Saturday Night – Trying not to Boar anyone – Part 3

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As I mention in Part 2, I opened a bottle of 2010 Catena Malbec as I was worried the Pinot had turned so we have a bonus review of the Catena Malbec now in Part 3.

 

 

The nose on the Catena was rich with aromas of cherry, fruit cake, malt vinegar, smoke and nut.  Tasting the wine black current and green pepper were the two main flavours.  The wine came across as chalky as it was a touch tannic.  On its own the wine came across very dry but with the food and especially the lamb the fruit in the wine really came to the forefront.  I liked this wine as a pairing for the food but it wasn’t so great on its own.  I was probably a little disappoint with this Malbec probably due to how good the Ben Marco Malbec we had last week was and I was looking for it to be as good.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 86, Mark – 87, Kathy – 86, Amy – 87, Overall – 86.5.

 

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

 

CATENA MALBEC (V)
VINTAGES 478727
750 mL bottle
Price $ 19.95
Made in: Mendoza, Argentina
By: Bodegas Esmeralda
Release Date: N/A
Style: Full-bodied & Smooth
Wine, Red Wine
13.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Malbec
Sugar Content: 7 g/L

 

For dessert I had a couple of option for everyone – a Swiss apple tart that I picked up from the grocery store and a couple of blue cheeses that I got at Mickey McGuire’s Cheese Shop in Dundas (see link to the right).  I opened my very last bottle of Yalumba Antique Tawny to go with dessert and cheese.  We have reviewed this wine before so I won’t go into much detail here but I will say I’m sad that this was the last bottle I have of it.

 

For a quick and easy dinner, this night turned out pretty well.  Mick and Amy both enjoyed the boar sausage and lamb and we got to try three new wines so not a bad night if I do say so myself.

 

Cheers!

 

Mark

Saturday Night – Trying not to Boar anyone – Part 2

For the main course I did grilled middle lamb loin with baby potatoes and green bean with some Zippy Sauce for dipping with the lamb.  I opened a bottle of 2004 Rex Hill Oregon Pinot Noir as my pairing.



 

The nose on the wine was powerful, with aromas of peat, bourbon, smoke and burnt caramel, but as the wine sat and opened up, eucalyptus and cherry notes were to be found.  Tasting the wine initially I was floored as it had a very strong mushroom flavour and a lot of heat.  I hate mushrooms and this was not a flavour I was looking for.  The lack of fruit and strong mushroom actually caused me to question this wine as to whether it was off or not and I opened a 2010 Catena Malbec as I didn’t feel like drinking this pinot.  I opened the wine before starting the lamb and then something amazing happened, when I sat down for dinner 30 minutes later the Pinot’s flavour had changed and now had a nice cherry/strawberry flavour to it and it actually turned out to be a decent pairing with the lamb.  The finish on the wine however still came across as harsh and kept this wine from being something truly special. 

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 86, Mark – 86, Kathy – 84, Amy – 82, Overall – 85.5.

I have had the Rex Hill Pinot Noir on the rack for a while and there is no LCBO listing for the current Rex Hill vintage.  A quick web search put this wine at $18 US so probably the LCBO price would be $30-35.  This wasn’t a wine I was enamored with so not really heartbroken that there isn’t any at the LCBO.

The lamb was very good but I probably over-grilled it by 2 minutes or so as it was a little past the  medium rare that I was aiming for.  That said no one had any left on their plates so it couldn’t have been too bad.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night – Trying not to Boar anyone – Part 1

This Saturday it was my turn to host our usual Saturday night dinner. The only snag was Mick and I had tickets to go drive a Lamborghini around a track for a few laps at 3:00pm that afternoon. Getting to and from the track plus the time spent at the events meant a good chunk of my afternoon was gone, so keeping the dinner preparations simple was my main goal.

 

Friday I hit Cumbrae’s in Dundas (see link on the right) as I wanted some middle lamb loin for the main course as Mick and Amy were asking why I hadn’t made these for them yet after Kathy was raving about her birthday dinner.  I picked those up but they also had wild boar sausage on display which Kathy and I have had before and really love.  They also had a very nice looking Waldorf styled salad which I also grabbed. 

So the first course was the Waldorf salad and taster size wild boar sausage with Zippy Sauce.  As the Waldorf salad had apples, grapes and pecans I wanted a wine that could handle the sweetness of those ingredients, so I went with a 2009 Schloss Reinhartshausen Kabinett Riesling as my pairing.

 

The nose the wine was mild but complex with aromas of peach, green apple, pear, honey, lilac and a very faint aroma of petrol.  Tasting the wine you will find green apple tempered with pear as the main flavours.  Amy described the wine as being very clean tasting and I believe she was dead on with that assessment as the acidity was fresh without being overbearing and the sweetness was there but thanks to the good acidity didn’t come even remotely close to being cloying; all in all a very well balanced wine.  It was an amazing pairing with the Waldorf salad and a pretty good pairing for the wild boar sausage which I was worried about as I wasn’t sure how the Boar sausage and Riesling would work together.

 

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark – 89, Kathy – 89, Amy – 89, Overall – 89.25.

 

Here is the LCBO Information on the wine –

 

SCHLOSS REINHARTSHAUSEN HATTENHEIMER WISSELBRUNNEN RIESLING KABINETT 2009
VINTAGES 114801
750 mL bottle
Price $ 17.95
Made in: Rheingau, Germany
By: Schloss Reinhartshausen
Release Date: Aug 4, 2012
Wine, White Wine
12.5% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Riesling
Sugar Content: 46 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: M - Medium

 

Tasting Note - A hedonistic sweet-edged riesling from a renowned producer who once tried to grow chardonnay in Germany. Tangerine, apple, jasmine, lime candy drops and a lemon tart delivery. Mouth-wateringly good. Score - 91. (Gordon Stimmell, The Toronto Star, Aug. 22, 2011)

 

This Riesling for $18 was a heck of a deal for the price point as it is exceptionally solid, unfortunately the LCBO is showing 3 bottles left in the entire province so there is no more to be had.  The nice thing is the release date is showing August so I will have to look for the 2010 vintage in the near future.

 

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Saturday Night – Ups and Downs – Part 2

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The main course Mick did a Prosciutto and basil pizzas grilled on the barbeque. Mick paired this with a Chianti which I was looking for to trying as we don’t do a lot of Italian wines on our Saturday night dinners so this would be a nice change of pace.  Mick asked me to open the wine and as I popped the cork my first words were ‘Whoa… Holy musty basement Batman!’  The shocking thing was that musty aroma was so strong, I caught it seconds after opening the bottle and the bottle opening was probably close to a foot and half from my nose.

 

We poured out a glass to taste and sure enough this wine was corked as there was no fruit taste and just a rancid vinegar type of flavour to it.  Mick was busying making pizza by this time so he told Amy and me to hit the basement and grab bottle of something off the rack to go with the food.  Mick only had one other bottle of Italian wine on his rack and Amy said he was aging that one, so I searched around some more and found a 2009 Ben Marco Malbec from Argentina.  I figured Malbec is more of a light to medium body styled red wine and probably would be a good pairing for the pizza.

Opening this bottle and pouring it out, there was nothing wrong with the nose on it; lush aromas of cherry, black licorice, cedar and clove.  I loved the nose on this wine as it had such warm comforting aromas to it.  Tasting the wine, cherry and hickory/bacon type flavours were to be found.  This wine was beautifully crafted as it had a nice smooth medium body to it with acidity and tannin that were in perfect harmony and a finish that lingered around forever.  It was a good pairing with the pizza but most of us thought the wine was even better on its own.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark – 91, Kathy – 91, Amy – 90, Overall – 90.5.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

BENMARCO MALBEC 2010
VINTAGES 657601
750 mL bottle
Price $ 17.95
Made in: Mendoza, Argentina
By: Dominio del Plata
Release Date: Oct 13, 2012
Wine, Red Wine
14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Malbec
Sugar Content: 4 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: XD - Extra Dry

Description  -  The wines of BenMarco are made by Susana Balbo, the Grande Dame of Argentine winemaking.

Tasting Note -  The 2010 Malbec contains 10% Bonarda in its makeup and received the same elevage as the Cabernet. Lovely aromas of black cherry, spice box, tobacco, lavender, and earthy minerals inform the nose of a ripe, succulent, intensely flavored wine that offers outstanding value and is meant for drinking over the next 5-7 years. Score - 90. (Jay Miller, erobertparker.com, Dec. 2011)

*Note – this listing is for the 2010 and not the 2009 reviewed here.

The 2010 Ben Marco sounds like it too would be a very nice wine to try; unfortunately the LCBO has minimal stock levels at this moment of the 2010 so trying it will probably be a pipe dream.  The release date is October so I will have to keep an eye out for the 2011 vintage this fall.

For dessert, Amy picked up a new La Rocca cake - Dulce Napoleon which is layers of puff pastry and sponge cake, nestled between authentic dulce de leche filling and 35% whipped cream, topped with crisp puff wedges (description from http://www.laroccacakes.com/ ).  This was a good way to end the night as it was a lighter dessert than say a chocolate based one as we were all getting quite full at this point.

An odd kind of night but I will say the ‘ups’ (Ben Marco Malbec, Corn Fritter, the Pizza, etc.) more than out weighted the ‘downs’ (Mussels and corked Chianti) and made this a very enjoyable evening.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – Ups and Downs – Part 1

Mick and Amy hosted this past Saturday night’s dinner and Mick had two new wines on tap for us to try and three new recipes.

 

The first course was corn fritters topped with avocado and sour cream with a lime and chipotle dipping sauce. Mick paired this with a 2011 Coudoulet de Beaucastel Cotes du Rhone by Perrin. This wine was also used as the pairing with the second course.

The nose on the wine consisted of rose, smoke, melon and toffee aromas. Tasting the wine initially I got honeydew melon and grapefruit flavours but as the wine sat and opened up, the dominate flavour was red Delicious apple. The structure was interesting as there was a slight oiliness to the wine, with soft acidity and a short to medium length finish. The wine was decent on its own but really shined as a pairing with the corn fritters.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 87, Mark – 87, Kathy – 87, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

CHÂTEAU DE BEAUCASTEL COUDOULET DE BEAUCASTEL BLANC 2011
VINTAGES 48892
750 mL bottle
Price $ 33.95
Made in: Rhône, France
By: Famille Perrin
Release Date: Oct 13, 2012
Wine, White Wine
14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Blend - Other
Sugar Content: 3 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: D - Dry

Tasting Note -  This blend of Marsanne, Viognier, Bourboulenc, and a touch of Clairette features pretty aromas of apricot, peach, cantaloupe, citrus, white flowers and vanilla. Juicy and soft-textured with a ripe mid-palate leading to a tangy finish. An approachable, satisfying wine with plenty of finesse. Enjoy it tonight with grilled calamari, or impress your guests when you serve it alongside turkey dinner. (VINTAGES panel, Aug. 2012)

I liked the wine but found it a bit of an odd duck as to what I’d pair this wine with.  Hummus would probably be a nice pairing and it worked well with the corn fritters but after reading the LCBO write-up, I think their suggestion of Turkey dinner is right on the money. 

The corn fritters were quite tasty and so was the lime and chipotle dipping sauce which really brought the fritters up to the next level.

The second course was a new mussel recipe that Mick found in his Julia Child’s cookbook.  Mick has been batting a thousand recently on new recipes, he was due for a curveball and this recipe was it.  This recipe used breadcrumbs as one of the ingredients which I thought was different as most mussel recipes I have found tend to steam the mussels in a liquid based sauce.  I’m assuming the idea to the recipe was the breadcrumbs would form a coating on the mussels sort of like you’d get on breaded chicken fingers.  Instead the mussels and the ‘sauce’ turned out more like oatmeal porridge.  The flavour wasn’t bad on the dish but the texture really left something to be desired.   The wine was also a decent pairing with this course.

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Saturday Night – A Thank You Dinner – Part 2

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For the main course I did Beef Tenderloin and Grilled Shrimp with Béarnaise sauce and Green Beans and Baby Potatoes paired with a 2005 Beringer’s Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.

 

The nose on the Beringer’s was powerful with raspberry, all spice, dark chocolate, cinnamon and vanilla aromas.   Black cherry and dark chocolate were the two dominate flavours with some herbaceous notes in the background.  The wine was beautifully balanced with a long lingering finish.  My one small knock with this wine was I would have liked a slightly bigger mouth-feel to it.  As a pairing with the Beef it was heavenly.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark - 90, Kathy – 90, Amy – 90, Overall – 90.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

BERINGER PRIVATE RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2009
VINTAGES 149955
750 mL bottle
Price $ 119.95
Made in: California, USA
By: Treasury Wine Estates
Release Date: Nov 24, 2012
Wine, Red Wine
14.6% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Sugar Content: 3 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: XD - Extra Dry

Tasting Note  - The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve is a beautifully balanced wine. Firm yet well-integrated tannins frame a core of dark red berries, flowers, mint, spices and licorice. The Reserve shows lovely inner perfume and mid-palate juiciness. It should drink well with a minimum of cellaring. The main vineyards in the 2009 are Home (37%), Lampyridae (23%), Vogt (14%), Chabot (11%) and Rancho del Oso (9%). Each lot was aged separately for about two years before the final blend was assembled. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2029. Score - 93. (Antonio Galloni, erobertparker.com, Dec. 2011)

* Note – This is for the 2009 and not the 2005 reviewed here.

Mick said he would have rated this a 91 but the high price point was his main reason for dropping it to a 90.

The final course of the evening was Baked Apple Tart with Almond Custard with a 2005 Henry of Pelham Botrytis Affect Late Harvest Riesling.  We have reviewed the wine before so I won’t go into too much detail other than to say this is wine we open about once a year or so just to see how it is developing and each time it has been a real treat.  I have one bottle left of this wonderful vintage and will be sad when it is gone. 

The Baked apple tart was a nice way to finish off the evening as it is a lighter dessert and by this time we were all getting very full. 

Cathy and Tom both said that this was the best steak they’d ever had which was nice to hear.  Cathy also now could understand when I roll my eyes when she is gushing about the Keg. 

It was a fun evening and I really enjoy both Tom and Cathy’s company and hope we can do another one of these dinners in the fall.  I really have to thank Mick for cooking the steaks and the shrimp to perfection in some not so great weather conditions; he really went above and beyond the call of duty here.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night – A Thank You Dinner – Part 1

This past Saturday night, Cathy and Tom joined our usual group of four for a dinner I’d been meaning to do for a while. Tom was our contractor when we did our home renovations a couple of years ago and his wife Cathy works in the same building as I do. Tom was amazing during our renovations and I dread to think of what the process would have been like without his help. So I really wanted to do a ‘Thank You’ dinner for him.

 

My other motivation was Cathy a couple of times in the last six months has gone to the Keg for dinner and would always rave about how great it was.  I don’t mind the Keg but the steaks we do at home are so much better than what the Keg offers.

My Menu for the night was as follows –

Lobster Chowder with Roederer Champagne
Poached Pear Salad with2009 Forster Jesuitengarten Spätlese Riesling
Beef Tenderloin and Grilled Shrimp with Béarnaise sauce and Green Beans and Baby Potatoes with a 2005 Beringer’s Private Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
Baked Apple Tart with Almond Custard with a 2005 Henry of Pelham Botrytis Affect Late Harvest Riesling

The Lobster Chowder was a new ‘recipe’ which wasn’t an actual recipe but a mash up of a number of different soup recipes I have done before.  I was looking for something rich and decadent that put the focus squarely on the Lobster meat in the soup.   I bought 3 lobsters and had them steamed.  I removed the claw and tail meat from them and then the bodies and shells went into a stock pot.  I made a Lobster stock from this which took about an hour.  While this was happening, I cooked 8 slices of bacon that I’d diced and then set it to the side.  I then cooked two dice onions and five cloves of garlic in some butter until the onion were soft and slight golden in my main soup pot.  I added the bacon and corn shaved from 10 ears of corn (sounds like a lot of corn but they were small ears) to the pot and then added my Lobster Stock and brought to a boil and then simmered for 20 minutes. 

I set the pot to the side and let it cool and then pureed the whole thing until it was smooth.  I then add ½ cup of Sour Cream, ½ cup of Sherry and 4 cups of whipping cream and mixed it all together.  A touch of salt and a healthy whack of crushed black pepper and then simmered for about 15 minutes to let it thicken slightly.  I then let it cool and put it in the fridge overnight.

The day just before dinner, I heated the soup back up and then added the lobster meat just before serving.  I garnished the bowls with some chopped chives and a touch of cracked pepper. 

The soup was very good and it certainly was rich and decadent so ‘Mission Accomplished’ there.  The surprise of the night was how good a pairing the Roederer Champagne was with the soup.  I thought it would be a decent pairing but it was much better than that.  The Champagne really cut through the richness of the soup and had a lovely lime and tangerine flavour to it that the soup brought out.

The next course was Poached Pear Salad.  The salad is a base of baby spinach with a raspberry vinaigrette with poached pears, blue cheese and spiced pecans.  This was paired with a 2009 Forster Jesuitengarten Spätlese Riesling.

The nose on the Riesling was an interesting mix of soap, oil, melon and petrol. Tasting the wine, flavours of melon, pear and some tropical fruit are to be found.  I was surprised, as for a Spätlese, it was nowhere near as sweet as I was expecting; it was sweet enough to deal with the sweetness of the pears and the dressing however so that was good.  It was nicely balanced and had a finish that lingered around for quite a while.   It was a good pairing with salad and I’m happy to say I have another bottle of this in the cellar.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark - 89, Kathy – 87, Amy – 86, Overall – 88.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

REICHSRAT VON BUHL FORSTER JESUITENGARTEN RIESLING SPÄTLESE 2009

VINTAGES 946673
750 mL bottle
Price $ 24.95
Made in: Pfalz, Germany
By: Weingut Rvb Gmbh-Von Buhl
Release Date: Dec 8, 2012
Wine, White Wine
9.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Riesling
Sugar Content: 41 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: MS - Medium Sweet
Tasting Note -  Von Buhl pulled way back on the residual sugar in their 2009 Forster Jesuitengarten Riesling Spatlese compared with other recent vintages, and the result is more than sweet enough to support both its decadent, musky floral perfume of peony and heliotrope and its very ripe peach fruit, yet discreet enough to be well-balanced even for immediate consumption. Peach kernel, green herbs, salt, and crushed stone all serve for fascinating counterpoint, and a soothingly creamy texture is allied to refreshing primary juiciness and lift. This ought to delight for at least a dozen years; though I am not convinced it is structured for longer-keeping. Score - 91. (David Schildknecht, erobertparker.com, Feb. 2011)

This was an odd Spätlese and by our ratings you can see the opinions were mixed.  Mick and I really liked this Spätlese for its subtleness whereas I think Amy was looking for a more ‘in your face’ type of Spätlese.  Either way it was fun to try something new.

Click here for Part 2

Saturday Night - Julie/Julia and Mick – Part 3

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For the main course Mick did a NY Strip Steaks with a peppercorn sauce recipe that was also a Julia Childs recipe.  He served this with homemade French Fries and Asparagus.  The meal was paired with a 2003 Chateau St Jean Cinq Cepages.  The Cinq Cepages is a Bordeaux style red wine blend.

 

The nose on the wine was beautiful with strong aromas of cherry, green pepper, cedar and black pepper (really, there was black pepper in the wine’s aroma and not from Mick’s peppercorn sauce!).   Tasting the wine black cherry and chocolate were the main flavours with a hint of vanilla in the background.  The structure on the wine was the failing point as it came across hot and acidic and really needed more fruit and more tannin to balance/round out the wine.  It was a good pairing with the meal but I think this was more of a case of the excellent food helping out the wine vs. the other way round.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 87, Mark - 86, Kathy – 86, Amy – 86, Overall – 86.25.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

CHATEAU ST. JEAN CINQ CÉPAGES 2008
VINTAGES 710913
750 mL bottle
Price $ 75.95
Made in: California, USA
By: Treasury Wine Estates
Release Date: Dec 8, 2012
Wine, Red Wine
14.4% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
All other wines that match this varietal »
Sugar Content: 5 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: XD - Extra Dry

Description -  Cinq Cépages refers to the five Bordeaux varieties used to make this wine.

Tasting Note -  The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Cinq Cepages is an explosive wine endowed with tons of depth and richness. It is an impeccably textured wine graced with notable size and elegance. Blackberry jam, savory herbs, graphite, tar and licorice inform the exuberant, polished finish. The 2008 relies heavily on fruit from vineyards in Knights Valley, with the addition of fruit from Alexander and Sonoma Valleys. In 2008 the blend is 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 3% Malbec. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2028. Score - 94. (Antonio Galloni, erobertparker.com, Feb. 2012) 
*Note this is for the 2008 and not the 2003 reviewed here

Cinq Cepages is a funny wine, as if you hit the right year it can more than compete with wines at almost double its price, hit the wrong year and you have trouble justifying its $75 price point.
Mick’s peppercorn steak and fry dish was amazing.  The peppercorn sauce was perfect, just enough bite from the pepper but not enough to make it overbearing.  His steaks were cooked to an exact medium rare and were so flavourful it was incredible.  The homemade French fries were to die for and I think you’d be truly hard-pressed to find better fries on the planet.  This truly was an amazing dish all around.

For dessert, Amy picked up a Carrot cake which capped off the evening nicely.

Thanks to Mick and Amy for hosting and to Mick for some wonderful dishes and his hard work for making them.

Cheers!

Mark

Saturday Night - Julie/Julia and Mick – Part 2

For the second course Mick did Spicy Shrimp with Mint sauce and paired this with a 2010 Grgich Hills Estate Fumé Blanc.

 

The nose on the wine was easy find with powerful aromas of lavender, pink grapefruit, limestone and a soapy/laundry detergent kind of aroma. The flavours to the wine were an interesting mix of grapefruit, lemon grass and buttered popcorn with a touch of nuttiness in the background. Structure-wise, the wine was a bit of a surprise as it didn’t have that razor sharp acidity I like in a Fumé nor did it have that slight oiliness that is also common in a good Fumé; that said it was an exceptionally balance and complex white wine that was a pleasure to experience. It was an OK pairing with the spicy shrimp but that slight oiliness that was missing was sorely needed as this wine did little to help ease the burn of the spicy shrimp.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark - 88, Kathy – 92, Amy – 90, Overall – 90.

There was no LCBO information on the wine but a quick web search puts this at about $25 US so it would probably about $40-45 in the LCBO.

With the 90 overall rating this wine make the Zippy Sauce Top Ten Whites and to be honest I have mixed feelings about that. It is a spectacular white wine and is deserving of its 90 rating but I didn’t like it as Fumé Blanc. If this was just labeled ‘white wine’ or a ‘white blend’ I would be much more accepting of it. I feel it is a great white but a poor example of what a Fumé Blanc should be.

Click here for Part 3

Saturday Night - Julie/Julia and Mick – Part 1

Mick and Amy were hosting dinner this past Saturday night and Mick had two new recipes for us to try and three new wines.

 

The first course was a leek and potato soup from Mick’s new Julia Childs Cookbook.  Hence the Julie/Julia reference in the title.  Mick paired this with a non-vintage Crémant de Bourgogne from Francois Labet.  Crémant is a term used for French sparkling wine made outside the region of Champagne, similar in concept to the term Cava for Spanish wines.

The nose on the wine was extremely faint and you really had to work at to discover the aromas of marzipan, and hay and yeast.  Tasting the wine you will find refreshing tangerine and lemon flavours. There was some creaminess to the wine.  I found it almost dainty in its structure as the acidity was very light and the finish didn’t linger for long.  It was a very approachable and easy drinking sparkling wine that worked well with the soup.

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 87, Mark - 87, Kathy – 87, Amy – 87, Overall – 87.

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

FRANÇOIS LABET BRUT CRÉMANT DE BOURGOGNE
VINTAGES 130088
750 mL bottle
Price $ 17.95
Made in: Burgundy, France
By: Francois Labet
Release Date: Mar 16, 2013
Style: Rich & Complex
Wine, Sparkling Wine, Other Sparkling Wine
12.6% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Blend - Other
Sugar Content: 10 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: D - Dry

Description  -  Burgundy's sparkling wine, Crémant de Bourgogne, continues to gain traction as an affordable and extremely satisfying alternative to Champagne. This version from François Labet (of Château de La Tour fame) is dry, full-bodied and vivacious, with oodles of soft fruit. It's got the versatility to be an aperitif or to be served alongside a main course like baked chicken and mushrooms, or pan-seared scallops.

The leek and potato soup was very mild and Mick’s pairing of the Labet with its mild demeanor was probably a very good choice as a more full bodied sparkling would have overpowered the delicate flavours of the soup.

Click here for Part 2