Tag Archives: Australia

Wine of the week 4/3 – 4/9

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Thorn Clark Eden Valley Riesling 2009 $9.95
 The wine is pale straw in colour. The nose is bright and lifted with lime juice, perfumed floral notes and honeysuckle characters. The palate is crisp, clean with vibrant, zingy lemon zest flavours combined with a hint of lime leaf. There is good mouthfeel, balanced with citrus fruits and natural acidity.

Grapes: 100% Riesling
Region: Barossa, Australia

Nuna Bonarda Reserve 2009 $11.95
The wine is aged for 12 months in French oak barrels to fully reveal the character of the Andean terroir.
Purple-colored Bonarda offers a fruity, fresh nose featuring plums, mulberries and violets. Fruity, forward and easy-going, Bonarda is the perfect match to Argentine bistro cuisine.

Grapes: 100% Bonarda
Region: Mendoza, Argentina

Wine of the Week 3/20 – 3/26

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Shoofly Viognier 2008 $9.95
Fragrant citrus blossom, classic apricot and fresh fennel on the nose. The palate is rich yet refreshingly crisp. Lovely ripe cantaloupe melds seamlessly with citrus peel and zingy acidity. A red drinkers white with a twist of orange pekoe tannin on the finish.

Grapes: 100% Viognier
Region: Australia

Terra d’Oro Syrah 2006 $8.95
The 2006 Terra d’Oro Syrah is a great example of the delicious Syrah that grows on our Burke Ranch. The wine has a deep, nearly black color and the nose teases with aromas of tobacco, eucalyptus, and toasty oak, with hints of dark ripe plum. The wine is a powerhouse of flavor and aroma, with a spine of minerality that holds the whole package together; truly an iron fist in a velvet glove. Try pairing the Syrah with roasted meats and hearty cheeses for a medieval feast.

Grapes: 100% Syrah
Region: Amador County, California

Wine of the Week 2/13 – 2/19

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Yalumba Unwooded Chardonnay 2009 $9.95
Pale straw with light green hues, the Yalumba Y Series Unwooded Chardonnay displays aromas of honeydew melon and nashi pear, with hints of grapefruit and pineapple. The palate is silky with flavors of ripe nectarines, guava and grapefruit with a fresh acid finish. Serve with Thai chicken salad or gnocchi with sautéed prawns and a burnt butter sauce.

Grapes: 100% Chardonnay
Region: Australia

Monte Antico Toscana Super Tuscan 2006 $13.95
#61 on Wine Spectator’s Top 100 Wines of 2009 – According to James Suckling on his WineSpectator.com blog: I came across an incredible value in my office in Tuscany today. Tasting a range of wines from $10 to $25 with Neil and Maria Empson of Empson & Co., I found some excellent wines. But what was the most impressive for the money was the Monte Antico 2006. Its suggested retail is $11, and it could sell for less (like here). And it is in the market now. Granted, I have not tasted it blind yet. But it’s in the very good to outstanding range. The wine is 75 percent Sangiovese, 15 percent Merlot and 10 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. It is made from 25-year-old vines minimum, mostly from Pisa, Maremma and Chianti Classico areas. Of course, the quality of the 2006 vintage in Tuscany shined through on this wine. This is a superb Sangiovese year. The aromatic quality of Sangiovese is mind-blowing for most wines from Tuscany. The 2006 Monte Antico has beautiful plums, berries and fresh acidity.
-90 points Wine Spectator

Grapes: 85% Sangiovese, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot
Region: Toscana, Italy

Wine of the Week 2/6 – 2/12

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Conde Villar Vinho Verde $8.95
The Conde Villar Vinho Verde comes to us from the famous Quintas Das Arcas estate located in Portugal’s northwest corner. It’s made from three traditional grapes – 40% Loureiro, 30% Trajadura, and 30% Arinto. The high percentage of Loureiro gives the first hint of the quality here: Lourerio is the hardest to grow of the three and gives the wine a boost in aromatic complexity.

The 2009 Conde Villar shows Vinho Verde at its vibrant, youthful, best. The Loureiro in the blend delivers a burst of intensely fresh citrus and green pear fruit, lime skin, and floral aromas. Take a sip and you’ll discover more citrus fruit, wet stones, and a touch of yeasty freshness. The finish is bright, crisp, and dry with lingering mineral/yeast and lime notes. A perfect wine to sip on its own on a warm, late-summer, night or to enjoy with shellfish, salads, or grilled veggies.

Grapes: 40% Loureiro, 30% Trajadura, and 30% Arinto
Region: Portugal

Shotfire Barossa Shiraz 2008 $15.95
Deep red in color. The lifted nose has plums and sweet spice – cardoman and cinnamon, with choc mint oak characters. The palate is full bodied but refined with some expressive berry fruit, plums, liquorice and complex spicy oak. There is a great depth of fruit which will ensure the longevity of the wine and also gives it wonderful mouthfilling sensation. The tannins are velvety and combined with the rich fruit and spicy oak gives the wine great length of flavor.

Grapes: 100% Shiraz
Region: Barossa Valley, Australia

Wine of the Week 1/16 – 1/23

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Yalumba Y Series Riesling 2008 $9.95
Pale green hues, this wine has a spice and aromatic profile showing feijoa, lemongrass, rose petals and tropical fruit. Long, fine and refreshing, the Yalumba Y Series Riesling shows grapefruit flavours with balanced mineral acidity and fruit sweetness. This leads to a long lingering flavour and persistence on the palate.

Gentle processing of the grapes, and the use of only the clearest juice, followed by a cool even fermentation, ensures that the fresh flavours of the variety are preserved in the final wine.

Grapes: Riesling
Region: South Australia

Luna Nuda Chianti 2006 $8.95
Luna Nuda Chianti DOCG is produced on the Tuscan hills in the zone of the Chianti region located around Florence with a blend of Sangiovese and Canaiolo grapes. Following careful grape selection and maceration of the must over the grape skins for 10 to 12 days, an advanced constant temperature fermentation technique is applied, yielding a pleasant, full bodied wine that keeps its distinctive fruitiness for an extensive period of time.

  • Nose: fruity with aromas of ripe red fruit and an elegant note of spice.
  • Palate: fresh, savory and well balanced, it has a good structure.
  • New world flare with respect for the old world tradition.
  • A very modern take on an ancient wine.

Grapes: Sangiovese, Canaiolo
Region: Chianti, Italy

Wine of the Week 03/14 – 03/20

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Viejo Isaias Bonarda Classico 2008 $9.95
Overview: At the hearing, is characterized by a palette of deep reds, purples and blacks. Appear primarily in the nose and intense, red fruit, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, cherries. The small grants through oak aromas of vanilla and snuff, very slightly, giving complexity to it. Flavor is presented with great body, fleshy tannins still present, with flavors reminiscent of red berries and black, with long lingering finish.

Grapes: Bonarda
Region: Mendoza – Argentina

Pirie South Pinot Gris 2007 $9.95
Overview: A mildly exotic fruit discreetly impresses upon.the palate but never dominates. Subtle spice notes compliment these more overt notes resulting in a gently poised, elegant dry wine.

Grapes: Pinot Gris
Region: Tasmania – Australia

Wine of the Week 01/24-01/3

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D’Arenberg “The Stump Jump” Shiraz 2008 – $11.95

Overivew: A Best Value designation and one the Wine Spectator’s Top 100 Wines of 2009: “Ripe and open- textured, this is impressive for the way it packs in the cherry, blackberry and raspberry flavors and doesn’t take the foot off the gas pedal until the mineral-inflected finish has played through. Drink now through 2018.”

Wine Spectator 90 points
Grapes: 100% Shiraz
Region: McLaren Vale – Australia

 

Babich 2008 Sauvignon Blanc – $15.95

Overview: The aroma of lantana and wild herbs combines with tropical fruits and green apple. The palate is exuberant and intense -fruit salad, nettles and fresh herbs burst into existence and continue through the length of the palate, joined at the end by lime/citrus and mineral notes. A powerful and lengthy Sauvignon.

Grapes: 100% Sauvignon Blanc
Region: Marlborough – New Zealand