todd10

13th Street Expression Series Cabernet/Merlot 2020, VQA Niagara Peninsula

Aromas of black current with a hint of herbs.
Firm tannin that works well with a charcuterie.
Overall it was a nice wine, but not too complexed. Good for under $20.

Henry Of Pelham Estate Chardonnay 2020, VQA Short Hills Bench, Niagara Peninsula

This wine had some nice complexity. The key is, to drink it at 11C or 12C. At 12C when I took it out of my wine fridge, I was getting aromas of candle wax, hazelnut, and butter. The taste was butter and apple. Nice long finish.
As the wine cooled down in my wine chiller, the complexity really got muted. So again, try this at 11C or 12C. I wonder what temperature this was served at in the National Wine Awards of Canada. If it was at 12C, I bet this may have won Gold.
Tasted November 2022

Montgras Antu Carmenere 2015, Santa Cruz

Oak on the nose, but the layers of flavour was great. Dark fruit, vanilla, and oak were all detected. The tannins were nice enough to hold up great with the steak that I was drinking this with. Tasted Aug 2019

Yalumba The Strapper Gsm 2016, Vegan, Barossa Valley

This is an easy drinking wine. The tannin's are very smooth. The nose was filled with berries. Through the evening, the wine did not open up much more then when I first opened it so need to decant. I am giving this an 89 only because it was not as complexed as I would have liked, but it is still a solid wine. Great for under $20
2016 Vintage tasted March 2020

Novas Gran Reserva Sauvignon Blanc Organic 2017, San Antonio Valley

I see it has been almost two years since this was last reviewed. One thing that I noticed that the last two reviews did not was grape fruit. Very clear aromas and taste of grape fruit. I am not sure if that developed with age. Along with grape fruit, I also had aromas of cut grass.
Not as crisp as New Zealand Sauvignon blancs but still very nice. Surprised that a wine this nice was only $15.95.
Tasted August 2020

Arterra Chardonnay 2017, VQA, Niagara Peninsula

Nutty aromas. It has a medium to full body mouth feel. A balanced wine. When reading reviews I was expecting it to be a little more acidic then it was. A hint of butter on the taste. The finish was a little hot.
Tasted March 2020

Tessellae Vieilles Vignes Carignan 2017, Igp Cotes Catalanes, Roussillon

I had the 2015 vintage a couple of years ago, it was great, the 2016 last year disappointed me,but this 2017 vintage was great again. I had a lot of dark fruit on the nose with a touch of oak. The flavors were dark fruit. At this point I was giving it a 90 but then it opened up and the flavors were in one word...delicious. The dark fruit was very tasty. 91 for a bottle under $20 is not bad at all. Perhaps decant for about 30 minutes.
Tasted August 2019

Jacob's Creek Chardonnay Reserve 2018, Adelaide Hills

I was not expecting as much oak influence in the wine as I got. The wine displayed nutty and vanilla aromas. I found the wine nicely balanced with a good finish. Not really fruity but more nutty flavors.
For $14.95, this wine is a bargain. If you are looking for fruity flavors though, perhaps stay away from this one.
Tasted October 2020

Castelo Do Mar Albariño 2018, Do Rías Baixas

Aromas of pear and green apple. It has taste of fresh pear . Not as acidic as I was expecting. I started drinking this
at around 7 Celsius, but later on it went down to probably 3 or 4 degrees Celsius. I enjoyed it more at the cooler temperature. It tasted more fresh and crisp at the cooler temperatures.

Tasted April 2020

Nals Margreid Pinot Grigio 2017, Doc Südtirol Alto Adige

On the nose I was getting a buttery scent that you may expect from an oaked chardonnay. The taste was well balanced. What I enjoyed the most was this little acidic kick on the finish.

Tasted Dec 2019