todd10

Anthonij Rupert Cape Of Good Hope Altima Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Wo Elandskloof, Western Cape

Excellent character. The nose had both tropical fruit and herbal aromas. I am sure many of you could point out in greater detail the exact aromas, and I bet their would be many. The taste did not have the zippy crispness of what you would find in a New Zealand Sauvignon blanc but nice more complexed flavors.
The wine was great throughout the evening as long as you keep it around 7 or 9C, It dipped to cold and too warm for me a couple of times and then its quality went down rapidly.
Tasted January 2021

Villa Maria Private Bin Sauvignon Blanc 2020, Marlborough

This wine had very nice citrus aromas. I narrowed it down to grapefruit and some lime. Great flavors of citrus with a nice touch of acidity. Good length.
Tasted September 2021

Tedeschi Marne 180 Amarone Della Valpolicella 2020

Fantastic wine. It was not as complexed as other Amarone's that I have had. This is the basic dark fruit flavours and aroma's. What makes this stand out though is how delicious these flavours are. The balance was great. As the night progressed, the wine tasted even better so decanting is not a bad idea but it is great right from opening the bottle.
Tasted November 2024

Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, Colchagua Valley

I see that I loved and rated the 2017 vintage a 91. 2018 did not dazzle me so much. I did enjoy the raspberry that was on the nose, but the tannins were so strong that my mouth dried out on one sip. With that said, the tannins did smooth out as the night progressed, so I would recommend to decant to calm those tannins. A long finish with taste of dark fruit. It is an okay wine, but nothing too special (unlike the 2017 vintage that I was very happy with).
Tasted April 2021

Ontañón Reserva 2011, Doca Rioja

This wine had aromas of tabacco and oak. I was hoping for more complexity for a wine that is 10 years old. This wine did have a nice long finish. I found the wine had a nice balance.
Over the few hours that the wine was opened, I did not find any improvement so I see no reason to decant.
Nice wine but I was expecting more complexity.
Tasted February 2021

Dagaz Carmenère 2018, Do Valle De Colchagua

This wine started off promising with nice notes of raspberry and black pepper. However, when I tasted it, it seemed off balance and was lacking quality flavor. It had some grippy tannins, but that is about it. I felt it tasted a bit better the longer the bottle was opened, so perhaps decanting for 30 minutes to an hour will help open this up.
Tasted December 2022

Konzelmann Lakeside Series Merlot 2019, Niagara Peninsula VQA

I received earthy aromas such as potting spoil. Perhaps some dried fruit. The tannins are soft. Some fruit flavors on the finish. This wine was missing some structure, perhaps needed more tannins. Not really a complexed wine either. I guess for $14.95 I should not expect much. This is a good wine for a party with guest that will not critique the wine.
Tasted Jan 2022

Creekside Sauvignon Blanc 2020, Niagara Peninsula

This wine surpassed my expectations. Aromas that hit me hard were tropical fruit with a bit of citrus. A little bit of chalk was in there too. This wine had some nice length. A refreshing acidity. I over chilled this wine after, and it lost some complexity. I would suggest drinking this between 8 to 11C. If I did not always buy a different bottle of wine, I would purchase a case of this right now. At this price, you can't go wrong.
Tasted March 2022

Thirty Bench Winemaker's Blend Cabernet Franc 2020, Niagara Peninsula

Aromas and taste of dark fruit. I drank this wine over two hours or so. When I first opened this wine, that is when I felt it had the most potential. Probably about an hour later I felt this wine got muted taking down this score. The odd thing is near the end it was good again? I have never had the roller coaster ride of wine being good, not good and then good again in the same night.

Tasted January 2025

Huff Estates South Bay Vineyards Chardonnay 2019, Prince Edward County

Before I swirled this wine I was getting buttery notes. Swirling produced some citrus notes with some minerality.
This wine has a nice touch of acidity and a long finish. I enjoyed the oak influenced flavors.
Tasted March 2022