A tale of two Chenins
It was the best of wines, it was a little less than the best of wines.
Jasnières 2009, Prémices, Domaine de Bellivière ($23.95, 11463140)
Jasnières is a small appellation on the Loir river (a tributary once removed of the Loire) about 35 km north of Tours. One of the appellation’s brightest lights, Domaine de Bellivère has been organic since 2005 and biodynamic since 2008, no small feat in such a damp and cool climate. The SAQ wine advisor who informed me of the wine’s arrival said it was a young vines cuvée; Bellivière’s website makes no mention of the vines’ age but rather presents it as an entry-level bottling. 12.5% ABV.
Classic Chenin nose of white fruit (pear, quince, grapefruit, maybe some honeydew melon), chalk and a whiff of honeysuckle. On the palate, the tense balance between the citrusy fruit, faint residual sugar and high acidity might put a blind taster in mind of a kabinett Riesling. But the texture isn’t German – it’s denser and weightier, though in no way ponderous – and there’s that quinine and honey finish. While the wine lacks some of the breadth, depth and length of its upmarket stablemates, it’s far from simple. Plus it has the advantage of being delightfully fresh and totally ready to drink. Hard to imagine a better pairing for shrimp berbère.
Anjou 2009, Chenin Blanc, Pithon-Paillé ($23.85, 10525345)
Another entry-level Chenin from Jo Pithon’s négociant arm. Made at least partially from organically farmed grapes. Fermented with native yeasts. 13% ABV.
Another textbook Chenin nose: pear, lemon, apple, chalk. Clean and bright in the mouth, the sharp acidity balanced by the ripe fruit and ample texture. Minerally finish with a hint of honeyed apples. Dry, pure, refreshing: a fine, straightforward wine if a little overshadowed by the refulgent Prémices.
Both wines have just arrived at the SAQ. Both tend to sell out quickly.
It’s back!
The SAQ has just received a second shipment of the 2009 Côtes du Rhône-Villages Signargues, Domaine La Montagnette ($16.15, 11095949), which is bottled by the small Vignerons d’Estézargues cooperative. Cooperatives have an often deserved reputation for churning out unremarkable wines, but this is one of the exceptions. Practices in the vineyard are semi-organic – lutte raisonnée, as the French say – with chemicals being used only as a last resort. Practices in the cellar are even more natural: native yeasts; no acidification or chaptalization; reds are fermented at low temperature and given long maceration; sulphur is avoided until just before bottling, when a small amount is added to stabilize the wines.
Like most Côtes du Rhônes, it’s a blend: 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% each Mourvèdre and Carignan. Fermented and matured in stainless steel. Unfiltered, so less than perfectly limpid. An earthy if supple mouthful of dark fruit (think black cherry, black raspberry, plum) and spice, structured by bright acidity and light, tarry/slatey tannins. Exceedingly dry. Finishes on a peppery, kirschy note, with a lingering rhubarb-like astringency. A little heftier (thanks to the vintage and the 14.5% ABV) and thus less charming than the 2008 and $1 more expensive than last fall’s initial shipment. Still, if the SAQ sells a better red – let alone one with such an attractive label – at this price point, I’d love to know about it.
The fall shipment sold out fast. This will too. And if you need an excuse to seize the day, you’ve got one: this Saturday and Sunday, when you buy $100 or more worth of products at the monopoly, you’ll get a gift card worth 15% of the total.
Quick takes
Spent some quality time with the Beaubien SAQ Sélection outlet’s wine-tasting station on the weekend. With the possible exception of the Gevrey, all are worth acquiring (though you might want to wait for next weekend’s rumoured $5-off-each-$50-spent sale).
Crozes-Hermitage 2009, Domaine Combier ($31, 11154980)
(saq.com lists this as the 2007 but the wine I tasted and the bottle I bought were indeed the 2009.)
100% organically farmed, manually harvested Syrah from three parcels. Completely destemmed. Spent 25 days in stainless steel fermentation vats, 12 months in newish oak barrels. 12.5% ABV.
Gorgeous nose of ripe red fruit, sandalwood, gingerbread spice. Shows young on the palate, the sweet fruit balanced by bright acid and light, tingly tannins. Flavours turn darker on the finish. Fleet and fluid yet somehow very present. Syrah may come deeper than this but not much purer, fresher or more engaging.
Gevrey-Chambertin 2007, Domaine Perrot-Minot ($65, 10919045)
100% organically farmed Pinot Noir. Matured in oak barrels, 25% new, 37.5% one-year and 37.5% two-year. Unfiltered and unfined. 13.5% ABV.
Red berries, funk, leafmould and a hint of oak. Silky texture. Very dry. Seems structured more by acidity than tannins until you chew the wine. Light weight tending to ephemeral but surprisingly long. Needs time?
Margaux 2004, Château Labégorce ($42.75, 10546841)
50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. Fermented in concrete vats, matured 12-15 months in 35% new oak barrels. 12.5% ABV.
Cassis, blackberry, graphite and a little oak: will eventually develop a classic Margaux fragrance. Suave and structured, the tannins fine but still astringent. Medium-bodied, showing some depth, good balance and length. Enjoyable now but even better in a few years. Traditionally styled – quite the welcome change from some of its modern, New Worldish compatriots. These days, $40 for a Bordeaux of cru classé quality spells great QPR.
Maremma Toscana IGT 2009, Sinarra, La Fattoria di Magliano ($21.65, 11191447)
Partially destemmed Sangiovese (95%) and Petit Verdot (5%). Fermented in stainless steel. The must and skins are heated slightly after fermentation. Matured in concrete butts. Unfiltered. 13% ABV.
Lovely nose: candied black raspberries and a freshness evocative of mint or spring leaves. Sweet fruit, good acid. Fluid. Drying tannins linger. Vanilla note on finish. Overall impression of freshness. Modern but in a nice way. Drink now.
Priorat 2004, Clos de l’Obac, Costers del Siurana ($73, 10781808)
About one-third each Grenache and Cabernet Sauvignon with some Syrah, Merlot and Carignan. Dry-farmed. Insecticide-free. 14.5% ABV.
Complex nose: dark fruit, leather, slate, kirsch. Full-bodied but not hot. Suave and balanced, the power held in reserve, the smooth surface belying the rigid structure and impenetrable depth. Showed some well-integrated oak as it warmed. Great aging potential. Imposing and impressive.
Tami double whammy
Good news! Our favourite Silcilian winemaker, Arianna Occhipinti, and partners have launched a négociant line of affordable wines under the Tami label. They buy grapes from local organic growers and make the wines in Arianna’s facilities. In addition to the two wines discussed here, there’s a Grillo, which I’ve not managed to snag a bottle of. All three were brought into Quebec by oenopole earlier this spring and sold out in about five minutes. Tami is reportedly ramping up production and oenopole says availability should be much less tight in the future.
Sicilia IGT 2009, Frappato, Tami ($18.25, oenopole)
Lovable nose: red berry-flavoured hard candies, dusty sun-baked earth, gaining some leafmould. Sweet and sour cherry on entry. Medium bodied. Light tannins. Bit of an acid bite and a streak of residual sugar. Turns darker and drier on the finish with its lingering mild bitterness (cherry pits?). Simple but not facile. Label suggests serving with appetizers and fish. Didn’t stand up well to a pork and mushroom stew perfumed with anchovy and marjoram, though I could see it working with grilled salmon. Serve lightly chilled.
Sicilia IGT 2009, Nero d’Avola, Tami ($18.25, oenopole)
Plum and blackberry, shoebox, hints of dried herb, terra cotta and red meat. Medium bodied. Layered flavours: bright red fruit at first, then darker, with an elusive spice note (star anise?). Tannins still light but so much more present than in the Frappato. Long with a lingering astringence. The wine’s welterweight and acidity mean it avoids even a hint of heaviness. Paired well with that pork stew and with a merguez pizza, testifying to its adaptability to a wide range of savoury dishes.
Compared with Occhipinti’s flagship wines – Il Frappato and Siccagno (100% Nero d’Avola), which run about twice the price – these are simpler, more straightforward, made for immediate consumption. Or, to put it another way, if those wines are not out of place at formal dinners, these wines are for everyday drinking, for al fresco meals, for throwing back: Italian equivalents of a great bistro wine.
Un couple d’Aixois
While it would be going too far to claim that Provençal wines get no respect, it is true that they’re often overlooked. Part of the problem is that, until recently and with a few exceptions like Bandol, they were often overlookable. Tighter regulation as former VDQS regions have been granted AOC status, the planting of better grapes and the arrival of more serious winemakers have turned the situation around. Today, Provence is the source of many enjoyable and affordable wines of every colour, wines that more often than not taste of their place.
Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence 2006, Domaine Les Béates ($22.75, 11358260)
Organically farmed Grenache, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. Reared in stainless steel and one-year oak vats.
Lovely, brooding nose: red fruit, garrigue, earth. Smooth and fluid on the palate, the fruit pure and ripe. Quite structured by fine tannins though not particularly deep. Good acidity and length, with a hint of vanilla on the finish. Comes across as a little austere but in an appealing, even elegant way. No apparent alcohol and medium-bodied, despite the 14%.
Coteaux d’Aix-en-Provence 2008, Château Revelette ($18.30, 10259737)
Organically farmed 50% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. Vinified and reared in concrete vats.
Baked earth, dried herbes de Provence, dark fruit, sawed wood, hint of alcohol. Silky on entry, turning velvety as the tannins make their presence felt. Pure fruit, sweet at first but gaining sourer notes and darker undertones. Long finish shows some astringency along with lingering black cherry flavours.
Both wines went with an estouffade provençale (beef stewed in red wine with aromatic vegetables, thyme and bay and finished with grated orange zest) as to the manner born.
SAQ–LCBO rematch X
This week saw two releases of note: the March 17th Cellier arrivage, two of whose wines (identified here with asterisks) are available at the LBCO, and the March 19th Vintages release, with 22 wines also found at the SAQ.
SAQ / LCBO
$7.95 / $8.00 Hakutsuru Sayuri Nigori (300 ml)
$8.40 / $8.45 Hakutsuro Junmai Ginjo (300 ml)
$14.40 / $14.95 Obsession Symphony 2009 Ironstone
$15.75 / $13.95 Alamos Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 Mendoza
$16.30 / $16.95 Contado Riserva Aglianico del Molise 2007*
$18.15 / $16.95 Banfi Centine 2008 Toscana
$20.10 / $19.95 Beringer Founder’s Estate Syrah 2009
$20.70 / $21.95 Segal’s Special Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
$20.95 / $19.95 Santa Barabara Wine Company Pinot Noir 2009
$22.25 / $15.95 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Merlot 2006
$22.75 / $19.95 D’Arenberg The High Trellis Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
$24.15 / $34.95 Colomé Estate Malbec 2008 Calchaqui Valley
$25.65 / $25.95 Vina Mayor Reserva 2004 Ribera del Durero
$26.40 / $24.95 Altaïr Sideral 2005 Rapel Valley
$26.95 / $26.95 Gabriel Meffre Laurus Gigondas 2007
$31.25 / $29.95 Pisco Soldeica
$35.75 / $36.95 Ferdinando Principiano Barolo Serralunga 2005*
$36.75 / $37.95 Sartori Amarone della Valpolicella 2006
$45.75 / $43.95 Ruffino Ducale Oro Chianti Classico Riserva 2005
$48.25 / $44.95 Mission Hill Quatrain 2006
$54.00 / $53.95 Gaja Sito Moresco 2008 Langhe
$120.25 / $119.95 Caymus Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon 2008
$150.75 / $134.95 Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
$342.00 / $339.95 Opus One 2007
SAQ 9, LCBO 14.
A basket of all 24 wines would run $1,155.60 (average of $48.15 a bottle) in Quebec and $1,132.35 (average of $47.18 a bottle) in Ontario.
The price difference for the Columbia Crest Merlot ($22.15 at the SAQ, $15.95 at the LCBO) is hard to fathom. On the other hand, that for the Colomé Estate Malbec ($24.15 vs. $34.95) may have something to do with the SAQ’s bringing it to market before the Wine Spec ranked it 66 in their Top 100 Wines of 2010.
SAQ–LCBO rematch IX
Two releases this week: the SAQ’s March 3rd Cellier release, three of whose wines are also available in Ontario, and the LCBO’s March 5th Vintages release, 14 of whose wines are stocked by the SAQ.
SAQ / LCBO (Cellier 2011-03-03)
$26.45 / $28.95 Chianti Classico Riserva 2006 Tenuta di Capraia
$29.35 / $28.95 Modus 2006 Toscana Ruffino
$38.50 / $46.95 Brunello di Montalcino 2004 Tenuta Friggiali
SAQ / LCBO (Vintages 2011-03-05)
$14.90 / $14.95 Mas des Bressandes Cuvée Tradition 2009 Costières-de-Nîmes rouge
$16.00 / $14.95 Ermete Medici & Figli Concerto Lambrusco 2009
$17.95 / $15.95 Bodegas Callia Magna Shiraz 2008 Valle del Tulum, San Juan
$18.55 / $15.00 Bodegas Lan Crianza 2006 Rioja
$18.95 / $15.95 Villa Maria Private Bin Riesling 2010
$22.20 / $22.95 D’Arenberg The Footbolt Shiraz 2007 McLaren Vale
$23.65 / $22.95 Spy Valley Pinot Noir 2009 Marlborough
$23.20 / $18.95 Chavet Fils Menetou-Salon Blanc 2009
$24.55 / $17.95 Cline Los Carneros Syrah 2006
$26.10 / $24.95 Marqués de Murrieta Finca Ygay Reserva 2005 Rioja
$26.95 / $24.95 Janz Premium Cuvée Tasmania
$27.05 / $19.95 Beringer Zinfandel 2006 Clear Lake
$27.35 / $27.95 Château Haut-Chaigneau 2006 Lalande-de-Pomerol
$29.85 / $32.95 Calera Pinot Noir 2008 Central Coast
SAQ 6, LCBO 11.
A basket of the three Cellier wines would cost $94.30 (average of $31.43 a bottle) in Quebec and $104.85 (average of $34.95 a bottle) in Ontario. A basket of all 14 Vintages wines would run $317.25 (average of $22.66 a bottle) in Quebec and $290.35 average of ($20.74 a bottle) in Ontario.
Some of the difference may be attributable to exchange rates. For example, that Beringer Zin has been available in Quebec for a while now and so may have been purchased when the Canadian dollar was 5 or 6% below its current value vis-à-vis the US dollar. (You’ve also got to wonder whether Beringer wasn’t anxious to unload any remaining stocks of a four-year-old wine that’s probably not a long keeper.) Similarly, the Cellier wines are all new arrivals and so may have benefited from the recently resurgent Canadian dollar.
Also, though the Cellier sample is small, the results reinforce the widely held belief that the LCBO’s the winner when it comes to lower-end wines while the SAQ takes the premium wine crown.
Claude Courtois’s 2009 Quartz
Vin de France 2009, Quartz, Domaine Claude Courtois/Les Cailloux du Paradis ($28.00, 12 bottles/case, La QV)
Thought this was a second shipment of the 2008, which I so enjoyed last June, but it turns out to be the 2009, which I enjoyed even more. Popular with the province’s new-wave bistros and wine bars, this will sell out quickly, especially as it’s about 10% cheaper than the 2008.
100% Sauvignon Blanc. 12.2% ABV.
Nose of minerals and rain. Hints of citrus zest (more lime than lemon) and herby hay but no extroverted grassiness, boxwood or cat pee.
Very dry. Initial fruit quickly joined by a crystalline, citrusy sourness and a faint quinine-like bitterness. Brightly, not screechingly acidic. Long, clean, minerally finish. Subtle, pure, transparent: a watercolour, not an oil painting
So refreshing and tonic, like water from a mountain spring. What Chablis would be if it were made from Sauvignon Blanc.
Perfect with oysters Rockefeller. Almost as good with pan-seared scallops drizzled with a Meyer lemon and white wine reduction.
• • •
Domaine Claude Courtois/Les Cailloux du Paradis is in Sologne, a Loire Valley district located just south of Touraine. Courtois likes to describe himself as a winemaking peasant with a deep respect for nature. That means old-fashioned farming, with no chemical fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides, and using atypical winemaking techniques designed to bring out the essence of the terroir. Currently 13 ha (32 acres) in size, the estate is planted mainly with Gamay (for the Nacarat cuvée); Cabernet Franc, Cot and Cabernet Sauvignon (Racines cuvée); Sauvignon Blanc (Quartz and Plume d’ange cuvées) and Pineau (Alkimya cuvée). He has got into trouble with local authorities for planting Syrah (not to mention the rumoured Barbera, Sangiovese, Tempranillo, etc.), even though historical records show that it was part of the region’s grape mix prior to the phylloxera crisis.
Wine Terroirs profile
French Facebook page run by fans (Courtois is said to be, well, if not exactly a Luddite, someone who has little time for modern technology)
The estate’s way out-of-date website
Some excellent photos of Courtois and his estate and of Olivier Cousin
Not just another Monday
The agencies that brought us the relaxed and intimate private-import tasting in mid-October are organizing a similar event for the evening of Monday, February 21.
Presenting wines from their portfolios, many of them recent arrivals, will be La QV, Les Sélections Soly Leblanc, Mon Caviste, Côté Vignes and, possibly, Sublime.
Featured producers may include:
- Azienda Agricola Giuliani Marcella (Latium)
- Cantine Sant’Agata (Piedmont)
- Château Chainchon (Bordeaux)
- Clos Cavenac (Sud-ouest)
- Clos Mathélisse (Languedoc)
- Schloss Halbturn (Austria)
- Domaine Paul Pernot (Burgundy)
- Domaine Ribiera (Languedoc)
- Alain & Philippe Sallé (Loire)
- Le Grain de Sénevé (Beaujolais-Villages)
- Domaine des Homs (Minervois)
- Domaine Sarnin-Berrux (Burgundy)
- Domaine André Bonhomme (Burgundy)
- Villa di Masser (Veneto)
There have also been persistent rumours that some wow-worthy French beer may put in an appearance.
Admission is $35 a head, which includes pours of all the wines on offer and some finger food.
The space is small, so places are limited and reservations are required. Reserve by sending a message to info@laqv.ca or contacting any of the participating agencies.
Monday, February 21, 2011
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Salon de dégustation La QV
29, rue Beaubien est
Montréal (Québec) H2S 1P7
Brett happens 