niagara $18.95 (200 ml): Rich and luxurious sweetness on the palate. 86



February 2: White Wines

925792 Grove Hill Chardonnay 2001, New Zealand $17.95: Terrific balance (just enough oak and roundness), ripe tree fruit. Score: 90/100


925842 Zenith Sauvignon Blanc 2002, New Zealand $16.95: Classic SB with grassy, herbal zestiness. Excellent food wine for cream and seafood dishes. 85


928192 Weingut Karl Lingenfelder Grosskarlbacher Osterberg Riesling Spatlese 2001, Pfalz, Germany $19.95: Love it! Great lemon-lime zest. 91



February 2: Red Wines

462812 Masi Vaio Armaron Serego Alighieri 1997, Veneto, Italy $65.95: Dante anyone? A towering inferno of a wine with with classic amorone dried fruit. Page 13 in the Vintages booklet or about the sixth circle down below. Score 90/100


560052 Quail's Gate Pinot Noir 2000, BC $35.95: We don't get enough BC wines here in Ontario. So when we get one this good, snap it up! This one is rich and full-bodied, more like a great cabernet than a typical medium-bodied pinot. Who cares though, it's a great wine. 91


727511 Glass Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2000, California $16.95: Very pleasant, all-round, easy-drinking red with plums and mocha aromas. 87


909499 Argyle Pinot Noir 2001, Oregon $22.95: Lovely ripe cherries and a silky texture. 88


921890 Terra Nova Cookoothama Pigeage Merlot 2001, Australia $37.95: Big, honkin' wine with a tannic grip that needs aging 3-4 years. Dark fruit aromas. 88


745489 Coriole Vineyards Mary Kathleen Cabernet/Merlot Reserve 2000, McLaren Vale, South Australia $29.95: Another whopper with full-bodied, dark fruit intensity but not too tannic. 89


922443 Mulderbosch Faithful Hound 1999, South Africa $20.95: Heavily-oaked, smoky wine with black fruit. 84


960310 Chateau St. Georges 2000, St. Emilion, Bordeaux, France $41.95: Mocha and leather aromas. A smooth texture. Will age 3-4 years. 90


917740 Domaine Roux Pere & Fils Saint-Aubin 2001, Burgundy, France $25.95: Young, juicy, fresh fruit basket of cherries. Pinot noir is known as the heartbreak because it's so difficult to grow -- perfect for Valentine's Day. 85


910687 Moulin de Gassac Mas de Daumas Gassac 2001, Midi, France $47.95: Not all wine in the south of France is of the jug variety. This structured, full-bodied beauty has exotic dark fruit. 90


927921 Aranyfurt/Vinarium Bull's Blood Szekszardi Bikaver 2000, Hungary $10.95: Don't be put off by the name of this traditional and delicious Hungarian wine. It's simple (what do you want tfor $10?) and full-bodied. Should probably be drunk from medieval goblets. 81


947440 Banfi Centine 2001, Tuscany, Italy $17.95: Also comes in the half bottle for $8.95... plan ahead for those nights on your own. Juicy cherries and berries, a little tannic grip... nothing to worry about. 86


924209 Cantena Valpentena Valpolicella Ripasso Falasco 2000, Veneto, Italy $14.95: Great value. Ripe, peppery. 85


718999 Bodegas Catsano Hecula 2001, Spain $13.95: Spectacular value. Blacberry, cassis, smoke, jazz singers, it's all in this bottle. 87



February 21: White Wines

563437 Vineland Estates Select Late Harvest Vidal 1999, Niagara $14.95 (half bottle): Gorgeous... rich as an icewine but one quarter the price. 92


737122 Katnook Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2001, Coonawarra, South Australia $18.95: Very good. Not as herbal and grassy as typical NZ SB. Good balance with lemon-lime intensity and great acidity for many food dishes. 86


735241 Weingut Balthasar Ress Riesling Kabinett 2001, Rheingau, Germany $16.95: Lovely, lovely off-dry rielsing with floral (field daisies) aromas. Let us run with bare legs through the grass. 88


968982 Chateau des Charmes Gamay Droit 2000, Niagara $14.95: I've recommended this wine before from the fall release... still good in this tasting. Blackberries and cherries with some spice. 84


922211 Bellevue Estate Tumara Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Malbec 2000, South Africa $18.95: Another dark horse, come-from-behind surprise. Lovely and ripe with mocho and dark fruit. (Excuse me if I repeat the adjectives but why make up different ones just for the sake of making up different ones?) 90


467944 Bodegas Catena Zapata Cabernet Sauvignon 2001, Argentina $13.95: Heavily oaked with dark fruit. 83


704882 TerraMater Zinfandel/Shiraz 2001, Chile $12.95: A simple, juicy wine with grapey, delicious flavours. 81


918664 Domaine Michel et Patrice Rion Niuts-Saint-Georges 2001, Burgundy $54.95: A wine to drink while kneeling as someone famous once said. Juicy, bursting with the beauty of life. 92


926626 Perrin & Fils Chateaunuef-du-Pape 2001, Rhone, France $29.95 Lovely cedar and red fruit. Great balance. 90


972588 Fusione Primitivo 2001, Italy $13.95: Same clone as zinfandel. Dark, full-bodied and brooding, almost burnt fruit. 85


946731 Conte Tasca d'Almerita Rosso del Conte 2000, Italy $37.95: Warm and bursting with ripe red fruit, like Silician spring. Age 3-4 years. 89


912691 Bodegas Breton Cia Lorinon Crianza 1999, Spain $15.95: Exotic, so different from most wines we get. Blackberry, mocha and juicy. 86


983841 Sierra Cantabria 2001, Spain $12.95: Exeptional value for a Rioja, Spain's premium region. 84