Brett happens

Swartland 2015, Grenache Noir, Leeuwenkuil ($20.00, 13124571)
100% Grenache from old, dry-farmed, bush-trained vines. Yield was limited by reducing the crop to one bunch per shoot. Manually harvested. Alcoholic fermentation on the skins and with indigenous yeasts involved punch-downs and pump-overs. Macerated 20 days on the skins post fermentation. Transferred to 5,000-litre French oak foudres for 14 months for malolactic fermentation and maturation. Reducing sugar: 1.8 g/l. 14% ABV. Screwtop (not cork as per SAQ.com). Quebec agent: Univins.
Likeable nose of red and black raspberry (fresh and jam) dusted with black pepper. Medium-bodied (alcohol notwithstanding). Full of ripe but not heavy fruit. Soft-glow acidity and supple tannins provide just enough structure. Finishes clean and on a peppery note. Not as deep, savoury or flaring as some Rhone Grenaches but not devoid of Grenache character either. A fruit-forward crowd pleaser. I bought this bottle by mistake, thinking it was the same producer’s Cinsault, which I wanted to try with Lattucca‘s most excellent Texas-style barbecue beef brisket and ribs. While the wine was OK with the ‘cue, it’d make a better pairing with less substantial fare, like charcuterie or the winery’s suggestion of venison carpaccio. (Buy again? Maybe.)