Michael Stickings

Château Bellevue La Forêt Rosé 2013, Ac Fronton

Admirably restrained rose with citrusy tartness, including some grapefruit zing, and earthy undertones; opened up quite a bit after a few days, with strawberry and ripe-fruit notes; pleasant contrast to syrupy, candy-like fruit-forward roses.

Whitehaven Pinot Noir 2011, Marlborough

August 2015 update: Still quite good, but too sweet, with pronounced notes of raspberry, cherry, and cranberry, along with earth, beet, and black pepper underlying the fruit. Quite clean and zesty, a simple but satisfying pleasure.

August 2014: A fairly light-coloured Pinot that, in some fundamental ways, is exactly what a good, solid Pinot (particularly from New Zealand) is meant to be, with perky aromas and flavours of sour cherry and raspberry backed up by pronounced earthy, spicy notes; juicy at first, with good tannic weight and a nice finish; nothing spectacular, but admirably balanced.

Closson Chase The Brock Chardonnay, Unfiltered 2012, Niagara River VQA

This is a delicious and admirably restrained Niagara Chardonnay from a great producer. It opens with austerity, lemon and minerals on the nose and palate, but the body fills out with pineapple, mango, and peach, and touches of butter and white pepper, but hardly too much of either. There is depth here, and an abundance of fruit, but the refreshing acidity cuts through any Chard flab while the minerality keeps everything grounded. It's a delicate balance. The tropical/orchard fruit does threaten to overwhelm, while the crispness softens. But up to that point it's quite lovely and vibrant.

Château Manon La Lagune 2010

This is a fine, if generally unremarkable, 2010 from Blaye, across the Gironde from rather more famous appellations on the Left Bank. Upon opening, it offers quite luscious, Merlot-driven strawberry and vanilla aromas, but then thins out into sharper, tarter raspberry and blackberry along with new leather, earth, wood, and smoked meat, accented with a touch of pepper (it's 25% Cab Franc and 15% Cab Sauv to go along with 60% Merlot). It underwhelms at $22 (CDN), especially for a 2010, but it certainly has good acidity, just not the fruit or savoury elements to provide a compelling flavour core.

Château D'anglès La Clape Classique Syrah/Grenache/Mourvèdre 2010, Ac Languedoc

Lacks a bit of punch at first but then opens up with deep, rich olive, cassis, plum, and other purple/dark fruit aromas along with a rustic earthiness on the palette; a bit rough and wild, which is fine, but it's the herbal bitterness that emerges later that while adding to the overall complexity isn't entirely successful; somewhat more nuanced and balanced on the second day; perhaps not terribly refined, but yet more evidence of the astonishing value to be found in France's Midi.

Feudi Salentini Luporano Primitivo Del Tarantino 2012, Igp

With its bold aromas of blueberry, blackberry, and dark cherry, this Primitivo-Aglianico blend from Puglia is certainly similar to any old BBQ-friendly Zinfandel, and it's good enough in that regard. What it brings in addition, though, is restraint, complexity, and savouriness often not found in those in-your-face summer wines. Indeed, there's a lovely underlying earthiness here, combined with herbal and woody elements, red licorice, and buttery creaminess, all presented in a nicely structured package. It's not elegant, but it's a flavourful effort that shows what Primitivo can achieve.

Château Saint Roch Chimères 2011, Ac Côtes Du Roussillon Villages

Overly alcoholic, lacking structure, and a bit syrupy, this Grenache-Syrah-Carignan blend from the Côtes du Roussillon, not far from the Spanish border, nonetheless reflects well its rugged, rocky, schistous terroir. Mineral notes certainly drive the overall aroma and flavour, but there's quite a lot of pleasant fruit as well, including plum, blueberry, raspberry, redcurrant, and black cherry, along with black pepper and herbs. A solid value overall, very tasty despite its flaws.

Gérard Bertrand Grand Terroir Pic Saint Loup 2011, Ap Coteaux Du Languedoc

The best word for this outstanding Rhone-style blend is "harmonious," with its parts fitting together into a complex reflection of the essence of southern France; there's the familiar garrigue that is so much of the terroir, but the notes are many, including savoury olive, herb, black tea, licorice, and black pepper, fruity blueberry, raspberry, black cherry, and plum, and rocky minerality on the palette, all remarkably well-integrated with the tannic backbone; even more remarkable is the unifying rustic elegance preventing the richness from overwhelming the subtleties; extremely well done.

Castaño Solanera Viñas Viejas 2012, Do Yecla

Here's a wonderfully deep, rich, and complex Monastrell-dominant blend with heady aromas of raspberry and black pepper broadening out into pencil/graphite, earth/barnyard, blueberry, dark cherry, and candle wax, then cherry tartness on the finish before the prominent tannins take over; admirably harmonious, but it does start to come apart after awhile, and while youthful and vibrant, it could probably use another couple of years for better overall integration beyond the alluring nose; still, another great value from Yecla, home to so many great values, and a very fine effort indeed.

Innocent Bystander Pinot Noir 2012, Yarra Valley

A solid medium-bodied Pinot tucked in nicely between the austere Burgundian archetype and the more luscious Californian versions; vibrant fruit dominating the nose, balsamic strawberry along with sour cherry and some plum, with spicy earthiness in the background and a hint of candle wax; quite satiny in the mouth, with sufficient tannic structure; not terribly complex and certainly not profound, but overall a pleasant and well-balanced affair.