Templeton Smith

Taylor Fladgate 20 Year Old Tawny Port, Douro Valley

Extremely pleasurable. Fresh floral and sweet butterscotch nose and taste. Smooth. Yum.

Stoney Ridge Vidal Icewine 2007, VQA Niagara Peninsula (375ml)

Pear, lychee, apple and sweet. Ever so smooth. Very nice.

Michele Castellani Colle Cristi Collezione Ca' Del Pipa Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 2006

This amarone has a wonderful bouquet of fresh fruit, flowers, mint, vanilla ice cream and slight earthiness. The palate is intense with cooked fruit and cherries, and good length. The vanilla makes me think it might be over-oaked. Nonetheless the corvina doesn't show through in all its flavours. So it's not the most representative of amarones but a very good one on its own.

Livio Sassetti Pertimali Brunello Di Montalcino 2006

A terrific Brunello. Nose of violets, roses and flowers. Intense and dark fruits on the palate. Smooth and Long finish.

Inniskillin Vidal Icewine 2007, VQA Niagara Peninsula, With Gift Box (375ml)

Simply wonderful. Sweet, apple and grape. Smooth. Not so sweet it overpowers you. Just the right balance, that makes you keep wanting more and more and more.

Corte Pavone Brunello Di Montalcino 2005, Docg

Sequillo Cellars Red 2009, Wo Swartland

Very nice, but not a wine over 90. Not memorable.

Graham's 20 Year Old Tawny Port, Douro Valley (500ml)

All the usual hallmarks of a 20 year old port are there: the butterscotch, honey, apricot and toffee. The aroma is heavy on alcohol and not quite as fresh as, say, a Taylor. On the palate the port does, as the reviewer above notes, have a bite fresh out of the bottle. This goes away after a day. A nice port, but not better than a Taylor.

Château Saint Roch De Laurens 2007, Ac Faugères

While the nose is fresh with grapes and cherries, on the palate the wine is a bit closed. There are some cocoa and earthy notes on the short finish. I found the wine to be enjoyable but not excellent. It's on a par with Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Tasted January 2012.

Clos Du Calvaire Châteauneuf Du Pape 2009

Fruity nose. In the mouth it's herbal and fruity w cherries, nice. Finish has some cocoa and minerals. Not impressed but not bad either.