Andrew Hunter
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Reviews (319)
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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
Caprili Brunello Di Montalcino 2007
Tuscany, Italy$33.25
Showing some bricking on the edge. Dense flavours, great concentration. Plenty of fine, smooth tannins. Classic earthy flavours plus sour cherry, stewed berries. Very nice for the price.
4.0 Stars
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Le Ferme Du Mont Vendange Châteauneuf Du Pape 2010, Ac
Rhône, France$46.95
90-91
Alcohol and some volatility on the nose. Very nice complex wine. Fruit and earthy flavours with a long warm finish.
4.0 Stars
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San Giorgio Ugolforte Brunello Di Montalcino 2006, Docg
Tuscany, Italy$47.95
92-93
Some bricking in the colour. Nose of cherries and peaches flambe'd with cognac. Flavours of cherries, strawberries, lots of fruit, lots of complexity. Long finish. This was a totally yummy wine and a reminder of why I have so much Brunello in my cellar.
4.0 Stars
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Château Du Cèdre Cahors 2009
Southwest, France$21.95
Excellent Cahors. Terrific nose of blackberry jam, some smoke, earthiness and mint.
The initial mouthfeel was lighter and more acidic than I'd expected but with air the wine opened up quite a bit with dark fruit flavours coming to the fore.
Medium-full body, very dark in the glass. Plenty of fruit here but this 90% Malbec is very different from new world styles. Great balance between sweet and savoury. Some tannin, good acidity, Excellent food wine.
Drinking well now but might improve over the short term.
4.0 Stars
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Torbreck Woodcutter's Shiraz 2006, Barossa Valley, South Australia
Australia$30.95
Very average. Especially for a Torbreck.
I suspect many reviewers were blinded by the name on the label (aroma of "blueberry muffin"? please.).
I bought a couple with high hopes but alas "ho-hum" was my initial reaction to the first bottle. Didn't hate it, didn't love it. 2-3 years in the cellar should improve it, loosen it up, soften it, balance it out a bit.
But this is not quite the "incredible value" JM from RP says.
A $25 "Torbreck" should at least have some character..instead I found only mediocrity.
Stateside this is a $16 wine and deservedly so.
3.5 Stars
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Bouchard Père & Fils Beaune Teurons 2006, Ac, 1er Cru
Burgundy, France$42.95
Drank with herbed salmon and mushroom risotto.
Decanted for 3 hours.
Typical in every way. Light red in colour, very clear once the sediment settled, medium body. Fruit and earth nose and the usual elusive aromatics of pinot noir. Strawberries and a vegetal streak on the palate. Decent acidity, plenty of fine tannins and a dry finish.
Now what's wrong with all that you say?
Nothing, it's a good wine, except you can get all of that for half the price!
Will certainly benefit from a few more cellar years...but it's still not worth $42.
3.5 Stars
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Batasiolo Bosc Dla Rei Moscato D'asti 2007, Docg
Piedmont, Italy$19.95
87+
A cute little wine.
Lychees, granny smith apples, gooseberry and a touch of effervescence.
Very sweet.
Only 5.5%.
Will be a fun summer sipper.
3.5 Stars
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Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc 2007, Marlborough
New Zealand$19.95
Strong scent of pink grapefruit right out of the gate. Crisp and refreshing, nice medium body and really quite delicious.
Would be great with grilled mildly seasoned salmon (lemon, sea salt, pepper, fresh dill...nothing else!). Seafood, shellfish. Might be nice with mildly spiced asian foods, mild curried chicken, phad thai etc.
And of course any chicken dish that's not too heavy...roasted, a bit of rosemary maybe.
Bold flavours might kill the subtleties of this wine...keep it simple.
If the food could use a squeeze of lemon...crack this gal open.
3.5 Stars
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Cono Sur Viognier 2008, Colchagua Valley
Chile$9.95
87+
Probably the best valued white at LCBO. We drank this with a pile of Indian food and it was fantastic. I bought a whole bunch more to have at the ready. Much more flavor than similarly priced Rieslings or Chardonnays (to compare apples and oranges). Citrusy, (bitter apricots?) some nice spice and a slightly musky-sour thing (in a good way). Has some body to it and a good finish. Really good all-round white.
3.5 Stars
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