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Tracking down the LCBO’s best from cottage country ©
© Michael
Vaughan 2001
National Post Weekly Wine & Spirits
Columnist
Saturday,
August 4, 2001
I was listening to the
lament of one summer cottage dweller who was going on and on about the
“ratty” selection of products at his local countrified LCBO outlet. It
immediately became obvious that this unhappy camper hadn’t been paying
attention to some of the excellent services our local monopoly is willing
to provide.
Check out the upcoming August
11th Vintages Catalogue and you’ll see on page 48
that anyone outside of the Greater Toronto or Ottawa region “can make
requests from upcoming Releases by contacting their local store… a
percentage of stock is set aside for customers outside these metropolitan
areas.” Note that orders must be placed by this Wednesday, August 7th
(no later than 11 am) and that there is ‘no guarantee of delivery of all
products to all customers at all times.’
Limited availability
isn’t too surprising because the better wines at the LCBO are always in
short supply. Having said that, I invite readers to contact me (mbv@total.net)
if they encounter inexplicable problems with their orders.
In honour of this
weekend’s Caribana in Toronto, I want to highlight two rum liqueurs that
will make you want to get up and dance. The first is bound to titillate
the most discerning of palates. Move over Sex
and the City, it’s called Rumona a name which for me congers up the
image of a seductress sucking on a martini.
The
sweet, spicy, Wray & Nephew ‘Rumona’ Rum Liqueur at
only $18.90 has 31% alcohol. Behind the light golden amber colour are
Rummy, butterscotch flavours that make a perfect after-dinner sipper. If
it’s hot, pour it on the rocks – perhaps with a twist of lemon.
Even more intriguing is Berry
Hill Pimento Allspice Liqueur (also $18.90 with 30% alcohol),
which is made by steeping Pimento berries (actually allspice) in rum.
Allspice is a dried unripened berry from a West Indian tree called Pimenta
dioica, which is related to eucalyptus. This darkly coloured Jamaican
effort is extremely spicy, viscous and sweet – dripping with minty
clove, ginger and nutmeg flavours. It’s a sublime addition to a
Christmas fruitcake or even a ham roast. Beware; a little goes a long way.
For
die hard rum fans, don’t forget Wray
& Nephew Overproof Rum $31.95. This General List white lightening has
126 proof (63% alcohol), which will set any party ablaze. Believe it or
not, I actually enjoy sipping this killer right from the snifter – a
ritual that separates the men (or is it idiots) from the boys. It’s the
peppery, unadulterated, fiery, sweetish, raw cane sugar taste and
after-burn that turns me on. Make sure, however, to throw back a lot of
water at the same time because at there’s no question that quaffing this
stuff neat can be a definite health hazard. (www.appletonrum.com)
Moving on to some of the
best wines of this Vintages release let me focus on some summer whites.
This month’s single definitive best buy white is a Chardonnay that hails
from Burgundy. Now great white Burgundies are extremely hard to come by.
And when you find one, it’s usually terribly expensive.
Well excuse me, but the
August release has a treasure that should be compulsory tasting for anyone
wishing to become acquainted with what constitutes great Burgundy at a
stunningly low price ($32.85). And better yet, the Château
Chassagne-Montrachet 1999 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru ‘Le Charmois’ is
ready to enjoy. Keep in mind, however, that all wines are subject to some
bottle variation. Two of the three bottles tasted were perfect, while one
was somewhat firm and subdued.
Having said that, if you
think the name is mouthful; wait until you taste this medium-deep yellow
coloured beauty. The nose is stunning - rich, intense and complex with
slightly spicy, cedary, lemon-key lime pie notes. Its mouthfilling
flavours leap out of the glass - toasty, buttery, stewed limes and pears.
The structure is wonderful and the finish is lingering and rich.
It
just so happened that I made an unscheduled stop at the Château
Chassagne-Montrachet (which was being reconstructed) during last year’s
Les Jours en Bourgogne. At one time, my dear (now-deceased) friend Maurice
Clerget owned this property. He was a wine producer who lived in the
nearby tiny town of Saint Aubin and it was his Raoul Clerget wines,
indeed, the very same Saint-Aubin
1er Cru ‘Le Charmois’ that I imported into Ontario in the
late 1960’s much to the delight of local fans. In fact, I still possess
a maderized 1969 memento in my cellar. For more info on Saint Aubin check
my website.
Another less expensive
Chard also worthy of a detour is Sandalford
1998 Swan Vineyard Chardonnay at $17.95. It’s rather forward
and extremely creamy with lots of vanilla and ripe warm pear purée
flavours. I wouldn’t be too shocked if some readers actually preferred
the fruit-forward style of this Western Australian effort over the Saint-Aubin
above.
Other
best buy whites include a tasty, crisp, refreshing, Sauvignon
Blanc-inspired white from the Côtes de Gascogne in Southwestern France
– 2000
Domaine des Cassagnoles, terrific value at only $7.95. Its
unoaked, green peach flavours will add a ray of brightness to any meal.
Finally, getting back to
sex, you’ll be hard pressed to find anything to touch the deep yellow
coloured Vinhos
Messias 1999 Quinta do Valdoeiro at $12.95. I’m a sucker for
its rounded, spicy, ripe pear, melon and grapefruit flavours followed up
by a fine wildflower-cedar finish. Try this ready-to-enjoy Portuguese
Bairrada blend of indigenous Arinto and Bical grapes with a portion of
Chardonnay (all aged in French barriques) with poultry or pastas. For more
great recommendations check out my website and tune in again next
Saturday.
About
1999 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru ‘Le Charmois’
A note from Jean-Pierre Durand
“Le Charmois” is a parcel, which is just nearby Chassagne-Montrachet 1er cru “Les Chaumées”, but it belongs to the production area of Saint-Aubin. It is located half way up the hill above the village of Chassagne-Montrachet, on the slope facing East, South/ East. Some 20 000 bottles of Saint-Aubin 1er cru “Le Charmois” 1999 have been shipped in France and exported worldwide. In the US our wines are imported by Brown Forman through all the States. In Canada our agent is Charton-Hobbs. The person in charge of this listing is Grace Melo.
Mis en bouteille au Château stands for actual estate bottle, as all of our wines (with the Château label) are vinified, matured and bottled in the Château. The Château, which used to belong to the Clerget family, belongs now to Michel Picard who owns 5 estates in Burgundy (120 hectares in Côte de Beaune and Côte Chalonnaise) and is also one of the top négociant-éleveur in the region.
Michel Picard has a specific way of vinifying is Chardonnay as he wants to express the "quintessence" of the magnificent terroir of "Les Charmois". With fully ripened grapes, he uses pneumatic presser to extract a nice and clear juice that will go direct into oak barrel without racking. He wants the indigenous yeasts to stay in the juice as terroir memory.
The alcoholic
fermentation will then take place in each barrel in our old cellar. With
the drop in temperature in October, the malo-lactic is not done right
after. The bacteria will wait until the first warmth of spring to do their
job. Thanks to this natural process Michel Picard will be using no
sulfites during the time wine is in wood. The lees are stirred (batonnage)
two or three times a week at the beginning and less by the time, but the
wine will stay on the lees until the final soutirage
(or racking) before bottling.
Further
Reading:
The
Wines of Burgundy
By
Sylvain Pitiot and Jean-Charles Servant
Presses Universitaires de France 1999
Copyright Food & Beverage Testing Institute of Canada
2004
Prior written permission is required for any form of reproduction
(electronic or other wise) and or quotation.
Contact Michael Vaughan at
mbv@total.net