Cabernet Franc

Outstanding Vintages Buys Coming Up (Oct/Nov 2020)

I have had the opportunity to taste through some excellent wines as we head into fall. Here’s a roundup of some fun bottles to keep an eye out for at the LCBO. I think my biggest takeaway from this batch of wines is that I am going to be spending...

Wine Review - 2017 Sassicaia

On Saturday the 2017 vintage of Sassicaia will be released. Given the year that we’ve had so far, I have a feeling that it won’t sit on the shelf for very long. I had the opportunity to be sent a bottle for review – because let’s face it – buying...

No funny business with the current wines of Laughing Stock

Late in the summer I had the opportunity to taste through the current lineup of wines from Laughing Stock. I have always been a big fan of Portfolio, and Pinot Gris is something that is always something to look forward to from BC. So here are my thoughts. 2017 Laughing...

The White Wines of Meldville

I had to take one day in wine country this summer that didn’t involve doing deliveries for the 80x Wine Company. It had been awhile since I’ve seen Derek Barnett. We had a chance to taste outside at Legends Estate Winery and while this year has been hard on everyone...

2016 Culmina R&D Red Blend

2016 Culmina R&D Red Blend – $23.00 – ***½ – Someone must have heard me thinking about this wine as I mentioned it in my review of the Culmina Malbec – and a bottle showed up the next day. The thing that’s great about the R&D blends is that they...

2017 Trius Red - the most approachable vintage yet.

2017 Trius Red – Vintages 303800 – $24.95 – ****+ – It’s been a couple years since I’ve written about Trius Red, so let me apologize for that. Drinking Trius Red always feels a little like coming home – when I first moved to Ontario in 2007 this wine is...

Southbrook has Something Bubbling in the Cellar

It’s been awhile since I’ve sat down at Southbrook to do a proper tasting. I think it’s one thing I take advantage of as a consumer in Toronto – we have a handful of wineries that have become mainstays at our various Farmer’s markets. I always look forward to finding...

Icellars Delivers a Stellar Portfolio

In late December I needed to get out of the city before Christmas. The day I spent tasting was having the rare opportunity to show someone new around wine country. Reflecting on the twelve years that I’ve been living in Ontario it’s remarkable to see the dramatic increase in quality...

Big Wines at Big Head Winery

This past summer I had an opportunity to interview Andrzej Lipinski for Two Guys Talking Wine to get his history on tape. What wasn’t reflected in the interview was the number of wines I had the opportunity to taste. When you start tasting through wines with Andrzej it’s like hanging...

Huff Estates - Fall 2019

Here’s a trio of bottles form Huff Estates. It’s fascinating how wineries that have specific sites at their disposal can make magic wines that are in-duplicatable. The South Bay vineyard from Huff is one of those locations. The Chardonnay is always a slam dunk – but I don’t know why...

Henry of Pelham - Fall 2019

It has been awhile since I’ve written about some of the bottles that have passed through my front door. And it’s really too bad – because there are some killer bottles that you need to know about. Let me start with going through some of the current bottles available from...

Featherstone - Fall 2019

It’s been an exciting year at Featherstone. The winery celebrated their 20th anniversary, and winemaker/owner David Johnson was named winemaker of the year at the Ontario Wine Awards. David had previously been named Grape King in 2003 – which I believe makes him the only winemaker to hold both coveted...