The release on June 9 of wines by Vintages included a number of interesting items, and you'll still find many of them available. Use the online search engine at www.lcbo.com to find the store near you that has stock.
It's worth looking at the Vintages releases on a regular basis. They take place every two weeks and include many quite inexpensive wines (in the $12 to $15 range) as well as higher-priced items. Over the year, they add hundreds of wines to those available in the General List, where most people shop.
Free catalogs are available in LCBO stores in the week before each release (which always takes place on a Saturday).
The most recent release included a number of rose wines in preparation for summer. Roses have become much more popular in the last few years, and there are many more styles available than there used to be. Many are now bone dry and have fuller flavour than the off-dry fruity numbers that used to be dominant.
One to try is Sonop Rose of Pinotage 2006 ($13.95, LCBO No. 34256) from South Africa. It's dry and light-bodied and great with grilled chicken salads. Another, this from New Zealand, is Selaks Merlot Rose 2006 ($17.95, LCBO No. 25478) which is also dry but has more intense flavour and goes very well with roast turkey.
If you want a summer sipper, try Flat Rock Cellars "Twisted" 2006, a vibrant and flavour-filled blend of riesling, gewurztraminer and chardonnay from Niagara ($16.95, LCBO No. 001578). It also goes well with slightly spicy Asian food.
Moving on to the bigger reds, don't miss Trumpeter Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 from Argentina ($13.95, LCBO No. 723288). It's big, dense and is full of dark, spicy, complex flavours, and it's perfect for barbecued red meat. So is William Cole "Albamar" Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 from Chile ($14.95, LCBO No. 595298). It's very stylish with powerful flavours of spicy dark fruit and berries.
For a white to go with full-flavoured chicken, fish or seafood, try Caliterra "Arboleda" Chardonnay 2006 from Chile ($16.95, LCBO No. 606772). The Arboleda brand is quality across the board, and this chardonnay is rich and luscious, with sculpted fruit flavours and stunning texture.
Those three wines reinforce my sense that some of the best values are in Chilean and Argentinean wines at the moment. They tend to have good flavour, texture and balance, and almost all punch above their price. This won't last forever, so enjoy them while they're bargains.
Which is not to say there aren't good values elsewhere, of course. Chateau Haut-Monplaisir Cahors 2004 ($13.95, LCBO No. 673590) from southwestern France, is an impressive malbec. It has complex dark fruit flavours and goes well with steak, burgers and grilled portobello mushrooms.
Finally, from Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, there's Chateau Kefraya 'Les Breteches' Red 2005 ($11.95, LCBO No. 990986). It's well-made, dry, and delivers quite complex ripe, dark fruit, and it's also very good with many barbecued dishes, from chicken to burgers.
Check out Vintages releases regularly for value wines like these.
Four General List wines on today's rack.