MOUTON CADET 2005

Mouton Cadet is the product of Baron Philippe de Rothschild. It is not good enough to be called Chateau Mouton Rothschild, so they called it Mouton Cadet (cadet meaning younger son in French). It is a Bordeaux AOC with grapes from Saint-Estephe and Haut-Medoc, plus other regions.

We ordered a bottle at Morton's - The Steakhouse, and it went perfectly with our porterhouses and rib eyes. A luscious, deep red hue, and a perfect balance of fruit and tannins. It is a blend of 65% merlot, 20% cabernet sauvignon, and 15% cabernet franc.

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Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival 2008

Last night Jules and I attended the Tasting Room event of the Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival. As the cliche goes, I was like a kid in a candy store. There were dozens of wineries pouring hundreds of wines, and it wasn't just the common stuff either. There were was a selection of champagne, bordeaux, port, and myriad reserves. It was very crowded, so at times we had to get a bit pushy to get in front of the booths, but over all I was able to taste virtually everything I wanted. Having never been to this event before, I had hoped to take some tasting notes on some of the wines. Soon after arriving, I realized that this would be impossible, firstly because I had forgot a freakin' pen, but also because of the physical difficulty of juggling a wine glass, note pad, pen, festival program, and handouts. I did see a few others taking notes, but it looked very awkward. Maybe next time...
The regional theme this year was Italy, and it seemed this was the most represented country. Because it was the most crowded area on the floor we did not sample as many as we would have liked. I admit I am less familiar with Italian growing regions and grape varietals, however I do enjoy Italian wine. Here are some highlights:

• Prunotto Barbaresco 2004 & Bric Turot Barbaresco 2004 - according to their representatives, 2004 was an exceptional vintage for their Barbaresco wines. It showed; both the Barbaresco and Bric Turot Barbaresco were delicious, with high acidity, and pronounced fruit flavours
• Antinori Tignanello Toscana 2005 & Cervaro Della Sala 2004 - Julia and I agreed that the Cervaro Della Sala was our favourite white of the tasting room. And the Tignanello - hey, it's a classic.
• Ruffino Lumina Pinot Grigio 2006 - a refreshing, simple pinot grigio that offers good value.

And then there was the rest of the world. I was able to browse a downloaded version of the program ahead of time, and wrote down some wines that I wanted to try. Quite a few were French.

• Taittinger Champagne NV (FR) - of the half dozen or so champagnes we tried, including G.H. Mumm and Pommery, this was my favourite
• Chateau Haut Vigneau 2005 (FR) - a fine bordeaux, with pronounced tannins and a long finish
• Perrin Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-Du-Pape Rouge 2005 (FR) - I love Perrin Reserve Red Cotes Du Rhone, so I had to try their Chateauneuf.
• Perrin Coudoulet de Beaucastel Red 2005 (FR) - another fine Cotes du Rhone from the Perrin family, who, through recent acquisitions, produce dozens of other wines.
• Louis Latour Pinot Noir (FR)
• Ogier Caves des Papes Châteauneuf-Du-Pape, Clos De L’Oratoire 2005 (FR) - tried it just because of the great label
  
• Jackson-Triggs Okanagan Estate Estate Sunrock Shiraz 2005 (CA) - I have a bottle of this on my rack but had never tried it before. Now I'm glad I bought it.
  
• Santa Rita Pehuen Carmenere 2004 (CL) - a special treat, since this wine was designated for industry tastings only. I distinctly remember hints of mint and burnt rubber
• Santa Rita Floresta Sauvignon Blanc 2007 (CL) - at first I thought this was a chardonnay because of its boldness. Very pronounced citrus
• Dr H Thanisch Berncasteler Doctor Riesling Auslese 2005 (DE) - very sweet and flavourful dessert wine
  

COTES DU RHONE PERRIN RESERVE 2005

Wow. This wine completely blew me away. What terrific balance and fragile complexity. It has an earthy aroma with hints of cloves and cranberries. Flavours of cocoa and plum with a slight spiciness and excellent tannins. Thanks to Mary Alice for a wonderful bottle.

Perrin Reserve consists of Cinseault, Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre grapes. They are grown in the vinyards of Grand Prébois owned by the Perrin family in Orange, France.

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BODEGA ACHAVAL FERRER MALBEC 2005

To me, Malbec is synonymous with Argentinian wine, as they produce lots of this delicious varietal. Julia and I received a bottle of Achaval Ferrer from Jan for Christmas (thank you Jan!).

The first thing that came to mind when I tasted it was "round." It has a very round mouth feel; it is well balanced with nice tannins and a bit of tartness. Julia noticed hints of blackberry, and a flavour that she first thought was plastic, but after reading another review, was more accurately described as tarry. But in a good way.





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MARLEY FARM WINERY - KIWI SOLERA

This past summer Julia and I visited Marley Farm Winery near Victoria as part of a wine slash bike trip. This winery is reputed to be owned by a relative of Bob Marley. Indeed, when we arrived we could hear "I shot the sheriff" piped over the stereo.

Marley Farm Winery produces a selection of traditional grape wine as well as a variety of fruit wines. After sampling a few, I decided to buy a bottle of Kiwi Solera. It reminded me of sherry and had a great complexity.

Last night we decided to open it. On the nose it had a very aromatic, pleasant bouquet. To the taste, prevalent flavours of honey, pears, and apples. It indeed reminded me of sweet sherry.


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CABERNET SAUVIGNON - SANTA RITA RESERVA 2005

This cabernet from Chile's Maipo Valley is representative of how great Chilean wines are. It is as good a red as you will find for a decent price. If you regularly read this blog you already know that I am particular to Santa Rita wines, and this one simply reinforces my fondness for them.

On the nose, blueberries and vanilla. The color is a deep crimson that barely lets the light through. The taste is timid at first, but then really opens up with nice tannins and a hint of oak. A hint of sweet chillies.




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FISHEYE SHIRAZ 2005

I opened a bottle of FishEye Shiraz to go with my left-over risotto - not the ideal pairing I know, but it worked. This wine has a very intriguing nose with notes of cherry and red berries. I was quite surprised by the lack of spice; I characterize Shiraz by its spiciness. Also, the tannins were unremarkable. This is a simple wine, with a fragrant nose and big, bold flavour. This would be good with a pizza.

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