Canadian Wine Guy

Pale in color with a lovely varietal nose of stone fruits, think peach and the like. On the mid palate the wine matches the nose with some nice peach coming through! On the medium finish the wine displays some nice crisp acidity and some nice mouth grip as the wine builds in the mouth. This is a spot on Pinot Gris, just the way I like them. Should be super food friendly too. This is another one from the New Zealand wine fair. I would give it an 88+

From the winery’s web site:
LAWSON’S DRY HILLS PINOT GRIS 2016
Region: Marlborough New Zealand
Winemaker: Marcus Wright/Rebecca Wiffen.
Alcohol: 13.5% pH: 3.55 RS: 6.8g/L TA: 5.4g/L Brix: 22 – 22.4

The majority of the fruit for this wine is from our own Waihopai Valley vineyard. It was cropped at low levels to achieve concentrated flavours and a rich, weighty texture. 10% of the juice was fermented with wild yeast in aged French oak. Aromas include freshly sliced nashi pear, lemon curd and almond meal whilst the palate which is just off-dry, add ripe, juicy stonefruit characters.

Cellaring: Enjoy whilst young or cellar for two to four years.

Food Match: Perfect with rich cheeses, roast pork with a pear sauce, creamy pastas, poultry and seafoods.

From the LCBO web site for a different year:
Lawson’s Dry Hills Pinot Gris 2014 — VINTAGES#: 415158 | 750 mL bottle
STYLE – Aromatic & Flavourful
Pinot Gris is grown nearly everywhere in New Zealand, with more aromatic versions emerging from the cooler South Island. Despite regional variation, the vast majority of NZ PG is closer in style to Alsace, with great focus on texture and complexity. This example from Marlborough is complex, rich and ripe with lots of tropical fruit, honey, good weight, length and texture. (VINTAGES panel, Oct. 2014) $14.25

PRODUCT DETAILS
Release Date:November 14, 2015
Alcohol/Vol 14.0% Made in: Marlborough, New Zealand By: Lawsons Dry Hills Sugar Content:10 g/L Sweetness Descriptor:D – Dry

Pale in color with a nice citrus nose. On the mid palate the wine displays some subtle elegant varietal sauv blanc notes, think citrus and some grass. This is a more refined wine. If you like your sauv blancs edgy, this isn’t the wine for you. On the medium length finish the wine displays some nice lively acidity and the citrus notes linger nicely in the mouth. I would give this an 88 or so. I am told this is coming to the general list under LCB number 489112 at $18.95 a bottle.

From the winery‘s web site:
VINTAGE SUMMARY: Spring was typical in Marlborough, with the vineyard team spending many a long nights fighting off Jack Frost. This flowed into a warm dry summer, thus laying the foundation for a quality harvest. Harvesting fruit on flavour, with a careful eye on maturity data, certainly paid dividends with harvest continuing until the end of April. Attentive viticulture and winemaking has provided us with many exceptionally good parcels of Sauvignon Blanc and the winemaker’s task of blending was a pleasure. Expect some full-flavoured, well-balanced and textured wines in 2016.

WINEMAKER’S NOTE: An aromatically intense wine showing aromas of white flesh nectarine, tropical fruit salad, gooseberry and lemon zest. Other aromas noted include quince, nettle, dried oregano and cut straw. The palate has a fleshy entry and seamless flow finishing with a lively crisp acidity – lingering citrus flavours and cut straw.

VINIFICATION: Grapes harvested in the cool of the night were gently pressed and the juice clarified quickly to retain the maximum aroma expression. Selected strains of yeast were added to fully capture the aromatic intensity of this vibrant Sauvignon Blanc. Ferment was undertaken at cool temperatures over several weeks before blending, light fining and filtration.

Variety: Sauvignon Blanc
Food Matches: Fish, shellfish or as an aperitif
Cellaring: 1 – 2 years
RS: 3.0 g/L Alcohol: 12.5% pH: 3.13 TA: 7.2 g/L

Garnet in color with a lovely varietal pinot nose, soft red fruits coming through. On the mid palate the wine matches the nose with some lovely red fruit, strawberry and raspberries. On the medium length finish the wine displays some nice acidity and rustic notes. It has a lovely mouth grip to it. A very nice spot on pinot. I would give it an 88+. One of my favs from the recent New Zealand wine fair held at the ROM 5/10/2017. It’s not in the LCBO right now but will be from what I understand. For now it’s $19.95 a bottle available by the case from Wine Guru.

From the winery’s web site:
LAWSON’S DRY HILLS PINOT NOIR 2015

Region: Marlborough
Winemaker: Marcus Wright/Rebecca Wiffen
Alcohol: 13.5% pH: 3.6 RS: nil
TA: 6.0g/L Brix: 24.1

Our Pinot Noir 2015 was produced from carefully nurtured vines on our Chaytors Road vineyard, where the combination of clone, climate and soil produce something special. Small batch fermentation, hand plunging and aging in French oak barriques has helped to produce an expressive wine with strong berry fruit notes, lovely texture, great concentration and gentle tannins

Cellaring: Two to three years
Food Match: Enjoy in moderation with lighter red meat dishes

I last wrote up the 2015 vintage of this wine and enjoyed it. This has largely become one of my go to Sauv blancs. Inexpensive and tasty. It’s in the general list and of the ones I’ve tried it has been the best so far. I like Sauv blancs more edgey and sharp. This one is pale in color with a pink grapefruit nose that just jumps out at you. On the mid palate the wine matches the nose with sharp, edgey pink grape fruit dominating the palate. If you like your wine smooth and refined, you will positively hate this wine, I on the other hand like it. The 2016 is even more boisterous than the 2015. I paired it with fettucine carbonara and it did a stellar job of powering it’s way through the fatty, rich saltiness. Yumm. A match made in heaven. I would give it an 88+. The LCBO describe it as aromatic and flavorful and I would whole heartedly agree! By the way if your looking for a good carbonara recipe check out this one on Delish.com. The secret in this recipe is finding the fonatana cheese and I substituted panchetta for bacon. I had a bit of hard time finding a panchetta I like. I started with a Maestro and it was as hard as a rock and too salty. In the end I eventually found a Casa Italia and it was perfect!

From the LCBO web site:
Riverlore Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough — LCBO#: 417600
STYLE – Aromatic & Flavourful
Pale yellow green colour; aromas of ripe pear, gooseberry and fresh cut grass with notes of tropical fruit and lime; dry, medium bodied, richly textured, with balanced fresh acidity, flavours of gooseberry, ripe apple, fresh herb and tropical fruit, with notes of passion fruit and asparagus.
$13.95WAS $15.95 SAVE $2.00 Limited Time Offer Until May 21, 2017
PRODUCT DETAILS
Release Date:August 4, 2015
Alcohol/Vol 13.0% Made in: Marlborough, New Zealand By: Wairau River Wines Ltd.Sugar Content: 5 g/L Sweetness Descriptor: XD – Extra Dry

Dark in color with a nice black berry nose. On the mid palate the wine displays deep rich black berries to match the nose along with some mocha. On the medium length finish the wine displays some lovely smooth tannins and dryness. This is a beautiful rich cab sauv. I would consider this one of the best New Zealand red wines I’ve tasted in a bit. I would give it a solid 90. Not in the LCBO but available in a case of 12 for $45 a bottle from Apparition Wines.

From the winery’s web site (for a different year)
2011 Cabernet Sauvignon STOCK UPDATE 20-4-2016: Only about 100 bottles remaining.

Chocolate notes mingle with cherries, brambles and ripe plums, supported by well developed oak. Delicate texture with a round, full initial mouthfeel, and a rich satisfying finish. Made from 100% estate grown fruit.

Our final blend: Cabernet Sauvignon (90%) Merlot (10%)
Alcohol by volume: 13.3%

Detailed Tasting Notes
A refined, elegant wine from a cooler growing season. Chocolate notes mingle with cherries, brambles and ripe plums, enveloped with well balanced oak. Delicate texture with a round, full initial mouthfeel, and a pleasant, long finish.