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The Twelve Wines of Christmas

As far as I know there are still 365 days in a year but it seems to me 2009 has moved along at a pace that would suggest I missed a few.

A year ago the economy was in the dumper and value wines were all the rage.

This December, according to industry types, value wines are mostly all you are buying. As for the economy, well, it remains a work in progress.

While wine is taking a longer route back to the mainstream, I wanted to suggest 12 wines for the holidays that meet the value quotient but which deliver something much richer - a story and a sense of origin that makes you want to know it better.

Of course, feel free to use them for entertaining or to serve on the big day.

We begin in Chile's cool, Leyda Valley with the Santa Carolina Sauvignon Blanc Reserva 2009 $12 . The nose is an attractive mix of zesty grapefruit, jalapeno, lemon, nettle and passionfruit aromas while on the palate this versatile appetizer wine is packed full of grapefruit rind, lemon grass, granny smith and smoky jalapeno flavours. It's a very bright light for Santa Carolina and Chile, delivering a modern, important single appellation wine at an incredible price.

Speaking of killer value, the Pascual Toso Malbec 2008 $14 from Mendoza has been making a habit of over-delivering for the money. Consistency is the story of Toso. Always rich and savoury, it offers plenty of liquorice and sweet black fruit up front and a warm, minty, peppery, smooth back end. A crowd pleaser without a lot of complexity but plenty of long showy fruit. Steaks, anyone? Or serve it as a holiday party red.

Grab a bottle of Torres Vina Esmeralda 2008 $14.50 and take it to Christmas dinner if turkey is on the menu.  Esmeralda has really elevated its game under screwcap. The Upper Penedès white blend of 85/15 gewürztraminer/moscatel jumps out of your glass with bright fresh aromatic fruit and zesty, bright lychee, green apple, lemon lime and tropical melon flavours. You can serve it solo before dinner but it will be great with the bird, too.

Organic wines are saving the Earth one bottle at a time, and you can participate with the Emiliana Adobe Syrah Reserva Orgánico 2007 $15 . This wine has been impressive from its first release and the latest is no exception. Look for smoky blue and black fruits with peppery, spicy, mineral, notes on the nose and in the mouth. The palate is slippery with a lush dense weight New World syrah finish. Great value here.

Argentina's malbec will work with turkey or roast beef, and apparently you are buying it in record numbers. So don't miss the Renacer Punto Final Malbec 2008 $16 . Expect a supple, fresh palate with peppery, savoury bay leaf and mineral notes with bits of liquorice, mocha, tobacco, black cherry and plum flavours. Attractive supple mid-palate with a warm black raspberry finish. Impressive for the price.

The perfect partner for the Punto Final is the organically produced Bonterra Vineyards Chardonnay 2007 $20 from Mendocino County in California. The clean fresh fruit and touches of butter make this turkey compatible but it's equally impressive as a party starter served with seafood appetizers. Look for a fresh, round, off dry palate with pear, mint, sweet butter, baked apple and honey, grassy, citrus flavours. A modern expression of organically grown fruit.

Everybody loves cabernet sauvignon, and if meat is on your holiday menu then Ikella Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 $18 , another Argentine bottle from Mendoza, is your wine. The style is round, dry and supple. The taste is a lovely mix of smoky, peppery, cassis, black cherry and liquorice fruit. You can drink it now plus it's excellent value for a cabernet.

If European style is more to your taste, reach for the M. Chapoutier Belleruche Côtes du Rhône 2007 $18.60 . The '07 is big and rich with plenty of warm, peppery, raspberry/cherry fruit with spicy liquorice notes and soft, silky tannins. It should further improve in the bottle over the next three years. The blend, an 80/20 mix of grenache and syrah, is one of the best we've tasted from Chapoutier in some time. A versatile holiday entertainer. Well done.

One of the year's best, in my humble opinion, is Le Volte 2007 $34 from Tuscany. The blend of sangiovese (51 per cent), merlot (34 per cent) and cabernet sauvignon (15 per cent) has a fragrance and freshness seldom seen in New World reds along with a sense of balance and harmony that keeps you coming back to the glass. Look for a delicious balance of spicy, floral red fruits with a kiss of oak and coffee. Very impressive and so balanced you can drink it now or hold it through 2015. Makes a wonderful gift for wine lovers.

The ultimate groovy wine, Laurenz V. Und Sophie Singing Grüner Veltliner 2007 $22 from Austria, is said to sing on the palate with its big, fresh, mineral, creamy notes and screamingly fresh acidity. Both elegant and succulent it has a delicious peppery, crunchy fruit aspect with a honey-lemon aftertaste, all with delicacy, finesse and balance. A super oyster wine, or try it with Pan-Asian cuisine. This is way cool.

You'll need a ready-to-drink port for the holidays and my choice is the Quinta do Crasto Late Bottled Vintage Port Unfiltered 2004 $27 . The Crasto LBV is a blend of mixed old vines containing 25 to 30 different local varieties averaging 60 years old. The grapes are handpicked and are foot trodden in traditional stone lagares. It's bottled after five years in 100 per cent Portuguese oak barrels without any fining or filtration. Dessert on its own.

The perfect finish is Emiliana Coyam 2007 $35 , a bio-dynamic blend of syrah, merlot, carmenère, cabernet sauvignon, petit verdot and mourvèdre. Its dark fruit flavours preview a glossy, slippery texture that slides down effortlessly. Quintessential biodynamic fruit alive with flavours and textures.

I can hardly wait for next year.

 

Anthony Gismondi is a globetrotting wine writer who makes his home in West Vancouver, British Columbia. For more of his thoughts on wine log onto www.gismondionwine.com.