WTN: A Week at the Cottage - The Whites

Aveleda Vinho Verde
Sociedade Agricola E. Comercial

Very light, almost clear, in the glass.

Overripe fruit on the nose.

Very light bodied, pear, peach, orange, lime, apricot, very fresh, a little effervecent, good acidity, light bitter citrus rind, peppery. Refreshing and clean.

We used to drink this quite often, back in the day. Another one of those "Why don't I buy this more often" wines. A perfect summer sipper.

Purchased at $8.45 (Canadian) and a steal at that price.

Chateau Bonnet 2005
Entre-Deux-Mers
White Bordeaux
Andre Lurton

A blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillion.

Light yellow in the glass.

Pear, apple, light peach, good acidity, very rich and round, quite flavourful. Fresh, clean and refreshing.

This wine simply screams to be consumed on an outdoor patio or deck on a beautiful summer day...and that's exactly what we did.

Screwcap closure.

Another wine that I used to buy quite regularly and another entry in our "Why don't I buy this wine more often" competition.
Purchased at $13.05 (Canadian) and another tremendous bargain.

Dan Aykroyd Sauvignon Blanc 2006
Niagara Peninsula
Produced by Lakeview Cellars Estate Winery

Light yellow in the glass, with a few bubbles when first poured.

Citrus furit and peppery citrus peel on the nose.

Orange, peach, lemon, lime, good acidity toward the end. a little sweet but still clean. A little gooseberry started to show as the wine warmed. An enjoyable wine, if a little simple and lacking anything special or complex.

Purchased at $14.95 (Canadian) and, IMHO, not worth it for the price.

CUVÉE CATHARINE BRUT NV
VQA Niagara Peninsula
Henry of Pelham

A blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.

Incredible mousse.

Light golden yellow in the glass.

Lemon, green apple, tangy acidity, quite clean and bracing, nutty, somewhat creamy, loads of toast, almond paste, quite mouth filling.

Have long heard good things about this wine and I am glad that I finally tried it for myself. A very classy drink, rich and delicious and one of the better sparkling wines produced in Ontario.

Purchased at $29.95 (Canadian) and worth every penny.

Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc 2007
Marlborough, South Island

Gooseberry, citrus rind and tangy on the nose.

Gooseberry, fleshy lemon, lime, mango, papaya, green apple, very rich, zippy, round and full in the mouth, pine, a little sweet, round and full in the mouth.

The wine took a fair amount of time to settle down. At first, the gooseberry dominated, overpowering pretty much everything else, and gave the wine quite a bitter and aggressive edge. With time, it faded into the background, letting the other aspects show through.

Some citrus rind bitterness on the mouthwatering finish.

Screwcap closure.

Purchased at $19.95 (Canadian).

Rene Barbier Classic White 2007
Penedes

A blend of Xarel-lo, Macabeo and Parellada.

Very light yellow, almost clear, in the glass.

Fresh and citrusy nose.

Very bright, spicy, fleshy and rich lemon, grapefruit, apricot, refreshing, slightly sweet, light to medium bodied, peppery, good acidity, light grapefruit rind bitterness.

Purchased at $9.75 (Canadian) and very good value.

Santi Sortesele Pino Grigio 2006
Alto Adige/Trentino, Italy
Santi S.C.A.R.L.

Moderate yellow in the glass.

Light to medium bodied, lots of peach, apricot, peppery, slightly creamy, a not unpleasant bitter streak, not much acidity, fairly simple.

Not a bad bottle of wine, but not worth going out of my way to find again.

Purchased at $12.95 (Canadian).

Wild Horse Canyon Sauvignon Blanc 2006
West Coast Appellation

This line of wines has long intrigued me. They are made at BC's Mission Hill Winery from grapes sourced in BC, Washington and California. The following was lifted from the winery web site:

"Our Winemaker works with the best from British Columbia, Washington and California in order to craft the perfect wines. Each region is selected because of its different and special soils, climate and attributes. The results are balanced, fruit-forward wines: lush robust reds, and clean refreshing whites."

A very fresh nose, lime, peppery, with a hint of honey.

Fleshy orange-peach, lemon, grapefruit, a little sweet, with some mild bitter grapefruit rind. With time, the lemon and grapefruit vanished, leaving a sweetish orange and peach wine which reminded me of canned fruit cocktail.

I am pretty sure that something else (although I am not sure what) was blended in with the Sauvignon Blanc, but neither the back label nor the web site has any information on this.

Citrus rind on the finish.

A very odd wine and not worth another try.

Purchased at $12.95 (Canadian).

[Jenise]

Dan Akroyd Sauvignon Blanc???????

There must be a story there--come on, tell.

[Jenise]

Okay, two minutes is too long for a girl to wait for an answer , so I went digging.

Sounds like he's really involved, and there will even be a physical winery in the Niagara region that will also house his TV and film memorabilia.

Here's an article about it from the Wine Spectator:

http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Features/0,1197,3854,00.html

There must be a story there--come on, tell

He's from Remulac, a small town in France.

I used to buy alot of that Ch. Bonnet and the Alveleda VV. Thanks for the reminders, Bruce. I've seen Barbier around and it sounds like its worth trying. cool

He's from Remulac, a small town in France.

Remulac you say? Don't they consume mass quantities there?

Bruce, thanks for the great notes. Your note on the '07 Kim Crawford SB was just as I remember it from a hot afternoon last weekend.

-Michael

Your note on the '07 Kim Crawford SB was just as I remember it from a hot afternoon last weekend.

-Michael

Thanks Michael. Just curious, but do you also recall that the gooseberry was quite dominating at first? I am just wondering if I had a "funny" bottle or, perhaps, the wine wasn't cool enough when I opened it.

It was the first descriptor that came to mind, but was not overpowering per se. It never went away entirely, but as you say, did seem to integrate better after a while.