Report from ... Vinexx Portfolio Tasting - April 13, 2011

Second tasting of the day.  First was in Toronto (Somewherness), this one is on the way home, in Oakville and is the Vinexx Portfolio tasting - seems like I'll go anywhere to sip a glass of something interesting.  Vinexx is based out of Hamilton and has a portfolio that covers the big ports-of-call for wine-lovers: France, Italy, New Zealand, Australia, California ... today's tasting consisted of wines mainly available at the LCBO with a few consignment / private order wines thrown in for good measure.  Wines were arranged by table number, starting with bubblies, then two tables of whites and three of reds, by my count there were 42 in total - here were my favourites listed here by table number.

Table 1 ... Bubbles and Rosés
Of 4 bubbles and 2 rosés at this table the Caves Bailly Lapierre Cremant de Bourgogne Brut Reserve ($17.95 - LCBO) was far and way the best bottle here.  Made from Pinot Noir (40%), Gamay (10%), Chardonnay (40%) and Aligote (10%) - good fruit aromas and flavours, this is a good bubble for the price, light and airy across the tongue. (****)

Table 2 ... White Wine Part 1
A no-brainer here as the Alois Lageder 2009 Pinot Grigio DOC ($18.95 - LCBO) was a delicious version of a Grigio, exactly what one looks for with this wine style. (*** 1/2+)

Table 3 ... White Wine Part 3
Riesling fans would be very happy with the Studert Prum 2009 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett ($18.95 - LCBO) with its slightly sweet nose and palate, lovely fruit and some slate notes, especially on the palate. (*** 1/2+)

Table 4 ... Red Wine Part 1
I probably would have sided with the Casa Girelli wines here (Syrah and Primitivo), but they are sealed under plastic cork, so bottle variation over time will be a big problem (I don't trust plastic cork); so instead opted to be a fan of the Villa Cafaggio 2007 Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG ($34.95 - private order), it had plenty going for it: raspberry, spice, cinnamon, big tannins, dark cherries, rustic in the a very appealing way. (*** 1/2+)

Table 5 ... Red Wine Part 2
This stop on the Vinexx-Table-Tour tied for best table (with Table 6) with three wines, but at this stop they scored four-plus stars versus the three 4 star wines at Table 6; making Table 5 the best table to visit tonight:
E. Guigal 2007 Cotes du Rhone ($16.95 - LCBO) - a dark-fruit forward Cote-du-Rhone with good acidity and matches well with food or on its own (I've done both with this very wine in the recent past). (****+)
Cases de la Ermita 2008 Roble Jumilla ($13.95 - LCBO) - smooth and silky with red licorice, plum, chocolate and white pepper; good value. (****+)
Cline Cellars 2009 Ancient Vines Mourvedre ($18.95 - LCBO) - lovely plumy sweetness, lush and plush and ready for BBQ ribs and other grilled meats. (****+) 

Table 6 ... Red Wine Part 3
Another three wine table, here they scored the same mark of 4 stars:
Roux Pere et Fils 2009 Volnay Vieilles Vignes ($29.95 - LCBO) - pretty floral nose along with light cherry and raspberry fruit, delicate and delicious with an earthy-raspberry finish and decent length. (****)
Calera Wine Company 2008 Pinot Noir ($32.95 - LCBO) - a totally different animal from the Burgundy above; a really red fruit driven Pinot, lovely cherry all the way through with that sweet red fruit caressing the tongue right to the finish.  Very Cali. (****)
Cline Cellars 2009 Zinfandel ($13.00 - LCBO) - a base model Zin from Cline but one that has all the goods needed for Zin-lovers and neophytes to the grape in its red form: plum, vanilla, black cherry on the nose, cherry-cola mid-palate, sweet fruit with supple flavours ... really good value so you can hop the Zin-bandwagon. (****)

For more wine reviews and related articles go to www.ontariowinereview.com, while there sign up for Michael's free bi-weekly newsletter.