WHINE # 33 - April, 2012

AGING WINE:  In earlier blogs I wrote about aging wines, arguing that every wine has a perfect age.  Some wines are best drunk shortly after they are bottled, others only reach their peak after several years of cellaring.

The question is whether or not I can make a complex topic simple.   Basically there are three variables that determine how long you should store a wine before pulling the cork: 

(1) VARIETAL.   Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo and Shiraz grapes contain lots of tannins.  It takes time for these tannins to “soften” , allowing the fruit flavor to come forward.  On the other hand, there is no point in cellaring a low tannin varietal such as Gamay (the grape of Beaujolais) or Sangiovese (the grape of Chianti).

 (2)  COUNTRY OF ORIGIN.  Wines from hot, dry countries such as Argentina or Australia are made from grapes that are picked when they are fully ripe or sometimes overripe.  These wines take less long to soften than wines from countries with fewer growing days.  Typically wines from the “Old World” countries(France, Italy, Spain) take much longer to reach perfection; particularly the Cabernets.

 (3)  QUALITY.  More expensive wines are made from selected grapes from old vines.  These high quality wines are more suited to cellaring.  Cheaper wines rarely improve with age.

So, I shall go out on a limb and give you a couple of tables which are very rough approximations of how long you should keep your wines.  In each case add the number in the table to the year on the label and you will have the year at which the wine should be near its peak.

KEY TO TABLES

HIGH TANNIN WINES – Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Tempranillo, Shiraz

MEDIUM TANNIN WINES – Bonarda, Carmenere, Malbec, Merlot

LOW TANNIN WINES – Gamay, Pinot, Sangiovese

PRICE RANGE

HIGH -$ 40.

MEDIUM - $ 15-$40

LOW - $ 10 - $ 15

NEW WORLD WINES (Reds)

TANNIN

                                                                High                       Medium               Low

Over $ 40                                               6+                              4                           2

Between $ 15 and $ 40                       4                                 3                           1

$ 15 or less                                        3                              2                        0

OLD WORLD WINES (Reds)

TANNIN

                                                                High                       Medium               Low

Over $ 40                                             7+                           5                              2

Between $ 15 and $ 40                     5                              4                              2        

$ 15 or less                                      4                           2                           1

ALBERTA and AMERICAN READERS ONLY:  When visiting Mendoza a few years ago I was given a bottle of 2006 La Flor Cabernet Sauvignon.  It sat in my cellar until a few weeks ago when I decided to share it with Betty.  This inexpensive wine was absolutely fabulous.  Unfortunately, a Google search discovered only one store in Canada that imported this great wine.   That store is located in Calgary (Vino Fino Inc.  Mike Radakovic Edward’s Wine and Spirits).  Of course, if you live in the U.S.A. you can order the wine on line (www.paulhobbsimports.com).

GOOD VALUE FRENCH WINE:   Good value and French do not typically go together.  However, some of the wines from the south of France have reasonable prices, certainly priced well below the classic wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy.

One wine that I recommend is Minervois.  This wine is produced in the very south of France near the enchanting city of Carcassone.  For history buffs, the village of Minerve was the centre of the famous Cathar tragedy.  Minervois is a blend of Carignan, Grenache Noir, Syrah, Cinsault and several other varietals.  The wine is full-bodied, at least as full-bodied as a French wine gets.  Although the wine will age for a few years, it can generally be drunk quite young.

Minervois can be found at your local government store.  Similarly priced to Argentinian Malbec, you might try serving this to your friends and have them guess the country of origin.  My bet is that they will say “New World.”

WINES OF SOUTHEAST ASIA:   I’ve just returned from 4 weeks  of a great holiday in Southeast Asia.  Betty and I loved everything about the countries we visited;  particularly Thailand and Vietnam.  People were friendly, food was excellent, and we can’t wait to return. 

Wine is not a big part of the culture although interest is growing.  The Chinese, in particular, are purchasing more and more wine, especially expensive French wine. 

What can I say about the local wine?  To quote, “a picture is worth a 1000 words.”  Here I am sampling a Vietnamese red.

OFFERING # 209:  This offering contains a number of good Bordeaux, but they are priced more for special occasions, than for everyday drinking.  So if you want to lay down a few bottles of pricey wines, here are two recommendations:  6654 Clos Sainte-Anne Merlot, and for my rich readers 6633 Hortevie AOC Saint-Julien.  This latter wine, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, is everything a good Bordeaux should be.  This should impress your Chinese business associates.

January 2012 Whine

  

 

Whine # 32

How important is Vintage?  Most bottles of wine clearly indicate the year when the grapes were picked.   There are, however, a few exceptions.  For example, many Champagnes do not give a year because wines from different years are blended together in an attempt to provide a consistent product.

Paying attention to the year is important for two reasons.  First, this critical information tells one whether or not the wine is ready, or needs to be aged, or if in fact, it has passed its best shelf date.  Knowing how long to age a particular wine, although extremely important, is a complex issue and has been dealt with in an earlier Whine (#3) so I’ll move along, except to say that if you are drinking young Cabernets you are making a big mistake.  Remember, however, that the year refers to when the grapes were picked.  This is usually in October in the Northern Hemisphere and March in the Southern Hemisphere.  So a 2008 Chilean wine is already six months older than a 2008 from California.

Winemaking is highly weather dependent.  Lots of sun means lots of sugar and better wine.  While I don’t grow grapes I do have a small vegetable garden.  Last summer we experienced a wetter than normal growing season and our tomatoes were so flavorless that they could have been mistaken for those one buys in the supermarket in February.

Since weather varies from place to place, the statement that it was “a very good year” or “a very poor year” depends not only on the country, but perhaps on a very small region within a country.  Vintage charts will give ratings not just for the Bordeaux region in France, for example, but will note the Left Bank versus the Right Bank.  Thus, in 1998 the wines of St. Emilion (right bank) were only average while the Haut Medoc (just across the river) were considered to be classic.

Back to the basic question, does the year really matter?   The answer is, as you might expect, “Yes and No.”  In part it depends on the country.  Weather is more variable in some places than in others.  Perhaps the extremes are France and California.  In Bordeaux, rainfall and timing of the rainfall varies greatly.  Thus, there are good years and not so good years and the difference is much more than trivial.  So if you are putting out big bucks for a special occasion bottle of Margaux pay the extra for a 2009 or 2010 which were exceptionally good years.

In Spain the weather varies a lot from year to year.  However, the Spanish make it easy for you.  When there is a very good year, the Spanish will label their best wines “Gran Reservas” and as a consumer you know the wine will be special.  In ordinary years the vintners are not allowed to use that label, so “Reserva” will be as good as it gets.

In Argentina, there is little rain and the vines are irrigated from the melting snows of the Andes.  Nonetheless, some years can be a disaster for the grower as the Mendosa area (source of 90% of Argentinian wines) is susceptible to hail storms.  However, hailstorms may destroy the entire crop.   Generally speaking the quality varies much less from year to year than in Southern Europe.

In Chile the weather is even more consistent so if you are buying wines from South America don’t worry so much about the vintage.

Finally, in California the weather is almost guaranteed.  The last time that California had a poor vintage was almost 25 years ago.

In conclusion I would suggest that for most of us vintage only matters when laying down expensive French wines from Bordeaux or Burgundy. 

Wines that disappointed.   Last month I listed the 10 best wines that I enjoyed in 2011.  The thought occurred to me that if I am making lists, why not a list of the worst wines?

As you know, one occasionally opens a bottle that is “corked” and is thus undrinkable.  For those who cellar wine there can be a bottle that has simply been kept too long.  My list includes neither of those disappointments.  It is simply a list of wines that I really didn’t like. 

6              08 Cote de Brouilly (Beaujolais)

5              05 Terrendstre Barbera D’Alba (Italy)

4              06 Aveleda Follies Tourisa National (Portugal)

3              04 Fleur du Cap Shiraz (South Africa)

2              06 Black Opal Shiraz (Australia)

1              08 Passetoutgains (Burgundy)   What is really bad about this wine is that I bought a whole case.

Next Whine.  Writing a Whine is usually triggered by an Opimian Offering.  I usually end each Whine with recommendations to buy (see below).  I expect the next Opimian Offering (# 208) will be out the last week in February.  By that time, however, Betty and I should be on a month’s holiday in Southeast Asia.   So don’t expect another Whine for a couple of months.

Although I am going to take a break from WhineWhining I shall not be weaned off blogging entirely.  As some of you know I like to blog about my travels.  If any of you who read the Whine would like to hear about the countries that we are about to visit send me a brief e-mail (rjohnson@stfx.ca) and I’ll add you to my distribution list for notification of my travel blogs.

Offering # 207.  As most of you know I am very partial to South American wines.  This month’s offering features wines from both Argentina and Chile, as well as wines from the Rhone Valley in France.  There are so many good wines in this offering that I hardly know where to begin.  So what I decided to do is to suggest to you only wines that I have experienced many times.  Then for my own orderings I am going to try some wines with which I am not as familiar.  I didn’t pick particularly inexpensive wines this time.  Three of my recommendations are in the $ 20 range and one is very expensive but unbelievably good.  Any of these wines could be served to your most important guest or saved for a romantic evening with your significant other.

6494 08 Alpha Crux Malbec:   Cellar this for a couple of years and be glad you broke the bank

6504 10 Casa Nueva Merlot Reserva:  Merlots can be very special

6524 10 Cornellana Barrel Reserve Carmenere:    The Barrel Reserve series is very reliable

6528 10 Expresion Reserve Pinot Noir:  Pinot with body

6549 10 Chateau de Montmirail Gigondas:  One of the best from Southern Rhone

Boxing Day 2011

WHINE # 31

December 2011

Welcome to the Whine:  Brian Mazerall, Aaron Savage and Matthew Savage, all of Fredericton, New Brunswick.  Also welcome to Elizabeth Ridley of Toronto.  Hope you enjoy my personal biases.

Bargains in French wine:  Don’t hold your breath:  Variability in wine prices is based on three factors:  supply, demand and exchange rates.  In terms of supply France remains the world’s largest producer of wine at somewhere between 7 and 8 billion bottles, so there is definitely no shortage.

Those of us in Canada have benefitted from the rise of the Canadian dollar.  At present it costs a little more than $ 1.30 to buy a Euro, down from $ 1.65 only a couple of years ago.

Demand for French wine is falling worldwide, including at home.  Young French people drink much less wine than their grandparents, preferring an occasional wine as opposed to a bottle with each meal.  Also, the younger French are experimenting with other alcoholic beverages.  Nonetheless, when they do drink wine, they drink only French wine.  There is little or no international market for non-domestic wine in France, which I think ultimately, hurts the domestic industry.  The French know little of international wines and it is almost impossible to buy a non-French wine in France.  If there were more wines available there would be more experimentation and ultimately more consumption.

Traditional export markets are also in decline.  The Brits, who for centuries have loved their Clarets (a silly English name for Bordeaux) have discovered bargain wines from Australia and South America.  In North America French wine consumption has dropped for the same reason.  Good French wine is too expensive and Bad French wine is just that.

All of the above should lead us to expect falling prices for French wine.  But I have left out one factor, the Chinese.  The burgeoning middle class in China have discovered wine and more importantly they have discovered wine snobbery.  The newly rich look for ways to demonstrate status, and status comes from having expensive Bordeaux on the table. The more expensive the more popular.  Recently one Chinese buyer paid $ 140,000 for two cases of the 2009 Chateau Lafite Rothschild.

Classes are given in wine drinking, where the Chinese learn such basics as “don’t drink the entire glass in one gulp.”  China now imports as much wine as Britain, and in fact, imports more French wine.  

  

So where does that leave us?  First, the best French wines may get even more expensive.  Although the prices for Vin Ordinaire may not increase, but compared to a $ 10 - $ 15 Argentinian Malbec or an entry level Carmenere from Chile, the kind of French wine dumped on those of us in places like Nova Scotia will still not be any bargain.

Ron's Believe It or Not.  This Nova Scotia wine is currently selling for $ 89.95 and is sold out of many stores.  Perhaps in a future Whine I'll tell you how it was.

Wines I drank in 2011.  This past year my consumption of wine has not declined.  However, my choices have more often gone to South American wines and less often to Old World wines.   Chile led my consumption list at 23%, followed closely with Argentina at 19%.  As the Canadian Buck rose against the American Dollar I increased my consumption of Californian wines to 17%.  French wine dropped to 4^th place at 15%.  Ten per cent of my wines came from Spain and only 7% were from Italy.  The remaining 5 % was evenly divided among wines from Australia, Austria, Canada, Portugal, South Africa and Washington State.  How many bottles does that add up to?  My secret!

My price range in wine usually falls between $ 15 and $ 45.  So what was good this past year in that range?  Here are the 10 best wines I drank this past year:

10      Spain:            07  Cava Parxet Brut Reserva – see Offerings section below

9     Chile:            05 Montes Alpha (Cabernet Sauvignon)  -- a bargain at $ 25.

8     Argentina:     03 Alpha Crux (Tempranillo, Malbec, Merlot)

7     France:          09 Chablis Premier Cru “Beauroy” (Chardonnay)

 6    California:     05 Belle Gros Clark & Telephone (Pinot Noir)

 5    Italy:              99 Sartori Amarone

 4    Chile:             05 Traverso Memorable (Cab Sauv, Carmernere, Merlot)

 3    Argentina:     06 Gran Dante (Malbec)

 2    California:     06 Camus (Zinfandel)

 1    California:     06 Amicus Reserve (Cabernet).  This wine was # 4 on my 2010 list but another year in the cellar definitely made it even better.

Opimian Offering # 206.

6418    2008 Parxet Brut Reserva.  BUY!  BUY!  BUY!  This is a great sparkling wine at a bargain price.  If you don’t like this Cava, send me the cork and I’ll eat it.

6421    2009 Mo salina Monastrell.  This is an inexpensive everyday wine with substance.  The French call this Mourvedre.

6427  2009 Faustina Seleccion de Familia.  Not quite ready yet this wine is a good earthy

    Tempranillo.

6464      2011 Pouilly Fuisse.   French Chardonnays are in a class by themselves, but

           keep this for a year or two.

Whine # 30 November, 2011

Whine # 30


Welcome Pat Kaufhold of New Jersey and Judi Travis of New Jersey to the Whine.

COOKING WITH WINE: Although any good chef uses a lot of wine in cooking, not all that comes out of the bottle goes into the recipe.

While the alcohol in the wine helps to bring out the flavours of the ingredients, the more important reason to cook with wine is because of the complex flavours added by the wine itself.

The question here is what wine should one use when cooking? The standard answer is “never cook with a wine that you wouldn’t drink by itself”. That is sometimes interpreted to mean that you should use the exact wine in the food as you will be serving with the food. That I think is silly. I am not going to do anything but pour my last bottle of Don Melchor into a glass and enjoy. And if I owned a bottle of Chateau Petrus I definitely wouldn’t use it in cooking.

Certainly a wine that is unpleasant to drink should not go into your favorite recipe for lamb shank, braised beef, or coq-au-vin. And definitely don’t use a leftover wine that has sat for several days and is well on its way to vinegar.

On the other hand, an everyday drinking wine should be adequate. My suggestion is that you decide what wine you will be serving with the end product, then add a cheaper version in the recipe. For example, if I am going to serve a Gran Reserva Rioja with the meat course, then a cheaper Rioja will do just fine in the cooking. A cheap Argentinian Cabernet in the lamb shank sauce will complement the best Napa Cabernet that you have saved to serve your favorite guests.

My rule of thumb is to never spend more than $ 15 on a cooking wine, and never drink any wine that costs less than that.

ANNUAL WARNING: Each year I warn my readers not to even think about buying any Beaujolais Nouveau, which is released with great hype at the end of November. For new readers of the Whine I suggest you scroll back to Whine # 13 (November 2009) to get the full trashing of Beaujolais Nouveau. For the rest of you here is the only Beaujolais Nouveau joke that I know.

John: “Did you know that 60% of Beaujolais Nouveau is sold to the Japanese?”

Bill: “What happens to the other 40%?”

John: “It isn’t sold.”

WINES OF CROATIA: I recently had a chance to sample wines along the Dalmatian Coast. However, since these wines are not available in Canada I shall not attempt an inventory. On the other hand, there is one wine that needs special mention. Plavic Mali from Croatia is a wonderful wine that can rival the best of either Old or New World wines.

I had my first glass of Plavic Mali when visiting Zagreb in May. Last week Betty and I stopped at a Wine Bar in Dubrovnik and tried two Plavic Malis; one from Postup, the other from Dingac. Both were excellent.

Plavic Mali is a blend of two indigenous grapes (Crljenak and Dobricia). Crljenak is the same grape as Zinfandel and no doubt the source of the wines that are so loved in California. For years it was thought that Primitivo from Italy was the source of Zinfandel, but genetic testing has come down on the side of Croatia.

Now if only NSLC or LCBO would bring in some of this great wine.

THE GLASS IS NEVER HALF EMPTY: When Betty and I decided to take an off-season cruise in the Adriatic we specifically chose a ship that offered free wine with lunch and dinner. We were not disappointed as many of the wines were from Australia and very good, although we were occasionally served an acidic Chianti.

When free wine was advertised we didn’t realize just how free. The game seemed to be that the hovering waiter topped up one’s glass as soon as the second sip was taken. There must have been a rule that no glass was ever allowed to be empty. Most nights I enjoyed the challenge of trying to empty my glass while the waiter was busy with someone else. I rarely succeeded.

The real contest took place on our last night. As we had unused credits in our shipboard account I decided to have a $27. glass of Caymus Cabernet at a pay-bar as a pre-dinner drink. Shortly after this magnificent nectar arrived we were called to dinner. I carried my glass (or had it carried) to the table.

No sooner were we seated than the waiter tried to top up my Caymus with a very ordinary Sangiovese. If I were looking to the right he would sneak up on my left. My whole attention was directed towards protecting my remaining sips of the rich Cab. At one point I ordered a glass of Chardonnay as a distraction but the waiter was undeterred. Finally I realized defeat and simply quaffed the Caymus.

OPIMIAN SPECIAL OFFERING # 50: I don’t have any real bargains to suggest this time, but here are some suggestions for you to consider.

6411 Armagnac: I have several bottles of this distilled brandy on hand and I tend to serve a small glass to delighted guests at the end of an evening of wine and food. Armagnac is very similar to Cognac (I think even better) but is less expensive.

6345 Chablis Vielles Vignes: Not cheap but as good as white wine gets (better than almost any Californian Chardonnay).

6337 Hopler St. Laurent: I am gambling a bit on this recommendation as I have never had this St. Laurent (similar to Pinot Noir). However, I have never been disappointed in a Hopler offering and am guessing this will be a pleasant surprise.

WHINE # 29

Welcome Nancy Sullivan from Ontario to the Whine.

Sipping Wine:   Wine makes food taste better.  Food makes wine taste better.   Finding the right match between the food and the wine is one of those very pleasant challenges that we face almost daily.  In fact, food and wine are so united that in some cultures wine is not drunk without food.

The question is what does one drink prior to the arrival of the food.  In much of southern Europe the pre-dinner drink of choice is a bitter liqueur.  In Provence the preferred aperitif is Pastis, while in much of Italy the favourite apertivo is Campari.

Here in North America many have moved away from the pre-dinner cocktail or the single malt as the pre-dinner drink.  When the host asks “What can I get you to drink?” the response is frequently “red wine” or “white wine”.

What wine do you then serve pre-dinner, or any other time when the wine is to be sipped sans food?  Sparkling wine is always an excellent choice.  Starting the evening with a well-chilled Cava or a frigid Champagne is never a mistake.  Still whites are also a good choice.  Chablis would be my first choice in still whites.

All of this leads up to question “what is an appropriate red for the first wine, particularly prior to the arrival of any food?”  The answer should be easy to remember:  “Light and low in acidity”

A high acid wine such as a Tuscan Sangiovese may be wonderful when paired with a tomato-sauced pasta or with a perfect pizza.  By itself it will burn all the way down.   Similarly you should not start with a heavy tannic wine, such as an Australian or Californian Cabernet Sauvignon.  These wines will gradually taste better as you drink more.  Nonetheless, they are best kept for the meat course, when they will match perfectly with your medium-rare prime rib.

My choices for sipping wines are Merlot or Tempranillo.  Pinot Noir can also be a good choice, but before you offer a Pinot make certain it is a good one.  Cheap Pinot is rarely a hit, while an expensive Pinot is light and wonderfully complex.

They don’t drink wine in Yarmouth:   This item comes with a warning.  Although it is about ordering a bottle of wine, it is as much a political comment as it is a wine story.  Many of you readers don’t vote for the parties that I support, so you may not care about the way I tell this story.

Betty and I found ourselves in the Nova Scotian town of Yarmouth on a Monday evening.  We were staying in Meteghan River and we drove to Yarmouth looking for dinner.  In the past we had some great meals at an Austrian restaurant and more recently discovered a wonderful little bistro on the main drag.

As many of you know Yarmouth has recently fallen on hard times.  The final blow came when our newly elected provincial government cancelled the subsidy to the Yarmouth-Bar Harbour (Maine) ferry.  This ferry was the life blood of both the tourism and trucking industry.  This decision was made by the same politicians who dump millions into a foreign-owned railway that runs empty cars to Sydney on a daily basis.   Go figure!

Back to my story.  On arrival in Yarmouth we discovered that our Austrian restaurant is now closed on Mondays and Tuesday and that our Bistro has moved across the street and has become a pizza joint.

After travelling virtually every street looking for a restaurant that hadn’t gone out of business we ended down by the empty waterfront in a restaurant that is attached to a beautiful but closed hotel that went out of business when the ferry stopped.

Although the restaurant was soon to close we were greeted by a friendly waitress.  There was one other table occupied and a large group of men were in another room working on their hockey pool.

I asked if they had any house wine by the glass and our waitress said there was but she had no idea what it was.  Betty then asked if they had wine by the bottle and after responding positively the waitress went off to the bar to look.  After rooting around under the bar she said that she couldn’t find any red wine.  I noticed that there were three bottles above the bar mixed in with the hard liquors. 

I chose the dusty bottle of Merlot and returned to our table.  After struggling with the corkscrew the waitress apologized that she couldn’t get the cork out.   I offered to help and removed the foil and then extracted the cork.  The waitress was a tad embarrassed and commented that it must have been six months since anyone had ordered wine.  I guess the unemployed of Yarmouth simply can’t afford wine.

The Merlot was fine and it went well both with Betty’s hot lobster sandwich and with my Rappie Pie (Rapture in Acadian French).  By the way, Rappie Pie is a unique and wonderful dish that takes a few servings for one to learn to appreciate.  Try it the next time you are in an Acadian part of southern Nova Scotia.

We left Yarmouth feeling somewhat sad.  No wonder the government candidate ran a distant third in the last by-election.

Corkage Fee:  Now that Nova Scotian restaurants are obliged to allow customers to bring their own wine, the result has not been consumer friendly.  Many restaurants discourage the practice by establishing excessive fees ($25. or more).  Thus it was a pleasant surprise to find that the lovely Tulloch Inn on the banks of Lake Ainslee on Cape Breton Island charged no corkage fee at all.

Opimian Offering # 205:  This offering is exclusively from New Zealand and Australia.  As I find New Zealand reds to be astringent and as the whites here offered are a tad pricey, I have no recommendations.  As far as Australia goes my recommendations are all reds.  First the 6386 GMH Meritage is a wine that I have found to be well worth the price.  If you are unfamiliar with the term “Meritage” I suggest you scroll down to Whine # 17 and read the item there.

6306 96 Points should be an interesting wine for two reasons.  One it is claimed to be ready to drink and two, the often overly spicy Australian Shiraz has been softened with a small amount of Viognier.

Finally, I shall go out on a limb and recommend a wine I have not tried.  6319 Reserve Cabernet Sauvigon from Coonawarra should be a classic Cabernet.  Australian winemakers after all do know how to make Cabs.

WHINE # 28 – August, 2011

Fruit Flies Prefer French Wine: Not long ago I opened a bottle of home-made wine that I had been avoiding for some time. One sip convinced me that this might be used in fruit fly traps. As most of you have discovered bowls of fresh fruit (peaches, plums, etc.) attract multitudes of tiny fruit flies. Usually these miniscule pests can be trapped by covering a saucer of wine with plastic wrap in which slits have been made with a sharp knife.

Shortly after the traps had been placed on our kitchen counter Betty and I hosted 14 members of my “Red Jacket” Club for a dinner of grilled salmon. This event was cut short when one of the guests heart stopped. Within minutes our dining room was overtaken by paramedics and the RCMP. I am happy to report that my friend’s defibulator re-started his heart and after prompt medical attention at St. Martha’s in Antigonish and The Infirmary in Halifax he is fine and back on the golf course.

While I was cleaning up the morning after this ill-fated dinner party I noticed many partially-full glasses of Coteaux du Languedoc that we had been drinking with the meal. This leftover wine allowed me to make more fruit-fly traps.

What is the point of this story? Well, a quick glance of the countertop revealed that scores, if not 100’s of fruit flies were trapped in the wine from the South of France and only one lost fly managed to drown in the home-made stuff. Apparently, even fruit flies have sophisticated taste when it comes to choosing wine. I hope no one else gives me any home-made wine because I now can’t think of any use for it at all.

Ordering Wine in a Canadian restaurant: There are three types of Canadian restaurants when it comes to ordering wine.

TYPE ONE: Here one is offered the choice of “Red or White”. Frequently the Red is either Comtessa or something else equally unpalatable The choice is easy; these restaurants always have well-chilled Keiths, light or regular.

TYPE TWO: A small number of restaurants pride themselves on extensive wine lists. The problem is that many of these wines are marked up by 50 – 70 per cent. Do you pay $ 25. For an $ 11. wine; $ 45. For a $ 20 wine; or $ 90. For a $ 40 wine. Since the $ 11. valued wine will probably detract from the good food, and since $ 50. seems an obscene amount for corkage, my choice is usually the $ 20. wine accepting the $ 25. surcharge. However, check carefully the wine when it arrives; particularly the date. If you have ordered an ’06 and an ’08 arrives, do not accept.

TYPE THREE: This is the most common. You will find 15-20 wines on a list. No vintage is given so you can assume that the wine is relatively young because the restaurant has limited space and is selling the wine as soon as it has purchased. The key is to order a wine that can be drunk young, because young wine is all you are going to get. Almost any white wine will be fine, but if you want a nice red you should avoid anything that has tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon is out, as is Malbec and Zinfandel. Anything Spanish is o.k because Spain ages its wines before release. Merlot is a good bet.

WHY ARGENTINA? I’ve often said that if I could only get wine from one country, that country would be Argentina. The reason is that I think Argentina offers the best value in wine, particularly if one likes the big, bold taste New World taste of Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec.

Although Argentina has long been one of the biggest producers of wine, it has only been since the 1990’s that the quality of the wine has caught the world’s attentions. Prior to 1990 most of the wine produced was of low quality with much being for domestic consumption.

Around 1990 the so-called “Flying Wine Makers” discovered that Argentina, and in particular Mendoza province, was the perfect place to produce high quality wine. Since then investors from Belgium, France, the United States and Canada have poured billions into the Argentinian wine industry.

Argentina has several advantages. First the terroir is classic with alluvial clay mixed with sand and rock. Second the slopes of the Andes provide warm days and cool nights. Most important, however, is the sun. Mendoza, for example, has 330 days of sun per year (compare that to Bordeaux with only 190).
Finally, with all that sun, why isn’t Mendoza a desert? Well, in fact it is, but the melting snows of the Andies provide all the water that is needed for irrigation, turning the desert into the lushest vineyards anywhere.
Combine the above with a currency that was devalued not so long ago and you have the reason why no one can match the quality of Argentinian wines in the $ 15.-$ 20 range.

SPECIAL OFFER 49:  For those of you who are members of the Opimian Society, you will have recently received an offering of Bordeaux Futures. Twelve wines are offered; you pay a deposit up front and next year you will pay the to-be-determined balance. Should you order any of these wines?

First, if you do not have a cellar, don’t bother. Most of these wines will be at their best many years from now.

 Second, these wines are expensive. If you don’t want to commit $ 50. - $ 90. per bottle then, these Futures are not for you.

Finally, if you want a half dozen bottles of excellent Bordeaux to lay down so you can show them to guests (carefully noting that they are not ready just yet) then I suggest you blow your kids’ inheritance on a case of the Pomerol or one of the St. Emilion Grand Cru.

Whine # 27, June - 2011

Welcome John Embree of Antigonish to the Whine.

THE WINES OF EASTERN EUROPE: For centuries wine has been produced in those Eastern European countries that have a sufficient number of growing days for grapes to ripen. While most of the production has been for domestic consumption, bargain wines have long been exported to England and North America. In Canada most of us have drunk, at least on occasion, the famous Egri Bikaver (Bull’s Blood) from Hungary.

Egri Bikaver has been around a long, long time and supposedly dates back to 1552 when the Turks, led by Suleiman the Magnificent, had Eger castle under siege. The small group of defenders were given copious amounts of red wine to boost their spirits. The Turks observed the defenders quaffing this red liquid and rumor spread among the Turks that the defenders were downing bulls’ blood in order to give them extra strength. This belief so intimidated the Turks that they abandoned the siege.

Unfortunately for wine producers of the Balkans and Hungary, the rise of Communism resulted in great pressure for increased production. Eventually, the quality declined to the point where the only reason to drink the wine was if there were no alternatives.

After Communism collapsed wine producers realized that the only strategy that would result in the re-establishment of export markets would be one of increasing quality.

Betty and I recently returned from a tour of Eastern Europe. This was a chance for us to sample the local wines and we did this nightly. Here are some reflections on our experiences. Austria: As Austria is a relatively cold country the majority of wine produced is white. However, the dominant red grape is “Zweigelt” which produces a watery wine that can be downed in large quantities whenever one is out of beer. On the other hand, Austria now produces some excellent pinot noirs that rival in quality those from the more famous regions of Burgundy and Oregon. Slovenia is perhaps one of the best bets for finding a decent red. Merlot is the major grape. Last week I served a bottle of relatively expensive Slovenian Merlot to guests, without telling the origin. Opinions were split as to quality, but all agreed that there was less fruit flavour than the more familiar New World Merlots. In Croatia I tasted some really awful wines before reading in my hotel room that the best Croatian wines came from the varietal Plavac Mali. The bottle that I ordered in the restaurant that night was the best wine of the whole trip, reminding me of a top level Californian Zinfandel. Hungary: Despite the macho-sounding name of Bull’s Blood, Egri Bikaver is really quite a wimpy wine. Thin and lacking in much flavour, this is an everyday drinking wine that costs little and offers not a lot. However, my negative opinion of this wine is not shared by my spouse.
In sum, my brief foray into the wines of Eastern Europe has led me to conclude that these countries still have a long way to go before they can challenge any of the better-known wine producing countries.

Monastrell/Mourvedre: One of my daughters-in-law does not like Spanish wine. Even when I pour from a decanter she is not often fooled. However, I think that what she really doesn’t like is Tempranillo. Nearly half of all red wines produced in Spain are from the Tempranillo grape (also known as Ojo de Liebre, or Cencibel, or Rinto Fino, or Tinto del Toro) This low acid wine has an earthy or barnyard flavour that is either loved or hated.

But not all Spanish wines are Tempranillos. Spain makes lots of Garnacha (Grenache) and also lots of Monastrell. Monastrell is sometimes referred to as a man’s wine. This varietal grows best in hot climates and the resulting wine is high in alcohol content, high in tannins, and bursting in flavour. On the other hand, Monastrell ages very well and has great lasting potential (perhaps making it a woman’s wine as well).

This grape is widely grown in the south of France where it is called Mourvedre. However, it is rarely if ever sold as a single varietal, but is usually blended with Grenache and Syrah. The famous wine from Avignon (Chateau-Neuf-du-Pape) contains lots of Mourvedre.

For those of you who like big, bold wines and think you can only find them in Australia, Argentina or the Napa Valley, this is a wine for you to try. There are many Spanish Monastrells available in Canada at modest prices.

Possibly a true story: As I complete this Whine I am aware that tonight is the final game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. We all know that the Boston fans will be crowded around their big screen TV’s with mugs filled with Budweiser. While some of the Canuck fans will be also quaffing beer, at least a few will be sipping some of those good wines from the Okanagan.

By the end of the second period my Vancouver fan has twice re-filled his Riedel . At this point his wife joins him on the couch. To her surprise he whispers “I love you”. Not used to such proclamations she looks him square on and says: “Is that you talking or is it the wine talking?” “Why it’s me talking” responds the husband, “to my wine.” Finally, I hope neither my hero nor his spouse were part of the riots that followed Vancouver’s loss.

Opimian Offering 204

: This offering has a number of good wines at affordable prices. My recommendations include 6210 and/or 6211 Butterfly Ridge Merlot and Butterfly Ridge Zinfandel. These wines will be ready for drinking when received. Also from California I recommend 6227 Castoro Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon. Only slightly more expensive than the Butterfly Ridge wines, this one will need about one year in your cellar. From Spain I strongly recommend 6244 Ramon Bilboa Single Vineyard. I served the 2005 version of this wine to guests last night and it was very well received. For an everyday drinking wine at a good price I suggest 6254 from Nero D’Avola. Finally, I would definitely avoid all of the wines offered from Pelee Island.