winefind.ca
The system is foolproof and easy. If there is a wine that interests you, just click on the name and you will instantaneously connected with the LCBO database telling you if the wine is in the LCBO system. If it is, it will appear in blue and all you have to do is click on the name again and then the next screen will provide details on the wine along with a store search. While the number of bottles in each store is updated every night, you should call the store first to see if stock still remains (each store phone number is also provided). It is that simple!
Note that all the items recommended below are connected with the LCBO database – just click on the name!

There is no question that the rush to buy wines at Vintages seems to be over. Gone are queues of frantic buyers trying to nail down that one great buy at the opening bell on release days. Sales are apparently moving at a snail’s pace and LCBO staffing has been cut back.

Not that this is totally a bad thing. It is nice to be treated like a valued customer as opposed to a guy with a number in a line. All of this means, of course, that ample stock of this month’s best buys still remain on the shelf. What is surprising is that Vintages didn’t bother to present my first three recommended whites to wine writers.

Anyone who treasures a classic Sancerre from the Loire would be ill advised not to jump on this white, which deserves to be on every restaurant wine list in town. Why? Because not it’s not only tasty and reasonably priced, but it comes in a half bottle – the perfect size for first courses. Unfortunately, Vintages has only had a measly 8 white Sancerre releases over the past 32 months and only one other half-bottle (released more than two years ago on April 7, 2001)!

This Château du Nozay 2001 Sancerre (972315) at $16.55 for a half bottle is a definite detour. It is light yellow colour with a fairly intense, honeyed, gently nutty, lemony, honeysuckle nose. On the palate this pure Sauvignon Blanc is very bright and yet surprisingly mouthfilling with tangy, ripe lemon-citrus flavours. Most important, it is still very fresh without being exceedingly grassy or tart. It finishes up with a lingering, gently nutty aftertaste. Good today, it could be easily held for another 9 months without a problem.

My second best buy is an incredibly well-priced Chablis. Unlike Sancerre, Chablis is often featured in Vintages with 21 appearances since January 2001. Not one, however, has come within a country mile of the $15.95 retail price of this effort. Time to call Ripley’s!

Obviously something is amiss when the half-bottles of the same stuff sells for $11.50 or the equivalent of $23 per 750 ml! I tasted both bottle and, in this instance, the full bottle of Joseph Drouhin 2001 Chablis (199141) is the one to go for. It has a bright, slightly honeyed, dried lemon nose. On the palate it is firm, dry and crisp with slightly nutty, ripe lemon flavours. This is not your fat, rich, tropical-tinged Aussi-styled Chard, but rather a sleek food wine. A real bargain at the price, there was a whack of it around earlier this week – for the LCBO store closest to you go just click on the name!

My third insider’s choice is Kuhlmann-Platz 2001 Riesling (744342) at $15.50. There is more intensity of yellow evident here than either of the two previous whites. On the nose you get a rush of fresh, ripe limes with some stony, mineral notes. Crisp, very dry, medium to medium-light bodied on the palate, you have an abundance of tangy, ripe lemon-melon flavours accompanying the fine lingering finish. This Alsatian refresher would be perfect with fish, perhaps freshly caught truite au beure blanc amandine.

The best buy white of the release hails from the Midi. At only $11.55 you will not find better value than Domaine de la Baume 2002 Sauvignon Blanc (728600). This charmer is not in the extremely dry, grassy, New Zealand style that makes your tongue itch. Au contraire, there is a velvety quality about this crowd pleaser. The nose shows lots of alluring fresh, ripe, peach skin fruit. Although on the lighter side of medium bodied, it is pleasantly rounded with spicy, peach-apricot purée flavours followed up by a faintly toasty finish. This go-with-anything white has been fashioned by Ashley Huntington, one of Australia leading winemakers, who is now residing in the heart of the Languedoc-Roussillon region.

My final white is a Chenin Blanc from the Loire, which although not well-known, can occasionally be great. This one really is! Domaine des Aubuisières 2001 Le Marigny Vouvray (945527) at $19.95 has a lovely, very expressive, sweetish, ripe, peachy-marmalade nose. On the palate it is spicy, gently sweet and rich with ripe orange citrus flavours and a terrific lingering tangerine rind finish. Many are surprised to discover that owner Bernard Fouquet vinifies this succulent white in oak. The result is power, complexity and viscosity; and yet with finesse. This Chenin Blanc deserves a detour and will be a perfect summer afternoon sipper. Ready to drink today, it will still evolve nicely for many years to come.

In keeping with today’s French theme, my best buy red is an undiscovered gem from last month’s release that still sits quietly on the shelves. Ignored by all, André Lurton  1999 Château Coucheroy (944983) hails from the Pessac-Léognan region and, at $17.95, is one of the most delicious Bordeaux values of the year. Here, at last, we have a wine which is  ready to enjoy. The colour is deep red with ambering edges. The nose is mature and spicy with dried ripe cherry and red licorice notes – a perfect reflection of Merlot. The taste is dry and harmonious with ripe cherry flavours. The hard edges are gone – it’s perfectly accessible.

Those yearning a genuine three-star Michelin inspired meal should make a beeline to Taboo Resort, the reincarnation of Muskoka Sands in Gravenhurst. Tonight and tomorrow are the last opportunities to enjoy the remarkable, prix fixe, five course tasting menu of visiting chef extraordinaire Dieter Muller. For full details click here

Check out our winefind.ca tasting notes database

Our tasting note database goes back to January 1, 2001 and covers every Vintages release product for the past 31 months. There are approximately 5,000 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. When you get your search results (starting with the most recent release), click on the item name and you will instantaneously connected to the FBTI Vintage Assessments database. You will see our tasting note along with the name of the agent. You can get information on the agent by clicking on the agent’s name. Also, you can check LCBO store inventory by clicking on Check LCBO Availability. It will automatically take you to the item you want to search.

To use our winefind.ca Tasting Notes Database: click here

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Check out the
August 2003 InStore Discovery

Copyright Food & Beverage Testing Institute of Canada 2004
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Contact Michael Vaughan at
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