WORLD WINE WATCH TOP WINES AT VINTAGES: under/over $20 for SEPTEMBER 21, 2024 release.
By DEAN TUDOR, Gothic Epicures Writing deantudor@deantudor.com. My "Wines, Beers and Spirits of the Net", a guide to thousands of news items and RSS feeds, plus references to wines, beers and spirits, has been at https://pages.pathcom.com/~dtudor since 1994. These notes for better or best wines available through LCBO Vintages (on a bi-weekly basis) can always be found at http://www.gothicepicures.blogspot.ca or at https://pages.pathcom.com/~dtudor No winery can buy their way into – or out of – my publication.
Scores are a combination of MVC (Modal Varietal Character, e.g. a Southern Rhone would taste like a Southern Rhone) and QPR (Quality/Price Ratio value in the marketplace, above or below its price).
I was one of the first to jump on the Robert Parker bandwagon, using numerical indications for my scores in the early 1980s. Why? Because with a database I could rate, rank and order wines in any fashion. It was just so convenient using databases. Unfortunately, the numerical system has been shown to be disgraced by overuse and "inflated numbers"; thus I have quit any ranking by number. From now on, it will just be GOOD, BETTER and BEST, which will give me some wiggle room (e.g. is this wine an 87, 88, 89, or 90? Or all of them...depends on my mood and time of day). With the rigorous standards and lab testing by the LCBO, I can safely say that every single wine at the LCBO is at least GOOD, which I would numerically rank at 75-85 points. For reasons of time and space, I will NOT be listing the GOOD wines. Just the BETTER (86-89) and the BEST (90+ ) wines. This spread of points will relate to SILVER and GOLD medals, with GOOD being BRONZE. This also fits into my scheme for trade tastings.
MVC/QPR=BETTER (86-89)=my basic recommendation
MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
MAJOR THEME: High Scoring Wines
Recommended Wines UNDER $20
=========================
W+37909 ZONTE'S FOOTSTEP LADY MARMALADE VERMENTINO 2022 Australia $18.95
W+356873 FLAT ROCK GOOD KHARMA CHARDONNAY 2023 VQA $17.95
W+36732 JASCI ORGANIC TREBBIANO D'ABRUZZO 2023 Abruzzo $17.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+17549 OTU MARLBOROUGH SAUVIGNON BLANC 2023 New Zealand $18.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+126847 MAN FREE-RUN STEEN CHENIN BLANC 2023 South Africa $16.95
Rose+117861 FEATHERSTONE ROSÉ 2023 VQA $16.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
Rose+165845 GRAN FEUDO ROSÉ 2022 Spain $12.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
R+38143 VIÑALBA PARRILLA MALBEC 2022 Argentina $19.95
R+37552 COSME PALACIO VENDIMIA SELECCIONADA 2018 Spain $18.95
R+37579 REINO DE ALTUZARRA CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2021 Spain $12.95
R+36283 BRICKFIELDER G.F. ANGAS BAROSSA VALLEY SHIRAZ 2020 $16.95
R+37911 SAN PEDRO 1865 SELECTED VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2022 Chile $18.95
R+487140 TRENEL BEAUJOLAIS-VILLAGES 2022 $19.95
R+38880 FAMILLE FABRE LE CERF ET LE VIGNERON CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2022 Languedoc $14.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
R+561290 LOUIS BERNARD LOUIS CÔTES DU RHÔNE-VILLAGES 2021 $16.95
R+25447 GANDARADA 2020 Portugal $13.95
R+146522 VICENTE FARIA GLORIA RESERVA 2021 Portugal $14.95
R+634667 FRANSCHHOEK CELLAR THE CHURCHYARD CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2021 South Africa $15.95
Recommended Wines OVER $20
========================
W+33858 NESTOR GRÜNER VELTLINER 2022 Austria $24.95
W+32364 BACHELDER BAI XU VINEYARD VIGNES DE 1981 CHARDONNAY 2021 VQA $49.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+359760 THIRTY BENCH SMALL LOT WOOD POST RIESLING 2019 VQA $32.00 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+267856 STRATUS CHARDONNAY 2021 VQA $35.20
W+30350 DOMAINE ALLIMANT-LAUGNER PRAELATENBERG GEWURZTRAMINER 2022 Alsace $39.95
W+461640 WILLIAM FÈVRE CHAMPS ROYAUX CHABLIS 2022 $35.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+391052 ANSELMANN RIESLING AUSLESE 2022 Pfalz $24.95
W+36386 PESOLILLO PECORINO SUPERIORE 2022 Abruzzo $21.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
Rose+319368 CHÂTEAU D'AQUÉRIA TAVEL ROSÉ 2023 $24.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
R+400598 NORTON PRIVADA FAMILY BLEND 2021 Argentina $23.95
R+39621 BACHELDER BEAM-TOWN VUE SUR LA MONTAGNE PINOT NOIR 2021 VQA $39.95
R+524231 MALIVOIRE COURTNEY GAMAY 2021 VQA $34.95
R+265074 CLOSSON CHASE CHURCHSIDE PINOT NOIR 2021 VQA $45.00
R+284570 TAWSE GROWERS BLEND CABERNET FRANC 2020 VQA $29.95
R+523183 LEANING POST PINOT NOIR 2021 VQA $34.95
LIMITED TIME OFFERS: Some Recommended Wines from the LCBO's Limited Time Offer selections...these are "better" value...on sale through Sunday October 13 --
+20899 Closson Chase The Brock Chardonnay VQA Niagara now $22.95, save $2
+326728 Oyster Bay Chardonnay New Zealand now $17.95, save $3
+198853 Tawse Quarry Road Organic Riesling VQA Vinemount Ridge now $21.95, save $3
+24133 Thirty Bench Winemaker's Blend Riesling VQA Beamsville Bench now $19.95, save $3
+38117 Vineland Estates Elevation St. Urban Vineyard Riesling VQA Niagara now $19.95, save $3
+168716 M. Chapoutier Les Vignes de Bila-Haut Cotes du Roussillon Villages now $14.95, save $2
+149237 The Foreign Affair The Conspiracy VQA Niagara now $18.95, save $3
+50203 Beronia Reserva Rioja now $20.95, save $3
+976662 Faustino I Gran Reserva Rioja now $27.95, save $4
+166538 LAN Crianza Rioja now $16.95, save $2
+590414 Oyster Bay Pinot Noir New Zealand now $18.95, save $3
+130989 Tawse Growers Blend Pinot Noir VQA Niagara now $26.95, save $3
** Some New Wines I Tasted Over the Past Season ---
Chateau des Charmes Aligote 2021 Cuvee Michele VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, $15.95, +296848 LCBO: made from the rarely grown French vinifera grape seldom seen outside Burgundy -- one that Paul Bosc had cultivated since 1978, loaded with lean orchard fruit (green apples and unripe pears) and ending with a finishing crisp acidity suggesting food rather more than sips. It was often used in Burgundy as the white wine base for Kir; in North America now almost any dry white is used for a Kir. Aligote is refreshing for summer, and has no oak. Named for the late Michele Bosc. I last reviewed this wine (2019 vintage) in 2020. 2g/L residual sugar. 12.5% ABV. Twist top. A nifty and neat bone-dry white wine, fairly priced, and quite useful as a mixer. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Sauvignon Blanc 2022 VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, +391300 $15.95 LCBO: last tasted by me with the 2017 vintage. Here, good balanced fruit, herbaceousness, citric tones (mainly lime), zest, MVC typicity for sauvignon blanc. Light to medium bodied, from grapes harvested a month later than usual. Fresh but so far maybe a bit too fresh at this point. Try later in the summer. 12.5% ABV. Well-priced. 4g/L residual sugar. Twist top. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Fume Blanc 2022 Paul Bosc Estate Vineyard VQA St David's Bench, +739133 $34.95 Winery: vines planted in 1983, very aromatic with nuances of toastiness both in the nose and on the palate, somewhat in the fume style as started by Robert Mondavi over fifty years ago. Typical savvy citric and unripe pear zestiness is tamed by oaking and unctuous tropical fruit tones developed through small batch lots. Medium finish accents lemon and vanillin character, melon, honeysuckle. Best as a classy sipper on its own, but also with a lightly aromatic first course. Barrel fermentation in barriques, aged in French oak on lees for a year or so which adds some heft with smoke and toast. 12.5% ABV. Can be cellared through six years (but watch out for changing wine tastes). Quality/Price rating is 93 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Pinot Noir 2021 Cuvee Michele Estate Grown & Bottled VQA NOTL, +454967, $16.95 LCBO: A lovely young wine, with some forest floor (mushrooms, earth) to complement the red fruit (strawberries are hinted at by the winemaker). I hadn't tasted this wine since the 2018 vintage. Just under subtle oaking, with a moderate intensity of medium flavours of spices mid-palate. Ready to drink now. Cork closure, 12.5% ABV, 3g/L residual sugar. Ready now. Try with slider burgers. Dedicated to the late Michele Bosc. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Gamay Noir 2021 VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, $15.95, +57349 LCBO: medium-bodied, suggestive of Beaujolais [same grape variety]. Easy drinking of (sour) cherry-berry flavours with occasional nuances of spices. Fermented in normal classic unoaked style. I had not tasted this wine since the 2016 vintage. Best for patios or mulled wine, parties, BBQ. Could be served slightly chilled. Ready now, but with some tannic structure to carry through a whole meal. 12.5% ABV, cork closure. A very popular wine at this consistent price level. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Omrah Crossing Chardonnay Great Southern Western Australia 2023 +17644 $21.95 LCBO Vintages Release Sept. 7 or from Airen.com: some of my fave chardonnays that I have tasted came from Western Australia, and Omrah continues that pattern. It was last available in Ontario with the 2019 vintage (which I enjoyed), and now it's back at a few dollars more, moving from my recommended "under $20" to "over $20". But that's life. On the nose, there's a whack of fresh stone-orchard fruit and some toast. On the palate, there's an intense rush of fruit tempered by judicious oaking leading to a lemon saline minerality on the finish. The crispy food-friendly style lingers. Malolactic fermentation has been kept to a minimum, and it shows. Best with curries and other SEA dishes. Might be good to lay down for a few years, to get another view. 13% ABV. 2g/L residual sugar. Quality/Price rating is 92+ points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
By DEAN TUDOR, Gothic Epicures Writing deantudor@deantudor.com. My "Wines, Beers and Spirits of the Net", a guide to thousands of news items and RSS feeds, plus references to wines, beers and spirits, has been at https://pages.pathcom.com/~dtudor since 1994. These notes for better or best wines available through LCBO Vintages (on a bi-weekly basis) can always be found at http://www.gothicepicures.blogspot.ca or at https://pages.pathcom.com/~dtudor No winery can buy their way into – or out of – my publication.
Scores are a combination of MVC (Modal Varietal Character, e.g. a Southern Rhone would taste like a Southern Rhone) and QPR (Quality/Price Ratio value in the marketplace, above or below its price).
I was one of the first to jump on the Robert Parker bandwagon, using numerical indications for my scores in the early 1980s. Why? Because with a database I could rate, rank and order wines in any fashion. It was just so convenient using databases. Unfortunately, the numerical system has been shown to be disgraced by overuse and "inflated numbers"; thus I have quit any ranking by number. From now on, it will just be GOOD, BETTER and BEST, which will give me some wiggle room (e.g. is this wine an 87, 88, 89, or 90? Or all of them...depends on my mood and time of day). With the rigorous standards and lab testing by the LCBO, I can safely say that every single wine at the LCBO is at least GOOD, which I would numerically rank at 75-85 points. For reasons of time and space, I will NOT be listing the GOOD wines. Just the BETTER (86-89) and the BEST (90+ ) wines. This spread of points will relate to SILVER and GOLD medals, with GOOD being BRONZE. This also fits into my scheme for trade tastings.
MVC/QPR=BETTER (86-89)=my basic recommendation
MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
MAJOR THEME: High Scoring Wines
Recommended Wines UNDER $20
=========================
W+37909 ZONTE'S FOOTSTEP LADY MARMALADE VERMENTINO 2022 Australia $18.95
W+356873 FLAT ROCK GOOD KHARMA CHARDONNAY 2023 VQA $17.95
W+36732 JASCI ORGANIC TREBBIANO D'ABRUZZO 2023 Abruzzo $17.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+17549 OTU MARLBOROUGH SAUVIGNON BLANC 2023 New Zealand $18.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+126847 MAN FREE-RUN STEEN CHENIN BLANC 2023 South Africa $16.95
Rose+117861 FEATHERSTONE ROSÉ 2023 VQA $16.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
Rose+165845 GRAN FEUDO ROSÉ 2022 Spain $12.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
R+38143 VIÑALBA PARRILLA MALBEC 2022 Argentina $19.95
R+37552 COSME PALACIO VENDIMIA SELECCIONADA 2018 Spain $18.95
R+37579 REINO DE ALTUZARRA CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2021 Spain $12.95
R+36283 BRICKFIELDER G.F. ANGAS BAROSSA VALLEY SHIRAZ 2020 $16.95
R+37911 SAN PEDRO 1865 SELECTED VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2022 Chile $18.95
R+487140 TRENEL BEAUJOLAIS-VILLAGES 2022 $19.95
R+38880 FAMILLE FABRE LE CERF ET LE VIGNERON CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2022 Languedoc $14.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
R+561290 LOUIS BERNARD LOUIS CÔTES DU RHÔNE-VILLAGES 2021 $16.95
R+25447 GANDARADA 2020 Portugal $13.95
R+146522 VICENTE FARIA GLORIA RESERVA 2021 Portugal $14.95
R+634667 FRANSCHHOEK CELLAR THE CHURCHYARD CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2021 South Africa $15.95
Recommended Wines OVER $20
========================
W+33858 NESTOR GRÜNER VELTLINER 2022 Austria $24.95
W+32364 BACHELDER BAI XU VINEYARD VIGNES DE 1981 CHARDONNAY 2021 VQA $49.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+359760 THIRTY BENCH SMALL LOT WOOD POST RIESLING 2019 VQA $32.00 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+267856 STRATUS CHARDONNAY 2021 VQA $35.20
W+30350 DOMAINE ALLIMANT-LAUGNER PRAELATENBERG GEWURZTRAMINER 2022 Alsace $39.95
W+461640 WILLIAM FÈVRE CHAMPS ROYAUX CHABLIS 2022 $35.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
W+391052 ANSELMANN RIESLING AUSLESE 2022 Pfalz $24.95
W+36386 PESOLILLO PECORINO SUPERIORE 2022 Abruzzo $21.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
Rose+319368 CHÂTEAU D'AQUÉRIA TAVEL ROSÉ 2023 $24.95 MVC/QPR=BEST (90+ )=superior
R+400598 NORTON PRIVADA FAMILY BLEND 2021 Argentina $23.95
R+39621 BACHELDER BEAM-TOWN VUE SUR LA MONTAGNE PINOT NOIR 2021 VQA $39.95
R+524231 MALIVOIRE COURTNEY GAMAY 2021 VQA $34.95
R+265074 CLOSSON CHASE CHURCHSIDE PINOT NOIR 2021 VQA $45.00
R+284570 TAWSE GROWERS BLEND CABERNET FRANC 2020 VQA $29.95
R+523183 LEANING POST PINOT NOIR 2021 VQA $34.95
LIMITED TIME OFFERS: Some Recommended Wines from the LCBO's Limited Time Offer selections...these are "better" value...on sale through Sunday October 13 --
+20899 Closson Chase The Brock Chardonnay VQA Niagara now $22.95, save $2
+326728 Oyster Bay Chardonnay New Zealand now $17.95, save $3
+198853 Tawse Quarry Road Organic Riesling VQA Vinemount Ridge now $21.95, save $3
+24133 Thirty Bench Winemaker's Blend Riesling VQA Beamsville Bench now $19.95, save $3
+38117 Vineland Estates Elevation St. Urban Vineyard Riesling VQA Niagara now $19.95, save $3
+168716 M. Chapoutier Les Vignes de Bila-Haut Cotes du Roussillon Villages now $14.95, save $2
+149237 The Foreign Affair The Conspiracy VQA Niagara now $18.95, save $3
+50203 Beronia Reserva Rioja now $20.95, save $3
+976662 Faustino I Gran Reserva Rioja now $27.95, save $4
+166538 LAN Crianza Rioja now $16.95, save $2
+590414 Oyster Bay Pinot Noir New Zealand now $18.95, save $3
+130989 Tawse Growers Blend Pinot Noir VQA Niagara now $26.95, save $3
** Some New Wines I Tasted Over the Past Season ---
Chateau des Charmes Aligote 2021 Cuvee Michele VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, $15.95, +296848 LCBO: made from the rarely grown French vinifera grape seldom seen outside Burgundy -- one that Paul Bosc had cultivated since 1978, loaded with lean orchard fruit (green apples and unripe pears) and ending with a finishing crisp acidity suggesting food rather more than sips. It was often used in Burgundy as the white wine base for Kir; in North America now almost any dry white is used for a Kir. Aligote is refreshing for summer, and has no oak. Named for the late Michele Bosc. I last reviewed this wine (2019 vintage) in 2020. 2g/L residual sugar. 12.5% ABV. Twist top. A nifty and neat bone-dry white wine, fairly priced, and quite useful as a mixer. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Sauvignon Blanc 2022 VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, +391300 $15.95 LCBO: last tasted by me with the 2017 vintage. Here, good balanced fruit, herbaceousness, citric tones (mainly lime), zest, MVC typicity for sauvignon blanc. Light to medium bodied, from grapes harvested a month later than usual. Fresh but so far maybe a bit too fresh at this point. Try later in the summer. 12.5% ABV. Well-priced. 4g/L residual sugar. Twist top. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Fume Blanc 2022 Paul Bosc Estate Vineyard VQA St David's Bench, +739133 $34.95 Winery: vines planted in 1983, very aromatic with nuances of toastiness both in the nose and on the palate, somewhat in the fume style as started by Robert Mondavi over fifty years ago. Typical savvy citric and unripe pear zestiness is tamed by oaking and unctuous tropical fruit tones developed through small batch lots. Medium finish accents lemon and vanillin character, melon, honeysuckle. Best as a classy sipper on its own, but also with a lightly aromatic first course. Barrel fermentation in barriques, aged in French oak on lees for a year or so which adds some heft with smoke and toast. 12.5% ABV. Can be cellared through six years (but watch out for changing wine tastes). Quality/Price rating is 93 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Pinot Noir 2021 Cuvee Michele Estate Grown & Bottled VQA NOTL, +454967, $16.95 LCBO: A lovely young wine, with some forest floor (mushrooms, earth) to complement the red fruit (strawberries are hinted at by the winemaker). I hadn't tasted this wine since the 2018 vintage. Just under subtle oaking, with a moderate intensity of medium flavours of spices mid-palate. Ready to drink now. Cork closure, 12.5% ABV, 3g/L residual sugar. Ready now. Try with slider burgers. Dedicated to the late Michele Bosc. Quality/Price rating is 90 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Chateau des Charmes Gamay Noir 2021 VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake, $15.95, +57349 LCBO: medium-bodied, suggestive of Beaujolais [same grape variety]. Easy drinking of (sour) cherry-berry flavours with occasional nuances of spices. Fermented in normal classic unoaked style. I had not tasted this wine since the 2016 vintage. Best for patios or mulled wine, parties, BBQ. Could be served slightly chilled. Ready now, but with some tannic structure to carry through a whole meal. 12.5% ABV, cork closure. A very popular wine at this consistent price level. Quality/Price rating is 89 points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Omrah Crossing Chardonnay Great Southern Western Australia 2023 +17644 $21.95 LCBO Vintages Release Sept. 7 or from Airen.com: some of my fave chardonnays that I have tasted came from Western Australia, and Omrah continues that pattern. It was last available in Ontario with the 2019 vintage (which I enjoyed), and now it's back at a few dollars more, moving from my recommended "under $20" to "over $20". But that's life. On the nose, there's a whack of fresh stone-orchard fruit and some toast. On the palate, there's an intense rush of fruit tempered by judicious oaking leading to a lemon saline minerality on the finish. The crispy food-friendly style lingers. Malolactic fermentation has been kept to a minimum, and it shows. Best with curries and other SEA dishes. Might be good to lay down for a few years, to get another view. 13% ABV. 2g/L residual sugar. Quality/Price rating is 92+ points by Dean Tudor of Gothic Epicures Writing.
Dean Tudor, Prof Emeritus T'karonto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson) School of Journalism
Treasurer of Wine Writers' Circle of Canada http://www.deantudor.comhttp://gothicepicures.blogspot.com
https://twitter.com/gothicepicures
