Salut!: Best of the 2020 International Wine Festival
Credit to Author: agismondi| Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2020 19:00:19 +0000
Whether you are looking to add a highly collectible label to your collection, support the home team, or taste the terroir of the theme country, Anthony Gismondi has you covered.
Wine producers in British Columbia have had to do a lot of growing up over the last 30 years since the first VQA wines appeared in the market.Much has been accomplished, and while we are not near the finish line, B.C. can stand proud inside the tasting room.
In today’s wine world, climate change, carbon footprints, organics, sustainability, ethics and more are all factors that point consumers toward buying local. Here is a shortlist of wines in the room that should excite you about supporting the home team.
• Averill Creek Vineyard 2016 Somenos Series Pinot Noir, Cowichan Valley, $42
• Bartier Bros. 2018 Semillon, Okanagan Valley, $18
• Bench 1775 2015 Cabernet Franc, Naramata Bench, Okanagan Valley, $30
• CedarCreek Estate 2018 Platinum Block 3 Riesling, Okanagan Valley, $30
• Clos du Soleil Winery 2018 Fume Blanc, Similkameen Valley $19
• Da Silva Vineyards 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon-Syrah, Naramata Bench, Okanagan Valley, $35
• Free Form by Okanagan Crush Pad 2018 Vin Gris, Okanagan Valley, $27
• Haywire by Okanagan Haywire Garnet Valley Ranch Pinot Noir, Okanagan Valley BC $34.90
• Hester Creek 2019 Old Vines Trebbiano, Okanagan Valley, $24
• Moraine Estate 2018 Riesling, Naramata Bench, Okanagan Valley, $22
• Poplar Grove 2015 Legacy, Okanagan Valley, $56
• Tightrope Winery 2018 Riesling, Naramata Bench, Okanagan Valley, $20
• Time Winery 2018 White Meritage, Okanagan Valley, $23
• Tinhorn Creek 2016 Oldfield Reserve Cabernet Franc, Golden Mile Bench Okanagan Valley, $34
• Unsworth Vineyards 2017 Pinot Noir, Cowichan Valley, $28
France is the homeland of terroir. The idea that the soil grapes grow upon, the mesoclimate and the people impart a DNA of place upon the wine is no longer a notion. The truth is every vineyard possesses terroir, and every wine grower must express that sense of place in his or her wine anywhere in the world.
Terroir is the foundation of the Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) system of France, so we wanted to point you toward 10 French labels inside the tasting room that are brimming with terroir.
• Gérard Bertrand 2016 Terroir St Chinian, Languedoc, $24
• Domaine Boutinot 2016 Les Coteaux Schisteux Séguret, Côtes du Rhône Villages, Rhone Valley, $26
• Alain Brumont 2013 Chateau Montus Pacherenc du Vic Bilh White, South West France, $43
• Jean-Luc Colombo 2016 Terres Brulées Cornas, Rhone Valley, $68
• Georges Duboeuf 2018 Julienas Chateau des Capitans, Beaujolais, $25
• Paul Jaboulet Aîné 2017 Crozes Hermitage Les Jalets, Rhône Valley, $35
• M. Chapoutier 2017 Hermitage Chante-Alouette, Rhone Valley, $64
• Domaines Paul Mas Château Martinolles 2014 Crémant de Limoux Grande Réserve, Languedoc, $30
• Joseph Mellot 2018 Sancerre La Chatellenie, Loire Valley, $40
• Chateau Pesquié 2017 Artemia Ventoux Rouge, Cotes du Rhone, $49
It’s hard to believe you would travel so far and spend so much money and not pour your best wines, but not everyone does.
We leave the machinations of which wines get poured to the marketers and the folks who make the wine and own the wineries. What we can do is suggest if you are going to spend time at any booths, here is a shortlist of those who have done their best to bring their best to Vancouver.
Nothing is easy in B.C. anymore for anyone selling wine, so we salute those who still believe in the market and bringing their best for you to taste. Expect long lineups.
• Bodega Catena Zapata, Mendoza, Argentina – 2017 Malbec Argentino, $150
• (Jackson Family Wines) WillaKenzie Estate, Willamette Valley, Oregon – 2016 Pinot Noir, $42
• Medici Ermete, Emilia-Romagna, Italy – NV Phermento Lambrusco Metodo Ancestrale, $30
• Painted Rock Estate Winery Skaha Bench, Okanagan Valley – 2017 Red Icon, $55
• Phantom Creek Estates, Okanagan Valley, – 2016 Becker Vineyard Cuvée, $60
• Signorello Estate Winery, Napa Valley, California – 2017 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, $155
• Tyrrell’s Wines Hunter Valley, Australia – 2014 Winemakers Selection Vat 1 Semillon, $59
• Weingut Nik Weis, Mosel, Germany – 2018 St. Urbans-Hof Goldtropfchen Spatlese Riesling, $55
Insiders know that the majority of the wines poured in the tasting room are available for sale at on-site B.C. Liquor Store.
Since a growing proportion of wines brought to the festival are unavailable in government liquor stores, the festival can be a treasure trove for collectors.
Be prepared to strike early in the evening each night when the on-site store opens and watch for the following highly-collectible labels.
• Angove Family Winemakers 2018 Warboys Single Vineyard McLaren Vale Grenache, South Australia, $49
• Louis Bernard 2016 Cote Rotie, Rhone Valley, France, $69
• Vignobles Alain Brumont 2002 Château Montus Cuvée Prestige, Madiran, France, $80
• M. Chapoutier 2017 Hermitage Chante-Alouette, Rhone Valley, France, $88
• Jean-Luc Colombo 2016 Les Bartavelles Chateauneuf du Pape, Rhone Valley, France, $58
• Bodega Colomé 2017 Amalaya Gran Corte, Salta, Argentina, $30
• Maison Joseph Drouhin 2016, Cote de Beaune Rouge, Burgundy, France, $68
• (Inland Trading Co.) Jasper Hill 2015 Georgia’s Paddock Shiraz, Heathcote, Victoria, Australia, $120
• Korta Katarina Winery 2008 Reuben’s Private Reserve, Peljesac, Croatia, $69
• Michele Chiarlo Tortoniano Barolo, Piedmont, Italy, $49
• Bodega Garzón 2019 Reserva Albarino, Maldonado, Uruguay, $23
• Fonseca 2017 Vintage Port, Douro Valley, Portugal, $150
The latest in Chardonnay is neither Old World nor New World; it’s Next World. The style lines are fresh, precise, authentic, bright, electric, mineral and real.
Today top-flight Chardonnay emanates from all corners of the globe, but this week you only need to wander the tasting room to savour some of the most interesting.
Whole-cluster pressed, barrel-fermented, hand-stirred, aged in oak, concrete eggs, cement vats, stainless steel, unfined, never filtered, no sulphur, malo, no malo and well — take your pick.
• Gérard Bertrand 2018 Domaine de l’Aigle Chardonnay, Limoux, Languedoc, France, $40
• Bodega Catena Zapata 2017 Catena Alta Chardonnay, Mendoza, Argentina, $44
• Kendall Jackson Estate 2018 Camelot Highlands Chardonnay, Santa Barbara, California, $56
• Jackson Family Wines: 2017 WillaKenzie Estate Chardonnay, Willamette Valley Oregon, $30
• Maison Louis Latour 2017 Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru, Cote de Beaune, France, $255.99
• Meyer Family Vineyards 2018 McLean Creek Chardonnay, Okanagan Falls, Okanagan Valley, $56
• Quails’ Gate 2017 Stewart Family Reserve Chardonnay, Okanagan Valley, $35
• Robert Mondavi Winery 2016 Reserve Chardonnay, Carneros, Napa Valley, California, $50
• Tyrrell’s Wines 2018 Hunter Valley Chardonnay, New South Wales, Australia, $27
It’s fair to say that on some level Pinot Noir producers are connected in a way no other grape connect with its grower. If they are not discussing clones, rootstocks, barrels, open fermenters they are likely debating when, how, and for how long, they might submerge the cap of the thin-skinned, temperamental grape.
Specificity is what Pinot is all about, although searching for the perfect one may be more desirable than actually finding it. Here are a few not to miss.
• Domaine Bousquet 2017 Reserve Pinot Noir Organic, Mendoza, Argentina, $20
• CedarCreek Estate Platinum Block 2016 Pinot Noir, Okanagan Falls, $55
• Jackson Family Wines: Penner-Ash 2017, Willamette Valley, Oregon, $50
• Jackson Family Wines: Siduri 2018 Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon, $38
• Joseph Mellot 2016 Pinot Noir Sincerite, Loire Valley, France, $24
• Marisco Vineyards 2018 The King’s Wrath Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand, $28
• Meyer Family 2018 Pinot Noir McLean Creek Road Vineyard, Okanagan Falls, $35
• Moraine Estate Winery 2018 Pinot Noi, Naramata Bench, Okanagan Valley, $27
• CedarCreek Estate Platinum Block 2 2016 Pinot Noir, Okanagan Falls, $55
CLICK HERE to report a typo.
Is there more to this story? We’d like to hear from you about this or any other stories you think we should know about. Email vantips@postmedia.com