WineAlign

John Szabo, MS

This week, Vintages shines the spotlight on the whites and reds of Burgundy as well as rosés from across the globe.
My number one smart buy this week is an uncommonly good and inexpensive wine from one of Spain’s more ‘boutique’ (read: expensive) appellations, Priorat. This small little enclave in the Catalonian Hills southwest of Barcelona has been making wine for centuries, but remained virtually unknown outside the region until a group of young mavericks led by Alvaro Palacios arrived in the late 1980s. The region and its wealth of old vines was transformed in no time into the hottest new wine region in all of Spain. Today, for example, Palacios’ top Priorat called l’Ermita sells for over $700 bottle. So imagine my delight when I came across the 2006 MAS IGNEUS BARRANC DELS CLOSOS Vinyes de Coster, DOCa Priorat $19.95 92pts ***. At under $20, this wine packs an immense wallop of flavour that is the equal of wines at 2 or 3 times this price, sometimes even more. Be forewarned, however. This is not delicate sipping wine. At 15%, this is seriously ripe and concentrated juice. Though it’s not just about alcohol and raisins. This wine also has a distinct mineral signature, derived from the poor schistous-slate soils of the appellation called ‘licorella’ locally. It’s well worth checking out.

Other interesting buys this week include a very elegant and finely-etched New Zealand Syrah: 2007 C.J. PASK GIMBLETT ROAD SYRAH Hawkes Bay, North Island $18.95 90pts ***, a rich and satisfying Rhône blend from California: 2007 CLINE CELLARS CASHMERE, California $18.95 89pts ***, and a bright and fresh Portuguese “green” wine: 2009 MURALHAS DE MONÇÃO VINHO VERDE DOC, Sub-Região de Monção e Melgaço $13.95 87pts ***.

And now, regarding the features: I wish there were something more exciting to say about this motley collection of wines, but the truth is that it is a rather uninteresting group. While there are a few solid wines from Burgundy, notably my top three from the large houses of William Fèvre (2007 Chablis 1er Cru), Maison Champy (2007 Pommard) and Bouchard Père et Fils (Savigny-lès-Beaunes Les Lavières 1er cru), it is overall a disappointing collection.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d be happy on a Burgundian desert Island, but as usual for the Vintages Burgundy feature, the top producers, especially the small domaines, are notable for their absence in what is supposed to be a focus on the region’s representative wines. Admittedly, most of the best have little interest in dealing with the LCBO. I suppose you too would think twice about selling wine to Ontario and its internationally feared state monopoly. Imagine this business scenario: First, you hold back an allocation for your Ontario agent in the hopes of getting an order. Then comes the expensive shipping of samples for evaluation if the initial tender is accepted. Then you’ll wait months for the order to be confirmed, then a few more months for the order to picked up, then a couple more months for actual shipping. Then you’ll pay $125 per wine type for the mandatory LCBO lab fees (and risk the entire shipment being rejected and returned at your expense, or simply destroyed). And then, you’ll patiently wait another few months for your payment, that’s if, of course, if the shipment sells well. If it doesn’t, the LCBO might arbitrarily put it on sale without telling you or the agent and deduct the difference from your payment. And don’t forget, all the while, you have buyers lining up at your cellar door, cash in hand, to get their allocation. What would you do?

On the other hand, large producers with volumes of commercial wine to sell scramble to get an audience with the LCBO. Nothing could be easier then having one large customer take a whacking shipment of your everyday plonk in one go. And, you have a ‘state guarantee’ on your payment! It’s not like the LCBO is going bankrupt anytime soon or will disappear into the shadows like some shady Shanghai dealer.

No wonder we see so much average wine. Take the rosé feature. It would be challenging to assemble a more boring collection of rosés from around the world. Chapeau bas, a remarkable achievement. It will no doubt leave most of Ontario believing that rosé is a mere afterthought of red wine making, something that accidently happens on the side, and well, you have do something with it and maybe recuperate a few pennies here and there. Considering the truly delicious, versatile, characterful rosés that are produced around the world on purpose, this is an embarrassing selection. I understand that few consumers take rosé seriously, but it’s no wonder, given what they’ve been exposed too. How many times have I heard producers defending their sweet, candy-floss flavoured, rosés saying: “That’s what consumer’s expect?” Well, give us the choice of quality I say.

There are at least some inexpensive wines that will make for perfectly fine, thoughtless backyard sipping. My top value pick was the 2009 MUGA ROSÉ DOCa Rioja $12.95 87pts ***, a simple, dry, zesty and tasty Spanish pink. Top marks went to two classic rosé-producing areas in southern France, Côtes de Provence (2009 CHÂTEAU LA TOUR DE L’ÉVÊQUE ROSÉ Vendanges Manuelles $18.95 88pts **), and Tavel in the Southern Rhône Valley (2009 CHÂTEAU D’AQUERIA ROSÉ TAVEL AC $18.95 88pts **). While these two latter wines are quite good, they’re still a long way from the premier league.

Click on the following to see my:

Top Ten Smart Buys
Feature Wines at a Glance: Burgundy
Feature Wines at a Glance: Rose
All Reviews

Cheers,

John Szabo, MS

Filed under: Wine, Burgundy, John Szabo, Priorat, Rosé, Vintages Preview