17
Earlier this year, scientists at Stanford University and the California Institute of Technology made headlines for an unusual wine experiment: They used a brain scanner to show that people derived greater pleasure from drinking brands they thought were more expensive, even when the samples were in fact from identical bottles.
The subjects experienced heightened neurological activity in the area of the brain responsible for pleasure.
The implication: Raising the price of a wine actually improves the flavour.
But there were two problems with the methodology, I think. The lucky subjects didn't actually have to pay for the wines; and the research was conducted before The Crash.
I'd bet if I had access to one of those brain scanners today, I could prove just the opposite. When budgets are tight and net worth is disappearing like the contents of a leaky bag-in-box, the bigger thrill comes from plunking down $10 on a bottle that tastes like $20.
I've been thinking lately about building a recession cellar, a go-to list of bottles costing $15 or less that I'm going to feel better about sniffing, swirling and slurping as my retirement plan whirls down the toilet. These wines would be impressive enough to serve even to guests (ideally from a crystal decanter so the labels don't send the wrong signals to anybody's pleasure cortex).
In truth, it's never been easier to drink down-market thanks to advances in technology and winemaking skill. Though demand for acclaimed labels has fuelled obscene inflation at the upper end, bargains abound from Argentina, Chile, Spain, Italy, South Africa, and even France.
Good buys can be found in most sections of the liquor store, but certain themes have emerged in recent years, many of no surprise to readers of this column or devotees of wine-specialty publications.
One of the biggest value frontiers is unoaked whites. If you like crisp, clean, fruity whites unencumbered by the toasty-vanilla characters of oak-barrel aging, you are getting maximum bang for your bibulous buck. No time in barrel means significant savings, both in terms of the material (standard French-oak barrels cost $1,000 apiece) and warehousing costs. Unoaked whites include most rieslings and sauvignon blancs, most Italian and Spanish whites such as pinot grigio and albarino, and almost all wines from Alsace in northern France. The category also includes a growing number of unoaked chardonnays, a wine that's usually lavished with considerable lumber.
One surprisingly good example is Leaping Horse Chardonnay (priced in Canada at about $12). Made in California by the Kautz family, which owns the better-known and more expensive Ironstone brand, this surprisingly underpriced white proves the Golden State is not just about luxury labels and inflated prices.
Completely unoaked, which is uncommon for a California chardonnay, it still manages to deliver the big tropical fruit flavour and buttery opulence of many oaked, warm-weather counterparts, but with a freshness that makes it a versatile food partner.
Though I raved about this wine almost a year ago, when the 2006 vintage was on the shelves, I'm not the only critic bullish on the brand. The currently available vintage, Leaping Horse Chardonnay 2007, was just declared a "category champion" in the 2008 International Value Wine Awards sponsored by Wine Access magazine. Each year, the Calgary-based publication assembles a large panel of cross-country experts to taste about 1,000 bottles available in one or more provinces at a price of $25 or under. (The list of winners is published in the October/November issue now on newsstands.)
Anthony Gismondi, the magazine's Vancouver-based editor-in-chief and a veteran wine critic, says one notable theme that emerged "in the dark light of blind tastings" was how well big-production brands performed. Among them: Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Chardonnay 2006 from California (lowest provincial price $13), Torres Vina Sol from Spain ($13), Arboleda Sauvignon Blanc 2007 ($13). Two other widely available whites that made the "killer values" list and would be among my own picks are Jacques & Francois Lurton Les Fumées Blanches Sauvignon Blanc from France ($11) and René Barbier Classic White ($10), a blend from Northern Spain.
One white not on my list, but which wowed the magazine's panel, could almost qualify as an entry in Ripley's Believe It or Not: Blue Nun Riesling 2007 ($10). Yes, you read that correctly. Not to be confused with the generic, kitchen-sink Blue Nun blend that served as a sweet gateway drink for North American pop drinkers in the 1970s, this more recent, higher-quality offering (look for "riesling" on the label) is made from quality grapes grown in the Rheinhessen region of Germany. Mr. Gismondi says it's not only an eye-opening value, but its off-dry character makes it a nice partner for spicy Thai dishes, even a good aperitif. "I say take it to a party and put a brown bag on it," he says, only partly in jest.
Blast-from-the-past brands also are delivering impressive value in the red-wine sphere. Some readers may recall Roodeberg, a red blend from the huge KWV co-operative in South Africa. At one point, before apartheid sanctions pulled it from the shelves, it was among the bestselling red wines in the country. At $13 in Ontario and Alberta today (about $15 in B.C. and Nova Scotia), this full-bodied, round, chunky wine deserves to rise again.
Perhaps the three most consistent sources of red values on Canadian shelves are Argentina, Spain and Italy. Zuccardi Fuzion Shiraz Malbec ($7.45), about which I've raved before, is a runaway bestseller in Quebec and Ontario (major new supplies are due in about three weeks in Ontario). And it remains a standout in price-quality ratio. Slightly more expensive but also good is Santa Julia Malbec 2008 ($9) from the same winery, which made the Wine Access "killer values" list along with Argento Reserva Malbec, $13, also from Argentina.
From Spain, tempranillo and garnacha are the two grapes that dominate red-wine bargains, including
such brands as Penascal, Osborne Solaz and Castillo de Monséran. And no country produces such consistently balanced, impressively complex sparkling wines, notably Segura Viudas Brut Reserva at $14.95.
In Italy, the central Abruzzi region continues to be a geyser for affordable reds based on the local montepulciano grape, many of them as low as $7 or $8 in some provinces. One excellent, "premium" example, at $13.95 in Quebec and $17 in British
Columbia, is Illuminati Riparosso Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. "It's just an outstanding montepulciano, just delicious," Mr. Gismondi says. "It's got all that dryness, too, and earthiness. Eventually, as people move off the richer, riper, sweeter-style reds, this is exactly the kind of wine that they're going to gravitate to."
The kind of wine, in other words, we may want to keep drinking even when the good times return.
Beppi's bailout bargains
(Prices shown are for Ontario and may vary across the country.)
WHITE
Cantina Tollo Rocca Ventosa Trebbiano d'Abruzzo 2007 (Italy), $7.80: Light, lemony and herbal. Lively, almost spritzy finish.
Dopff & Irion Crystal d'Alsace Sylvaner 2006 (France), $12.45: light, apple-like and refreshing.
Jacques & Francois Lurton Les Fumées Blanches 2007 (France), $11.45: lean, crisp and grassy.
Leaping Horse Chardonnay 2007 (California), $12.30 in Ontario: Creamy, luscious and crisp.
Peninsula Ridge Inox Chardonnay 2007 (Ontario), $12.95: Crisp, clean, Chablis-like.
RED
Gabbiano Chianti (Italy), $13.95: pasta red par excellence.
KWV Roodeberg (South Africa), $13: medium-full and brimming with plum, berry and vanilla.
Marcus James Malbec 2007 (Argentina), $9.25: Big fruit, spice and attractively earthy.
Strewn Rogues Lot Cabernet Franc-Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 (Ontario), $12.95, on sale from $13.95 in Ontario until Oct. 12: Amazing price and remarkably smooth for a Niagara red.
Zuccardi Fuzion Shiraz Malbec 2007 (Argentina), $7.45: full-bodied, polished and brimming with berry-like flavour.
SPARKLING
Segura Viudas Brut Reserva (Spain), $14.95: Bottle-fermented like Champagne at a fraction of the cost.
Beppi Crosariol
