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Key to the 5-star rating system:<\/strong><\/em> Wine colour indicators – Red<\/span>, Whites<\/span>, etc.<\/strong><\/p>\n The Foci …<\/strong> Pacific North-Best (PNB<\/strong>); Great Whites Australia (GWA<\/strong>) and Red Hot Rosé (RHR<\/strong>) Argentina …<\/strong> Australia …<\/strong> Canada<\/strong> (British Columbia) …<\/em><\/span> Chile …<\/strong> France<\/strong> (Alsace) …<\/em><\/span> Italy<\/strong> (Tuscany) …<\/em><\/span> New Zealand …<\/strong> Portugal …<\/strong> Spain …<\/strong> United States<\/strong> (California) …<\/em><\/span> ________________________________________<\/p>\n In-Store Discoveries: wines that appear on the shelves of your local Vintages outlet …<\/strong> If You Can Afford It: wines worth their high price …<\/strong> Other Stuff That’s Fine, But It’s Not Wine …<\/strong> What I’ll Be Lining Up For: April 30, 2016 …<\/strong> Happy Shopping<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2819,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[258,153,72,190,53,230,58,106,120,62,48,240,94,40,182,79,63,81,160,64,133,47,170,103,52],"class_list":["post-3040","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-vintages-releases","tag-alsace","tag-argentina","tag-australia","tag-bordeaux","tag-british-columbia","tag-burgundy","tag-california","tag-canada","tag-chile","tag-france","tag-italy","tag-midi","tag-new-zealand","tag-ontario","tag-oregon","tag-portugal","tag-provence","tag-red-wine","tag-rhone-valley","tag-rose","tag-spain","tag-tuscany","tag-united-states","tag-washington","tag-white-wine"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3040\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2819"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.michaelpinkuswinereview.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
5 = Outstanding … 4.5 = Excellent … 4 = Very Good … 3.5 = Good<\/em><\/p>\n
The Skinny …<\/strong> We got three spotlights this week, but the Pacific Northwest takes British Columbia out of the equation this time out, you want good BC check out the Laughing Stock wine as part of the In-Store Discovery; other great wines in the release include some French beauties and a Cabernet Franc from an Argentine icon.<\/p>\n
Catena 2013 Appellation San Carlos Cabernet Franc<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 – #450106) – smoky dark fruit, floral, good tannins and cedar, more than just interesting, it’s a bit on the wow-side. (****)
Lamadrid 2012 Single Vineyard Reserva Malbec<\/span> <\/em>($17.00 – #234492) – sweet mocha strawberry, black cherry and vanilla. (*** ½+)
Pascual Toso 2013 Barrancas Vineyards Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 -#083337) – supple dark fruit with smoky vanilla and blackberry. (*** ½+)<\/p>\n
Josef Chromy 2014 Pepik Chardonnay<\/em> <\/span>($22.95 – #378240) – a nice version of Australia’s cool-climate Chardonnay with acidity, lemon\/lime, peach and apple; very fresh. (****) – GWA<\/strong>
Sidewood 2013 Shiraz<\/span><\/em> ($19.95 – #446146) – robust and full bodied with a slight peppery note and big bold dark fruit. (****)
Wakefield 2013 Jaraman Cabernet Sauvignon<\/em><\/span> ($24.95 – #142398) – herbs and spices mix with smoky black fruit, olive and bay leaf; quite complex and really enjoyable. (****)<\/p>\n
Nk’Mip 2013 Qwam Qwmt Chardonnay<\/em><\/span> ($24.95 – #391813) – big California style Chardonnay, oak bomby with some semblance of fruit and a touch of spice. (*** ½)
Canada<\/strong> (Ontario) … click on wine name for full review<\/em><\/span>
Featherstone 2015 Black Sheep Riesling<\/em><\/a> ($16.95 – #080234) – ****+
Featherstone 2013 Red Tail Merlot<\/em><\/a> ($19.95 – #131540) – *** ½+
Stratus 2012 WildAss Red<\/a> ($19.95 – #086363) – *** ½+
Tawse 2015 Sketches of Niagara Rosé<\/em><\/a> ($16.95 – #172643) – *** ½ (RHR<\/strong>)<\/p>\n
Errazuriz 2013 Aconcagua Alto Cabernet Sauvignon<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 – #203364) – minty, cedar, cassis, black cherry; bright, clean and tasty. (****)<\/p>\n
Anne de Laweiss 2013 Vieilles Vignes Gewurztraminer<\/em><\/span> ($20.95 – #141226) – good floral sweetness with pretty lychee notes. (*** ½+)
France<\/strong> (Bordeaux) …<\/em><\/span>
Chateau des Demoiselles 2011<\/em><\/span> ($17.95 – #348755) – smoky-spicy dark fruit, cinnamon, black cherry, cassis and a mocha finish; good value. (*** ½+)
France<\/strong> (Burgundy) …<\/em><\/span>
Domaine Michel Caillot 2012 Beaune Les Avaux 1er Cru<\/em><\/span> ($49.95 – #446344) – delicate fruit with smoky white pepper mid and black cherry finish. (*** ½+)
Vignerons de Buxy 2013 les Chaniots Montagny 1er Cru<\/em><\/span> ($24.95 – #159020) – vanilla, butter, spice, peach cobbler, mineral notes; plus it’s creamy but with good balancing acidity. (****)
France<\/strong> (Midi) …<\/em><\/span>
Chateau Rombeau 2011 Cuvee Elise<\/em><\/span> ($22.95 – #439695) – robust with vanilla, smoke, black cherry, blackberry, blueberry, cassis; layers of fruit giving this one awesome flavour, get this one for the BBQ season ahead. (****+)
Mas Janeil 2009 Cotes du Rousillon Villages<\/em><\/span> ($17.95 – #992800) – floral, blueberry, black cherry, plum and spice. (*** ½+)
France<\/strong> (Provence) …<\/em><\/span>
Chateau La Tour de L’Eveque 2015 Rosé<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 – #319392) – dry strawberry, and apple with nice balancing acidity. (*** ½+) – RHR<\/strong>
Saint Aix 2015 Rosé<\/em><\/span> ($22.95 – #451906) – delicate cherry, apple and lemon with a hint of raspberry. (*** ½+) – RHR<\/strong>
France<\/strong> (Rhone) …<\/em><\/span>
Le Gravillas 2014 Plan de Dieu Cotes du Rhone-Villages<\/em><\/span> ($17.95 – #264648) – simple, but tasty with good dark fruit; a perennial favourite. (*** ½)<\/p>\n
Lornano 2009 Chianti Classico Riserva<\/em><\/span> ($26.95 – #208447) – cedar, coffee, smoky and dark fruit. (*** ½+)
Rendola 2004 Brunello di Montalcino<\/em><\/span> ($39.95 – #181412) – smoky, meaty, savoury with licorice, leather and spice; drink now it’s already 12 years old. (*** ½+)
Uggiano Falconeri 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon<\/em><\/span> ($44.95 – #440719) – spiced red berry fruit with black plum and herbal; this one’s full of flavour. (****)<\/p>\n
Marisco Vineyards 2015 The King’s Favour Sauvignon Blanc<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 – #374165) – flinty, zesty, juicy citrus and a touch herbal. (*** ½+)
Sugar Loaf 2014 Pinot Noir<\/em><\/span> ($24.95 – #447359) – fruit forward pinot with juicy black cherry, smoky mocha, pepper and a lovely long finish. (****)
Villa Maria 2015 Private Bin Rosé<\/em><\/span> ($17.95 – #234377) – candy apple and lemon. (*** ½) – RHR<\/strong><\/p>\n
Aguia Moura 2013 Em Vinhas Velhas Reserva<\/em><\/span> ($18.95 – #354738) – really flavourful with cassis, coffee, black cherry and wood smoke. (*** ½+)
Pinhal da Torre 2008 Quinta de Sao Joao<\/em><\/span> ($24.95 – #441154) – mocha cherry, sweet licorice and white smoke. (****)<\/p>\n
Juan Gil 2014 4 Meses Monastrell<\/em><\/span> ($16.95 – #013656) – fruity and juicy number that’s ready for right now enjoyment, and I do mean right now. (*** ½+)<\/p>\n
Pennywise 2013 Petite Sirah<\/em><\/span> ($22.95 – #450536) – sweet fruit nose with blackberry, black cherry, sweet licorice and raspberry. (*** ½+)
Wente Vineyards 2013 Charles Wetmore Cabernet Sauvignon<\/span><\/em> ($24.95 – #963397) – black cherry, plum, vanilla, cinnamon, gentle spice, hint of coffee. (****)
United States<\/strong> (Oregon) …<\/em><\/span>
Solena 2012 Domaine Danielle Laurent Pinot Noir<\/em><\/span> ($35.95 – #446112) – nice black cherry, cranberry, vanilla with delicate white pepper. (****) – PNB<\/strong>
Willakenzie Estate 2013 Gisele Pinot Noir<\/em><\/span> ($36.95 – #452656) – lovely fruit with hints of smoky cranberry; delicious and balanced. (****+) – PNB<\/strong>
United States<\/strong> (Washington) …<\/em><\/span>
Columbia Crest 2013 Grand Estates Chardonnay<\/em> <\/span>($17.95 – #366542) – soft and creamy with apple, vanilla and good acidity; simple and tasty. (*** ½) – PNB<\/strong>
Seven Falls 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 – #360222) – smoky, mocha, blackberry, black cherry with a touch of herbal. (****) – PNB<\/strong><\/p>\n
Finca Flichman 2012 Dedicato<\/em><\/span> ($29.95 – $721423) – Argentina … ****
Laughing Stock 2013 Portfolio<\/em><\/span> ($54.95 – #71464) – British Columbia … ****+
Trapiche 2010 Terroir Series Finca Ambrosia Single Vineyard Malbec<\/em><\/span> ($39.95 – #402941) – Argentina … ****
De Grendel 2013 Shiraz<\/em><\/span> ($24.95 – #174557) – South Africa … ****<\/p>\n
Ferrari-Carano 2010 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon<\/em><\/span> ($74.95 – #450429) – California … *** ½+
Paul Jaboulet Aine 2010 Les Cedres Chateauneuf-du-Pape<\/em><\/span> ($54.95 – #274225) – France … ****<\/p>\n
Orchid Mango Liquor<\/em> <\/span>($25.95 – #207407) – tastes like puree mango and peach with booze; on its own it’s a bit gritty but this would be a nice mixer for summer spritzers. (*** ½)<\/p>\n
Catena 2013 Appellation San Carlos Cabernet Franc<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 – #450106) – Argentina
Chateau Rombeau 2011 Cuvee Elise<\/em><\/span> ($22.95 – #439695) – France
Sidewood 2013 Shiraz<\/em><\/span> ($19.95 – #446146) – Australia<\/p>\n