Buyers Guide to Vintages July 18th Release
Summer Smart Buys, and a Call for the Industry to Dismantle “Wine’s Culture of Intimidation and Snobbery”
By John Szabo MS, with notes from David Lawrason, Michael Godel, and Megha Jandhyala
We’re coming at you a couple of days later than usual with the buyer’s guide for the latest Vintages release, as most of the WineAlign Crü spent much of last week in Niagara for the annual International Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration — or i4C as its known — which celebrated its 16th anniversary this year. It has long been a highlight on the calendar, with grand tastings on Friday and Saturday nights and a robust schedule of winery visits, as well as a full day on Thursday at the “School of Cool.”
This year’s keynote speech was delivered by celebrated sommelier Véronique Rivest, followed by three panel sessions that went deep into cool chardonnay. If you skipped school, you’ll find a link below to Véronique’s rallying cry to the industry to do a better job communicating to customers, and for provincial governments across Canada to make it easier, and cheaper, for restaurants to buy and serve wine. It’s essential reading. I’ve also drafted a recap of the school of cool sessions in which a coherent narrative emerged: cool-climate producers everywhere are converging on precision, restraint and site transparency, even as they arrive there by very different routes.
“Summer Smart Buys” is the main, and sensible, thematic for the July 18 Vintages release. There are, of course, many ways to define what exactly fits into this category, but in this case, statistically speaking, the LCBO’s average price for wines in the feature is $19.36, with a high of $37.95 for Roberto Sarotto Barolo, a questionable summer “smart buy” on both style and price (not tasted), and a low of $12.95 for the Colombelle Colombard/Sauvignon Blanc, which easily makes it on to my list of wines to stock up on this summer. All in all, there are 11 whites, nine reds, two roses, and two sakes in the feature. But whether part of the feature or not, the Crü has picked out the best buys of the lot, as usual, including triple alignment on a pair of Italian whites from Friuli and Le Marche.
i4C Keynote Address by Véronique Rivest
In her keynote address, sommelier, wine bar owner, and Air Canada wine curator Véronique Rivest reframes what might have been a straightforward talk on Canadian chardonnay into a broader argument about connection. She opens by naming the rigid liquor laws that constrain Canada’s restaurant and wine industries, then pivots to the deeper theme of her talk: that wine has always been about people, not just product. She argues that Canadian chardonnay has matured past the need to prove itself against Old World benchmarks and has found its own voice, one shaped by the country’s cool climate and remarkably diverse regions. The bulk of her speech is a call to dismantle wine’s culture of intimidation and snobbery in favor of genuine hospitality, meeting consumers — especially younger, values-driven drinkers — where they are rather than correcting them. She closes by urging the industry to focus not on making better wine, since Canada already does, but on telling more honest, authentic stories that connect each bottle to the place and people behind it. Read the full transcript.
i4C School of Cool 2026: Three Sessions, One Emerging Story
The School of Cool program at this year’s International Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration delivered what its name promises: a working education in what cool-climate winemaking actually looks like right now, told through three quite different lenses — Canadian chardonnay by province, the coming-of-age of Canadian traditional-method sparkling, and a global tour of pinot noir and chardonnay built around limestone and chalk. Taken together, the three panels sketched a single, coherent narrative: cool-climate producers everywhere are converging on precision, restraint and site transparency, even as they arrive there by very different routes. Read the full article.
Buyer’s Guide Vintages July 18: White & Rosé & Sparkling
Colombelle Colombard/sauvignon Blanc 2024, Southwest, France
$12.95, Vinexx
John Szabo – Pretty tough to beat this value if you’re looking for a simple fruity white with a sauvignon blanc-like, tropical fruit profile. And at just 11% ABV declared, you can sip an extra glass or two.
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And that’s a wrap for July 4. Our review of the next July 18 release will be delayed by a couple of days as all of us will be at i4C on the dates we normally taste Vintages releases. The theme is summer wines, with yet another focus on local chardonnays.
That’s all for this report, see you ’round the next bottle.
John Szabo, MS
Use these quick links for access to all of our July 18th Top Picks in the New Release. Non-premium members can select from all release dates 60 days prior.
John’s Top Picks – July 18th
Lawrason’s Take – July 18th
Megha’s Picks – July 18th
Michael’s Mix – July 18th
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