Buyer’s Guide to Vintages June 8th Release

John Szabo’s Vintage’s Preview June 8: Rosés for the Cellar, and Top Red, White, and, err, Blue Wines?

By John Szabo MS, with notes from David Lawrason, Megha Jandhyala and Michael Godel

Rosé for the Cellar

In the May 11 report, just in time for Mother’s Day, Sara D’Amato penned a heartfelt exhortation that rosé is not just for women: “There is absolutely no way to typecast women into rosé drinkers by colour alone. Women don’t all like sweet wines, nor do they prefer low alcohol because of tolerance or guidelines,” she writes, citing the “Brosé” movement — a reference to fashionable European men who drinking rosé — as proof that rosé is inclusive and diverse. I won’t add any more to that, nor to the reality that rosé comes in many shades and styles. The one aspect of rosé that I will add is that many are not one-year wonders, that is, to be consumed as young as possible, within a year of harvest. A surprising number of them would be best served after some time in the cellar.

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I was struck again recently by this thought while tasting Malivoire’s Ladybug Rosé, a Vintages essential at the attractive price of $15.95. I assumed it was the 2023 vintage as it had been sent along with the upper tier Vivant and Moira rosé bottlings, which were both 2023. It was probably an error, someone at Malivoire grabbing out of the wrong bin to assemble the samples. I tasted and remarked on the impressive flavour development, in my mind one of the best vintages yet for this rosé which has been made since the late 1990s, and one of the first serious rosés from Ontario. It has evolved from earlier sweeter iterations into a fully respectable, grown-up sort of rosé.

I was shocked to see 2022 on the label. Surely this inexpensive, regular LCBO listing was made for, and expected to be consumed over, the summer of 2023. But here it was, a year past its due date, and drinking perfectly, in fact probably more enjoyable than it would have been last year, and this from a drinker who often prefers to catch wines on the younger side while there’s still fruit around. Now imagine if it had been designed to age.

These thoughts were still swirling in my head while I tasted through the rosés in the June 8 Vintages release, when I came across another local rosé, the Hidden Bench Locust Lane Rosé 2023 from the Beamsville Bench ($24.95), that is clearly age-worthy and designed as such. It’s an impressive wine, pure pinot noir from estate fruit with genuine depth and concentration, but surely not at its best at the moment. I found it to have a little of what’s technically called “reduction,” kind of the opposite of oxidation. You can read Jamie Goode’s excellent description of oxidation and reduction here, so I’ll skip the chemistry details.

What this means is that the wine displays some volatile sulfur compounds which can smell a bit like onion skin or grapefruit zest or flinty struck match, perfectly normal in young wines from reduction-prone varieties like pinot noir, or gamay, or syrah, for example, especially when fermented with limited exposure to oxygen and aged on oxygen-scavenging lees. (Hidden Bench does this in neutral French oak).

Often (but not always), this character works its way out of a wine over time, through carafing (exposure to oxygen) or just more time in bottle (slower exposure to oxygen). It’s a good sign, actually, one that indicates that the wine has life ahead of it. Just go to Burgundy in the spring after harvest and taste out of barrel. The pinots are almost always in a “reductive state,” smelling a bit swampy. But if they weren’t like that, the winemaker would fear that they’ll oxidize prematurely, before even getting into bottle. They make them reductive on purpose.

Hidden Bench takes its rosés seriously: “We believe that Rosé is a serious wine that should not be an afterthought! As such we select some of our best vineyard blocks to produce our Pinot Noir based Locust Lane Rosé and Nocturn Rosé (Bordeaux Varietals) in a dry, food-friendly style with the same attention to detail from vineyard to bottle as our other premium wines,” reads the website. So, for me, it would be a shame to drink the 2023 Locust Lane this summer. Maybe next year, or even the year after, when you can fully enjoy all of the effort that goes into making serious rosé.

I’d put a couple of other rosés in this release into the same category. Jean-Max Roger’s excellent Sancerre La Grange Dimière, for example ($29.95), which earned triple alignment from the WineAlign Crü. It’s also a pure pinot noir, from up to 45-year-old vines, given a long, cool fermentation followed by ageing “on heavy lees of fermentation until the first racking in February.” David described it as “a very classy, subtle but not weak pinot noir rosé. Lifted aromas of redcurrant, strawberry and grapefruit are joined by some flinty notes.” There’s that flint and grapefruit! Megha rejoins with: “I especially like the flavours of firm red berries and pink grapefruit,” adding that it can be enjoyed in any season.

And not reductive but age-worthy nonetheless, thanks to serious stuffing and very ripe grapes (and high alcohol), is the classic Perrin Tavel from the southern Rhône ($23.95), an appellation known for its powerful rosés, not for summer sipping al fresco at 14% alcohol and sometimes more. I found this 2023 to be a particularly rich, ripe, and powerful with plenty of staying power on the palate, and comfortable another 2–3 years or even longer in the cellar.

So now that we’ve settled that rosé isn’t just for women, and that it comes in a wide range of colours and styles, we can also now add ageability to the list of attributes. It’s not all frivolous pink.

Vin, ahh, Bleu?

As mentioned in the introduction, at WineAlign we rarely waste words on what not to drink. And as you know, wines scored under 85 points do not appear on the public-facing side of the website (but the reviews are all there on the back end for internal amusement). But there’s one wine in the release that merits exposing, even at the risk that you’ll run out to buy it out of sheer curiosity.

The wine in question is the Luc Belaire Limited Edition Bleu Sparkling from France ($42.95). There was much speculation in the office as the bottle was being opened whether it was actually blue, or just in a blue-tinted bottle to appear so. But yes, the wine is actually blue. I happened to capture the moment in a photo when Michael first poured the wine into his glass, much to his dismay.

It’s not the world’s first blue-coloured wine. That honour goes to a Spain-based company that produced Gïk blue back in 2016. The wine was produced from red and white Spanish grapes in Rioja and La Mancha, and coloured blue using anthocyanins, a pigment from the skin of red grapes, and indigotine, a plant-based food dye. “There’s no revolution without a counter-revolution,” the company’s five young Spanish founders said in a statement. Co-creator Aritz López was quote in a BBC article as saying: “Gïk was born for fun, to shake things up and see what happens. We wanted to innovate and start a little revolution… and the wine industry looked like the perfect place to start.

However, EU regulations led to the firm being banned from labelling its product as wine, and Gïk had to revert to “other alcoholic drink,” as, surprisingly enough, there is no official EU category for blue wines. And for the record, the company seems to have disappeared as the website now redirects you to an online gambling website.

Blú (formerly Vindigo), is another blue coloured wine, made at Bodegas Perfer in Spain’s Almeria region. It’s made from Chardonnay that has been macerated with the skins of red grapes, according to press reports, citing the creator as French entrepreneur René Le Bail. Le Bail, apparently, was run out of France with his heretical idea, which is why he ended up in Spain. Still and sparkling versions of Blú are still available on the bodegas’ website.

I have tasted neither of these wines.

And now the indefatigable marketing machine behind the Luc Belaire brand has introduced the world to the latest vinous rhapsody in bleu, the Limited Edition Bleu Sparkling. “Its spectacular sapphire color, inspired by the beautiful blue waters of the Côte d’Azur, is ideal for dramatic cocktails as well!”, reads the website. It’s “The New Tradition.”

At the risk of sounding old fashioned and full of sour grapes, this wine is awful. But it’s not the colour that’s off putting, though it’s certainly not comforting, either. Brilliant FCF blue (commercial food dye, is the source of the blue colour, listed as an ingredient on the back label, “as in Curaçao liqueur, Tylenol (Nighttime) Cold, Gatorade and Popsicles,” writes Michael. “It’s generally considered safe for human consumption though it is currently banned in Austria, Belgium, France, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Germany,” he reports further. A little alarming.

I have no objection to a marketing shakeup of the often backwards-looking wine industry. And why not a blue-tinted wine. But the liquid itself is objectionable, and the price is laughable. The entire range of Luc Belaire sparkling wines have always been wildly overpriced in my view, but Bleu reaches new heights of absurdity.

David wasted no time in trying to understand the beverage: “Not wine! Don’t care about or review artificially coloured and flavoured beverages,” he writes. The ingredients listed include natural flavours, citric acid, sugar, and sparkling wine, along with Brilliant Blue FCF. It contains 10% alcohol.

Megha, however, did attempt to fathom the reasoning behind its manufacturing: “This blue sparkling ‘wine’ tastes confected and unnatural, like cough syrup mixed with Gatorade and inexpensive strawberry-flavoured lip gloss. Moreover, it is sweet to the point of being saccharine. In its entirety, it represents to me a set of inexplicable aesthetic choices, ranging from its price to the decision to add ‘natural flavours.’ Perhaps the most baffling choice of all is the addition of Brilliant FCF (a synthetic organic compound used as food dye) to lend it an unearthly, almost creepy colour that was, per the company website, inspired by the Côte d’Azur.”

Michael, for his part, applies his poetic licence to his description: “The aromas are pure sugar syrup and blue powdered sugar Lik-a-Maid candy. Bleu is a medicinally sweet, frozen swampy water on a stick, will turn your tongue blue and at $40.95, also your mood. Imagine what the contrast dye might do to your insides. Your bank account on the other hand will turn red, as will your anger when you realize that the sparkling wine component is just a conduit for the gimmick and the big short, or lie, as it may be. My goodness, why? What good reason could there be to drink this? Perhaps because it’s too expensive to wash the car windows?”

Luc Belaire is owned by the US-based international wine and spirits company Sovereign Brands. The brand was launched in 2011 by CEO Brett Berish, and is produced at a “French maison that was established in 1898,” according to Vinovest. The company’s sparkling wines have become popular among celebrities. 

So, who will have the last laugh? I suspect the fictional Mr. Belaire will. No doubt it will sell briskly based purely on the weird blue colour, and the company will pile up the sucker money. But who knows, maybe it will convince a new generation that wine isn’t just your boring parents’ beverage of choice and can be cool blue. I just wish it were drinkable.

Note: The opinions outlined in this piece are just opinions and not facts. Now on to the wine recommendations.

Buyer’s Guide June 8: Rosé

Born Rambla Rosé 2023, Penedès, Spain
$15.95, Kolonaki Group Inc
John Szabo – I have to say, Born Brands has terrific marketing – you have to check out their website, where a “group of women from Barcelona passionate about rosé” smash glasses and bottles of red wine on a white backdrop using golf clubs, sledgehammers and more in a defiant show of support for pink wine. “We don’t make wine. We make rosé”. And it’s made with organically-grown pinot noir with plenty of fresh red cherry and red currant, pomegranate fruit, zesty and vibrant and bone dry. it’s as good as any in the price category, indeed better than many, a triumph of bling and substance. And not just for women.
Michael Godel –  From a group of Barcelonan woman passionate about rosé. Fresh, vibrant, salty and bloody delicious.

Redstone Winery Rose 2023, Ontario, Canada
$18.95, Tawse
Michael Godel – Quite a joyous and dry Rosé from vineyards scattered across the Niagara Peninsula. Tart, dry, lifted and airy for a fruity and modern rosé style.

Famille Perrin Tavel 2023, Rhône, France
$23.95, Charton Hobbs
John Szabo – 2023 marks a particularly rich, ripe, powerful vintage for this usually powerful wine. There’s plenty of staying power on the palate, not to mention impressive depth of strawberry fruit flavours. Hold comfortably another 2–3 years or even longer — it’s like a light red that will gain in complexity no doubt.

Hidden Bench Locust Lane Rosé 2023, Ontario, Canada
$24.95, Mark Anthony Group
John Szabo – Like the Sancerre rosé from Jean-Max Roger in this release,2023 delivered a slightly reductive style of pinot that will need time in the glass (carafe, bottle or cellar) to allow the bright red cherry fruit to shine through. Flavour intensity and density on the palate are, as usual from Hidden Bench, above the mean, as is length. Considering the edginess, I’d suggest another year or so in bottle — it’s not the rosé for summer 2024 in my view.

L’ormarins Cap Classique Brut Rosé Sparkling, Western Cape, South Africa
$23.95, John Hanna & Sons
David Lawrason – This is a serious traditional method sparkling rosé with complex if subtle nose of strawberry, ground cherry, saffron and light leesy/pastry notes. It is light bodied, notably tart-edged, racy and intensely flavoured.

Saint Aix Rosé 2023, Provence, France
$26.95, Family Wine Merchants
David Lawrason – This is a very pale, elegant rose with a complex and intriguing nose of white peach, strawberry, saffron and pastry. It is medium-weight, lively, with subtle CO2, some warmth and spice. The length is excellent.

Jean Max Roger La Grange Dimiere Sancerre Rosé 2023, Loire, France
$29.95, Connexion Oenophilia
John Szabo – Still quite reductive, give this time in the glass (or carafe, or cellar) to move through to the sweet red fruit underneath, the appealing savoury-evergreen flavours and the wash of wet limestone. Much more than a frivolous summer drink, this rosé will surely be better in a year or even two — it has the stuffing to evolve favourably.
David Lawrason – This is a very classy, subtle but not weak pinot noir rose. Lifted aromas of redcurrant, strawberry and grapefruit are joined by some flinty notes. It is light to medium bodied, fairly smooth, warm and gentle. Lively and fresh for summer sipping or an al fresco meal.
Megha Jandhyala – Though rosé is a versatile wine that can be enjoyed in any season, this fresh and delicate Sancerre seems like an especially apt wine for the summer. I especially like the flavours of firm red berries and pink grapefruit here and the long, zesty finish.

Buyer’s Guide June 8: Whites

Tbilvino Tsinandali Dry White 2023, Georgia
$16.95, BanQPay International
John Szabo – Vaguely reminiscent of viognier with its ripe orchard fruit, peach and nectarine, white flowers and fresh almond, sweet grass aromas and more, this is a lovely wine for the money. The palate turns more citric with crunchy acids on a dry, light-bodied, un-viognier-like frame (11% alcohol). It’s the kind of wine to chill well and sip on the terrace or dock or while cooking.

Godelia Bodega Seleccion Parcelas La Pelona Godello 2023, Spain
$17.95, VIN PASSION (The Case For Wine)
Michael Godel – Not the most complicated or complex godello out there and in fact it’s on the lean and salty side of things. No matter, for it represents a very solid entry point into a world with for you are charged to be aware.

Maria Papoila Loureiro/Alvarinho 2022, Vinho Verde, Portugal
$17.95, The Vine Agency
David Lawrason – This affordable summer white is from one of the more noted producers of Portugal’s Vinho Verde region. Expect aromas of melon, lime and waxy lily florality. It is medium weight, fairly fleshy, lively and dry with considerable bitterness on the finish. A touch CO2 here as well.
Megha Jandhyala – Here is an energetic, vivacious, and inexpensive Vinho Verde to add to your summer bar. It is positively brimming with flavours of ripe lemons, crunchy orchard fruit, and apple blossoms, while bright acidity and delicious salinity only add to its appeal.

Zacharias Assyrtiko 2022, Peloponnese, Greece
$18.95, Profile Wine Group (Vin Vino)
John Szabo – Here’s a usefully crisp and fresh, also structured and flavourful white from the Peloponnese, with substantial concentration in the price category. Mostly citrus and white-fleshed orchard fruit dominate the oak-free flavour profile. Terrific value; drink or hold 2–4 years.

Nals Margreid Berg Pinot Bianco 2022, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy
$22.95, Mondo Vino
Michael Godel – A mountain white for Südtirol-Alto Adige and just about as consistent as pinot bianco gets. Not just joy and pleasure (which 2021 really provided) but even more extras and complexities this time round. Increased botanicals, savoury herbs, juiciness, succulence and intensity.
David Lawrason – This is a gorgeous pinot blanc (bianco) from the high country of Alto Adige, in a warm vintage that has imparted extra ripeness that brings out banana and pineapple notes. It is very bright, clean and well balanced with brisk acidity.
Megha Jandhyala – With impressive depth of flavour and an appealingly glossy, satin silk-like texture, this is a special pinot bianco from the alpine region of Südtirol-Alto Adige. I love the balance, the freshness, and the long, refreshingly bitter finish.

De Grendel Sauvignon Blanc 2023, Coastal Region, South Africa
$23.95, The Case For Wine
David Lawrason There are not many wines from the largely urban Cape Town appellation, but next door in the suburbs Constantia is at least locally famous for its sauvignon blancs. This fits right in — a wine of poise, fine structure and energy with fine herbs, grapefruit/lime, subtle guava and minerality. 

Closson Chase K.J. Watson Vineyard Pinot Gris 2023, Ontario, Canada
$25.00, CLOSSON CHASE VINEYARDS INC.
John Szabo – This is a lovely and fresh, juicy and ripe, highly flavourful pinot gris from Closson’s Niagara range, one of the best yet I have to say. A wine to enjoy over the near term.

La Dilecta Sauvignon Blanc 2019, Loire, France
$25.95, Vinexx
John Szabo – A ripe, ambitious, maturing sauvignon from the Loire, La Dilecta, “the beloved,” after the nickname writer Honoré de Balzac gave to his first love, pours a pale golden colour while offering up a bouquet of exotic fruits, candied lemon and orange peel, and grapefruit. It’s more of a substantial winter white than easy-sipping patio sauvignon, best now–2029 for the fully mature version.
David Lawrason – This maturing sauvignon has more elegance and depth than many Touraine peers. It shows very similar aromas of green apple, tomato leaf and lemon, but with more complex elderflower, honey and grassy notes. It is medium bodied, almost satiny, smooth yet fresh.

Solicantus Melodie Du Sol Blanc 2023, Bordeaux, France
$33.95, Cru Wine Merchants
Megha Jandhyala – Solicantus is a Bordeaux-based project led by Indian-born Namratha Prasanth with an inspiring personal story. Part of the profits from the project are donated to programmes promoting the education of girls in India. This means that buying a bottle (or more) of this wine supports a great cause. That said, first and above all, this is a well-made Bordeaux blanc! It is satisfyingly silky and rounded, with focused and intense flavours of ripe citrus fruit and zest and fresh herbs, all without the distraction of oak.

Buyer’s Guide June 8: Reds

Koncho Winery Saperavi 2022, Georgia
$15.95, The Dochas Company
John Szabo – Rare to find this kind of honest wine, un-tricked up, and so drinkable, at under $15. Would make for a great summer BBQ house wine.

Armenia Dry Red 2022, Armenia, World
$21.95, United Stars Corporation Group
John Szabo – A blend of two local grapes, Areni and 35% haghtanak, and two regions, Aragatsotn and Vayots Dzor, this is an attractively perfumed, pure blueberry, pomegranate and black currant coulis-scented red from the highlands of Armenia, silky smooth on the palate. This is well worth exploring especially for pinot noir drinkers — you’d paid considerably more for a similarly-styled and qualitatively equal Sonoma pinot, for example.

Cune Reserva 2018, Rioja, Spain
$23.95, Family Wine Merchants
Megha Jandhyala – This is a classic Rioja reserva from an iconic producer. Oak flavours of dill, vanilla, cedar, and spice envelop fleshy, supple red fruit and dried herbs in this blend of traditional varieties, while the palate is firm and silky. To me, this is a cellar stalwart, reliable, widely appealing, and well-priced, with the ability to keep for 3–4 years. 

Alain Jaume & Fils Grande Garrigue Vacqueyras 2021, Rhône, France
$30.95, VIN PASSION (The Case For Wine)
David Lawrason – From one of my favourite Rhone appellations — known for its more full-bodied, swarthy reds — this has an oh-so pretty, ripe nose rife with violet, red and blue fruit, fine pepper and shrubby earthy notes. It is full bodied, plump yet streamlined, then caged and formed by quite firm, sandy tannins.

Le Macchiole Bolgheri Rosso 2021, Tuscany, Italy
$42.95, Family Wine Merchants
Michael Godel – One of the more suave and refined Bolgheri Rosso from anywhere in the denomination, with an aromatic tug between fresh roses and balsamico. Everything is elevated and captured in this vintage, culminating in a thorough and captivating Rosso.
Megha Jandhyala – This Bolgheri Rosso is a mesmeric kaleidoscope of flavour, including an array of plush dark fruit, savoury spice, herbs, and flowers. Generous and layered, inviting yet poised, it is more than worth its price! Though it is delicious now, it should keep in your cellar comfortably until the close of the decade.

Wynns Coonawarra Estate Black Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2021, South Australia
$44.95, Mark Anthony Group
John Szabo – Though the price has crept up over the years, almost doubling since I first tasted this terrific wine around 20 years ago, it was always undervalued, so now price and quality line up. The 2021, the 66th vintage of the Black Label, carries forward the tradition of balance and elegance, and complexity. A sheer delight to drink, now or into the mid-2030s without concern, judging by past vintages. Still a top value.
Michael Godel – Black Label sets the gold standard for Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon and if you have not yet become a believer than this is the bottle with which to get started. Galactical stuff, so enjoyable and age worthy to the end of the following decade.
Megha Jandhyala – Wynn, an established producer with a history dating back to the late 1800s, makes this opulent yet elegant cabernet sauvignon using top-quality fruit grown in Coonawarra’s famous terra rossa soils. It is quintessential Coonawarra cabernet, with lavish flavours of ripe dark fruit, eucalyptus, and oak spice. I would buy a bottle or two to enjoy over the next decade on special occasions.

Vignoble De La Jarnoterie Cuvée Improvisation 2020, Loire, France
$42.95, Corkscrew Imports
David Lawrason – This is a very classy, elegant old vine cabernet franc from the tiny, seldom seen Saint-Nicolas-de Bourgueil appellation. The aromas are nicely lifted, pure and compelling with violet, tobacco, blueberry/pomegranate and very fine oak spice. It is medium weight with very clean, focused lines.
Megha Jandhyala – There is a richness of flavour and a bucolic charm to this cabernet franc from Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil, situated on the other side of the Loire River from Chinon. Savoury, herbal and earthy, with a dense core of ripe fruit, and nuances of spice, this is a distinctive wine that is sure to intrigue guests, were you to serve it at a dinner party!

Pertinace Barbaresco 2019, Piedmont, Italy
$47.95, Touchstone Brands
John Szabo – Pale garnet colour in the typical nebbiolo idiom, also perfumed, floral and spiced red fruit-scented in the textbook style, this is a lovely, delicate and elegant Barbaresco, drinking well even at this early stage. Sharp value. Best now–2032 or so.
Megha Jandhyala – This is a perfumed, layered and flavourful Barbaresco, with self-possession rather than austerity. I was most smitten by its bright, crystal-clear notes of supple red fruit, roses, pepper, and dried herbs. It is drinking beautifully now and should pair well with all kinds of vegetarian foods like mushroom risotto, cheesy pasta, and pizza.

That’s all for this report, see round the next bottle. 

 John Szabo, MS

Editors Note: We will not be publishing a newsletter reviewing Vintages June 22 OnLine and Flagship Release as the entire WineAlign cru will be in Niagara judging the 23rd annual National Wine Awards of Canada. Notes on several June 22 wines are being posted this week, and we will continue to taste any other samples that come our way in the days ahead. We will return in July with a review of the July 6 release.

Use these quick links for access to all of our Top Picks in the New Release. Non-Premium members can select from all release dates 30 days prior.
Lawrason’s Take
Michael’s Mix
Megha’s Picks
Szabo’s Smart Buys

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