2015 Hidden Bench Estate Riesling – Vintages 183491 – $23.95 – **** – When it comes to consistency and quality for Riesling in the province of Ontario the Beamsville bench sets the bar. I look to bench Riesling as a way to help form the backbone to my collection because it is hard to beat the price to quality of these wines in any section of the LCBO. This bottle offers a great mineral note that goes from the nose and lingers on the finish. There is great golden delicious apple and lime notes that open up with great concentration on the palate.
2014 Dirty Laundry Cabernet/Merlot – Vintages 334441 – $25.95 – **** – This is a very well priced bottle of BC Red bringing a lot of rich fruit to the glass. The nose is a little dusty – but all of this disappears with your first sip when you are greeted by cassis, raspberry, dark cherry, and plum. The tannin is a little chewy but still very approachable. I would open this an hour before serving to let it breathe. The finish is really where this wine gets exciting with a nice cocoa note that lingers. This is a perfect wine to pair with a nice steak.
