Quite a few readers have asked for further heads-up on wines being released by Vintages. This follows a column a few weeks ago where I pointed out that not all Vintages wines are expensive, and there are very goodvalue wines in the $10 to $15 range.
Coming up this Saturday are a few more you might look out for. They include Camelot Merlot 2002 from California ($13.95, 658070). It has a pretty hokey back label that goes on about Camelot, King Arthur’s Knights and the Round Table, but the wine inside the bottle is rich, fruity and concentrated, and it goes very well with richly flavoured meats.
For the same price there’s a terrific white from Australia, d’Arenberg “The Stump Jump” 2005 ($13.95, 922203). This is a fairly unusual blend of Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and two southern French grapes, Marsanne and Roussanne. It’s quite delicious, with flavours of peach and apricot, mineral notes and a little spiciness. It makes a great summer sipping wine and you can also pair it with slightly spicy chicken and pork dishes.
And, look for its red sibling, “The Stump Jump” 2005 blend of Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvèdre (the GSM blend, as it’s known). It’s packed with complex dark fruit flavours and makes a great partner to grilled lamb.
If you’re in the market for rosé, try “Le Lys” 2005 from the Buzet region of southwest France. It’s a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon and it’s dry with vibrant flavours of cranberry, strawberry and other red fruit and berries.
There are plenty more value wines in this and the following Vintages release. If you want to peruse the options, pick up a catalogue (one is issued for each release) from your local LCBO, or call and ask to be put on the mailing list.
The other theme that dominated my inbox this week has been requests for suggestions for wines to serve at weddings and other events. I’m always happy to make suggestions because it’s very confusing to be faced with thousands of wines and wonder whether your choice is going to go down well with your guests.
Generally, what people are looking for is a reasonably priced red and white that are versatile enough to go with a variety of dishes. I’d say “The Stump Jump” duo (above) would be pretty good candidates because each is wellbalanced in every respect. They have good fruit flavours and good acidity, and the red is moderately tannic. I could see them pairing successfully with a wide range of appetizers and main dishes.
The key is balance: you want wines that aren’t too anything — not too tannic, not too acidic, not too sweet. That is, you want all this but you want all the components to balance one another so that the wine works with the greatest range of food flavours and textures.
That doesn’t mean you want bland, unless you’re planning to serve bland food, in which case it would be perfect. But assuming this isn’t the plan, your wine should enhance the food, not dominate it or be swamped by it.
Four well-priced wines this week from the LCBO General List.