First, permit me to vent like a grinch before breaking out some seasonal cheer in the second half of this column.
Of all the self-serving propaganda crammed into the latest LCBO annual report, here is one line - in the section on wine-sales strategies - that really grates: "Trade consumers up beyond the $8 price point for a 750-millilitre bottle."
Excuse me? Where and when did taxpayers give their government agency the moral mandate to wean them up to a higher sipping bracket? As some readers know, profit is the new, government-endorsed mantra at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. And in a mature-commodity market where the prospects for increased consumption are limited, it means having to promote high-margin luxury products while putting a lid on value-oriented categories that yield less profit per bottle.
It's not that the board is actively delisting inexpensive wines we've come to know and love, like those $7 Montepulciano d'Abruzzos. But don't look for many new ones to be added to the shelves; the LCBO doesn't see the beauty in them that some wise, thrifty shoppers do.
In its official product-buying plan issued to agents for the current fiscal year, the board has, for example, ruled out proposals for new permanent listings from southern Italy costing less than $9.95. Ouch. Southern Italy, as many readers know, is a hotbed of great bargains - robust reds made from nero d'avola, negroamaro and primitivo in particular. But the public liquor retailer doesn't want us to discover the next $8 gems from Puglia or Sicily. All you low-income consumers out there be damned; you should be drinking tap water with your canned tuna, anyway.
The board has similarly decreed in its new-listings plan for 2007-08 that it will consider only those wines from South Africa, another bargain paradise, that cost $10.95 to $13.95. Winery agents here can, of course, artificially jack up a $9 chenin blanc to $11 to make the cut, but that means consumers gratuitously pay a $2 premium. Businesspeople today talk about the importance of "adding value," - here's a blatant case of value subtraction.
The LCBO, in short, appears to be on a mission to become the Holt Renfrew of grapes, with no room in the market for the likes of a Winners or Wal-Mart to supply price-sensitive consumers with good, imported wines they can more easily afford. (U-brew outlets and a handful of winery boutiques that enjoy special legal dispensation could theoretically fill the void with domestic product, but that would not be meaningful competition.)
In the private sector, the few monopolies that are permitted to exist are normally held to a higher standard than free-market players. Their pricing practices, for example, tend to be strictly regulated, as in the case, historically, of phone and cable companies. The idea is to guard against what competition lawyers call abuse of dominance (a.k.a. gouging the poor). It's getting to the point where Ontario needs a separate watchdog, analogous to the CRTC, to monitor wine pricing. It won't happen, of course, because who's going to listen to lobbyists for affordable wine? What do they call themselves? Friends of Plonk? But, really, where are the opposition MPs on this issue, still belting back blended scotch and cheap beer like politicians of old?
Yes, higher wine prices are the new reality at the Liquor Inflation Board of Ontario. And they are very real in other provinces, where - except in private-store Alberta - the liquor boards keep their eyes on the Ontario's lead.
That troubling line from the annual report I quoted above came to mind as several people asked recently for affordable-wine recommendations for their holiday parties. I frankly no longer take much joy in what used to be a fun exercise.
Still, I was able, of the top of my head, to come up with some not-so-cheap bargains. Here's a quick list, all under $15, for casual holiday parties or personal quaffing. Get them while they're still available at your liquor inflation board.
If you love the southern Rhône, do yourself a favour. Check out Cave La Romaine Venus Laurée Côtes-du-Rhône 2005 ($12.95 in Ontario, product No. 028779). This full-bodied, spicy red hails from the region's already legendary 2005 harvest, to which I referred in last week's column about the joys of Châtauneuf-du-Pape, a district also located in the southern Rhône. Here's a new Ontario listing that's brimming with pure, perfectly ripe flavours of cherry and blackberry, lifted by just the right amount of acidity. Silky in texture, it offers up complementary nuances of black pepper, fennel and lavender, with moderate, polished tannins. It's much better, I think, than most big-brand Côtes-du-Rhônes costing $4 or $5 more.
Many bargain hunters are not strangers to Santa Rita, the remarkably reliable Chilean producer. I've raved about this winery's entry-level "120" line of varietals in the past, particularly the merlot and chardonnay. Now it's time to sing the praises of the 2006 cab. Santa Rita 120 Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 ($10.55, in Ontario; $11.99 in B.C., No. 218644). It's hard to get clearer textbook cabernet sauvignon flavours for less money. This wine is medium full-bodied, hinting at blackberry, cassis and cedar, with secondary nuances of tobacco, earth, charred wood and peppery spice. Good complexity for the money. It's great on the first sip, but there's also enough intrigue to sip this wine throughout the evening, including with food.One of my favourite "affordable" whites this season is Casa Lapostolle Sauvignon Blanc 2006 ($13.95, No. 396994). Light- to medium-bodied and slightly oily in texture, it shows the ripe, gooseberry and citrus fruit you'd expect from a New World sauvignon blanc. Yet the star here is the flinty, gun-metal quality that carries through to the long, tangy finish. It's an acquired pleasure, to be sure. But once you acquire it, there's no going back.
To South Africa now, that home of many a fine bargain today. Widely available, including in British Columbia and Ontario, is Obikwa Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 ($8.99 in B.C., No. 154906; $9.65 in Ontario, No. 665323). This is a full-bodied, juicy red, showing flavours of cassis and dark berries and overtones of smoke, cigar box and cedar.
Also available in both British Columbia and Ontario (but so far nowhere else) is Oracle Shiraz 2006 ($10.95 in Ontario, No. 036772; $11.99 in B.C., No. 180836). Full-bodied, soft and juicy, it starts with plum and blackberry fruit, then navigates to smoked-meat territory.
I also very much like its white counterpart, Oracle Sauvignon Blanc 2006 ($10.95 in Ontario, No. 036764). Light-bodied and silky, it shows gooseberry and melon flavours and a hint of minerals and herbs - a nice balance between the celebrated sauvignon blanc styles of New Zealand and France's Loire Valley.
And if you're looking for a substantial beer that drinks like a wine, consider a winter ale from Ontario. Great Lakes Brewery Winter Ale is available for a limited time, and only in a double-sized 750-millilitre bottle ($14.95). Weighing in at 6.2-per-cent alcohol, it's rich, with notes of honey, cinnamon, ginger and orange. It's a beautiful brew for a cocktail party, especially one with a roaring fire, where the other beverage choices include mulled wine and port.
Pick of the week
Cave La Romaine Venus Laurée Côtes-du-Rhône 2005 ($12.95 in Ontario, product No. 028779) is brimming with ripe flavours of cherry and blackberry, lifted by just the right amount of acidity.
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