Last week's column was all about big reds because the theme was gift bottles. To be perfectly honest, I felt pressured into it.
Popular wisdom has it that only red wines are worth dressing in bows. Red is the colour of cellar-worthiness, of dusty old Pauillacs and Pomerols, of main-course meat dining, of big flavours and bold statements. When it comes to wine, most people think red is the colour of money.
Not so fast. Our crimson bias betrays ignorance of the broader world of wine. It has much to do, I would submit, with the rise of sip-and-spit critics who taste too fast and savour too little, doling out high scores to brawn over beauty. It also has much to do, I suspect, with a famous 60 Minutes program in the 1990s about the purported health benefits of red wine in particular.
In the interest of equal time, let me offer some contrarian evidence: White is the colour of $600 Montrachets and $300 Krug Champagnes. It's the hue of majestic German rieslings and icewines and cellar-worthy Château d'Yquem. It's the tint of Madeira - the most durable wine on Earth - and of smart food pairings featuring oysters, caviar and foie gras.
While we're at it, let's give a shout out to two of the most criminally overlooked wines on Earth, Alsatian gewurztraminer and Spanish sherry, both proudly un-red.
White Christmas? Bring it on, I say.
Red-or-dead zealots can skip to the last few wines in this column, beginning with Cathedral Cellar, a superb red value. The rest of you may want to consider the following selections, all of which will be released next Saturday in Ontario and some of which will be available in other provinces.
Whatever you do, don't chill too much. That's the worst thing you can do to a serious white wine, except to ignore it.
It may not be Montrachet, but here's a very decent and elegant wine that also hails from Burgundy and is made from 100-per-cent chardonnay, at a small fraction of the cost. Domaine de la Vougeraie Les Pierres Blanches Côte de Beaune 2004 ($39.95, No. 050492) shows a spectrum of classic Burgundian flavours. Medium full-bodied and slightly oily in texture, it exudes hints of melon, minerals and citrus, with lingering nutty and buttery tones.
More vaunted in pedigree and worth a spin if you have the budget is Domaine du Pavillon Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru 2004 ($134.95, No. 046698). Starting silky and almost sweet, with a hint of vanilla, it takes a sharp turn with crisp acidity and a dollop of minerals. A nice, dramatic arc in this top-class chardonnay from Burgundy.
A wine you could almost describe as a red masquerading as white is Landmark Overlook Chardonnay 2005 ($38.95, No. 356501). This perennial critic's favourite from California is a textbook example of a big but well-balanced chardonnay. Full-bodied and buttery, it comes across with a creamy texture and nuances of pineapple and lemon meringue pie, with good acidity to liven up the finish.
In a similar style and similarly excellent is Tawse Beamsville Bench Reserve Chardonnay 2004 ($42.20, No. 662858) from Niagara. Full-bodied and silky, it's packed with tropical fruit and butter, laced with hints of nuts and a smoky-toasty quality. Very rich yet beautifully balanced.
Also from Niagara is a good-value, crisp white with a fun label that might win over a red-wine zealot for its audacity, Megalomaniac Contrarian Sauvignon Blanc 2006 ($16.95, 067553). Very nice, almost oily texture in this classically flavoured sauvignon blanc, hinting at gooseberry, herbs and grass.
From a great Australian producer comes Henschke Tilly's Vineyard White 2005 ($26.95, No. 656264). This full-bodied, unconventional blend of sémillon, chardonnay and sauvignon blanc has a waxy mouth feel, with notes of honey and melon, and a bitter, edgy quality typical of Australian sémillon.
Another rarity and a very good buy is MacMurray Ranch Pinot Gris 2006 ($19.95, No. 047787). It comes from a property once owned by the late actor Fred MacMurray, perhaps best known as the dad in TV's My Three Sons. But some remember him best as the nasty boss in the Billy Wilder movie The Apartment, which contains one of the saddest Christmas scenes in film. MacMurray's character forgets to buy his long-suffering mistress, the young Shirley MacLaine, a gift for Christmas and instead counts out some cold-hearted cash in a bar and tells her to buy her own. MacMurray used to entertain such guests as John Wayne at his gorgeous ranch on the slopes of Sonoma's Russian River Valley. Now owned by the Gallo Family, it has been turned into a great place for raising grapes, including this elegant, round and complex pinot gris.
To those reds now.
The best red value released in Ontario in recent weeks is Cathedral Cellar Shiraz 2003 ($16.95, No. 561142). This South African puts many more expensive shirazes and syrahs to shame. Packed with dark fruits, it leans more toward a Rhône style of syrah, particularly the southern Rhône, than Australian shiraz, with its earthy hints of mushroom and tobacco and crisp acidity. Terrific.
Another good value that would make a nice gift is Château Brehat 2000 ($18.95, No. 043828). It's not a famous label, but it hails from a great vintage in Bordeaux and shows ripe, dark-skinned fruits with notes of cigar and forest floor. You can taste the age on this well-structured, still slightly tannic seven-year-old.
And if you can afford them, don't miss the following collectible reds being released next week in Ontario Vintages stores: Caymus Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 ($156.95, No. 711663), a brilliant vintage of one of California's greatest and most cellar-worthy wines; Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve 2002 ($120.95, No. 552851), a big masculine, spicy vintage of this quintessentially voluptuous, warm-climate cab; d'Arenberg The Dead Arm Shiraz 2005 ($55.95, No. 981183), a dense Australian that could use eight to 10 years to open up and could last 20; Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz 2004 ($34.95, No. 309625), concentrated and also a tad reserved, clamouring for three to five years in the cellar; Pierre Gaillard Côte-Rôtie 2005 ($68.95, No. 047332), a beautiful, concentrated syrah teeming with licorice, herbs and white pepper; and the superb Antinori Guado Al Tasso 2003 ($81.95, No. 986380), a luscious Tuscan blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot and syrah with creamy, mouth-filling cherry and spice and notes of cigar tobacco and leather.
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Pick of the week
Domaine de la Vougeraie Les Pierres Blanches Côte de Beaune 2004 ($39.95, No. 050492) shows a spectrum of classic Burgundian flavours. Medium full-bodied and slightly oily in texture, it exudes hints of melon, minerals and citrus, with lingering nutty and buttery tones.
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