Cost: $29.95 (Clearance price: $24.95) Grape: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc Category: Sparkling Wine Location: LCBO Vintages Country: Canada Region: Okanagan Valley, British Columbia Format: 750 mL Producer: Steller’s Jay Alcohol: 12.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Beautiful made with elegance. 93/100
Tasting Note: Straw in colour with good acidity & fine mousse, medium+ intense nose & a long length on the finish. This wine features: Light yeast, brioche, green apples, lemon zest, pear, white peach, strawberry, toasted almonds & fresh cut carnations on the nose.
Negatives: None
Interesting Point:
Pairings: Drink this now or in 4-6 years on its own or pair it with Lobster risotto.
Cost: $15.95 Grape: 40% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 25% Carignan, 5% Mourvedre Category: Red Wine Location: LCBO Vintages Country: France Region: Corbières Format: 750 mL Producer: Bonfils Vins & Château Alcohol: 13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Top notch Corbières; fruity & spicy. Score: 95/100
Tasting Note: Medium ruby in colour with good acidity, medium+ intense nose, soft tannin & a long length on the finish. This wine features: Cherry, blueberry, mulberry, plum, licorice, black & white pepper, fennel, olives, leather & violets on the nose.
Negatives: None
Interesting Point: New label for my favourite Corbières, although I prefer the previous one as it was more classic. See my review of their 2016 vintage.
Pairings: Drink this now or in 4-6 years on its own or pair it with PENNE ALLA VODKA Sautéed prosciutto with caramelized onions and tossed in a rosé sauce from Fat Cat Pizza restaurant St. Catharines.
Cost: $24.95 Grape: Syrah Category: Red Wine Location: Winery Country: Canada Region: Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario Format: 750 mL Producer: Niagara College Teaching Winery Alcohol: 13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Not complex but well-made wine at a great price that features dark fruit & spiciness. Score: 95/100
Tasting Note: Medium ruby in colour with foaminess around the perimeter, good acidity, medium+ intense nose, round tannin & a long length on the finish. This wine features: Mulberry, plum, tamarind, black & white pepper, vanilla,
Negatives: Should be labelled Syrah not Shiraz as it’s not styled in the Australian way.
Interesting Point: The foaminess, which looks like soap, doesn’t seem to affect the wine & expect it’s due to the wine being Unfiltered. From Dr. Vinny from Wine Spectator: “Foam, and bubbles in general, are caused when the surface tension of water is decreased, which is how soap creates so many bubbles. Let’s assume that there isn’t soap in your decanter (but you should be sure you are rinsing them out thoroughly, just to be certain). That means there is something in the wine itself that is affecting the surface tension of the wine or the rinsing water.
There are two sources of surface-tension reduction in wine. The first is a protein that’s present in tannins. I tend to notice the foam phenomenon much more often in red wines than in whites, and there are more tannins in reds. Alcohol (ethanol) also has an effect on surface tension. So, you can expect a tannic, high-alcohol wine to yield the most foam among still wines.”
Pairings: Drink this now or in 4-6 years on its own or pair it with Ribeye Steak.
Cost: $15.99 CI Grape: Cabernet Franc & Cabernet Sauvignon Category: Rosé Wine Location: Jacques Scott, Cayman Islands Country: France Region: Cabernet D’Anjou, Loire Valley Format: 750 mL Producer: Château La Varière Alcohol: 11.0% Alcohol/Vol.
A simple but pleasant semi-sweet rosé. Score: 87/100
Tasting Note: Pale copper in colour with medium acidity, medium nose & an average length on the finish. This wine features: Peach, Anjou Pear, papaya, lemon drop on the finish & orange blossom on the nose.
Negatives: None
Pairings: Drink this now or in a couple of years on its own or pair it with spicy foods.
Cost: $18.99 CI Grape: Chardonnay Category: White Wine Location: Jacques Scott, Cayman Islands Country: United States of America Region: Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County, California Format: 750 mL Producer: Pedroncelli Alcohol: 13.9% Alcohol/Vol.
Probably the smoothest, beautifully Cali made Chard I’ve ever tried, & this is not a complex wine nor a high-end Chard. Lastly, it’s under 14% alcohol. Score: 97/100
Tasting Note: Gold in colour with good acidity, medium nose & a long length on the finish. This wine features: Lemon meringue, mango, Honey Crisp apple, clementine, peach, honeydew melon, dill, nutmeg, light oak spice, vanilla, honeycomb & Easter Lily on the nose.
Negatives: None
Interesting Point: I find that Dry Creek Valley wines are one of my favourite with white or red wines.
Pairings: Drink this now or in 3-4 years on its own or pair it with New England Lobster Dip
Cost: $27.99 CI Grape: Chardonnay Category: White Wine Location: Jacques Scott, Cayman Islands Country: United States of America Region: California Format: 750 mL Producer: Decoy Wines Alcohol: 13.8% Alcohol/Vol.
Balanced Cali Chard. Score: 88/100
Tasting Note: Gold in colour with good acidity, medium+ nose & a good length on the finish. This wine features: Lemon, kumquat, Mandarin orange, pineapple, golden apple, pear, butterscotch, vanilla, wet stone & lemon zest on the nose.
Negatives: None
Pairings: Drink this now or in 3-5 years on its own or pair it with jerk chicken
Cost: $18.99 CI Grape: Chardonnay Category: White Wine Location: Jacques Scott, Cayman Islands Country: France Region: Mâcon-Lugny, Burgundy Format: 750 mL Producer: Maison Joseph Drouhin Alcohol: 13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Fresh and light with a very pleasant aftertaste. Score: 90/100
Tasting Note: Gold in colour with good acidity, medium+ nose & a good length on the finish. This wine features: Lemon, peach, red apples, ginger, limestone & white flowers on the nose.
Negatives: None
Interesting Point: Aged in stainless steel vats for 6-8 months. Normally I would use a Chablis style glass, but I found that the Montrachet style worked better as it didn’t have a bitter peach pit taste.
Pairings: Drink this now or in 2-3 years on its own or pair it with vegetable & prawn wok
Cost: $23.99 CI Grape: Glera, Pinot Nero Category: Sparkling Wine Location: Jacques Scott, Cayman Islands Country: Italy Region: North-East Italy Format: 750 mL Producer: Torresella Alcohol: 11.5% Alcohol/Vol.
An excellent wine to pair with Asian foods. Score: 90/100
Tasting Note: Pale copper in colour with good acidity, a low intense nose & a good length on the finish. This wine features: Strawberry, tangerine, Pink Lady apples & spun sugar.
Negatives: None
Interesting Point: “The glera off the skins for 7–8 days at a temperature of 16 °C, and the pinot nero on the skins for 6–7 days. The cuvée is assembled just before second fermentation and the percentage of pinot nero may vary from 10 to 15% depending on the vintage. The second fermentation and subsequent resting on the lees require at least 60 days in order to obtain a fine, persistent bead and more stable colour over time.” (Winery)
Pairings: Drink this now or in 2-3 years on its own or pair it with Bibimbap Bulgogi beef, marinated shitake mushrooms, carrots, cucumber, cabbage, topped with a sunny side egg.
Cost: $26.99 CI Grape: Chardonnay Category: White Wine Location: Jacques Scott, Cayman Islands Country: France Region: Saint-Véran, Mâconnais, Burgundy Format: 750 mL Producer: Château-Fuissé Alcohol: 13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Citric tropical notes followed by sour notes. Score: 88/100
Tasting Note: Light old gold in colour with good acidity, a medium+ intense nose & a long length on the finish. This wine features: Lemon, peach pit, pear, acacia, orange peel, hazelnut, sour dough, honey, vanilla & smoked notes on the nose.
Interesting Point:
Pairings: Drink this now or in 3-5 years on its own or pair it with trout with lemon, dill & butter.
Cost: $16.95 Grape: Chardonnay Category: White Wine Location: LCBO Vintages Country: Australia Region: Padthaway, Clare Valley Format: 750 mL Producer: Wakefield Alcohol: 13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Nice balance between unoaked & oaked Chard with a price that hard to beat for the quality. Score: 92/100
Tasting Note: Light gold in colour with good acidity, a medium+ intense nose & a long length on the finish. This wine features: Lemon-limes, green apples, peach, pear, pineapple, mango, orange peel, dill & vanilla.
Negatives: None
Interesting Point: I like the temperature gage on the back label that helps people to get the correct temperature to drink this wine. 1st time I’ve seen that on a wine label.
Pairings: Drink this now or in 3-5 years on its own or pair it with butternut squash soup.
Twilight Wines 