In Vino Veritas
Valentine’s Day may now be over, but that doesn’t mean there is no excuse to open a bottle of wine and celebrate love. Real ones know there’s no need for a mass-market holiday to express gratitude and affection for all your loved ones. I, for one, spent Valentine’s Day snuggled on the couch with my true love (my 13-year-old Pekingese), and a glass of Cab Franc… which, to be honest, didn’t look much different from any other self-care night. This month, we share wines that can be enjoyed with your everyday Valentine, Galentine, or if you just need some self-love time.
I start us off with a botrytis-affected semillon, my favourite dessert wine from the Niagara region. For all of us living our best lives, Angela recommends a fresh Chablis from northern Burgundy. Reya introduces us to a decadent shiraz from down under. Meanwhile, Tom shares a rich baco noir, a grape variety produced almost exclusively in Canada. Jared finishes it off with a juicy sparkling red from an innovative wine producer located in Prince Edward County.
Janice Fung (1L)
Stratus, Botrytis-Affected Semillon
If you’re looking for a wine that’s just as sweet as your Valentine, give this botrytis-affected semillon a try. Botrytis is a grey fungus that affects plants and fruits (if you’ve ever had grey mouldy strawberries, you’ve met botrytis). In winemaking, botrytis, also known as “noble rot,” occurs when the vines are exposed to humid conditions, often when the grapes are ripe. The fungus causes the grapes to raisin, concentrating their flavours and sugars. The result is a syrupy dessert wine that isn’t quite as sweet as your typical icewine.
This particular bottle has an aromatic nose of honey and apricot. The palate is citrusy with a slightly earthy note. The sweetness is refreshing and doesn’t linger. This wine will pair nicely with a dessert or to balance out a tangy cheese plate.
Angela Gu (3L JD/MBA)
Closerie des Alisiers Vieilles Vignes Chablis 2019
You may have come across the meme of 1970s diet advice from Vogue that set out a plan comprising hard-boiled eggs, tiny steaks, black coffee, and Chablis. It was adapted from Helen Gurley Brown’s 1962 book Sex and the Single Girl, which presents guidance, sometimes relevant but sometimes outdated, on living your best life as a single girl. Brown covers everything, from decor to dinner parties. I had this bottle as a nod to Brown’s feminism, which was revolutionary at the time. This Chablis from Closerie des Alisiers hits like fresh laundry on the nose: lightly, lemony, and floral. There are notes of orchard fruit, and ends in a satisfyingly zippy minerality. Pair with apple chips and a semi-soft mellow cheese, unless you’re on that Vogue diet.
Reya Manerikar (2L)
Zonte’s Footstep Chocolate Factory Shiraz
Are you in a long-term relationship where you still want to do nice things for your partner, but you’re no longer trying to constantly impress them? Chocolate Factory might be the wine for you. You don’t need to waste your time getting chocolate and wine for a special night when you can have them both in one bottle!
Shiraz is the New World take on the Rhone Valley’s syrah. It is often bigger and bolder than its predecessor. However, I found this Australian shiraz to be smooth and silky, with low tannins. While not quite as chocolate-y as expected, this wine was rich and plush, with a hint of black forest cake.
To pair, I’d recommend red fruits like strawberries or cherries. Or, if you’re feeling more adventurous, it would complement a mole sauce quite well.
Tom Russell (2L)
Henry of Pelham Speck Family Reserve Baco Noir 2019
Every once in a while, you might find yourself in a relationship that makes you say: “We obviously shouldn’t be together, but I’m having a pretty good time for now.” For your next date night with your “soulmate,” get yourself a wine that says: “Something is very wrong here, but if we don’t bring it up, maybe we can make this work.” For this purpose, I recommend an Ontario wine. I chose to review the 2019 Baco Noir Speck Family Reserve from Henry of Pelham Estate. This is a medium-bodied, fruity wine, with a sugar content of 13 g/L. This wine has a beautiful purple colour and aromas of dark fruit and smoked meats. For flavour, I noted mulberry, black plum, and bacon. This wine is smooth and delicious. I recommend pairing it with beef steak, burgers, or lamb.
Jared Barkman (1L)
“Fronte-Snack,” Trail Estate
Don’t tell my long-time partner, but personally, I’ve always found Valentine’s Day to be a rather unpalatable excuse for a holiday, a sinister consumerist scheme to keep subpar florists in business and to preoccupy shoddy chocolate factories in the dreary period between Christmas and Easter. If you’re also the Valentine’s equivalent of Scrooge, I’ve got just the wine for you: Fronte-Snack, a nifty Frontenac Noir by Trail Estate, perhaps the most innovative and esteemed natural wine producer in Prince Edward County.
An unconventional sparkling red wine made in the pét-nat style (an ancient, natural method of carbonation that has seen a glorious resurgence in recent years), this is meant to be drank young, allowing one to easily forego any faux-romantic notions of cellaring it for your happily ever after. And the beautiful deep-red, nearly-purple colour may convince your love that you’ve mustered up some semblance of holiday spirit after all. Having been compared by the producer to cranberry Canada Dry, this wine oozes of tart, juicy black fruits and overripe berries, and might be just the trick for restoring your joie de vivre.
