Canadian Wine Guy

Pale in color with a lovely nose of vanilla. This wine is senstive to temperature. Serve it too cold and you will miss out on the complexities of this wine. On the mid pallet the wine displays some lovely chard fruit, some apples, and the like. On the finish the wine has some lovely mouth grip with vanilla sticking around and even some butterscotch. Very nice. I would give it an 89 or so.

From the LCBO web site:
GHOST PINES CHARDONNAY WINEMAKER’S BLEND LCBO 308122 | 750 mL bottle Price $ 19.95
Made in: California, USA By: Louis M. Martini Winery
13.5% Alcohol/Vol. Style: Full-bodied & Rich Sugar Content: 6 g/L Sweetness Descriptor: D – Dry

Tasting Note
Pale straw colour; intense oak, vanilla and butterscotch nose with some pear and tropical fruit on the palate followed by a medium-long, sweet vanilla finish.

Serving Suggestion
Serve with cedar-planked salmon, chicken in a cream sauce, grilled scallops.

Dark in color with a lovely nose of dark berries. On the mid pallet the wine displays dark cherries to match the nose backed by some strong spicy and peppery notes. On the medium length finish the wine displays some firm tannins.  The pepper eases as it breathes. The wine is a bit young. I would give it an 88-89.  Sadly not in the LCBO. 

From the winery’s Web site http://www.hahnfamilywines.com/wineInfoTemplate.asp?BrandID=14&WinesID=344
True to its appellation, the 2010 Cycles Gladiator Cabernet has the strength and power characteristic of wines from Lodi. A deep purple color supports a dense, black cherry dominated aroma. Cherry flavors continue to headline through to the finish, supported by lighter accents of plum, cola and cedar. A big, muscular wine, a weighty tannic structure make their presence felt throughout.

A show stopper on its own, this winewould pair beautifully with grilled bison hamburgers with stone ground mustard.

Appellation Lodi
Varietal Composition 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 5% Petite Sirah
Brix at Harvest 25-26.
Cooperage 40% New French Oak, balance neutral
Total Acidity 0.62 g/100 ml Total pH 3.90
Residual Sugar Dry Alcohol 14.5%
Release Date August 2011 Cases Produced 29355
Bottle Size 750 ml Suggested Retail Price $ 12.00 US

Dark in color with a mild nose. On the mid pallet this wine has some deep rich varietal zinf flavors. Lots of dark berries some chocolate notes and some sweetness. That is indicated in 10g/l in the sugar scale below. Straight out of the bottle the wine displays some firm peppery notes. These eases a bit leaving some rich black berries in the mouth on a medium length finish. There’s some tannins on the finish as well. I would give this an 89-90. This is definitely a big rich Zinf. Yumm.

From the LCBO web site:
HOWLING MOON OLD VINE ZINFANDEL 2009 VINTAGES 57356 | 750 mL bottle Price $ 18.95
Made in: California, USA By: Ads Wines
Release Date: Jan 4, 2014
13.5% Alcohol/Vol. Style: Full-bodied & Smooth Sugar Content: 10 g/L Sweetness Descriptor: XD – Extra Dry

Tasting Note
Great structure and refinement in this Zin along with the impressive depth of flavour typical of the variety. Aromas of mixed berries, mocha and toffee greet the nose and are reprised nicely on the palate, which shows good delineation, and a certain creaminess to the texture. A fine choice for rib roast. (VINTAGES panel, Feb. 2012)

Dark in color with a lovely nose of red berries and cherries coming through, typical of a Napa Cab. On the mid pallet the wine displays cherries, cassis and red berries to match the nose. On the medium length finish the wine displays some acidity and some spice. This isn’t the most fruit forward cab but it is quite nice. I would give it 6 months or so in the cellar or a bit of breathing to help the acidity die down and allow the fruit to shine through.

From the LCBO web site:
CA’ MOMI CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2011 VINTAGES 315002 | 750 mL bottle Price $ 21.95
Made in: California, USA By: Ca’Momi
Release Date: Jan 4, 2014
13.9% Alcohol/Vol. Style: Full-bodied & Smooth Sugar Content: 8 g/L Sweetness Descriptor: D – Dry

Description
Napa Valley is without doubt one of the world’s top-flight Cabernet Sauvignon regions. Napa’s success is partially due to its near-matchless capacity to consistently articulate Cabernet’s hallmark cassis notes. This example, from Ca’ Momi, is an incredible value for Napa Cabernet, and profoundly demonstrates the region’s distinctive ability to produce exquisite expressions of Cabernet that are loaded with fruit, depth, complexity and, of course, cassis notes aplenty.

I had this wine given to me as a house gift this Christmas season. The wine is not in the LCBO but in the US is worth about $25 a bottle. This wine is Mondavi family. The Winery’s web site has some more details on the wine.

Dark in color with a lovely nose of red berries. On the mid pallet the wine displays red berries and cherries to match the nose. On the medium length finish the wine displays some firm tannins, some firm acidity and some nice dryness. The acidity lingers in the mouth with some nice mouth grip. The wine is a little young and could use either some breathing or some aging. I would give it an 89 or so. Quite nice.

I had this one at Ten Restaurant and wine bar as part of my wine meetup group. I forgot to note the year. Rookie mistake 🙁 Nice garnet in color with a mild nose. On the mid pallet the wine displays some lovely mild varietal fruits, strawberry and rustic notes, backed by some deep rich tannins and some nice dryness. I would give this an 89+. Yumm. Sadly not in the LCBO, and I can’t find the local distributor. Winery’s web site.

I last tasted the 2006 Vintage of this wine and enjoyed it so much I bought a case. I had this one at Oliver and Bonacini in Oakville place as part of a Wine Meetup. Dark in color with a mild nose of red berries. On the mid pallet the wine displays some mild red berries, cherries and the like to match the nose. On the finish the wine has some noticeable acidity, alcohol and tannins that quickly overwhelm the fruit. These fade in about half an hour or so in the glass allowing the lovely rich fruit flavors to come through. This wine needs to be decanted or aged longer. I would give it an 89 or so once it’s done breathing. Yumm! Sadly not available in the LCBO but you can buy it by the case from Trialto for $15.65 a bottle in cases of 12.