Andrew Hunter
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Andrew Hunter is a musician and composer. He abandoned his career in film and television to raise his kids, make music and drink wine.
My love of wine started with underage sips at the family dinner table. In college I fancied myself a sophisticate as I drank Chianti with pizza, back when Chianti still came in wicker 'fiasco' bottles. (I miss those, great candle holders.) I admit to still having a soft spot for Mateus. Cheap, sweet wine in a chubby bottle was just fine. Back then all I knew about wine was that there was red, white and pink (and girls really liked that white zinfandel!). It was years later, when I started to frequent some of Toronto's finer restaurants, that vinous epiphanies began to occur. Sips of wine that caused quiet pause and an exclamation of, "oh...wow."
I began to read everything I could about wine. I built a cellar and started collecting bottles. My taste evolved from sweet, easy-drinking, fruit-forward wines to the more old-world styles of France and Italy. I tend to prefer wines that are understated and complex over the super-extracted fruit-bombs which seem to be increasingly fashionable. I'll generally take Bordeaux over Napa and Tuscany over Australia. But there are always exceptions!
I'm a huge fan of sweet wines. I rarely meet an ice wine or Sauternes that I don't like. I also get along very well with Port.
Riesling is my favorite white, along with Viognier, Gerwurztraminer and Santorini Assyrtiko. Chardonnay is my least favorite. No matter how much I spend or how great the pedigree, I have yet to be blown away. Somewhere out there is a really delicious Chardonnay. I'm still looking for it.
My busy life leaves little time for blogging but at the very least I review every wine I taste.
There's nothing more subjective than art...Except perhaps wine. At our wine club I'm always pleased when someone prefers the $12 wine to the $50 wine (unfortunately it never seems to be me). For all it's pretentiousness and hype wine is a just a drink, either you like it or you don't. There is no right or wrong. It's all about discovering what you like!
In my wine reviews I try to describe the wine in a simple, unpretentious way. My aim is to help the reader decide if it's a wine they might like or want to avoid.
Of course, I'll tell you if I like it or not, but also, unlike many professional critics, I write with the clear assumption that what you like and what I like may very well be opposite. It doesn't matter. I'll tell you if a wine is sweet and fruit-forward and or dry, tannic and savory and let you decide.
http://torontowineguy.blogspot.com/
Reviews
Robert Mondavi Private Selection Cabernet Sauvignon 2005, California
California, Usa$17.95
2.5 Stars
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Angus The Bull Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
Australia$19.95
86+
Gimmicky marketing aside, this is indeed a great steak wine. Plenty of upfront dark berries, a good savory tang, coarse-ish tannins and nice acidity makes it prefect for cutting though a rich piece of meat (in my case rare-grilled tenderloin with stilton-tarragon-butter sauce.) Nice long, dry finish. On it's own this brute was a bit rough, a bit rustic, but it's a pretty good food wine. I will buy more to cellar for 2-3 years to tame the beast a bit. But if a bottle of wine for red meat is what you need this cow will do the trick nicely.
2.5 Stars
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Wolf Blass Yellow Label Sparkling Brut
Australia$13.49
Decent bubbly for a good price. Tight nose, a bit of citrus, mango, grassy notes. Crisp, dry palate. Bubbles are on the coarse/foamy side (no superfine champagne fizz here). A simple sipper but surely a decent value. Great for small occasions, simple dishes and morning mimosas.
2.5 Stars
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J. Lohr Seven Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, Paso Robles, California
California, Usa$22.95
88
Ah, the standard ol' "Keg steakhouse" wine.
Easy drinking, VERY fruit forward and sweet Cabernet Sauvignon. Very Cali.
There are those who love this wine and those who don't.
Those who love it tend to like sweetish, easy drinking wines ("oh it's so smooth!"), as opposed to say, more austere and savory Bordeaux or earthy Burgundies.
As my palate has developed I now feel this has a certain 'mass-produced, too sweet, too soft' thing going on.
Still, good luck finding a $20 Bordeaux that will please as many at the dinner table.
2.5 Stars
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The Ruins Syrah/Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, Wo Eilandia Robertson, Made With Organic Grapes
South Africa$14.95
85+
Was vigorously recommended to me by a lcbo lady.. Drank one, bought another next time I was there...good QPR (quality to price ratio).
2.5 Stars
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Antinori Pèppoli Chianti Classico 2006, Docg
Tuscany, Italy$19.95
90-92
A darn fine Chianti.
Not quite "full" bodied, but almost. Dense, dark (but fading fast) fruits, nice fine tannin. Savory, with a slightly sweet, fruity undertone.
Not much life left though I fear...the tannins are holding strong while the fruit lays underneath. If the fruit can survive a year or two in the cellar this could evolve spendidly. Not sure it has the stuffing...the tannins might be too strong and the fruit may already be fading. Drink now. But worth a shot at 1 or 2 years aging.
2.5 Stars
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Chateau Bonnet Reserve Red 2005, Bordeaux
Bordeaux, France$12.15
Bonnet is a real benchmark for standard "Bordeaux"-class red wine, which is nothing to brag about as such, but it's certainly a decent drink if you like the style (as I do). This is an honest, (prototypical even) French red wine that will cut through the richest of meats and cheeses on a budget. Tight nose on opening, classic, if reserved, aromas of dark berries, anise and pencil shavings with some swirling. Medium bodied, very dry, with an austere, lean fruitiness and plenty of tannin. Old school French style all the way. A good Wednesday night Bordeaux.
2.5 Stars
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Ravenswood Vintners Blend Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, California
California, Usa$18.95
Yeah this is pretty weak.
Thin, simple, obviously mass produced.
Totally drinkable, in a glugable, modern-styled way. But you can the exact same thing for AT LEAST $5 less in many other Cali and Aussie cabs.
This sells for about $9 in the U.S. and that's about right as far as I'm concerned.
2.5 Stars
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Illuminati Riparosso Montepulciano D'abruzzo 2008, Doc
Abruzzo, Italy$12.95
A good, old fashioned Montepulciano d’Abbruzzo and, along with young Chianti, one of my go-to pizza & spaghetti on Wednesday wines.
Deep, bright red. Hot, spicy, fruity nose. Medium body. Hot & tangy. Sort of like a rustic Barbera with attitude and tannins. Boozy but plenty of flavour. Palate cleaning acidity and bright fruit make this a great Cheese-&-tomato-dish wine.
Drink this next Wednesday with a pizza and tell me it's not a perfect match.
Wine snobs take note: The best food wines are often inexpensive (and Italian)!
Drink young.
2.5 Stars
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Cellier Des Dauphins Carte Noire 2008, Cotes Du Rhone
Rhône, France$10.95
(2010 vintage)
Tight nose.
Medium-full bodied. Fruit is generally outweighed by savory, bitter and sour notes. Some wood, quite tannic. But all in an old-world, honest, rustic sort of way. Not a great sipper on it's own but I found this to be an outstanding cheese wine. Worth trying for the price.
2.5 Stars
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