Extreme Makeover – wine edition

 Both pullthecork and Jackson-Triggs have had a makeover.  In my case it was as easy as changing my WordPress theme. Jackson-Triggs, however, has come out with new labels and new categories for their wines.  Not only do they look great, they are very easy to navigate when searching through the Ontario section of your LCBO store. Also, the stylized Maple Leaf is very cool.

 

The Gold series are single vineyard wines expressing the artistry of the winemakers. You pay for this artistry but the wines are top-notch Canadian wines. The Silver series is price at $15-20. I would pick up their Gewurztraminer at this price! That’s a good Ontario white.

The Black Series, my personal favorite in the $10-$15 range, is the new look for Jackson Triggs Proprietors’ Reserve.  J-T make one of my favorite Cabernet Franc / Cabernet Sauvignon blends and I often show off Ontario wines to my American relatives with the Meritage.

Oh, and it’s not like I need another reason to covet the iPhone but these series all have a QR (Quick Response) code on them.  You can scan the QR and get all the technical details of the wine, tasting notes, and food pairing notes.  It really is like living out an episode of The Jetsons. Nice makeover JT.

QR code

 

Jackson Triggs Okanagan Merlot – Olympic pairing

Are you trying to effectively pair wines and Olympic events?  Looking for a wine consultant with a degree in Physical Education? Tired of my questions? Look no further and lend me your ears and palate - it’s time for an Olympic Merlot.  Canada has already won a gold medal so we can all relax and enjoy the next couple of days with a smooth red wine from BC.  This is  the 2nd J-T wine I’ve selected ( Jackson-Triggs Methode Cuvée ) but the first from the Okanagan Valley. I’m not usually a fan of Merlot – they often come across as soft and plummy – however, this one has won me over.  It certainly has a time and a place and the time is now and the place is in front of my TV watching figure skating (the highest rated Olympic TV event in America). I also selected this wine for February’s tastings at the Red Brick Café .

JACKSON-TRIGGS Proprietors’ Reserve Merlot 2006
LCBO 543867 | Price: $ 14.95 Okanagan Valley, BC 14.5% Alcohol

 The first things that strike me about this wine is that it is dark, dark red in colour with a very distinct nose of dried plums.  The flavours of strong concentrated fruit with a touch of smoky oak on the finish are delicious.  It is nicely balanced with some acidity,  long velvety tannins, and an even longer finish.

This wine has figure skating written all over it – especially pairs. Smooth, lovely, mellow – can you think of another Olympic event that compliments Merlot better than that? Maybe curling, if they weren’t yelling “hurry hard – hurry” at me the entire time.

My sommelier challenge

The real art of being a sommelier is pairing wine with food.  This past weekend we bought two terrines from Ouderkirk & Taylor – one of Guelph’s best fine food stores.  One was pheasant with hazelnuts and the other venison with pistachio. 

So what to serve?  A dry Riesling seemed in order so I chilled a bottle of Jackson-Triggs 2007 Delaine Vineyard Riesling and found a great marriage with the venison and a good pairing with the pheasant. We overwhelmingly declared the venison terrine the winner. One of our guests casually commented that she wasn’t convinced that it was the Riesling which tipped the scales in favour of the pheasant.  The gauntlet had been thrown.

I quickly declared a dry sherry in order for this experiment of the senses (Brillat-Savarin would be proud) and opened an Alvear Amontillado ( see archives Surely that’s a Sherry  ).  Guess what?  Everyone declared the pheasant the winner with this wine. This pairing food with wine is easy!

So now I come to my real challenge.  Wine and sport. Over the next two weeks I plan to pair wines with the Winter Olympics.  I feel qualified – I have a degree in Physical Education from York ( nobody ever seems impressed by that combination – I should really stop saying it ) and I have taught PE for 20 years.  That’s a lot of experience.  In fact I dare you to find a sommelier with that kind of resume.

So check in over the next two weeks as I pull myself away from the 3 billion hours of  TV coverage (or is it 3 billion viewers?) to tell you what wines pair well with the events that I am watching.

Y210K – It’s time to Panic

It’s time to panic.   It seems to me that nobody has taken notice of the fact that the upcoming year of 2010 is actually more binary than the year 2000.   I’m concerned that everybody is ignoring this potential Armageddon.  Dust off your Y2K generator and fill up your basement shelter with canned goods and bottled water. Its Y210K people and it’s scary!

If I am right, and I’m pretty sure that I am, I need to get a small collection of wines to see me through this event.  This will hold me over until Al Gore gets everything fixed (did he really win a Nobel Prize or did I imagine that?).

Don’t just go out and get some wine – buy it by the case - buy it in a state of panic, it’s Y210K!  Actually, buy it by the half case so that you have more variety to drink during this crisis.

December’s release from Vintages has some great choices for a half case. 2007 was a great Niagara vintage and  Ontario makes a great Cabernet Franc so pick either …

Premium Red – Inniskillin’s 2007 Reserve Series Cabernet Franc and was rated 90 by Natalie MacLean. It would be great with or without canned food.

Value Red- Jackson-Triggs 2007 Proprietors’ Reserve Cabernet Franc / Cabernet Sauvignon (LCBO 560680 $12.95) is a great deal and a great wine.  I featured it at Red Brick Cafe in September to rave reviews.  That reminds me to put several bags of coffee in my bunker.

Also, both of these wineries are also located within a short distance of Guelph so I can bike there to get some more if I need to.

If the other person in your bunker likes white wine then I have a couple of choices from Chile…

Premium White – Errazuriz Aconcagua Costa Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc (Vintages 135426 $15.95).

Value White – had the Errazuriz Sauvignon Blanc on the LCBO list at a party last night and loved it. It is a little light but brave enough for times like this.

Times like these demand planning – don’t get caught without good wine for the end times.