Tales from the Tasting Room By Margaret Swaine Can I have your job? I must have heard that question a thousand times over the course of my twenty-five years as a wine taster and critic. People tend to be envious unless they actually sit down and slog through dozens of wines with me and then do it again and again. My husband flees the room now when he sees me popping open more than a bottle. One bottle means a delightful dinner. Fifty means I'm taking notes, dinner is a long way off and I'm going to try and rope him in for a lay-man's opinion. And he better concentrate on nothing but the task at hand cause there's fifty judgments to make. Least you wonder, of course I spit. Hence I get no relief or pleasure from alcohol as my teeth start to ache from the acids in wine and turn purple from the reds. And much of the time I'm not tasting in the comfort of home, but in the sparse, white, LCBO lab room. The wines snake around the periphery of that sterile room, under bright lights, ready for interrogation. There's no place to sit, no food at hand, just pencils, spittoons, stainless steel sinks and wine glasses. However the tedious tasting is considerably brightened when I hit upon a winner wine. All of a sudden I perk up when something special wafts to my nose and hits my palate. It need not be expensive. I enjoy finding a bargain goodie just like anyone else. Then there are those wines that are so lovely, price be darned, they are worth every penny. Gleaned from my tasting room adventures, so you don't have to do my job, are herein some of those wow wines. In France's Alsace region the expression of the grape is pure 100 per cent varietal, unaltered by oak. Pierre Sparr Gewurztraminer 2000 (LCBO 373373 $14.10) has a wonderful bouquet of roses, lychee and tropical fruits that follow through in the ripe, pear and lychee taste. Full bodied with good concentration and a silky texture, it's a great match with turkey, Asian and Indian cuisine and any spicy dishes. Leon Beyer's Tokay Pinot Gris 2000 (LCBO 165241, $15.20) is a classic. Full bodied with a perfumed honeysuckle nose and a ripe, unctuous mouth feel, it's intense and flavourful with ripe spicy grape. Match this with rich seafood dishes such as coquille St. Jacques, clam chowder or Asian fusion meals. Another great white wine region is Chablis, where chardonnay reigns supreme and oak is used judiciously. A favoured pick is William Fevre Champs Royaux 2001 (LCBO 276436, $17.95) produced from historic land in the heart of Chablis. It has a fresh fruit bouquet with mineral highlights. The taste is flinty with citrus and lemon verve and some subtle oak. Clean and crisp it's made for oysters, clams and white fish. Also a good deal is Bouchard Pere & Fils Petit Chablis 2000 (LCBO 51466, $16.95) with that textbook Chablis minerally nose and crisp, lively grapefruit, citrus character. Other neat chardonnays come from hotter climates for those meals of salmon, seabass, chicken or pork, when a riper more tropical fruit taste is what's needed. McWilliam's Hanwood Chardonnay 2001 (LCBO 557934, $11.95) has a buttery, nutty oak bouquet and a full bodied, figgy, melon and oak taste that's well balanced by acidity. J. Lohr Riverstone Chardonnay 2000 (LCBO 258699, $23.35) is rich, ripe, buttery and oaky but all in balance. France's Rhone Valley is great hunting ground for fab reds. Consistently a delight is Jaboulet Crozes Hermitage (LCBO 57497, $17.65). The 2000 vintage has spicy warmth, a full body, velvety textured with tons of flavour in a mellow background. Have it with quail, osso bucco or grilled meats. From Chile come many lovely red. A favourite, Errazuriz Don Maximiano Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 1999 (LCBO 335174, $17.95) is deep, rich, chocolately lush with oak throughout in a full, ripe, dense, style that would match hearty stews like oxtail. All of Italy is a vineyard and I constantly find delicious wines there. Ricasoli was named winery of the year in 2002 by Gambero Rosso, the country's most important wine publication. Ricasoli's Brolio Chianti Classico 1999 (LCBO 3962, $18.35) is pure elegance with hints of violets in the bouquet, great grip and sophistication with firm berry tastes. Amarone wines, made from grapes dried for at least 40 days after harvest, then vinified, are delicious velvety rich winter wines - great with Parmesan and fruits (dried or fresh) after a meal. You can't go wrong with Masi Amarone 1998 (LCBO 317057, $33.05) or Tedeschi 1998 (LCBO 433417, $31.90). A less expensive alternative is Folonari Valpollicella Ripasso 1999 (LCBO 481838, $14.95) made by passing the wine over the amarone marc (pips, skins etc.). It has full bodied raisony flavours with a rich structure and soft but lingering in the mouth. Other delightful reds? Australia's Peter Lehmann Cabernet Sauvignon 1998 (LCBO 605741, $19.95) for its oak complexity, and deep ripe fruit, Portugal's J.P. Vinhos Tinto da Anfora 1999 (LCBO 227256, $12.95) for its great value delivery of smooth, smooth, supple but intense spiced fruit and Spain's Montecillo Crianza Rioja 1998 (LCBO 144493, $13.95) for its gentle vanilla oaky, harmonious medium-bodied silkiness.
Balbach Riverside Riesling 2000, Rheinhessen, Germany. LCBO
499814 $9.95 Santa Rita Chardonnay "120" 2002, Maule Valley, Chile.
LCBO 315184 $8.75 Hippo Creek Sauvignon Blanc 2001, Western Cape, South Africa
LCBO 385450 $7.90 Reds La Vieille Ferme 2000, Côtes du Ventoux, France. LCBO
263640 $9.75 Kumala Cinsault-Pinotage 2000, Western Cape, South Africa LCBO
572610 $8.45 Salaparuta Corvo 1999, Sicily, Italy. LCBO 34439 $10.55 Reguengos Vinho Tinto 2001, Alentejo, Portugal LCBO $9.95 Osborne Solaz 1999, Tierra de Castilla, Spain LCBO 610188 $9.45 Margaret Swaine is a Toronto wine and drink columnist who writes for Toronto Life, Chatelaine and other publications. She conducts educational seminars, as well as wine and food matching dinners about town.
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