Olivier Leflaive Bourgogne 2016, Burgundy, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Chardonnay 100%

🧐 Alcohol 12.5%

🍁 My Score 91 Points 

🧩 Matured for 14 months (with 4 months in stainless steel tanks), 80% in French oak and 20% in stainless steel 

🔹 Exquisite nose with aromas of lemons, pears, orange zest, yellow apples and light mineral notes. On the mouthfeel, light to medium bodied, the texture is entirely elegant, seductive fruit and refreshing acidity. The finish is medium length with flavours of citrus fruits, honey with mineral undertones.

🔸 What a classy bottle of wine! Oak is handled with care, giving this Chardonnay a delicious rounder texture and added complexity while leaving the quality of the fruit to shine. When a producer offers us such a delicious entry level wine, it makes you want to experience their entire lineup. What about pairing? With such an elegant wine, the pairing possibilities are endless. This would also make for a refreshing aperitif. Needless to say, strongly recommended. Cheers my wine friends. 

Domaine Rolet Trousseau 2015, Arbois, Jura, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Trousseau 100%

🧐 Alcohol 13%

🍁 My Score 89 Points

 🔹 Intriguing notes with aromas of Morello cherries, plums, tea, soft leather, red licorice and underbrush. On the mouthfeel, light to medium, dry, light minerality with soft tannins and lively acidity. The finish is medium length with flavours of tart cherries, plums, vanilla.

 🔸 I have ventured out from my conform zone and tried out a varietal which I have never tasted before. I found Trousseau to be quite an interesting wine experience, somewhat similar to a Pinot Noir but with a beautiful minerality and earthiness throughout. This is a varietal, which is not that common and it does represent very good value. Best served slightly chilled. I do not recall seeing this many Tartrate Crystals (also know as wine diamonds) on a red before. I keeps these corks like a trophy, as you may know, Diamonds are wine lovers best friend. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Domaine des Marrans Fleurie Clos du Pavillon 2015, Beaujolais, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Gamay 100%

🧐 Alcohol 13.5%

🍁 My Score 92 Points

🧩 Granite soil, hand-harvested fruits from 60-80 year old vines, indigenous yeast.  Produced by talented winemaker Mathieu Mélinan, who is a star with the minimum intervention movement.

🔹 Exquisite nose with aromas of strawberries, plums, underbrush, spices, minerals and light floral notes. On the mouthfeel, medium bodied, flavourful, great energy with fine grainy tannins and refreshing acidity keeping things fresh. The finish is medium length, elegant with seductive fruit flavours, minerals and spices.

🔸 Are you looking for a red on a hot summer day? Gamay served slightly chilled to the rescue. Like this, beautiful Beaujolais with it’s wonderful combination of freshness and weight with equal part fruity and earthy flavours. A Beaujolais for Pinot lovers, that is drinking beautifully right now and should keep improving for many years to come. Strongly recommended my wine friends. Cheers 🍷

Château Pesquié Ventoux Terrasses 2017, Rhône, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Grenache 60%
🍇 Syrah 40%

🧐 Alcohol 14%

🍁 My Score 91 Points

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Attractive nose with aromas of cherries, plums, pomegranate, licorice, floral, light cedar and peppery notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-bodied, fresh with bright flavours, fine tannins and lively acidity. The finish is medium length with flavours of slightly tart red fruit, vanilla spices and peppery.

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For the last two years I have really enjoyed visiting Château Pesquié at this year Vancouver International Wine Festival. I am always impressed by the quality of their wines and their great value for money. So many great wines to choose from, Ventoux red, Quintessense and Artemis are my stand outs. This is my third bottle of Ventoux 2017 and was a great example of their quality. It’s a very aromatic red blend with a wonderful combination of freshness and seductive mouthfeel. Definitely a crowd pleasing wine, perfect for summer served slightly chilled. Terrific value and widely available. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Domaine Léon Beyer Riesling "R de Beyer" 2010, Eguisheim, Alsace, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Riesling 100%

🧐 Alcohol 13.5%

🍁 My Score 92 Points 

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A classic Riesling nose with aromas of pears, lime, petroleum, honey and mineral notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, dry, complex flavours with good tension and lively acidity. The finish is long, flavourful with mostly citrus fruit and mineral undertones. 

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This delicious Riesling was purchased at the winery from their library selection, in September of 2018. A travel souvenir that I truly enjoy. A beautiful, mature Riesling. A dryer style than I would usually purchase, that paired perfectly with a spicy stir fried Kung pao chicken. A delicious Riesling from the charming and beautiful region of Alsace. Cheers my wine friends 🙂

Diffonty Cuvée du Vatican Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2015, Rhône, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Grenache 65%

🍇 Syrah 25%

🍇 Mourvèdre 10%

🧐 Alcohol 15%

🍁 My Score 91 Points 

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Exquisite bouquet with aromas of plummy-blackberry fruit, dried herbs, wood smoke and light cedar notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, seductive, spicy texture with silky tannins, terrific oak integration and balanced acidity. The finish is medium-long with a plummy, vanilla and a savoury edge.

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I usually prefer my CDP when Syrah is the dominant varietal, that being said, I really enjoyed this CPD. From it’s nose, the spicy red fruited aromatics were a give away that Grenache was the dominant varietal. It’s a very pretty, elegant, finely textured, fruit driven and flagrant CDP. Purchased @lcbo in August of 2018 and superb value at $39. Beautiful slightly chilled, to lower the impact of the alcohol, which gives the fruit more of a chance to shine. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Domaine Courbis Saint-Joseph 2015, Rhône, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Syrah 100%

🧐 Alcohol 14%

🍁 My Score 89 Points 

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Great nose with aromas of black cherries, ripe blackberries, plums, violets, smoky and peppery notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, tasty smooth texture, silky tannins and balanced acidity. The finish is medium length with flavours of plums, peppery and undertones of minerals/graphite notes.

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This is my first experience with the wines from le Domaine Courbis. I find that Syrah from Saint-Joseph are always a treat, This was exactly what I was expecting, an elegant, flavourful Syrah which could be paired well with pretty much any red meat, or enjoyed on its own. Cheers my friend 🍷

Vignobles Famille Laplace Château d’Aydie Odé d’Aydie 2014, Madiran, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Tannat 100%

🧐 Alcohol 14%

🍁 My Score 90 Points

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Intense on the nose with aromas of black cherries, black plums, black currants, leather and forest floor notes. On the mouthfeel, full bodied, flavourful, slightly tart with soft tannins and vibrant acidity. The finish is long, slightly tangy with flavours black currants, vanilla, bitter chocolate and peppery notes.

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The last time I opened this wine was the summer of 2018. Back then, this Tannat was almost black, intense with more structured tannins. Today, this wine has more interesting aromatics and has much smoother texture. I prefer the wine from 18 months ago, when it had more character, where the quality of the tannins added more structure to the wine. It is still a  delicious and unique wine experience. The currant vintage is 2016, which should be drinking just perfect, for my taste, right now. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Château Le Puy Émilien 2010, Côtes de Francs, Bordeaux, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Merlot 85%
🍇 Cabernet Sauvignon 14%
🍇 Carménère 1%

🧐 Alcohol 13%

🍁 My Score 89 Points

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Intoxicating nose with aromas of black cherries, black currants, mushrooms, leather, undergrowth and smoky notes. On the mouthfeel, full bodied with lots of berry flavours, grainy tannins and fresh acidity. The finish is long with flavours of black fruit and oak flavours all wrapped up with tannins.

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This wine definitely needed a two hour decant, but first it was poured into the decanter using a funnel and a strainer to capture an incredible amount of sediment.  This a a tasty, flavourful, slightly rustic Merlot blend which in the end is quite charming. The back label suggests serving between 16° to 18° C. I strongly recommend the 16°C. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Henri de Villamont Chorey-les-Beaune 2015, Burgundy, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Pinot Noir 100%

🧐 Alcohol 13%

🍁 My Score 89 Points

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Beautiful nose on this Pinot with aromas of cherries, cranberries, stewed plums, underbrush and spicy notes. On the mouthfeel, medium bodied, dry, flavourful with soft tannins and balanced acidity. The finish is medium length with wild berry fruit, savoury notes and an underlying earthiness.

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Definitely a very enjoyable Pinot with lots of flavours and very smooth. Does it represent a good value? At $50 Canadian dollars before taxes, I would have to say no. Would I purchase this Pinot again? Absolutely 🙂 Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Away from home, pizza night at the Hotel 🙂

Glad to be back in Ottawa and even happier to order a Pizza from Ricardo’s Pizza, which I have enjoyed for over 20 years. Visiting this pizzeria brought back many great memories and great to see that it’s still the same pleasant, customer focused staff still working there magic here.

As for the wine, one wine wasn’t enough 😜

1- Paul Jaboulet Aîné Saint-Joseph Le Grand Pompée 2016, Rhône Valley, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Syrah 100%

🧐 Alcohol 13%

Beautiful, inviting nose with aromas of plums, blackberries, floral and peppery notes. On the mouthfeel, medium bodied, flavourful with smooth tannins and fresh acidity. The finish is medium length with lots of peppery plum and light earthy flavours lingering.

2- Prá Morandina Valpolicella 2018, Veneto, Italy 🇮🇹

🍇 Corvina 35%
🍇 Corvinone 35%
🍇 Rondinella 23%
🍇 Oseleta 7%

🧐 Alcohol 12.5%

Bright nose with aromas of strawberries, raspberries, red cherries and floral notes. On the mouthfeel, light bodied, fresh with lots of energy, fine grainy tannins and bright acidity. The finish is medium length and full of fruity flavour lingering.



🔹 Definitely interesting to compare these two wines with the pizza, darker fruit on the Saint-Joseph and red fruit on the Valpolicella, smoother tannins with the Syrah and much higher acidity with the Valpolicella. The Saint-Joseph is in a beautiful place right now and the Vapolicella is young with additional time in bottle to come soften up a bit. Both enjoyable in their own right but the Saint-Joseph was  the better pairing.

Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Wine acquisition from the Liquor Board of Ontario (LCBO)

What a joy to be returning to the LCBO. Did you know that after Costco, the LCBO is the second largest purchaser of wine and spirits in the world? This kind of leverage can make for ideal pricing. I am here to find my personal favourite wines and explore products recommended by their very knowledgeable staff. I was lucky to run into @torontovino  at the Queens Quay LCBO location. I had already nabbed the Muga Selección Especial (a favourite 🙂) but Victor helped me select a few more beauties to bring home. Thank you.  🙏 It was great chatting with you.

🍇 from Spain 🇪🇸
-Muga Selección Especial 2014
-Urbina Rioja Gran Reserva 2006

🍇 from France 🇫🇷
-François Villard Jouvet Cornas 2016

🍇 from Italy
-Caparzo La Casa Brunello di Montalcino 2013

Pretty happy with the new addition to the family 😊 Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Maxime Magnon Rozeta 2018, Corbières, Languedoc-Roussillon, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Carignan 40%
🍇 Grenache 30%
🍇 Cinsault 30%

🧐 Alcohol 13.5%

 🍁 My Score 90 Points

🧩 50-60 years old vines, grapes are fermented together, aged wine in previously use Burgundy barrels from a producer in Chassagne-Montrachet, natural, organic and biodynamic, neither fined or filtered and no sulphur added at bottling

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Beautiful nose with aromas of red cherries, raspberries, blueberries, floral, peppery and light earthy notes. On the mouthfeel, medium bodied, very fresh with an elegant texture, silky tannins and crisp acidity. The finish is medium length with savoury and slightly tangy flavours lingering.

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Lovely dining experience at Damas restaurant in Montréal this last Monday. Like always, I research the wine list before arriving at a restaurant. Unfortunately it was a waste of time since the wine list was out of date 🤷‍♂️ None of the wines which had caught my attention where available. Now, I did take up the offer for the Sommelier to review the wine list and help with my selection. Good wine list, mostly from France and Italy, with many natural wines. I was very happy with the wine selected, it went beautifully with our mix grilled platter. The food and the presentation as usual, was amazing. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Domaine de Longue Toque Gigondas 2014, Rhône, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Grenache 60%
🍇 Syrah 40%

🧐 Alcohol 15.5%

🍁 My Score 92 Points

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Such a sensuous nose with aromas of black fruit, plums, leather, incense, old church wood, vanilla and peppery notes. On the mouthfeel, full bodied with an entirely elegant texture, silky tannins and fresh acidity. The finish is medium-long, very smooth with soft fruit and savoury flavours lingering.

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It’s been way too long since I have opened a Gigondas. Purchased this a little over a year ago. This wine is in a great place right now. Every element of this wine is well integrated at this stage, resulting in beautiful aromatics, seductive flavourful mouthfeel and very smooth Gigondas. Enjoyed with a pasta dish of lamb sausage, which turned out to be a perfect pairing. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Haut Faugères Saint-Émilion Grand Cru 2010, Bordeaux, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Merlot  85%
🍇 Cabernet Franc 10%
🍇 Cabernet Sauvignon 5%

🧐 Alcohol 14.5%

🍁 My Score 91 Points

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A very attractive and inviting nose with aromas of black cherries, plums, raisins, cassis, cedar and vanilla notes. On the mouthfeel, full bodied, flavourful with grainy tannins and balance acidity. The finish is medium-long with flavours of bitter chocolate, leathery fruit and raisins.

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I tasted this Bordeaux at a trade show and there was no doubt that we would be stocking this wine with Christmas fast approaching. From an excellent vintage, this is a muscular Merlot blend that is closer in style to California than Bordeaux. That being said, this is a very aromatic, flavourful wine that needs beef or lamb to really shine. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Domaine Guisset Côtes du Roussillon 2016, Languedoc-Roussilon, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Syrah 66%
🍇 Carignan 20%
🍇 Grenache 14%

🧐 Alcohol 14.5%

🍁 My Score 91%

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Great nose with aromas of ripe berry fruit, plums, red currants, spices and light floral notes.  On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, dry, beautiful texture, flavourful with silky tannins and fresh acidity.  This finish is medium length, smooth with flavours of spices, stony minerality and soft seductive fruit.

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First experience with this producer and it won’t be the last.  Lovely blend, really enjoyable wine, flavourful with fine texture and harmony.  The quality price ratio is well in your favour. Enjoyed over two evenings and just as delightful on the second night.  Strongly recommended my wine friends.  Cheers 🍷

Domaine Steeve Charvet Chiroubles 2018, Beaujolais, France 🇫🇷

Domaine Steeve Charvet Chiroubles 2018, Beaujolais, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Gamay 100%

🧐 Alcohol 13%

🍁 My Score 89 Points

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Very expressive and interesting nose with aromas of dark plums, tart cherries, violets, spices, earthy and animal undertones. On the mouthfeel, medium bodied, dry with firm, grippy tannins and crisp acidity. The finish is medium length with flavours of dark fruit, spices and woodsy, earthy flavours lingering.

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This is my first experience with Beaujolais from Chiroubles. Definitely difficult to find here compared to those from Brouilly, Fleurie and Morgon. Chiroubles is the highest and the coolest region of the cru Beaujolais, usually the last to harvest. It definitely felt like a very young wine, where the flavours have not quite blended together yet, where the tannins needs to soften up and lose some of their grip. If you have one of these, I suggest you decant for a few hours, or even better, give it a couple more years in bottle. Much smoother on the second evening 😉 Great potential to score 90-91 points in a few years. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

Jean Loron Domaine des Billards Saint-Amour 2016, Beaujolais, Burgundy, France 🇫🇷

🍇 Gamay 100%

🧐 Alcohol 13.5%

🍁 My Score 92%

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Beautiful, inviting nose with aromas of strawberries, blueberries, plums, sweet spices and light minerality. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied, framed with spicy fruit flavours, crisp acidity and grainy tannins. The finish is long, really tasty with those same grainy tannins making a comeback and slightly coating your mouth.

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Hard to find here, Beaujolais from Saint-Amour, the most Northerly of the ten Beaujolais cru. What a gorgeous wine, with great aromatics, beautiful texture and long flavourful finish. A wine that brought a smile to my face the entire evening. A charming, lively Beaujolais full of flavours best served slightly chilled. Strongly recommended, I have to purchase a few more bottles. Cheers my wine friends 🍷

René Bouvier Le Chapitre Bourgogne 2008, Ac Burgundy, France

A pretty ruby red in color, this Pinot Noir opened up with aromas of sour cherries, red currants, beets and light earthy notes. On the mouthfeel, light bodied (alcohol comes in at 12.5%), lean, dry, austere with very little fruit, lively acidity and dusty tannins. This wine's finish is short and tart. It was recommended that I should wait a few years before opening (which I did) but I cannot see this Pinot Noir getting any better, I wonder if this wine was made with any fruit at all. Not particularly memorable or pleasant, score 84 points.

Purchased February 19, 2011 LCBO Vintages New Release (209602) at $19.95 

Château De Treviac Corbières 2010, AP Corbières, Languedoc-Roussillon, France

A lovely blend of 80% Syrah and 20% Grenache, this wine opened up with aromas of ripe berry fruit, plum, savory herbs, black pepper and light licorice notes. On the mouthfeel, medium-full bodied with alcohol at a generous 15%, the texture is smooth, ripe and silky, fresh acidity and well integrated fine grained tannins. On the finish, the length is very good, the texture is pure velvet with flavors of ripe fruit, prune and savory notes lingering. This was my first experience from this winery and I was blown away, when you consider the quality of this flavorful age-worthy Rhône blend and its price. Great value and strongly recommended, score 90 points.

Purchased March 30, 2013 LCBO Vintages New Release (670505) at $15.95