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A TOAST TO SPRING
By Carolyn Evans-Hammond, published in Outreach Connection in
And so it is with wine. Once you notice a wine lacks this or has too much of that, you have to use the b-word. Wine makes you hedge. Love that creamy character but it’s too hot in the throat—so the alcohol’s too high. Wonderfully complex but it lacks acidity. Nice fruit but it’s sort of simple. Stylish but it’s a bit rich at $100 a pop.
Hedging is pretty much core to wine criticism. We critics don’t taste bottle after bottle of fabulous wine, we taste bottle after bottle of mediocre stuff in search of something stellar and properly, happily underpriced. So tasting notes with the b-word rarely make it into columns like this one. Who cares if a wine smells like boiled lizard breath and tastes like four-day-old dirty dish water? You want to know what tastes terrific and why.
Right then. I propose we lift a collective glass to the official arrival of spring, which happened on March 21. And to me, spring wouldn’t be spring without those much-anticipated, tender-sweet, first spears of asparagus paired with a glass or two of Sauvignon Blanc with that hallmark green herb flavour and crisp vigour. I generally favour the grassy versions from the Loire Valley in France but this year I’m thinking of reaching for Leyda Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc 2006 from Chile (LCBO #099309 $16.95) with its refreshing burst of lime and gooseberry with a long mineral almost chalky finish. Beautifully balanced—no buts about it.
I could tell you about the unfortunate Luigi Tacchino Dolcetto D’Ovada 2007 from Piedmont that tastes like postage stamp glue or the sad, frown-worthy Henri de Villamont
Cazes L’Excellence de Triniac 2005 from the South of France’s Roussillon region (LCBO#103689 $16.95) is glorious with its restrained blackberry fruit edged with smoked underbrush, burnt toffee, violet, and that certain je ne sais quoi that draws you back quickly for more. Alas, a wine that’s as good to drink as it is to taste. Made to drink by the bottle not the glass.
Another fine drink just released is Caitec Pinot Noir 2006 from
For comparative purposes, a bottle of 1er Cru
And from
To really toast spring with aplomb, sear some scallops, grill some shrimp, or broil some lobster and uncork a bottle of the exceedingly scrumptious Cattier Premier Cru Brut Champagne 2000 (LCBO# 105791 $52.95). Think warm bread, fresh lemon curd, baked Granny Smith, and minerals. I would never regret splashing out on this cork-poppingly fine fizz.
To spring!
If you taste these wines, comment on them on my blog at http://www.wine-tribune.com/blog/
This column is distributed privately, appears in Outreach Connection weekly, and is posted as a blog at www.wine-tribune.com/blog. Seasoned journalist and qualified sommelier Carolyn Evans-Hammond has written for several major publications including Decanter Magazine, The Times newspaper, and Wine & Spirit International magazine in the U.K., as well as Maclean’s magazine, Taste magazine, Tidings magazine, The Toronto Star and The Province in Canada. Her bestselling book, 1000 Best Wine Secrets, is available at most major bookstores, and signed copies are available through her website.