Gallante Vineyards Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

I get excited about small producers, especially those from lesser regions. I find that the QPR on these wines can be great, and they also often surprise a jaded palate with new textures and flavours. There is, however, always a risk with seeking out the small vineyards. When you have less money, less experience and lesser land, sometimes the wine just, well, sucks.

Here we have a Carmel Valley California Cabernet - not a very common combination of region and variety. The nose seemed a little baked to me with red berries and alcohol. This was not a typical Cab nose. On the palate I found this a rather light-bodied Cabernet with some astringency on the finish and greenness in the palate. Awkwardly built and unbalanced this very woody wine just didn't work. Too bad - I had high hopes.

Fair
$40 at Steamworks Liquor Store

Ben Marco Malbec 2005

A gift from a friend giving me a lesson in South American Terroir. I found this Argentian (Mendoza) Malbec plummy, with a small amount of earthiness and very smooth if maybe somewhat flabby tannins. Simple but pleasant. Very sweet, though - but this paired well with the Dominos Pizza I ate with it (what can I say? I don't always go upscale), which has sweetened tomato sauce. Nothing special, though - but a good lesson in what you get from Mendoza at this price point. I also imagine this would appeal to those who are still transitioning from sugared wines to dry wines (the extreme fruit-forwardness gives the wine the impression of sweetness).

Fair

~$25

Chateau de Montfaucon "Baron Louis" Cotes Du Rhone 2005

It's bound to happen. At some point. Against all my expectations this was one of the worst wines I've had in recent memory. This came highly recommended as a Cotes du Rhone made in the Chateauneuf du Pape style (blending Chateauneuf varieties) from a single vineyard across the river from CdP and in a great vintage. And, amazingly, this vineyard is owned by a former member of the winemaking team at none other than Domaine du Vieux Telegraphe.

The nose was very simple and slight - a hint of red berry. Palate-wise this was all sour-cherry and boring. Too acidic and poor balance. Overall this was actually hard to drink and it took a few days and two people to get it all down (and with food). After an hour decanting it opened a bit and the fruit was a little more concentrated. So, while not gross, I cannot recommend this to anyone. I hear the 2004 was better.

Fair

$35 at Kitsilano Wine Cellars

Burgans Albarino 2006

I was looking for a wine to pair with some halibut and was recommended to try a Spanish Albarino. Always being one who likes something new, and since I'd never had Albarino before I thought it would be fun to give this wine a try.

Albarino is grown in the Rias Baixas region of north west Spain and is neither fermented nor aged in wood. This is meant to give them a unique flavour profile and texture. While this is definitely true of this particular wine, I can't say I think this is a great example of the varietal, even though I haven't tasted others yet. The wine is tangy orange with a smooth texture, but it is supremely simple and, honestly, I found it to be pretty boring. Nevertheless it was much better than your average bottle of white at this price level and is a decent quaffing wine, albeit not an exciting one. Nonetheless, I am definitely going to be seeking out some more serious Albarinos in the future, since its uniqueness is pretty intriguing.

Fair

$20 at BCLDB

Fuller's Vintage Ale 2007

I generally like Fuller's ales, and so when I saw this limited edition vintage ale at the local BC liquor store I was excited to give it a try. These are bottle fermeted and supposedly age well; however, I found this beer to be overly alcoholic and not balanced very well. Maybe with time the intense alcohol flavour will mellow, but this was very dissapointing and very overpriced.

$6.99 at BCLDB
Fair