With little more than a week to go until Christmas, it’s time to get serious about picking up some wines for the holidays.
This year I’m taking you off the beaten path so you can show up at the big party with something different. Notice I did not use the word "interesting" because that’s wine writer code for wine that is, shall we say, less than impressive.
Today’s picks should attract a bit more attention from drinkers if only because the people who made them were thinking out of the box, trying to produce a wine just a little bit different. It may sound easy to do but in today’s era of copycats with emphasis on the cat, dog or alligator labels, wines that tell a story are rare.
Be sure to take advantage of any in-store consultants, private or monopoly, to help you find the wine you need. Even if they can’t find what you’re looking for, just asking for a certain bottle will help them suggest a suitable replacement.
Have a white holiday season
We begin with white wine that, by the way, is the new red. Fresh, clean, fruity and crisp, the new whites led by sauvignon blanc, riesling, viognier and cool climate chardonnays are perfect party sippers.
The tale of the tail continues with a new white release from the Australian success story (Yellow Tail), and it hits all the right buttons. The Yellow Tail 2004 Semillon Sauvignon Blanc ($13) is a delicious blend of fresh, lemon-lime fruit and melon all served up in an easy opening screwcap bottle. Made to party.
Other off-beat blends include Du Peloux 2004 Ugni Viognier ($13) from France . The style is fresh (the screwcap is an excellent touch) mixing citrus and apricot notes with mineral ginger and baked apple caramel flavours. At private wine shops only.
See Ya Later Ranch 2004 Jimmy My Pal ($15)
mixes B.C. chardonnay and pinot grigio to make a vanilla, creamy, baked apple, mineral, grapefruit rind flavours white. Look for this in VQA and private wine shops. Also in VQA wine stores is the Golden Mile 2004 Road 13 White ($15) a flavourful mix of ehrenfelser, pinot gris, schönburger and viognier. Both would pair well with spicy sushi-like appetizers.Another party animal: the Flagstone 2005 Noon Gun ($13) , a riesling, chenin blanc, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, pinot blanc, sémillon and Morio muscat melange from South Africa. Crisp, fresh mineral, grapefruit rind, green apple flavours with a pronounced citrus rind finish.
The California and Australian versions of the new white blends are slightly richer and a little more mouth-filling, as evidenced by the (Cline) White Truck 2004 White . Here the winery combines sauvignon blanc, pinot grigio, viognier and chardonnay to give you a soft white flavoured with mineral, candied green apple and buttery orange flavours.
I love the Wirra Wirra 2004 Scrubby Rise ($17) and its mix of sauvignon blanc, sémillon and viognier. The palate is fresh and crisp with green melon, grapefruit, lime and creamy, honey vanilla flavours and juicy finish.
Real reds off the beaten path
Okay, I know its red wine you crave, but why not get off the merlot, cabernet, pinot noir train for a few months and seek out something a little bit different?
It’s easy to champion grenache (as they say in France) or garnacha (in Spain) when it tastes like the Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha 2003 ($16) . Sold by the same local folks, Next Beveridge, who hit a home run with Castaño Monastrell (or mourvèdre), Las Rocas is one of the most exciting $16 red wines to come into the market in years.
If you don’t know much about garnacha, you will after you drink this white pepper and raspberry scented red replete with mineral, gamey, leathery notes and just a touch of cardamom. On the palate it’s unbelievably supple and juicy with more black raspberry, peppery, spicy, orange peel and licorice flavours. This is the kind of wine that makes the hyper jump from plain old varietal wine to exciting food friendly juice that will change your palate forever.
The Phoque Rouge 2003 ($10) is another tasty grenache blend from the Southern Rhone Valley of France. It has a soft, supple, easy drinking style with earthy, spicy, licorice and black cherry flavours.
The upscale version is the Artazuri 2004 Garnacha ($17) from Navarra, Spain. This all garnacha (grenache) red jumps out of the glass with floral, gamey, raspberry chocolate aromas. It’s dry, round and supple in the mouth and bursting with raspberry, plum jam, spicy, mineral, peppery flavours. This one is a must if you consider yourself near the edge of wine. It’s good value too.
There are many reasons to buy Heartland 2004 Stickleback Red ($15) from Australia, beginning with its quirky name or the cork-taint-free screw-cap closure. The wine has that fresh savoury, fruity edge without the saddle leather and sour acidity that plagues so much inexpensive Oz red. Black fruit flavours mark its peppery finish. Buy this one by the case.
Next up also from Australia is Bottle Tree Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 ($13) . This, too, is fun stuff grown in the middle of a sheep station in deep New South Wales. Under a screw-cap closure you'll find hints of tobacco, black cherry and blueberry aromas mixed with savoury, saddle leather and gamy notes. A solid, if somewhat rustic-style red.
Several northern Italian producers have gone south in search of warmer climes and rounder wines and that includes the king of Soave, Bolla. The new Bolla IGT Sicilia Rosso 2003 ($12) is a friendly blend of shiraz and nero d'Avola with just enough black cherry jam, licorice, chocolate and spicy, cardamom flavours to grab your interest.
The latest incarnation of the Trio brand features Trio 2003 Merlot Carmenère Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot ($14) . The Trio is 65 per cent merlot and 20 per cent carmenère from Rapel, with 15 per cent Maipo cabernet sauvignon. The nose is an intoxicating mix of vanilla, pepper, black fruit and herbs; the textures are super silky; and the finish is long and persistent. An impressive bottle of juice for the price.
We conclude in South America with the up-and-coming Viu Manent 2004 Malbec ($13) , from Colchagua (cole-chow-wah), Chile. Look for intense white pepper, licorice root, black cherry jam and tobacco aromas intertwined throughout its smooth smoky, peppery, minty, cassis-chocolate flavours. Another fine effort and wonderful value.
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
