2006 Gourmet Food & Wine Expo

My main reason for attending the expo was to try wines that I wouldn’t usually be able to taste or afford. There are also cooking seminars and all kinds of food, but the main draw for me has got to be the wine. Overall I was quite satisfied with the expo; my only gripe was that some of the tastings were overpriced (e.g. $8 to get a 2 oz. tasting of a wine costing $60, with around 12 two ounce servings in a bottle that works out to $96 each). In most cases they were making a mint on tastings, which I think defeats the spirit of the whole thing.

Note: Due to some confusion over my old rating system I am switching over to the more intuitive 50-100 point scale starting with this posting. My rating will always follow the price.

The Vintages booth:
Most of the fine wines I wanted to try were here so I basically camped out there for a good hour or two and chatted with the friendly and knowledgeable staff.

1999 ‘Riserva gli Angeli’ Brunello Di Montalcino – La Gerla
Earth and truffle hints and lovely ripe red fruits (strawberry and raspberry) please the senses. It has good grip and weight while remaining carefully poised with pomegranate on the long finish. The fine acidity demands a pairing with some hearty Italian fair. 94 from Wine Spectator. $89 92

2000 Barolo ‘Vigna Dei Pola’ – Ascheri
Dried flowers and faint vanilla with light loam. More of a modern style. Decent but not as concentrated as I’d like for a Barolo. $39.95 88

2003 ‘La Grand Vin’ – Osoyoos Larose
This is the third vintage of this premium meritage from British Colombia. There is quite a bit of new oak (with a light toast), slightly herbaceous (dill), smoked meat, good extract. Good but not what I typically go for (a lot of other people were quite impressed with this wine). $40 90

2001 ‘Badia a Passignano’ Chianti Classico Riserva – Antinori
Vanilla, a little pepper, good acid and red fruit. I rushed past this wine to try others so my observations are not in depth. Good but not outstanding though it got a 92 from Wine Advocate. $39.95 89

2003 Crozes-Hermitage – E.Guigal
There is a raisiny sweetness and blueberry/cassis at the top with some whiffs of barnyard underneath (maybe what Parker refers to as tapenade). Nice mouthfeel and finish. Could age much longer, but it’s drinking well now. 91-94 Wine Advocate. 90-92 International Wine Cellar. Decent value. $25.95 91

2003 Ornellaia - Tenuta dell’Ornellaia
I’ve never had the chance to try this famous Super Tuscan before so I was quite excited. Smooth and damn complex! Well integrated oak (vanilla notes) with a coffee and toffee like sweetness. Great mouthfeel and length. There is a green tea like hint in there too. Is it worth the price? Not quite for me. 92 Wine Spectator; 94 from Gordon Stimmel of The Star. $139.95 94


2000 ‘Mazzano’ Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico- Masi
I thought some of the other wines were pretty great but this wine stands out to me as one of the most enjoyable of the day – and this is after the Ornellaia and La Gerla! It has slight mineral at the top of the nose followed by some straw and spicy raisin/fig. All fine and good, but as soon as I sip it I get a stupid grin on my face – it’s so concentrated and almost evaporates leaving a vapour of all the flavours. Wow, top Amarone. I would not be surprised if it scored a 92+ when it is rated. $89.95 95 Favourite Wine of the show

2002 Vinedo Chadwick – Vina Errazuriz
Previous vintages of this wine have stacked up quite well against the coveted first growths of Bordeaux so I decided to give it taste. Light smoky oak that is well integrated and a light earthiness. Well balanced, but overall lacking a certain punch to distinguish it from the previous wines. Perhaps it would get even better with some air. 92 Wine Spectator $79 90


Vines Fine Wine area:
The other fine wine hot spot, but some tastings were ridiculously overpriced ($10/2oz to taste the Tignanello!) This was the spot for Barolo.

2001 ‘I Classici’ Barolo – Marchesi di Barolo
There is a light perfume reminiscent of earthy truffle, crushed pomegranate, and the sweet edge of new oak. I also notice faint Cedar/sandalwood and rubber notes. The elements seem to be there but it is a bit watery and sour for a Barolo. Not quite cutting it for me. $49.95 88

2001 Barolo Ginestra – Paolo Conterno
When you have this next to the Marchesi it is obviously better. There’s a sweet caramel coating surrounding red fruits, dried flowers/leaves and big gripping tannins. There are hints of the characteristic Barolo fruity tar notes, but not as much as I like. Good, but the 1995 was better. $59.95 91

2001 Barolo – Massolino
This has the most extract of the 3 Barolo’s so far. Healthy tannins, ripe strawberry/cherry, exotic perfumed spice, and just a touch of tar. Well structured I think. Wine Spectator noted that it was outstanding if slightly one-dimensional and gave it a 92. Decently priced for a Barolo. $49.95 93

Wines of California Booth
Didn’t notice too many exciting wines here, but took the opportunity to try the Ravenswood Zin.

(Vintage?) ‘Vintners Blend’ Zinfandel – Ravenswood
Some blackberry jam notes, but not much balance or extraction. It’s too sweet for my taste, a little over ripe. I think I like the Rosenblum 2004 blend more (which was previously reviewed here April 2006). $19.95 87

Wines of Germany
After tiring out my palate with huge red wines it was time for some lovely German white wines.

2003 Bachracher Wolfshoehle Riesling Spätelse - Mades
This wine from the Mittelrhein displays a distinctive oily petrol nose with citrus (orange/grapefruit) notes. Touch of sweetness and freshness. Just what I needed. $21.95 90

2004 Bereich Bingen Auslese – Schmitt Söhne
A perfumed nose of peach and floral elements (rose petals) greets the nose immediately. Delicate with very low acidity, maybe a touch flabby though. Wicked value. $10.40 88

2003 Niersteiner Findling Siegerrebe Auslese – Eugen Wehrheim
Siegerrebe is a cross of a Gewürztraminer and a red table grape. This wine was released at Vintages Nov 25, 2006. Major lychee fruit (you can’t miss it) courtesy of the Gewürztraminer not doubt. Although Nat Decants gives it a 90 I found it rather one dimensional. Low acidity, as you would expect with an auslese, but with a clean finish. $20.95 87

----More reviews to come over the holiday wine and food fest (i.e. family dinners).