Winter Wine Wonderland
Happy holidays you guys and I’m happy to share some fun wines with you in this issue (virtually, of course). Lots of bubbly content, new local releases, and more, to go with your chestnuts roasting on an open fire. It’s safe to say that this year’s Christmas will be different than Last Christmas. And although it's been said many times, many ways, it hasn’t quite been said with a face mask and hand sanitizer: Merry Christmas to all those who celebrate!
All the Bubbly News That’s Fit to Print. The Globe and Mail’s Ten sparkling wines you’ll enjoy even if you’re not feeling festive features Christopher Water’s recommendations such as Okanagan Crush Pad's Haywire The Bub ($29.90), and Nova Scotia's Lightfoot & Wolfville Blanc de Blancs Brut ($39.13). The NYT’s Eric Asimov wrote 10 Sparkling Wines for Leaving 2020 Behind including Éric Rodez Champagne Brut Cuvée des Crayères ($97 at the LCBO; or by the case for $93/bottle, imported by That’s Life). Wine Align’s Annual Fizz Guide 2020 calls Canadian sparkling wine “the single most improved style category over the last decade,” and offers several recommendations including Ontario’s Tawse Spark 2013 Laundry Vineyard Blanc De Noirs ($30.15); France’s Monmarthe Secret De Famille Cru Champagne (by the case $49/each imported by Cru Wine Merchants); and Spain’s Freixenet Cordon Brut Cava ($14.95). And a few local Pétillant Naturels — the OG way to make sparkling wine using the Ancestral Method — including Therianthropy’s Bonnie Vivant Chardonnay, Mouflon Orange, and The Negotiant Cabernet Franc (all $32/bottle available in 6/12 packs and mixed cases). While TO wine shop Grape Crush teamed up with Ontario's Traynor Vineyard for the release of The Calypso (10% of proceeds go to Banded Purple); and The Grape Crush, a Vidal Blanc/Pinot Noir/Gamay Noir blend ($23.99 each, available from Grape Crush).
Non-Sparkling New Wine News. Here’s a few fun wines recently available at TO bottles shops (and I’ve expanded my bottle shop list to include a few outside of TO, namely Guelph’s Two Faces and Hamilton’s Synonym). Comedian-turned-winemaker Eric Wareheim's Las Jaras wines carbonic slammer Glou Glou (imported by Keep6 Imports) is here for a good time, not a long time. Lammidia (imported by The Living Vine) is wine made naturally by two friends in a small town in Abruzzo, and their Bianchetto is a white with some skin contact. Oregon’s Joe Swick (imported by Keep6 Imports) makes wines that he himself would like to drink — fresh, lively acidity, with no conventional additives, including The Natch, a blend of Graciano, Pinot Gris, and Gewürztraminer. BC’s Neon-Eon Pinot Noir ‘Nouveau’ (imported by Don’t Worry Wines) underwent whole cluster carbonic maceration, which is a fermentation technique that results in wine with bright acidity, low tannins, and a snap-crackle-pop texture. Alsace’s Les Vins Pirouettes (imported by Groupe Soleil) is a project by Christian Binner to help young winemakers experiment with his guidance; the Eros is Pinot Gris, Riesling and Sylvaner with some skin contact. And lastly, Laurent Saillard’s Lucky You (imported by Grape Witch Imports) is a textured Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, a nice winter white for when Jack Frost is nipping at your nose.
Canadian Low Intervention Winery Guide. Silk + Coupe's Laura Milnes — also of Crushable, a monthly wine club focused on Canadian boutique wines — released a Canadian Low Intervention Winery Guide. The downloadable PDF will be a living document, modified each year, and is intended to provide info to help consumers identify and classify low intervention wineries. As stated in the note to readers it “is not a perfect guarantee or real-time exhaustive list.” It contains a helpful legend to differentiate between organic, biodynamic, sustainable, and transitioning (those converting from conventional); and is organized by province, with links to each winery. There are so many wineries I haven’t heard of before and can’t wait to check them out, including Synchromesh, All In Wines, The Farm, and Lieux Communs, to name a few.
