Vintage Assessments Home Page

Recent Articles

Archive of National Post Articles

Get Michael Vaughan's Buying Guide for today's Vintages Release today!
With a special  $20 Discount
Click Here

Gambling on Wine Dinners
Three recent positive outings
© Michael Vaughan 2006
National Post Weekly Wine & Spirits Columnist
Saturday, April 22, 2006

LIVE WINE LINK
www.winefind.ca
(CLICK ON THE NAME - All listings are automatically linked to the LCBO database)
If there is a product that interests you, just click on the name below and you will instantaneously connected with the LCBO database. The product will appear in blue and all you have to do is click on the name again and then the next screen will provide details along with the store search. Just click on store search. The number of bottles in each store is updated nightly. Call the store first to see if stock still remains (each store phone number is listed).

It seems that an ever-increasing number of wine dinners are blossoming forth in Toronto and region. Readers have to choose which to attend with care as they can range from great to downright disappointing. Why? Well, there are several reasons. First, what are the wines being tasted? Were they well chosen and how will they show? The latter, of course, depends on one's own experience and preferences.

One must also ask, are the wines being presented interesting? I have discovered the hard way that some sponsored wine club and Ontario winery dinners, can be boringly commercial. It is pretty hard to get excited about tasting everyday LCBO general listings and/or mediocre consignment/private order items.

Obviously the quality of the food is critical. Ditto for food and wine pairing, stemware, the guest speaker's interface with attendees, and, of course, price. All are important in making the event successful. First, one should examine the menu critically and try to figure out whether you are likely to enjoy what is being served. With some dinners pushing $225 per person before taxes and gratuities, attending becomes an expensive investment. This fact has encouraged some couples to develop rotating home-based wine tasting dinner clubs, sans guest speaker. Obviously, there are huge savings to be had by dining at home - plus you get the food you want.

Great Burgundy

To provide readers with some insights, let me divulge my experiences from three recent wine tasting dinners attended, all with a different approach. The most expensive was a classy Burgundy event with Luc Bouchard of Bouchard Pere & Fils at Perigee Restaurant in Toronto's Distillery District. I sat with Bouchard and had ample opportunity to discuss the wines being poured. When not talking to us, Luc made the rounds to visit tables and answer questions relating to his wines.

At $225 per person, I must confess that it was the wines and company that made the evening a success. Host Jason Woodman kicked off with fine Champagne starter - the gently toasty, well-structured Henriot Brut Souverain (959643). It was originally released at $53.95 (October 9, 2004) and was put on sale at Vintages for only $39.95 (click here to see the small quantities remaining in LCBO stores).

It was the four Bouchard wines, however, that made the difference. First, a fine, elegant 2003 Coron-Charlemagne (974758 - now gone at $129 from last December's Classics catalogue); an exceptional, albeit idiosyncratic 1983 Meursault Genevrieres 1er Cru; one of my favourites 2003 Beaune Greves Vigne de L'Enfant Jesus 1er Cru (972554), which is still available in the Classics and some Vintages outlets at $108 (it was served with tender duck breast - the culinary highlight on the night); and a surprisingly lively 1959 Savigny-Les-Beaune Les Lavieres 1er Cru, which was a perfect match for cheese.

To see the full menu from this dinner click here.

Exploring the Roots of Baco Noir

In a completely different vein, was the Henry of Pelham Baco Noir Reserve wine dinner at Breadalbane Inn, which is located in Fergus (for information on the Inn and upcoming events click here). Unlike the Bouchard event, this one featured a comparative vertical tasting prior to the dinner. It started with an outstanding 2005 barrel sample; followed by a rather youthful 2004 (in Vintages at $24.95); a harmonious 2002; a somewhat herbal 2000; a intriguing, smoky, complex, high acid 1999; a dense, well structured, ripe 1998 (my favourite); a slightly earthy 1997; and finally a 1995 that was showing some maturity. The last wine, a 1993, was actually a non-reserve (meaning it only cost about $10) was quite terrific with lively cran-cherry flavours - a testimonial to how well Baco Noir can age.

It was also interesting to discover how well Baco married with the wide range of well-prepared dishes, ranging from seafood (including lobster and scallops) to duck three ways and even an Egger Farm veal burger. Enthusiastic Daniel Speck did an admirable job leading the tasting and visited every table a number of times. We finished with the outstanding Henry of Pelham 2004 Cabernet Franc Icewine (sadly out of stock at Vintages). The price of the dinner and tasting was only $95, definitely good value - especially for those who live in proximity to the Inn. Getting there on a Friday night from downtown Toronto was a bit of a challenge (an extra hour because of 401 gridlock).

To see the full menu from this dinner click here.

A Classy Champagne-Only Dinner

Finally, just over a week ago I attended a Laurent-Perrier Champagne dinner at the flagship Four Seasons Truffles restaurant. I was a bit anxious because the menu at some previous events were not quite to my taste. Thankfully, this one under Chef Lora Kirk turned out to be a real winner. As a fan of the bright, elegant style produced by Laurent-Perrier, this event focused on five Champagnes a $175 per person. The aperitif Cuvee Ultra Brut, which has no sweet dosage whatsoever, was perfection with fresh oysters. It has sadly been absent from the Vintages shelves for much too long. Ditto for their vintage-dated Champagne, Brut Millesime 1997, which soars with finesse focusing on gently toasty, ripe lemon-melon flavours. It was paired with unbelievably tender, flavourful, perfect-pink veal tenderloin and large succulent sweetbread all sourced from The Butcher Shoppe.

This was followed by the revered Grand-Siecle La Cuvée, which shows lots of class (although I still preferred the 1997 with the food) with dessert. This was followed by a trio of perfect cheeses specially selected from The Cheese Boutique, all served at exactly the right temperature. The were accompanied by the delicious Cuvée Rosé Brut Champagne (158550), which is available in Vintages at $79.95 (to check LCBO store availability click here). While it worked as a closer, it could have just as easily been used as an aperitif. It would be perfect for Mother's Day, which is just three weeks away.

To see the full menu from this dinner click here.

While these events were on the winning side of the equation, unfortunately, many have seen the wines and/or food fall flat. This includes well-known producers, personalities and restaurants. National Post readers can check out various upcoming events in the timeouttoronto section of my Web Site - to see click here. In addition to providing wine and menu details, I have given each a "best guess" rating out of three stars and have tried to focus on those that seem promising. Good luck.

National Post readers wishing to receive the current April 2006 Vintage Assessments newsletter (covering the Vintages releases for today & for the April 1st and 15th releases - including ISD) as well as the April 29th Vintages Shopping List can have it e-mailed today and receive a $20 discount - click here.

2001-2002-2003-2004-2005-2006 Tasting Note Database
Our tasting note database from December 31, 2000 to April 2006, covers every Vintages release product for the past 64 months. There are more than 12,000 notes in the database data. Just enter the name of the product, supplier name or CSPC number. Or you can search by type of wine, country of origin, even wine agent! Nothing could be easier. Also you can get information on the agent by clicking on the agent’s name, as well as current LCBO store inventory by clicking on "Check LCBO Availability", which will automatically tell you the number of bottles at LCBO as of last night.