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Lawrason On Wine

January Archive

New Year’s bargain hunting

Posted on January 4, 2008

The flood of wine through Vintages stores doesn’t stop for an event as paltry as a New Year’s. With Monday’s Champagne fizz barely flat, the new release (out January 5) contains 85 new wines, many bundled for marketing purposes under a “What’s New” banner. There are entries from obscure regions like the Fronton near Toulouse in Southwest France, from Catalayud in Spain, and a fine sangiovese from Emilia-Romagna in Italy. More importantly for flattened wallets the vast majority are under $20, the silver lining of being unknown. Here are ten of the best buys from the January 5 release.

Organized Wine Crime

Posted on January 8, 2008

Many assume that the LCBO’s control of the wine business in Ontario is an outgrowth of the anti-alcohol movement in the ’30s—to protect us from demon alcohol. Not really. Government took control to take organized crime out of the booze business during Prohibition and reap the tax rewards for its citizens. Who knew that this monopoly would end up being obtrusive and demanding in the manufacture and purveyance of a legal product in Ontario—at least as perceived by many who toil to make a living in the wine business.

Argentina’s Value Reds

Posted on January 16, 2008

On Saturday, January 19th, Vintages will release 20 new Argentine reds, with all but one priced between $13 and $20. The exception is Familia Mayol’s 2003 Cuatro Primos ($23.75), the best of the bunch. Argentine reds are hugely popular right now; they deliver ample ripeness, weight and presence for a decent price. The reason is a desert-like, yet water-managed climate that promotes both ripeness and huge production. This is what keeps prices moderate.

A Glimpse at the Bordeaux 2005s

Posted on January 23, 2008

Four hundred and fifty people jammed a Four Seasons Hotel ballroom Wednesday night (January 22) for a rare home-turf tasting of the famed Bordeaux 2005 vintage. Over 100 wines were poured by 75 châteaux from the Union des Grands Cru de Bordeaux, a trade organization currently on a North American tour to sell what many are calling an excellent and classic vintage.

Surprising Australians in Vintages’ new release

Posted on January 30, 2008

The upcoming March issue of Toronto Life (on newsstands February 7th) contains reviews of 10 wines from Vintages’ February 2nd release, all of which have been rated 90 points or higher by other writers. In the spirit of helping you critique the critics, my reviews in the magazine compare my impressions and ratings to theirs, but there are certainly more than 10 interesting wines on this release.

David Lawrason

David Lawrason

David Lawrason has worked full time as one of Canada's leading, independent wine writers and educators for over 20 years. He was the founder of Wine Access magazine and Globe and Mail wine columnist for 13 years before becoming resident wine guy at Toronto Life, where he pens a monthly column and writes an exhaustive review of LCBO general listings for the annual Food and Wine Guide. As a wine educator he has taught sommelier programs at George Brown, Humber and Niagara Colleges, and has run popular public courses in Toronto since 1988. He has visited every major wine major producing country in the world, while focusing recently on the booming Canadian wine scene, as founder of the Canadian Wine Awards program, and Canadian wine columnist for Wine Access.

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