Unfussy Wine Enthusiasts | Wine Reviews & Articles

While overall 2011 was a pretty terrible year on a personal level, we did have a good year as far as wine and wine moments are concerned. We were able to travel to the Niagara Valley in July to enjoy a few days in the middle of one of Canada's best wine regions. We also successfully and (from what we know now) illegally brought back a case of wine which we still have a few selections left to enjoy. On that trip, we found our Wine of the Year, the 2008 Frogpond Cabernet Franc. It was a very unique and memorable wine. It was one of those wines where you did not want to see it end. We also got the chance to visit our own Annapolis Valley on several occasions and we had the nicest time trying the local vintages. Our wine industry is still in its infancy and we know that there are more great wines to come from this region. Some standout wines from the year include: 2007 Abad Dom Bueno Mencia from Bierzo Spain (Absolutely awesome - the 2008 was great but the '07 was a jaw d...

Many people are Sparkling Wine drinkers on one day of the year only, New Year's Eve.  While we might fall into this category we definitely do not feel that the Bubbly is a New Year's only beverage nor is it a special occasion only beverage.  In fact, there are those who could not live without the bubbles and it is a wine that they consume quite regularly. Locally here in Nova Scotia, there have been studies done about what might work best for our climate and it turns out the Champagne region of France and our position on the planet have a lot in common.  This means we can grow grapes of sufficient quality and acidity to rival the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grown in France for their Bubbly. Furthermore, we have a few winemakers who are now trying the Methode Traditionelle (with the whole riddling of the bottles and whatnot).  So, we have started to see and may continue to see over the next number of years a plethora of Sparkling Wines appear in our local market....

This Chardonnay is a very popular Aussie wine from a prominent wine company.  It portrays what we have come to know as typical Aussie Chard which is to say it has strong oak flavours and some residual sugar.  The golden colour of the wine usually gives it away.  The one thing we have not seen too much of is the buttery notes that once typified this style of wine.  We liked the buttery for the most part but the vanilla notes are a not as tasty when combined with the sugar.  The crispness is nice but in our opinion it would be better served with more acidity.  That said, it is a tasty wine.  We liked it overall, but I guess we find the sugars a little much for Chardonnay. From what we can tell the Aussies maintain a tie to having some level of sweetness in their dry wines (i.e. Shiraz and Chardonnay).  This is not a bad thing per se but it definitely changes the typical way one would view these wines.  By that we mean, if I am looking for a d...

We have had a number of Rosé wines in the last year.  Specifically, we have tried some French Rosé and Spanish Rosado.  This was mainly, on the press that it has received in an effort to dispel the notion that all Rosé is White Zinfandel.  The press is correct.  White Zinfandel is a sweet wine with a flavour profile that is usually not very complex.  But, it is very approachable and is considered a wine for non-wine drinkers.  Rosé on the other hand is made in a similar way but has a level of complexity that makes it an enjoyable tasting experience.  Most Rosé is made using red wine grapes and in the process of fermentation, the red wine skins (which make red wine red) are removed after a short soak, not the blending of red and white wines together.  This means that the winemaking process is a lot more traditional and thus a lot better. Many of the wines we have tried have been slightly sweet but definitely white wine type experience with cris...

Cabernet Franc is normally a varietal that is used as a supporting grape in Bordeaux blends (think Chateau Margaux). This grape is grown around the globe but is kind of the ugly duckling of the wine world (always the bridesmaid but never the bride). Well, that could be a thing of the past. Cab Franc is grown around the globe and doing especially well here in Canada as well as being the main traditional grape in Chinon and Anjou in the Loire Valley in France . It would seem that this varietal needs extra care in both the vineyard and the winemaking process, but when it is done right it is a grape that can more than stand on its own. We have had Cab Franc wines (or wines where Cab Franc is the dominant grape) from Canada , Chile , France , and New Zealand . These wines go from being herbal and aromatic to being grassy and vegetal with a barnyard scent on the nose (and yes that is a great thing). Our opinion is that the Old World (French) version is treated much mo...

Here is a Happy Holiday Wish to everyone from Shannon and myself.  We have had such an amazing time and response to this little time investment of ours.  We really appreciate all the support and feedback.  We hope that the engagement we have started continues in 2012.  We have had a blast!  Here's to trying more wines in the New Year! For our Christmas Dinner we had the usual Turkey dinner with all the trimmings.  It was a delicious meal and we tried to think of a wine that would be a bit of a treat and yet still not overpower the meal.  Our Brother-In-Law brought a Cline Cellars Cashmere (which is Mourvedre, Syrah, and Grenache) and that was a nice lighter wine that went well with the Turkey.  Once we polished that off we opened our 2008 Rodney Strong Cabernet Sauvignon from Sonoma. It was quite the treat.  It had a little bit of time to breathe but could have used even more time open.  That said, the mouth feel of this wine is amazi...

Tonight we had our first Torrontes which is  Argentina 's signature white grape which was considered a bulk wine grape for many years.  Over the last number of years winemakers in Argentina have been giving it much more care and attention.  Their treatment of the grape as more than a jug wine grape had made the quality come a long way.  We have not tried it before, for no other reason than we had never really thought to try it.  But, now that we have we will definitely be trying more of it.  It was a great wine.  It was very reminiscent of a Pinot Grigio or Semi-Dry to Dry Riesling, especially those we have tried from Niagara .  We got a lot of perfume aromas on the nose and in the flavour.  There were also some dried apricot flavours in the taste.  These combined with a little residual sugar made for a slightly acidic wine which had not only a good crisp start but fruity finish.  If this is representative of Torrontes, we can’t ...

The Holidays are upon us and with it comes a variety of meals and celebrations with family and friends.  This includes the obilgatory Turkey with all the trimmings (or Ham or Salt Beef or Brisket depending on your preferred way to celebrate).  So, the eternal question is what wine goes well with Turkey or Ham.  The first reaction is Whites with high acid (i.e. Sauv Blanc or Dry Riesling) or light Reds (i.e. Pinot Noir), or even Sparkling wines.  But, not so fast, these questions are not so easily answered with these wild generalizations.  The answer is, what really goes well with Turkey is whatever you like.  Now that said, there are reasons for the traditional wine pairings.  Light reds do go well with the lighter meats, where the flavour of the meat is not overwhelmed by the body of the wine.  But, what else are you eating with it?  Sometimes those side dishes demand a bolder wine (or not). Tonight's tasting was Sterling Viney...

This wine was a bit of an impulse purchase at the counter at Cristall & Luckett wine shop.  This was due in part, to the rabbit on the label which caught Shannon 's eye.  Question:  Do wine labels influence your purchasing decision at all? We would like to think it doesn't but in actuality it does seem that the visuals on a wine bottle do in some ways, intrigue or cause one to keep on browsing.  This, however, is so subjective it is amazing that certain bottles do visually jump out at you. Back to the wine.  This Cabernet was very similar in style (Aussie style we surmise) to last night's Hickinbotham Shiraz/Cab.  The Cab was very fruit forward and held a lot of residual sugar in the initial part of the taste.  It was very Shiraz-like.  The body and weight of the Cab were there, but the typical dry tannins did not come into play until the very end.  So, it started sweet and finished bone dry.  It was interesting and odd at the ...

We have tasted the 2008 Hickinbotham Shiraz/Cabernet from the Clarenvale in Australia before, but this was a bottle that we 'aged' (not really) for the past 10 months or so to see if that plays any role in our enjoyment or the flavours. As we poured the wine into the glass, the wine had a very dark colour.  It was almost Malbec inky dark.  The colour is comparable to other Shiraz but has some murkiness to it as it is a heavier wine that is unfiltered.  The wine is very fruit forward and jammy.  It has a raspberry and chocolate undertones.  It looks super dark and smells like a fruit bomb. The flavours are very Shiraz-y in the profile, the residual sugars hit you right away so the full body of the wine starts sweet and finishes somewhat round and it dries out with tannins once the sugar burst passes.  Ten months ago there was almost a chaulkiness to but that has mellowed over time.  There is a tobacco/lea...

Tonight we had the chance to drink a bottle of 2010 Tbilvino Saperavi from the Republic of Georgia a former state in the Soviet Union.  Not a typical wine selection we admit, but that is the fun of wine you never know what you are going to get from a new varietal or country.  We have never tried the Saperavi grape before but we were very pleasantly surprised.  It has a lot of body for what would be considered a cooler climate grape.  The wine has a deep dark colour with some bold tannins.  It tasted really great with food and it would seem like it could go with or without food.  At $16.99 it was a good wine and a real tasting experience.  The wine could easily be confused with a Zinfandel or Cab.  It has some oak notes but definitely was not over-oaked.  So, bottom line, Saperavi is a neat grape with very conventional tastes.  Overall, it is a winner and if you are looking for a different tasting experience give this one a try. What i...

It is the Christmas Season where we may find ourselves in restaurant situations for holiday parties or dinners.  When looking at the typical restaurant wine menu (at least in our area) you see a lot of usual suspects.  These mass brands are an extremely important part of the food service industry.  Getting good wine to the consumer is a huge business play.  What we are finding out is that these private label wines are making it so easy for restaurant wine buyers to put somewhat solid wines on their lists, but they are an easy sell.  The wine lists we would like to see, would have labels we have never heard of and the staff would be the ones to sell us on a wine.  That is to say, quality wines, reasonable prices but not necessarily household brands. What are the odds of that happening?  Well, it depends on the restaurant and the management.  The path of least resistance is obviously to go with the brands that anyone can find on any shelf.  B...

Ok, so we might be getting a little carried away with the whole blind tasting thing, but bottom line it is fun.  So, this time we also went back to the Cupcake Vineyards well again.  This time it was their 2009 Merlot.  We tried the Cab and loved it so we thought, we want to try more Merlot, so let's start there.  At $14.99 (on sale) it seemed like a good value.  So, Shannon was the guinea pig for blind tasting and right off the bat she found it to be a familiar wine and it led her away from Old World and over to New World (check).  She then went through the look of the wine which was dark, very dark.  This pushed her in the Cab, Zinfandel, Merlot direction and she narrowed it down to Cab and Merlot (pretty good so far).  She said, that it smelled and tasted like a California wine once she ruled out Argentinean Malbec (check).  After that she made the call, California Cabernet Sauvignon (oh so close).  She did a great job.  She kic...

This was a nice treat to have a blind tasting twice in one week.  This time it was a bit of a long shot, as it was a very familiar smelling wine, but the colour and taste were not as easily determined.  The taste of the wine was a lot like Cabernet but the smell was a mixture of Tempranillo and Shiraz, so it threw us off the Cabernet trail.  We then took a long look at the colour and it was absolutely impossible to figure out where the wine came from as the medium colour of the wine could have been from anywhere.  So, we had to dig a little deeper and we tried to get the base flavours and smells which meant that we were nowhere closer to a decision. Then we took the next step of focusing on the nose which was so very familiar.  It was as if the region was part of the smell.  We couldn't pull ourselves away from the Tempranillo idea so we were already on the wrong track.  The oak was there but it was subtle which sho...

Tonight was the 2009 Louis Bernard Cotes Du Rhone.  A nice little French wine that is all cherries and liquorice.  For anyone who is unfamiliar with the Cote Du Rhone.  It is a French Appellation (Region) in the Rhone Valley in the South of France.  According to the Producer/Importer, the wine and Rhone region can be described as follows (and we quote): “Archeological evidence shows that the first vines planted in the Rhône Valley date back to 2,500 years ago. The Rhône did not become a significant producer of wine until the latter part of the 20th century. This appellation accounts for 60% of wine produced in the Rhône region, an area whose production is second in volume only to Bordeaux generic. It extends over 125 miles from Vienna to Avignon. The varietal that dominates the southern Cotes-du-Rhône is Grenache. Although all wines from this region are blends, it is this particular grape that distinguishes them from wines of other parts of the world. Grenache is ...

This evening we had the opportunity to blind taste test a Red Wine for which we knew nothing about other than the fact it was a single varietal (and Red).  :) The wine had a medium dark colour which we determined had the look of Cab Sauv or Merlot (we got a little lucky with the Merlot guess).  We also could tell that it was a soft and very well balanced wine (which at 14% was a nice surprise).  Immediately, it seemed to have some New World sensibilities and by that we mean it had some interesting notes on the nose like Pepperoncini and fruit forward with not much in terms of oak.  So, that lead us away from the European countries, but beyond that we had trouble figuring out whether it was South America, Australia, or South Africa (which it turned out to be).  As we narrowed it down, it was down to Cab Sauv and Merlot and South America or Australia.  We went Cab Sauv and it was Merlot and obviously we didn't get the Country.  It is amazing how much y...

We have had a number of Kiwi wines over the years and they have always been great.  The trouble is they are usually between $20 and $30 so they don't get consumed all that often.  Whether it is Spinyback, Opawa, Kim Crawford or Villa Maria or one of the many other great producers the wine is always great and usually quite memorable. New Zealand is known for Sheep, Rugby, Extreme Sports, and Wine with the latter being such a great export.  The big grapes in NZ are Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc (though they grow a number of varietals).  The Pinots are typically light in colour and usually quite grassy and green with notes of plum and strawberry.  The Sauv Blancs are normally crisp and fruity with strong tropical notes of pineapple and starfruit. So back to the original question, is the additional overall cost worth it?  We would love to see the overall price point be $5 - 7 lower but at the current prices we really do feel that wines from NZ d...

Tonight we tried a bottle of Familia Zuccardi Fuzion Alta Malbec, Tempranillo Riserva 2009 which got a favorable review from Sean Wood at the Chronicle Herald . Based upon his brief recommendation we gave it a shot and at $11.99 it is a fantastic value.  We were very pleasantly surprised by the depth of flavour.  The wine is definitely Malbec focused for sure but you can certainly pick up the Tempranillo in the wine.  It is a little tannic but again, who can complain when the price is so reasonable.  We didn't take the review to the next level with a score but it was a great dinner wine. Ever since we heard about the Fuzion invasion a couple of years ago, we have kept it on our radar and have had the Fuzion Red on a couple of occasions.  The quality for the price is the most amazing part of these wines.  We enjoy Argentinean wines as a group and this is no different, but you just can’t beat the price, which is even better in Ontario , and don’...

Here we are, Red Wine review #1!  This is a wine we purchased at the 2011 Port of Wines Festival here in Halifax.  Full disclosure, at the time we found this to be an extremely complex Italian red but that was about 50 wines into the show so our judgement may have been somewhat "clouded" at that point.  So, it was nice to approach this wine with a clear head. We did not give this wine a lot of time to open up.  We decanted it but were into the first glass not 10 minutes later.  The wine did need a bit of time to really get going and we should have opened it a good hour before drinking.  However, once we were on glass number two we could really pick up some of the notes of a Chianti Classico.  The Sangiovese grape is paired with Merlot in this wine and it shows right away in the glass.  The wine is lighter than a Cabernet yet darker than a Pinot Noir which places it right smack dab in the middle as a medium coloured wine. The true area of note ...

We visited Sonoma in 2004 and went to a number of wineries where we would have loved to buy more than the one or two bottles we could get on a plane (pre-liquid restriction days).  Each person at the various wineries asked where we lived and when we said Florida , we got the shoulder shrug combined with the "sucks to be you" look.  The laws back then restricted where the wineries could ship their wines.  A handful of states including Florida were on the do not ship list.  We subsequently came to find out that the laws were strongly lobbied for the middlemen in the alcohol and wine industry who wanted no wine to enter the state of Florida without passing through their hands and wallets first.  The laws have been relaxed since then due to class action lawsuits and political deals.  In Canada we are no better off, there are laws in place to limit the movement of alcohol (including wine) between provinces.  In fact, each time we went to Niaga...

As promised we tasted this French Chardonnay this evening. To our surprise this had a lot more New World styling than we expected. There was a good amount of oak in the nose which indicated to me that this had gone through the Aussie treatment but this is not a buttery wine but more crisp and with tropical notes that you might find in a Sauvignon Blanc. There is almost effervescence to the wine which gives it a small amount of tingle on the very tip of your tongue, quite nice. They also note on the back label hints of hazelnut and toast which we do get on the palate but not with as much force as the winemakers may have indicated. Overall this is a very drinkable Chardonnay and not necessarily just for the warmer weather days. This has the body to be a Winter white wine. That said, we are attempting to come up with an abbreviated version of our normal tasting notes (which if you have ever seen them require some reading time). So, we are going to debut a quick version that will hopef...

As part of getting more in tune with White Wine, we are going to try a couple of French White Wines between $10 and $20.  We just picked up a Baron Philippe De Rothschild Chardonnay which is currently on sale for $12.99.  We will probably taste it tomorrow but in advance of that, let us know your favorite and reasonably priced French Whites. We are going to compare this to other Chardonnay's we've had to see the level of oak and the level of crispness associated with the wine.  From what we understand, the French view of Chardonnay is quite different than the Aussie or American view. We shall see...stay tuned. Keep on drinking! Chris & Shannon

Cupcake Vineyards Tonight we enjoyed a 2009 Cab Sauv from California 's Cupcake Vineyards . We had originally tried it a couple of years ago at the local wine show.  It happened to be on sale this week at the NSLC for $13.99 and it got us talking about whether you start to get a preference for wines from a specific region after a while or especially after visiting that region.  Having lived in Florida and tasted many California wines (since they are so prevalent) and also touring the Sonoma Valley, we find California wines as a group very enjoyable. Sometimes when opening a bottle from a region that we have visited you can almost smell the familiarity in the wine.  It brings you back to that place and the smells of the wineries you visited while touring the region. Back to the Cab Sauv, it may not have been the best wine we have ever tasted but it absolutely had the nose and flavours to put those memories to the front and centre and that makes it more e...

We can all recognize that there are many, many wines that are north of $25 that are spectacular.  They are quality wines made by quality winemakers and really hit the mark on all aspects of taste.  The price is a function of many things, size of harvest, overhead of the winery, reputation, and so on.  But, what happens when you get a wine that is over $25 that you anticipate drinking or has been recommended and when wine hits glass it is "meh"?  To us, that is so disheartening not only for the cost of the wine but for the fact that a winery is charging what could be considered a premium price for something that does not come with premium flavours. I know one particular circumstance, we ran into at a recent wine festival.  We tried a Portuguese Dao wine that had a price tag of $62.99.  This was very early into the show so our palates were definitely not overwhelmed.  That wine was at best, okay.  But, ...

We are unabashed Red wine drinkers, it makes up 95% of our wine consumption.  We are definitely opinionated about what makes a good red wine (more on that to come).  That said, we do enjoy white wines and we do rave about some but we still gravitate to red wine, no matter how delicious a white wine we may come across.  What is wrong with us?  Why do we give white wine such little attention?  We have had some amazing whites over the last year (2008 Marynissen Estates BFBA Chardonnay from Niagara, 2010 Spy Valley Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand , and the list goes on) and yet we pass by the whites with not so much as a glance most of the time.  Why is that?  Many white wines have the flavour profile that we are looking for and we definitely like our whites to be bold and full of flavour, just like our reds.  We (unlike many these days) enjoy big buttery, oaky Chards and crisp tropical Sauv Blancs (depending on what we are eatin...

One of the focuses of our Blog is to try and keep the realm of wine to the practical and reasonable.  Obviously, most people have a budget in mind when they go shopping for wine.  That budget could be $10 or $100 depending on the person and their means.  Today we are talking about wine on NO budget (that could even be wine on someone else's budget).  There was a quote online today, when a wine expert was asked what is your favorite wine, the expert responded, "My favorite wine is the one that someone else pays for.", to which we say quite right. One of our best wine experiences was when a good friend and co-worker of Shannon's gave us the privilege of enjoying a 1995 Les Forts De Latour from the prestigious Chateau Latour family.  The wine was excellent but made even more spectacular with the fact that the wine had a price tag of around $400 USD.  That is a truly memorable experience.  So our question of the day, what is your wine on NO Budget ...

This evening's wine choice was a 2009 Meridian Pinot Noir from Napa and at $13.99 a pretty good value.  It was a nice wine, not anything amazing but for the price it was a solid purchase.  The wine had the typical Pinot Noir look with some transparency in the wine but the tastes were of vanilla and strawberries.  Not sure if there is Oak at play or not but we are sure that the wine has some unique characters that make it a good Monday night wine.  We enjoyed the movie Sideways like many other Wine Lovers and we were trying to find an appropriate quote to use, this one stood out: Jack: Man! That's tasty! Miles Raymond: That's 100% Pinot Noir. Single vineyard. They don't even make it any more. Jack: Pinot Noir? Miles Raymond: Mmm-hmm. Jack: Then how come it's White? Miles Raymond: [laughs] Oh, Jesus. Don't ask questions like that up in wine country. They'll think you're some kind of dumbshit, OK? To shamelessly steal an idea from Gary Vayn...

The Fields at Gaspereau Vineyards We had a unique and interesting afternoon tasting at Gaspereau Vineyards in the Annapolis Valley here in Nova Scotia.  For the month of November they are offering a blind tasting for anyone that wants to try and guess their wines.  Guess all six and be entered for a chance to win a prize (not named at this point). The staff person (did not get her name - our bad) was delightful and busy.  She did a great job trying to balance those tasting (blind or not) and those coming in to buy wine (of which there were many). For the blind tasting you get to try three whites and three reds (free of charge - which is another huge plus for Gaspereau - great jobs guys) and try and guess the varietal or blend.  The challenge was a challenging one indeed and we freely admit to not being up on our white wines from Nova Scotia - which are delicious.  That said, we dove into the whites and attempted to choose the type f...

Last evening we enjoyed a nice little Syrah/Garnacha from Spain called Beso de Vino ( http://www.besodevino.com/ ) - evidently receiving 90 points from the Wine Advocate by Robert Parker.  It was surprisingly complex and dark with a deep Garnet colour and a variety of flavours that make for a very pleasant tasting experience. We have found Spanish wine to be rustic and highly flavourful as a rule.  The Spanish love Oak (just like we do) and they like their wines bold (just like we do).  That has made for a wonderful journey through the various regions of Spain that extend beyond Rioja and Ribera Del Duero to places such as Bierzo (LOVE Mencia), Carinena, and La Mancha.  Spain seems to just be a wine journey of deliciousness and a place we would love to visit sooner than later. From the whites like Albariño and Verdejo to the bold Tempranillo and luscious Garnacha, the wines of Spain have so much to offer and the prices keep us coming back for more and more.... Ou...

As wine drinkers (daily wine drinkers) we feel like there is not a voice for those who enjoy wine regardless of its price point, pedigree, or rating.  We have, what we consider to be, fairly well educated palates.  We are Red Wine drinkers who do not mock those who only drink White Wine or White Zinfandel.  Nothing should stand between someone and their preferred wine, whatever that wine may be. We live in the $10-20 range and a tasting bargain at $15 which tastes like a $30 wine is more exciting to us than a $30 magical wine that tastes like $100. We set no pretense on the wine other than it must taste good.  That said, we do not roll over for wines that promise a lot but deliver little.  In today's economy with the wine options available and the fact that we do not HAVE to drink wine regularly (even though we do) the value for what we buy is important.  The joy that wine brings to our lives can never be understated.  The enjoyment of food, friend...