TRADE TASTING: Premium Chilean Wines at George, October 10, 2008

 The Time and Date: Friday, October 10, 2008  Noon to 2 PM

The Event: A tasting of premium Chilean wines with Aurelio Montes, Alexandra Marnier-Lapostolle and Eduardo Chadwick., involving their wines Casa Lapostolle, Errazuriz, Montes, and Sena – 11 wines in all.

The Venue: George Restaurant, Queen Street East

The Target Audience: wine writers and LCBO product consultants.

The Availability/Catalogue: varies according to Vintages releases.

The Quote: "Sena, because of the agency representation, had its own table: it was a clear standout"

The Wines: we had a table top tasting walkaround with appetizers.

 

**** Four Stars (91+ in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Sena 2005 -- blackcurrant nose, sweet fruit and soft tannins.

-Montes Alpha M 2005,  $82 +91450 - (80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 5% each of Merlot and Petit Verdot) , spicy, rich, cedar, red  fruit

-Montes Folly Syrah 2005, $82 +62356 - blackberry, spices, olives

-Montes Purple Angel 2005, $51 +62364 - (46% Carmenere from Colchagua, 46% from Apalta, 8% Petit Verdot),  cassis and spices, black cherry.

-Casa Lapostolle Chardonnay Cuvee Alexandre 2005, $35 – creamy with a toasty finish.

-Clos Apalta 2005 - (42% Carmenere, 26% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot), cassis nose, extractive, balanced, Euro sensibility.

-Errazuriz Don Maximiano 2005 - (85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot, 3% Shiraz) ripe but also young with some rawish oak tones.

-Vinedo Chadwick 2005 , $180 – 200 - (all Cabernet Sauvignon), tight and closed, but will probably mature well enough.

 

***1/2 Three and a Half Stars (88 – 90 in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Errazuriz La Cumbre Shiraz 2005 -  soft and toasty, blackberry.

-Errazuriz Kai 2005, $180 – 200 - (88% Carmenere, 7% Petit Verdot, 5% Shiraz), ripe fruit, firm, some bell pepper showing.

 

*** Three Stars (85 – 87 in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Casa Lapostolle Cabernet Sauvignon Apalta Vineyard 2006 -  ripe, earthy.

 

The Food: as we were tasting at walk around tables, hors d'oeuvre kept appearing, some hot some cold (chicken, seafood, mushrooms, etc.).

The Downside: it got crowded, and the table tops were not very large.

The Upside: quality food for the quality wines.

The Contact Person: Karen.lockhart@maxxium.com

The Marketing Effectiveness (numerical grade): 95.

 

 

Chimo!  www.deantudor.com