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The Bird is Back!
A toast to dedicated winemakers everywhere

One of the hottest whites from Germany takes flight in today’s Vintages release. Yes, the Pfalz bird is back. I am referring, of course, to the refreshed Karl Lingenfelder 2001 Bird Label Riesling, which is a good follow-up of the delicious 1999 (it debuted on April 7, 2001). The nose is faintly honeyed, bright and slightly schisty with dried lemon and yellow grapefruit notes. On the palate it is faintly off-dry, tangy and light bodied with honeyed but crisp, tangelo fruit flavours. Quite yummy value at $11.55 (*+/** out of three stars). Considering that there are 250 cases available, I was mystified by its absence at the LCBO lab preview. Luckily, the birdman himself, owner/winemaker Karl Lingenfelder, insisted I bring a bottle back to Toronto when our paths recently crossed at the Vancouver Playhouse.

And talking about birds, excellent Burgundy is as rare as hen’s teeth. So I am ecstatic to report his release harbors a real winner - Domaine Hudelot-Noellat 1999 Chambolle-Musigny at $54.95 (**+ out of three stars). Coming from one of my favourite Cote-des-Nuits communes, it will undoubtedly tickle the fancy of fans. The nose is intense, complex and faintly smoky with stewed plums, cherries and sandalwood. The taste stands up and says “hello” with finely structured, dry but balanced, slightly spicy, dried cherry flavours. It is showing nicely today but can evolve for next 3-4 years.

It is interesting to note that this September release is the smallest in years. There are only 123 new items. When I checked my database I discovered that 34 were recent repeats having appeared in Vintages since January 2001. One of the key components in today’s release is the appearance of Kendall-Jackson’s estates. Considering the importance of this portfolio release, which coincided with visiting dignitaries, I was surprised that nary a whisper was heard from the local KJ rep. To make matters worse, Vintages failed to present some of the key upcoming items in today’s release. Neither of the Santa Barbara Cambria wines were tasted, nor the Napa Merlot from Atalon, Matanzas Creek Sonoma Merlot or flagship KJ Great Estates Cabernet Sauvignon. Did you know that KJ now has 9 different wineries and over 100 selections?

Deprived of tasting so many key KJ constituents, I retreated offshore for my KJ best buy. It hails from Chile’s Maule Valley and is only the second vintage produced (there were 2,000 cases of the first 1999 vintage vs. 4,500 cases of 2000). Calina 2000 Carmenere Reserve (** out of three stars) has an intense deep purple colour with an expressive, slightly smoky, chocolaty, dried plum, cassis and coffee nose. On the palate it is well balanced with bright, cedary, dried black cherry flavours and a lingering finish. While reasonably priced at $16.95, it can be had for a mere $7.50 US in the KJ Wine Estates (WE) Online Store! And that excludes the 15% discount you get by becoming a member of the KJWE Wine Club ($6.38). No matter how you cut the cheese, the LCBO price seems excessive.

An Exclusive Tasting Update - A Brilliant Pinot Noir!
I have just finished evaluating three samples of today’s KJ Estate Vintages release which were dropped off by Russell Woodman (416-767-5144) who represents both Matanzas Creek and Cambria labels locally in Ontario. Thankfully, this is one of the few agencies that goes out of its way to create numerous tasting opportunities for both the press and licensees. As for the untasted KJ wines, unfortunately, neither the Canadian KJ rep nor the KJ agents (Charton Hobbs/Authentic) made any effort to contact me regarding this release.

In a nutshell, the Cambria 1999 Julia’s Pinot Noir at $39.95 is as seamless, refined and accessible as Pinot Noir can be. I love this wine’s nose – gently spicy, bright, blueberry-cherry pie with a hint of French vanilla ice cream. On the palate, the seductive, creamy but still bright, black cherry-blueberry flavours are hedged in by just an elegant lick of vanilla. It is lush, but not over the top and reminds me of some of the excellent Chard Farm Pinot Noirs I tasted in New Zealand last year. Originating in the Santa Maria Valley, it spent 10 months exclusively in French oak (40% new). The stats are impressive - despite the high alcohol of 13.9%, the wine has terrific total acidity (.6 grams/100 ml). This is one **+ (out of three stars) wine which is worth the price, is drinking perfectly and will continue to do so for the next 18 months.

The Cambria 2000 Katherine’s Chardonnay at a more modest $29.95 is no slouch either. The nose exudes dried ripe lemon fruit with a hint of tropical fruit along with sandalwood and vanilla. On the palate it is medium bodied and quite dry with fairly creamy and yet rather tangy, ripe apricot purée flavours and a lingering finish. Perhaps a tad too fruity for some seafood dishes, this one is perfect for chicken. Give it ** (out of three stars). For my taste, even at the higher price, the Pinot Noir would be my choice because it really is such an outstanding example.

As for the Matanzas Creek 1999 Merlot at $79.95, well it is also first class with a gently cedary, ripe plum and cherry tomato nose. On the palate it is well structured, quite seamless and well balanced with gently cedary,plumy-ripe cherry-berry fruit flavours. There appears to be a hint of ruby grapefruit on the finish. What is unusual is that in addition to 76% Merlot and12% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Syrah has been added to the blend. All the components were aged separately in French oak (60% new) for 13 months before being assembled. The result (**+ out of three stars) is worth exploring.

And just a reminder, if there is one red worth fighting for in today’s release, it is Graham Beck 2000 Coastal Cellar Shiraz (** out of three stars) at a modest $16.95 a bottle. As for the birds, I am thinking turkey as in Thanksgiving plus anyone who fails to get a bottle or two of this South African gem. It has a lovely, creamy and well structured on the palate with smoky, black cherry purée flavours that go one and on. An amazing value, only 300 cases of six were allocated to Ontario.

My other release highlight comes from Portugal’s irrepressibly irreverent Dirk van der Niepoort. His Niepoort LBV 1997 Late Bottled Vintage Port at $23.65 is about as good as it gets (**+ out of three stars). The nose is quite lovely with very spicy, sweet, vanilla stick and ripe plum purée notes. The medium-full bodied, spicy, ripe, chocolate-infused, plumy flavours are definitely worth a detour.

Two years ago I was swept away by small glass of Niepoort 1867 Port, which was freshly poured from a large ancient cask in the early hours of the morning while visiting his Oporto cellars. Despite being from a competing house, this glorious 1867 would be a perfect to salute the memory of Bruce Guimaraens my friend since 1976 who helped me discover the essence of Port.

Word of his recent untimely death arrived this week. It is hard to believe that Bruce had made every Vintage Port since 1960 at the house of Fonseca. I saw him last April at the Vancouver Playhouse wine festival where, at the still youthful age of 67, he was still working twelve-hour days introducing fledgling wine lovers to his craft. In a Three Centuries of Port & Madeira comparative tasting, his *** Fonseca Guimaraens 1970 Vintage Port soared in quality - gloriously flavoured, fleshy and yet perfectly balanced. It was the quintessential Bruce Guimaraens, a man dedicated to producing exceptional wine. The last wine he poured me was from a bottle under the under the table - his recent stunning 2000 vintage, which he believed would be his ultimate triumph. It was and is!

Vintages October 2002 Release
To see the complete list of upcoming products CLICK HERE (sorted by date of release). It includes the number of cases, our agent ID for every product, as well as, special unannounced “In Store Discoveries” for October. It also reveals which products have NOT BEEN presented for evaluation by the LCBO.
You can also see it SORTED BY AGENT CLICK HERE

Upcoming: A Tutored Tasting of Rioja Wines
Wednesday September 25th
Casa Barcelona and Si! Everything Spanish present a sampling of Rioja and food pairing starting at 7:30 pm at Casa Barcelona - 2980 Bloor Street West, Toronto (416-234-5858). It features the following:
• 1995 Marques de Murrieta Reserva
• 1994 Tempranillo Reserva Bodegas Beronia
• 1993 Conde de Valdemar Gran Reserva
• 1991 Muga Reserva
• 1989 Marques de Murrieta Castillo de Ygay Gran Reserva Especial
• 1989 Marques de Caceres Gran Reserva
and of course, Sangria
Tickets are $75 per person and include wine and sample food pairings. Call Eva Martinez, (905) 469-8409, siconsultants@sympatico.ca

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