Vintages Preview March 29 Release (Part Two)

The Stars Align over Perez Cruz Carmenere, California Fume, Loire Sauvignon, Constantia Chardonnay & Santorini Assyrtiko
by David Lawrason, with Sara d’Amato and John Szabo

We apologize for the delay in delivering this edition – the first instance I can recall since WineAlign began previewing VINTAGES releases in 2008.  The last tasting opportunity at VINTAGES normally occurs on the Tuesday prior to the release, but was  postponed until Thursday, giving our jet-lagged team less than 24 hours to taste, prepare this report and add all the reviews to the database. Sara d’Amato kicked things off last week with her look at VINTAGES entire operation, and some highlights from this release.  This week all three of us pick apart the rest of what is an “average” release in many respects, except for a couple of excellent chardonnays and a clutch of 2010 Bordeaux In Store Discoveries. There are always some gems however, and we have come together on five wines where “The Stars Align”.

The Stars Align
(Wines independently highlighted by two or more WineAlign critics)

Pérez Cruz 2012 Limited Edition Carmenère, Maipo Valley, Chile ($19.95). A rare triple play as three critics put this wine in the spotlight. David Lawrason – This small estate quite high in the Andean foothills has a rock strewn terroir that imparts more compactness and tighter structure than many others, and here it nicely tones and tames the often overly exuberant nature of carmenere. Sara d’Amato – This progressive carmenere specialist rarely disappoints. This limited edition bottling features a distinctive, dark, dense and compelling carménère with notes of mocha, bright wild berries and blue fruit. Moody, brooding and potentially addictive.  John Szabo – The Pérez Cruz cabernet sauvignon has been a fixture on the LCBO list for years, but it’s a pleasure to see this dense, flavourful, very ripe but fresh example of carmenere as well. It manages plenty of concentration and depth without sacrificing balance or varietal character; solid stuff to be sure, a go-to BBQ wine.

Château St. Jean 2011 Fumé Blanc,  Sonoma County, California  ($19.95).  Sara d’Amato – Another charming California selection at a very fair price.By the way, the “Jean” is pronounced in an Anglicized way, like the pants, not our former Prime Minister Chretien. Fume Blanc is one of my favourite style/varietals produced in California. Not only is it often relatively inexpensive, it delivers oodles of complex, pleasurable, challenging enjoyment. And despite its namesake harking back to the old-world, Pouilly-Fume sauvignons of the Loire Valley, these California styles are distinct in their flavour profile offering juicy intensity and a taste of the exotic intermeshed with the smoky and flinty. David Lawrason – Ditto. Wood aged Fume Blanc is California’s best take on sauvignon and Chateau St. Jean has a long track record of success. This is stylish without being heavy.

Cave Du Haut-Poitou 2012 Vallée Loire Sauvignon Blanc, Haut-Poitou, France ($16.95). David Lawrason – This large co-op is been a go-to source for bright, great value sauvignons for as long as I can remember. Super modern, super value.  Sara d’Amato – Perhaps it is a hope for spring but I’m certainly in sauvignon blanc state of mind these days. Here is an oh-so lovely example that takes the best of the old and new worlds and melds them into a tidy but inviting package. Modern and appealing but there is nothing over-extracted or extreme here. Lovely floral aromatics of acacia and white flower are exotically enticing. Don’t miss out – I predict this to be a fast-mover!

Bayten 2012 Chardonnay, Constantia, South Africa ($17.95).  David Lawrason – The verdant Constantia Valley is now a wealthy suburb of Cape Town, with prized vineyards facing urban sprawl. The region was first planted in the 1670s, making it –arguably – the first wine region of the New World. And Bayten, formerly called Buitenverwachting, was part of the original estate. This ultra-modern, mineral tinged chardonnay from non-irrigated decomposed granite soils shows depth well beyond its price – a constant refrain of South Africa, from which both John and I have just returned. John Szabo – This lovely, ripe, soft and gentle chardonnay from the historic region of Constantia that could easily pass for a much more expensive example from the new world, and the length and depth are indeed excellent for the price category.

Estate Argyros 2011 Santorini, Greece ($22.95). John Szabo – Argyros is one of the leading producers on the island of Santorini, with an amazing collection of old vineyards, which, in some cases, are older than anyone really knows. This 2011 offers the typical, and unusual, subtle aromatics of assyrtiko grown on these desperately poor volcanic soils, though the palate tells a more straightforward tale of marvelous intensity and depth, length and structure, with palpable dry extract and fiercely salty character. An impeccable value, with the potential to age well into the next decade, this wine should not be missed by fans of minerally, characterful white wines. Sara d’Amato – Love at first sip? It is possible that you’ll experience some fatal attraction here so beware. It sounds like high praise but it is all true and besides, if you haven’t tried the product of old assyrtiko vines planted in the volcanic soils of one of the most beautiful islands on earth, Santorini, then here is your moment. A wow-worthy offering for your next soirée.

Lawrason’s Take

Château Fleur De Jean Gué 2010, Lalande-de-Pomerol, France ($24.95). This is the best value in a spate of excellent 2010 Bordeaux on this release. We have much to look forward to the 2010s roll through Vintages in the weeks ahead. I’ve highly rated in Store Discoveries Chateau Giscours, Calon-Segur and Les Haut de Pontet Canet, but they are triple digit wines for collectors. To peek inside the vintage at a much more affordable price try this deft merlot (85%) and cabernet franc from a “satellite” appellation of the famed Pomerol AOC. (Sara d’Amato also recommended this wine last week)

Maison Roche De Bellene 2011 Vieilles Vignes Chassagne-Montrachet, Burgundy, France ($49.95).  I was tasting along the row of pretty good chardonnays, and two shone way above the pack, scoring low-mid nineties. There was the more expensive Freestone also highlighted by Sara below, and this less expensive classic, modern, mouth-watering Chassagne with minerality, pure fruit and judicious oak.  Maison Roche de Bellene was established in 2005 by the highly respected Nicolas Potel who sources solely from parcels of old vine, biodynamically farmed sites. If you wouldn’t normally spend $50 on chardonnay, here is one place to consider a splurge.

Evans & Tate 2010 Metricup Road Shiraz Margaret River, Western Australia  ($22.95). The shiraz of Margaret River are always a bit more ‘cool climate’ than those of South Australia, and this example from a single vineyard within a few kilometres of the Indian Ocean, shows it perfectly, with a sleeker, slightly more tense feel. Still lots of fruit however and classic shiraz pepper.

Le Clos Jordanne 2011 Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard Pinot Noir, Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Peninsula ($45.00) With the departure of winemaker Thomas Bachelder, the bowing out of financial and founding partner Jean-Charles Boisset from Burgundy, and the abandonment of biodynamic/organic farming principles since 2011, Le Clos Jordanne has changed since the glory days of the mid-2000s when I wrote about it in Toronto Life as the project that would put Niagara pinot on the map.  But there is a very serious, focused young French winemaker named Sébastien Jacquey now at the helm, and given all he has had to deal with, including a tough vintage in 2011, he has done a great job with this wine. It is a bit rough around the edges but it is complex and deeply flavoured and very Burgundian.

Gemma 2006 Giblin Riserva Barolo, Piedmont, Italy ($40.95). This old warhorse rises up on its hind legs and almost breathes fire – in the form of some acetone and almost cringe-worthy sourness. However, the fruit centre is very much intact and it has all kinds of power, intensity and complexity. It demands strong, rustic culinary companions.  It’s an imperfect but compelling nebbiolo from a great vintage, from a small house in Serralunga d’Alba that only began producing its range of Piemontese wines in 1978 – a babe in this neck of the woods.

Sara’s Sommelier Picks

Joseph Phelps Freestone 2011 Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast, California ($73.95). Such obvious care has been lavished on this chardonnay! Such remarkable depth and structure! Pre-dawn grape picking ensures that that the grapes are cool when pressed and retain maximum acidity. In addition, other quality enhancing techniques have been used such as whole cluster pressing straight to barrel in which it underwent a natural ferment (using “wild yeast”). Although the wine was aged for 14 months in wood, mostly older or larger barrels were used to ensure that the spicy wood flavours were nicely restrained. Certainly no cost was spared in the production of this wine and such a price gets passed along to the consumer. In this strong vintage in Sonoma, best described by the terms long and moderate and “moderate” best describes the 2012 growing season in Sonoma which produced whites of impressive elegance such as this fine example. Lovers of Burgundian and Californian styles will find merit alike.

Casal Di Serra 2011 Verdicchio Dei Castelli Di Jesi Classico Superiore, Marche, Italy ($17.95). The soils of the Marche in Central Italy are home to the expressive and endearing verdicchio varietal whose vibrancy, freshness and salinity come to focus in this high-quality example. Produced from 100% verdicchio (the appellation requires a minimum of 85%) and fermented with natural yeasts. Over the past 30 years Casal di Serra has focused on enhancing the quality and recognition of verdicchio in the Marche and has a uniquely keen appreciation of the varietal.

Andretta 2007 Brunello Di Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy, ($53.95). A great Brunello can prove an almost out-of-body experience featuring a touch of escapism and a soupçon of the ethereal. For those looking to add to their cellar collection, there is still another 4-5 years of enjoyment here.

Szabo’s Smart Buys

Contraste 2012 White, Douro, Portugual ($18.95). Conceito is a relatively new producer in the historic Douro Valley, but the wines, made by Rita Ferreira, show the class and elegance of much more established houses. This is a fun, fragrant, juicy and well-balanced white, an instance of the whole (the blend) being greater than the parts (the grapes). Serve now, nicely chilled with salads, fresh seafood/shellfish and similar.

Château Lafon-Rochet 2010, Saint-Estèphe, Bordeaux ($84.85). A small cache of top-level Bordeaux reds will hit the shelves on the 29^th – the remnants of the 2010 futures campaign that went unclaimed – good news for collectors who missed out on the first tranche. My pick of the lot, for both quality and value goes, to Lafon-Rochet, a classy, well-balanced and elegant wine, though still highly structured and ageworthy. I’d tuck this in the cellar for another 3-5 years minimum before revisiting, but this should also reach 20-25 years of age without too many wrinkles. Best 2018-2030+

Domaine Montirius 2007 Terre Des Aînés Gigondas, Rhone Valley, France ($24.95). A leading organic/biodynamic property in the southern Rhône, Montirius has been a personal favorite over many vintages. It’s a treat to see their mature ’07 Gigondas released now, having moved into a beautiful stage of evolution. The impressive range of flavours on offer is also proof positive that terrific, complex wine can be made without the use of oak for flavouring.

Quinta Dos Carvalhais 2010 Colheita, Dão, Portugal. ($17.95).  The Dão continues to impress with its stylish, fragrant and floral-fruity expressions of touriga nacional (and blends), with prices that remain in the 20thC. Carvalhais is a consistent over-deliverer of value in my estimation, as this 2010 ably demonstrates (try also the Duque de Viseu bottling from the same producer, released in December at just $13.95). This is just hitting a perfect zone of drinkability. Best 2014-2018.

The 2011 Ports On Sale Now

Vintages Shop on Line opened its ordering March 27 for the much vaunted 2011 Ports. The gates close April 17. Last fall WineAlign critics tasted a range of 2011s and our reviews can be found on the WineAlign database. And yes  – it is true – most are excellent to outstanding quality (93-98 point range), and so agreeable in their youth that you may be tempted to try them now. So go ahead; but do lay some away as well. You can order on line or by phone.

WineAlign Hosts a Jackson-Triggs dinner at Epic

It’s not easy being big. Jackson-Triggs is perhaps the most familiar name in Canadian wine, a very large company indeed with wines of all price points and styles readily available in the LCBO and the company’s own Wine Rack stores. But the story less obvious is the improvement in the quality since Italian winemaker Marco Picoli took over its VQA brands, especially in the range of harder-to-find Reserve wines.  On April 10 join me to explore the Reserves at a fine five-course tasting dinner at the Fairmont Hotels Epic Restaurant. Register here.

And that’s a wrap for this week. We’ll be back next week with our first look at the April 12 release that features wines from Italy’s Veneto (amarone fans can rev their engines).

David Lawrason
VP of Wine

From the Mar 29, 2014 Vintages release:

Lawrason’s Take
Szabo’s Smart Buys
Sara’s Sommelier Picks
All Reviews

Editors Note: You can find our Critic’s complete reviews by clicking on any of the wine names, bottle images or links highlighted. Paid subscribers to WineAlign see all critics reviews immediately. Non-paid users wait 30 days to see new reviews. Membership has its privileges; like first access to great wines!

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