Privacy and the Liquor Control Board of Ontario

 What started out as a simple privacy commissioner complaint has turned into a constitutional challenge of the validity of the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) – and this time the Board has only itself to blame for the brouhaha, proving once again that Ontario’s LCBO is so far out

Another Spanish Kiss

 I know I promised you some New Zealand wine this week, and I now promise you that next week I will deliver… but last week I gave you a little kiss from Spain and just a day after I wrote that piece, someone reminded me of an even deeper kiss

A Wickedly Good Rhone Wine

 One of my favorite parts of my job is teaching. I like giving seminars and talking to/with people about wine, answering their questions and giving them the straight goods about wine. I don’t believe in couching wine in terms people don’t understand or giving descriptors that only a handful of

Climbing the Ladder of Torres

                           Torres is a name you should recognize – a very prominent wine producer out of Spain with many parcels of land growing different and sometimes unique varieties – especially for Spain (Pinot Noir anyone?). My parents don't

California’s Last Hurrah

 I’ll be quite honest with you here. I’m a little tired of California and her wines at the moment.  That’s because, at this time of year, they do a big push at the LCBO leading up to the California Wine Fair held across Canada. The California wine fairs in Ottawa

Through All the Bad-Mouthing, Merlot Still Makes a Great Wine

 It’s the grape that takes the brunt of all the bad jokes about wine – culminating in that famous line from Sideways when Miles proclaims: “I’m not drinking any fuckin’ Merlot” … they say that movie single-handedly brought the sale of California Pinot Noir up and tanked those of Merlot.

California Chardonnays: Magic on the Palate!

 It’s going to be all California all the time at the LCBO this month. You’ll hear radio ads, see billboards and be confronted by all things California at your local liquor store. It’s a good thing for all you California wine fans, bad if you like drinking your wine from

A Taste of Oregon — Sort of . . .

 Sadly, we don’t see a lot of Oregon wine here in Ontario. If you go to the LCBO website and type “Oregon” into the search box, you’ll find a grand total of six wines; if you refine this product search with an “advanced search” for “USA – Oregon” you’ll come

A Hidden Chilean Gem Left Over from the Holidays

 Ninquen is the second property that was acquired by Montgras between 1998 and 1999, but let’s back up a bit and talk about the main company first, before we find out what Ninquen is about. Montgras was founded by Hernan Gras in 1993… and as it turns out Mr. Gras

Masi’s Flagship Wines: “Some of the Best I’ve Tasted”

 I recently had a chance to taste two of Masi’s wines side by each… You’ve probably all heard of Masi or at least seen their bottles on the shelves at the LCBO – and I’ll be honest, I’ve never met anyone who hasn’t had at least one of their wines at one

Something “Completely Yummy”: 2011 Montes Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon

 I’m going back to Chile for the second week in a row and once you put your lips on a glass of this wine, you’ll realize why I am recommending it. You see, just recently in Toronto, the Chileans came to town and held their annual Grand Tasting, which they call Discover

Thirst Impressions: Piedmont or Bust

 As usual, we'll look back at a few releases before we sample the newest bottles on Vintages’ shelves. The October 13 release had one for those of you who like sparkling wine but aren't big fans of the price of Champagne. Head a little south of Champagne to Burgundy for

Don’t Just Think of Argentina for Malbec: 2011 Casillero del Diablo Reserva Malbec

 Last night I tasted an Argentine Malbec, where we expect this grape to come from these days, although originally it was a French grape found mainly in the Cahors region in the Southwest of the country.  As I sipped on this wine, I could not help but wonder if the

An Amazing Wine Well Worth Its Price: Regali 2008 La Lus Albarossa

 This week, I’m struggling about the wine I am about to recommend, not because I don’t like it, or I’m on the fence about it. Au contraire mon frère, I’m a big fan of this wine.  My struggles are for much more selfish reasons: if I tell you about it,

A Very Good Pinot Gets Even Better for a Few Weeks: Chanson 2010 Le Bourgogne

 This week, we'll swing on down to France and look at the signature red grape of Burgundy. Pinot Noir is a seemingly love-it or hate-it grape. Some dig the earthy, barnyard, almost musky scents of a good Pinot Noir can give off – others shy away, saying that the wine

Pink Bubbles with a Cause: Bottega Il Vino dei Poeti Rosé

 It’s October and that means that the colour pink is all the rage… it’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month and from football players’ shoes to towels, candles and Five Hour Energy drinks, everybody jumps on the “Breast Cancer Awareness” bandwagon by tinting their product pink. I’m a guy. I like wine and I

A Simple Pleasure: Portuguese Red

 Portugal is one of those region in the world that is the most misunderstood ... quite simply it's because the average consumer does not recognize the grape varieties on the label, that is if there is a grape variety listed on the label at all.  Portugal is known more for

A New Zealand Riesling that Really Packs in the Flavour

 When most people think of New Zealand wines they think of Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Noir - in fact New Zealand's second biggest imported wine is Pinot Noir - but you probably don't think of Riesling coming from the little island nation south of Australia, but New Zealand is doing

An Italian Gem from Banfi at Under $16.00

 Did you miss the September 1st release of the Castello Banfi 2010 Centine, I sure did, but I'm glad I got a chance to taste it now.  I was at a Banfi tasting seminar earlier this week and amongst the 40 and 60-plus dollar bottles of wine was this gem

Fall Back on an Old Favourite or Find a New One…

 As we head into fall, we swap those light and fruity whites for the heavier, warming appeal of reds. I like to give you the latest releases available, but it’s always good to step back a few weeks to see if certain faves are still kicking around the LCBO. We’re

Thirst impressions: Summer’s Here & the Time is Right for Wine and the BBQ

 I have a few selections for you based on the July 21 release, but there are also a couple that come from previous releases you might want to still search out as they offer great value for the taste buds. Let’s start with a new wine into Vintages from an

Real Class in the Glass!

 The Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) has released its May 12 line-up. I would have to say that although we are entering the hot weather months – which usually means white wine season – there was a rather unimpressive selection of whites to choose from. In this release there

Thirst Impressions: You Can’t Go Wrong with the Fizz

 Those looking for their wine fix in March are in luck. The LCBO has got some real winners hitting the shelves this month. The focus is Spain and bubbly. The Spanish wine was run-of-the-mill so the bubbly is where I am going to focus my picks. You just can’t to

Thirst Impressions: Big Wines… Small Prices

 Another year begins and with it comes a bunch of new wines to look forward to enjoying. The LCBO always starts the year off right by giving us its release of “Smart Buys”, inexpensive wines that take the sting out of the post-Christmas blues of having little (or no) money.

Niagara's Best Comes to Town

 We are less than 2 weeks away from one of the premier Ontario wine events to hit the Ottawa market.  This February 6, 2012 at the National Gallery of Canada (380 Sussex Drive) between 6:30 and 9:00pm 46+ Ontario wineries will be pouring their wares from diverse vintages ranging from