Buyer’s Guide to Vintages April 26th Release

Pinot Globe-trotting, Victoria of Oz and a Gaggle of Good Buys
by David Lawrason with notes from Megha Jandhyala, Sara d’Amato, Michael Godel and John Szabo

Election news dominates the media space — but reporting on this is not our job, thankfully. Ours is to find very good wines that bring joy and lighten the load, especially after six relentless months of politics since King Donald’s coronation. With its Vintages publication, the LCBO chose to tiptoe through the tulips with warm weather wines, as do other mainstream wine articles at this time of year. I don’t think WineAlign subscribers really need more of this breezy content. Let’s just find good wines.

For the studious, this release involves two themes of interest. By happenstance, Vintages is releasing eight pinot noirs from eight global pinot noir regions. If you were to buy all eight and present them as a tasting exercise for friends and/or a tasting group, you would learn a ton. The second is a mini-focus on Victoria in Australia, a region which holds a personal fascination for me after only two lifetime visits.

I will spare you a long pinot noir introspective, but I do want to make a point that of all the red wines, pinot noir is most like a white wine. It is pale, with refreshing food-friendly acidity and modest tannin that encourages solo sipping. It takes a chill nicely. Yet, at its best it is about vibrancy, purity, sophistication and heady pleasure. It needs the right combo of cool climate, (usually) limestone soils and the winemaker’s regard for the place it comes from. Winemaking that tries to force pinot into some commercial imperative usually fails.

I am not going to list all eight pinots here, but whether or not they appear in our picks below I do want to highlight the following as regionally exemplary examples that I have personally scored 90 points or better: Bachelder Beam City Pinot Noir 2022 from Niagara, Montes Alpha Special Cuvée Pinot Noir Zapallar Vineyard 2022 from coastal Chile, Prosper Maufoux Domaine Vigne Au Roy Bourgogne Hautes Côtes De Nuits 2023 from Burgundy, Alta Yari Pinot Noir 2022 from high altitude Mendoza and Pacha Mama Pinot Noir 2023 from maritime Yarra Valley in Victoria, Australia

Speaking of Victoria, with its three-wine mini-theme in this release, I am drawn by this cooler climate region as a whole, the southernmost in Oz except for Tasmania. The fine city of Melbourne centres the region, with important wine regions encircling. To the south is the maritime Mornington Peninsula with great pinots, likewise verdant Yarra Valley a virtual suburb to the northeast, then the higher altitude Pyrenees to the north, where shiraz comes into play. Then, Great Western and regions to the northwest, where pinot and shiraz interplay depending on climate, soils and altitude. We tend to lump Australian wine together as one thing, but Victoria’s unique maritime-climate-meets-old-soul terroir makes a different case.

Here are our WineAlign Crü picks from this release. They are listed within style groupings in ascending price order so that you can isolate your snack bracket.

Buyer’s Guide April 26th: Sparkling

Henry Of Pelham Cuvée Catharine Carte Blanche Estate Blanc De Blancs 2017, Ontario, Canada
$49.95, Henry Of Pelham Family Estate Winery
Megha Jandhyala – This is a splendid sparkling wine made with chardonnay harvested from Henry of Pelham’s oldest and best estate vineyards. I am struck by the elegant symmetry it embodies between richness and lightness and toasty and nutty notes, on the one hand, and bright flavours of succulent orchard and citrus fruit, on the other. I recommend pouring this wine blind for friends who are unfamiliar with Ontario wine; I am certain it will convert them into ardent supporters!
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There are 19 other Vintages recommendations this week that are currently only available to our premium members. This complete article will be free and visible to all members 30 days after publication. We invite you to subscribe today to unlock our top picks and other Premium benefits

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And that’s a wrap for this edition. We will be back to review the May 10th release, but our report will be delayed until May 14th, given travels by our critics.
– David

Use these quick links for access to all of our April 26th Top Picks in the New Release. Non-premium members can select from all release dates 30 days prior.
John’s Top Picks – April 26th
Lawrason’s Take – April 26th
Megha’s Picks – April 26th
Michael’s Mix – April 26th
Sara’s Selections – April 26th

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