- 2023 Primitivo Collantes Vino de la Tierra de Cádiz Viña Matalián finca Matalián - Spain, Andalucía, Vino de la Tierra de Cádiz (2025-04-21)
I really enjoyed this wine over the last two nights. A dry wine from Palamino grapes, which a few producers have started to do in the Jerez region. The intensity of the wine was the main feature I remember. Great minerality/salinity, yellow fruits (pear, apple), very crisp, clean and refreshing. Interesting, different and quite nice. I will get more of this! (A-) - 2023 Phantom Creek Estates Pinot Gris - Canada, British Columbia, Okanagan Valley, Okanagan Valley VQA (2025-04-19)
I thought this pinot gris was heavy and the 14% alcohol didn't help either. I've had previous vintage version of this wine, and have enjoyed them, but this was either a mistep or possibly flawed? Low acidity, dead fruit and no charm in this bottle (B-). - 2021 Culmina Family Estate Winery Riesling No. 005 Süsser - Canada, British Columbia, Okanagan Valley, Okanagan Valley VQA (2025-04-14)
I've never tasting this wine before (wine club members only have access), but it looked interesting at the winery so I brought one home. This is a very delicious off dry/sweet riesling. There's very good balance between the sweetness and the acidity; an unctious wine with a weighty, creamy texture and mainly stonefruit flavours (pear, nectarine), honey, pineapple and red apple. It feels like they are trying for an Auslese or Spatlese style in the BC region. Nicely done - would buy again. (A-) - 2018 Greystone / Grey's Peak Pinot Noir - New Zealand, South Island, Canterbury, Waipara (2025-04-13)
Another very nice bottle of this light coloured pinot noir. There were more earthy notes in this bottle, along with the usual cherry and strawberry notes in this medium bodied wine. Nice complexity and has both fruit and savory notes. (A-) - 2019 Meyer Family Vineyards Chardonnay Tribute Series Old Main Road Vineyard - Canada, British Columbia, Okanagan Valley, Okanagan Valley VQA (2025-04-09)
I'm not sure if the fruit is dropping from this 6 year old wine, or that it was always this oaky. At any rate, too much oak for me, though there is some light citrus and stonefruit notes and butterscotch in this medium bodied wine. Only 22% new oak according to the label, but it seems much more than that. (B+) - 2010 Anderson's Conn Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Reserve - USA, California, Napa Valley (2025-04-04)
On the first day, this was a little tight but was still a big wine that just flirted with being over the top; nice tannins, full bodied, rich, with black fruits and chocolate flavours. This improved a bit in the second night - more integrated but still a big, rich style of Napa cab. Very, very smooth on the velvety palate. Not my usual style of wine, but this was very good in its Napa ilk. (A-) - 2022 Weingut Thörle Riesling trocken - Germany, Rheinhessen (2025-03-30)
A nice, dry riesling from young vines in the Rheinhessen. Mainly citrus notes, but there is some minerality as well, with nice balance. Not too complex, but refreshing and tasty. (B+) - 2021 La Grange Tiphaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Nouveau-Nez - France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Montlouis-sur-Loire (2025-03-28)
This was better than I expected. Nice toasty, biscuit notes, nice mousse, with good, rich fruit that tastes of chenin. Well done. (A-) - 2019 Mount Pleasant Wines Sémillon Elizabeth - Australia, New South Wales, Hunter Valley (2025-03-24)
This was a hit last night. Nice intensity and purity in this wine. There’s citrus in the nose and medium bodied, refreshing palate, along with lanolin and apples. Healthy acidity is key. Nice now but will last under screw cap a long while. (A-) - 2012 Majella Cabernet Sauvignon - Australia, South Australia, Limestone Coast, Coonawarra (2025-02-20)
My previous note and score match this bottle almost 4 years later. Solid wine that didn't have any flaws or issues (not too rustic, oaky or hot) but wasn't all that exciting on the first or second night. There was still solid blackfruits, very little tannins and just a tiny green note; little complexity or secondary/tertiary notes. It can probably last a while, but I don't know if it will improve. More of a midweek wine that is good but not great. (B+) - NV Doré Champagne Premier Cru Brut Ludes - France, Champagne, Champagne Premier Cru (2025-02-15)
This was a little acidic and lacking fruit at first, with a slight medicinal taste, but improved at it got air and warmed up. Other bottles were better. There is a LOT of bottle variation with this wine (B). (B) - 2021 Scout Vineyard Riesling Scout Vineyard - Canada, British Columbia, Similkameen Valley (2025-01-27)
Another natural wine from Scout Vineyard in BC. I tried the Scout Vineyard Syrah - the first couple of glasses were OK, but then a very nasty flavour appeared. I thought I'd try the riesling as well. From the first glass, this is very natural indeed, but not in a good way. There are little varietal characteristics on show. There is an earthy, plastic-like taste, a bit of mousiness, and then interesting but funky tannins at the end. The end result is not pleasant to drink for me. I don't know if this is 'flawed' or this is the winery's desired result, so no rating for this wine. Not my thing. - 2022 Scout Vineyard Syrah - Canada, British Columbia, Similkameen Valley (2025-01-14)
"Regenerative organic farmed grapes made in qvevri one hundred percent fermented grape juice" says the back label, although there are added sulphites in the wine. I don't drink a lot of natural wines, but I thought I'd give a look at this producer in the Similkameen Valley in BC. It's a puppy dog of a wine - fruit forward, soft (no tannins) but balanced and quite pure tasting. There's a nice velvety texture to the wine, perhaps from the qvevri. It didn't really taste too much like syrah at first - my wife guessed beaujolais - but it it certainly tasty. Cherries are the main flavour on show, perhaps a hint of blueberries, white pepper and a bit of cinnamon. The purity of the fruit and the silky texture are my two favourite attributes of the wine; I enjoyed it. But on the second night, there was a very nasty 'muddy' taste - the further down the bottle the worse it got. I'll say this is flawed, but OK for the first couple of glasses. NR (flawed)