International Showdown Results & Rankings, Jan. 2012

In the words of Bruce Buffer, "Let's get ready to ruuuumble!"  On Tuesday Jan. 17th, 2012 Toronto Vintners Club squared off with the South African Wine Society in an epic showdown - pitting some of the best wines that SA has to offer against similar wines from some of the most famed wine regions elsewhere in the world.  At the end of a slightly rowdy night, it was clear that every wine that was tasted, made an excellent showing and did its country proud.

Our guest speaker for the evening was Edward Finstein, otherwise known as "The Wine Doctor".  He is the award winning author of "Ask the Wine Doctor". He writes regular columns for many newspapers and magazines and is also the co-host of the Vine & Dine TV show.  As the night got underway, Mr. Finstein quickly spoke about how, once he say the wine list, knew that we were all in for a real interesting treat, as there were some amazing, high end wines ahead of us.

And now for the results:

For both the group and The Wine Doctor, the top wine of the night came from the international side, which was surprising, as the members of the South African Wine Society outnumbered our TVC members. 

The groups top wine was the 2006 Clarendon Hills Moritz Syrah. Some of Edwards notes on this wine were that the nose was very interesting with hints of gunpowder and flint.  It reminded him of watching a 100 gun salute.  It also showed signs of coffee, chocolate, and tobacco.  He said that this was much more of an old style wine than some of the big fruity wines Australia has been known for as of late.

Edward's top wine of the night was the 2007 Hewitt Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon.  This was a spectacular vintage with a deep dark black cherry colour.  It had a toasty nose with hints of minerals, dark fruit, violets, toffee, dark chocolate, spice, black currant and mulberry.  It was not a huge firm wine, like some people expect from California Cabs and it didn't have that bell pepper flavour that is often also associated.  This wine has great staying power.  He gave it a ranking of 93 points.

The top South African wine of the night was the 2007 Sadie Family Columella.  Edward ranked this as his second place wine, and the group ranked it as their third.  This wine showed a lot of red/black fruit and had a nice oak treatment.  The tannins had excellent structure and were balanced by great acidity.  This wine has excellent aging potential, and will continue to get better with age.

Name of Wine (in order poured)	Group Ranking	Guest Ranking
A - 2006 Vilafonte Series M - $40 (S. Africa)	8	6
B - 2006 Clarendon Hills Moritz Syrah - $57 (Australia)	1	3
C - 2006 Hartenberg Estate The Stork Shiraz - $92 (S. Africa)	2	4
D - 2006 Montes Folly Syrah, - $79 (Chile)	4	1
E - 2007 Sadie Family Columella - $95 (S. Africa)	3	2
F - 2006 Ferraton Père & Fils Les Dionnières Ermitage -$95 (France)	5	7
G - 2006 Vilafonte Series M - $40 (S. Africa)	6	5
H - 2007 Hewitt Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon - $69 (US – California)	7	1

2003 Red Burgundy - "A Very Rum Vintage"

In 2003, Europe experienced a heat wave that was the hottest on record in almost 500 years. France was the hardest hit by the heat wave, with every single day in early August reaching around 100 degrees.  As a result many wine regions were forced to pick their grapes early due to the extreme dry conditions. "So what sort of wines were made from this freak year in which the harvest took place earlier than in any previous recorded year?  The first thing to say is that this truly was and is a quite exceptional vintage – not a 1976, nor a 1947. The wines obey even fewer rules and generalisations than is usual in Burgundy. They have by all accounts changed considerably in barrel since they were made, and to judge from the many wines I tasted several times recently, the majority of which are already in bottle, they take burgundy’s notorious capriciousness to new limits.”  Jancis Robinson  http://www.jancisrobinson.com/articles/winenews050129.html

On February 21, Toronto Vintners will taste 8 red Burgundies from the exceptional 2003 vintage of which five are first growths (1er cru) wines:

2003 Albert Morot Beaune, Bressandes, 1er cru
2003 de Montille - Beaune, Perrieres, 1er cru
2003 Domaine du Prince Florent de Merode Corton Les Marechaudes
2003 Rossignol-Trapet - Latricieres-Chambertin
2003 Taupenot-Merme - Mayzeres-Chambertin
2003 V Lignier - Morey St Denis, Les Faconnieres, 1er cru
2003 Alain Hudelot-Noellat - Nuits St Georges, Les Murgers, 1er cru
2003 Domaine Jean-Marc & Hugues Pavelot Savigny-lès-Beaune aux Guettes, 1er cru 

Please join us for an evening of exceptional wines accompanied by light appetizers.

Details:  2003 Red Burgundy - A Very Rum Vintage
Buy Tickets (Note all ticket sales are final)
Date: Tues. Feb. 21, 2012
Time: 6:00 PM
Price: Members: $75         Guests/Non-Members:  $100
Venue: Faculty Club, Univ. of Toronto, 41 Willcocks Street
Toronto, Ontario M5S 1C7
Map
Deadlines:
Mailed Reservations - Friday Feb. 17/12
Online Payments - Sun. Feb. 19/12

International Showdown: South Africa vs. Rest of the World

On January 17, TVC and the South African Wine Society enthusiastically join forces for an exciting showdown of premium red wines with four of South Africa’s finest in comparison to four international high-end reds from the rest of the world.  South Africa’s wine growing regions benefit from a Mediterranean-like climate with cold winters and dry summers. Winemaking in South Africa focuses on quality wine production and is characterized as a hybrid of both new and old world wine making. The SA reds include a blend from Vilafonté and a 2006 Vilafonté Series M blend of Merlot-Melbec-Cab Sauvignon-Cab Franc.

We will compare and contrast these South African gems with 4 flagship international, highly regarded and limited, red wines. These will feature Australian, French, Chilean and Californian reds: including a Moritz Premier Cru Syrah from Clarendon Hills, Australia, as well as a a 2006 Syrah from Ferraton Pere & Fils des Dionnieres

Our guest speaker for the night will be none other than well known wine writer and TV/radio personality: The Wine Doctor, Edward Finstein. 

This international show-down is a great way to kick off 2012 and is not to be missed! 

Date: Tues. January 17, 2012
Time: 6:00 PM
Price: Members: $75         Guests/Non-Members:  $85
Venue: Faculty Club, Univ. of Toronto, 41 Willcocks Street
Toronto, Ontario M5S 1C7
Map   
Deadlines:
Mailed Reservations - Thurs. Jan. 13/12
Online Payments - Sun. Jan. 15/112

Also,  If you haven't had a chance, check out the new look of our website: http://www.torontovintners.org

Dessert Wines - Results

It's fitting that we ended the 2011 tasting calendar with dessert wines.  It was a sweet way to end a year of great tastings and turnouts and welcome in the holiday season.

The tasting was a little more difficult than usual, as there was a wide array of different styles on display.  There were ice wines, where the grapes are left on the vines to freeze, which concentrates the juice.  We also tasted wines affected by Noble rot, in which a fungus (Botrytis cinerea) attacks ripe grapes and causes an increase in their sugar content and produces deeper and richer golden colour in the wines than usual.  Finally, we also tasted a fortified wine in which an alcohol is added to the wine to halt fermentation, which leaves more residual sugar in the wine.

Our speaker on the night was our own Larry  Goldstein, who has not only been a member since the founding of the club in 1977, but is also wine of the wine buyers for the club.

The number of different styles of wine present at the tasting made for an interesting time ranking them.  The group was able to come together and pick a top wine, which was the 2004 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Beerenausles.  Larry said that he found this wine to have a slightly closed and underdeveloped nose, but had a rich concentrated long taste and had one of the best balances between sweetness and acidity.  He went on to say that this wine could (and should) be cellered for another 10 years, and ranked it as his #3 wine.  Larry's top wine of the night was the 1996 Château Guiraud, 1er Cru, which he said was an absolute classic, that was unmistakable in character and was drinking at it's absolute peak right now.  The group didn't quite agree and ranked it as their #6 wine.

The sole Canadian wine if the group, the 2007 Inniskillin Vidal Icewine, had a great showing and proved that it could easily compete with much more expensive dessert wines from around the world.  The group ranked it the #3 wine of the night

Name of Wine (in order poured)	Group Ranking	Guest Ranking
2008 Hafner Old Vienna Composition Cuvée Beerenauslese $15	5	7
1989 Schloss Schöonborn Riesling Hochheimer Kirchenstuck Auslese $38	8	6
2004 Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Beerenauslese $80	1	3
2007 Inniskillin Vidal Icewine $39.85	3	5
Kourtaki Muscat Samos (NV) $14.75	7	8
2001 Gewurztraminer SGN, Trimbach $169	4	2
2007 De Bortoli Noble One Botrytis Semillon $30	2	4
1996 Château Guiraud, 1er Cru $100	6	1

Dessert Wines - Pure Indulgence

Next month we explore the world of Dessert Wines, just in time for the festive holiday season.  Click on the link below for details on the wines.


Theme:  Dessert Wines - Pure Indulgence
Date: Tues. Nov. 15, 2011
Time: 6:15 PM (NOTE THE TIME!!)
Price: Members: $65         Guests/Non-Members:  $75
Venue: Faculty Club, Univ. of Toronto, 41 Willcocks Street
Toronto, Ontario M5S 1C7
Map   
Deadlines:
Mailed Reservations - Thurs. Nov. 10/11
Online Payments - Sun. Nov. 13/11

For November, TVC has assembled fine examples of sweet wine from various regions around the world.  We will start close to home with a Niagara ice wine from the Vidal grape.  We can contrast this with a selection of European wines such as the prized Kourtaki Muscat Samos from Greece, Hafner Old Vienna Composition Curvée from Austria, a 1er Cru Sauternes from Château Guiraud and Gewurztraminer SGN from France, and two Rieslings from Germany not to be missed, including Dr. Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Beerenauslese and Schloss Schönborn. Finally our tasting will take us down under for some delicious and award-winning Noble One Botrytis Semillon from Australia. (See over for more details on the wines).   And to round out your wine tasting experience, we will be serving various food combinations to compliment these wines.

Chateau de Beaucastel Vertical Results

On Tuesday October 18, 2011, Toronto Vintners Club had the exciting and rare opportunity to taste a vertical of Chateu de Beaucastel, with samples ranging as far back as 1995.  Everyone in attendance agreed that all the wines were amazing

Our speaker for the evening was Howard Cayman, from Charton Hobbs, who are the importers of the wines were were tasting and all of Perrin & Fils wines, to Canada.  Howard has worked in the wine industy for many years.  He has spent some time in Harrods wine department as well as working as an assistant wine maker in many wineries in both Canada and France.

Cheateau de Beaucastle are the only producers in Southern Rhone to produce their wine using all 13 grape varieties allowed in the production of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and they have been strictly organic since 1964.

 The wines were tasted in chronological order, starting with the young '07 through to the '95.  Howard spoke about how when tasting a vertical like, it is extremely difficult to rate and compare these wines against each other as they are all in different stages of evolution.  Luckily the group was able to work through these difficulties and come up with a ranking.

The groups favourite wine of the night, turned out to be the '98, which had a beautiful sweet aroma and great flavours of juicy blackberry, licorice and truffles.  Our second favourite wine was the baby of the group, the '07.  It had great acidity and Howard spoke about how it has a great life ahead of it and could last for 25 or 30 years.  Howard's, the speaker of the night, favourite wine was the 2000.  For anyone out there holding bottles of the '95 vintage, even though it scored well (3rd for the group and 6th for the speaker), it showed signs that it was on the back end of it's life.  Howard said that it had reached it peak and would notget any better.

Name of Wine (in order poured)	Group Ranking	Guest Ranking
2007 vintage	2	3
2004 vintage	8	8
2003 vintage	7	4
2001 vintage	5	2
2000 vintage	6	1
1999 vintage	4	7
1998 vintage	1	5
1995 vintage	3	6

Sweet wines in November

Our November event will feature sweet wines, just in time for the holiday season! This will be a good opportunity to try a variety of sweet wines to see what will work best when paired with your festive fare! Hope to see you at this event.  Stay tuned for more details to come.