Five wines that taste as good as they look
Wine is so much more than what’s in the bottle.
If it wasn’t, we wouldn’t care about the label. But the scariest thing about choosing a wine for the label is knowing it may be overcompensating for a drab drop within. To cut the crap shoot, here are five wines that taste as good as they look. 2015 Cannonball Merlot, Sonoma
County, California (Vintages 342824 $25.95 in stores and online)
Nothing says freedom and fun like the perfect, soar-through-the-air, legs-tuckedto-perfection cannonball. So if you’re going up to the lake in the coming months, bring this bottle along to set the tone. It’s a wine with cherry-vanilla aromas and a refreshing rush of crushed black cherry flavour imbued with vanilla cream, milk chocolate, toasted almonds with a dusting of cocoa powder. Ripe, velvety and full of fruit, this is a Merlot that drinks like a Cabernet Sauvignon. Delicious. Summer, we’ve missed you. Score: 89 NV FIOL Prosecco DOC, Veneto, Italy (LCBO 394577 $16.15 in stores and online)
More than just an ode to good taste, this quietly cool label by Italian designer Audric Dandres is a statement about Prosecco and those who drink it. The lines in the artwork symbolize vine poles that support the plant, uniting grower and nature toward a common goal. And the wine’s name, fiol, is a Venetian colloquialism for someone who knows how to enjoy life. Put that all together and you’ve got a compelling label. And the wine itself is equally noteworthy. Clean, crisp and off-dry, it teems with flavours and aromas of green apple and poached pear, a brisk effervescence, and a long lime zest finish. Score: 88+ NV Julia Florista Red, Vidigal Wines, Portugal (LCBO 532358 $8.95 in stores and online)
Julia Florista, a bohemian woman who lived in Portugal at the turn of the century, sold flowers by day, and sang Fado music by night in the taverns of Lisbon. And like the Fado music she sang, this red is humble, soulful and distinctly Portuguese. It’s a smooth, impeccably balanced blend of indigenous grape varieties that swirls with flavours of poached plum and mixed berries laced crushed violet, warm earth and cool talc. Dry but not too dry, mediumbodied and easy to drink, every sip transports you to Lisbon. Score: 93 2015 The Grinder Pinotage, Swartland, South Africa (Vintages 269076
$13.95 in stores and online)
This kitschy-cool, vintage inspired label reflects the coffee character so often found in South Africa’s flagship wine, Pinotage. And this bottle shows that characteristic particularly well with enticing aromas and flavours of freshly ground espresso beans layered with macerated berries, melted dark chocolate, and a whisper of smoke. Then after the swallow, the dark espresso undertow returns to the fore and lingers. This bold wine will no doubt hold appeal for coffee lovers. Score: 90 2017 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc,
Marlborough, New Zealand (Vintages 304469 $35.95 in stores and online)
Not only is this label esthetically-pleasing with its smoky-hued landscape, it’s iconic. Cloudy Bay put Marlborough on the wine map in the mid-’80s with its fullthrottle expression of Sauvignon Blanc — a time when there was nothing like it on the market. Today, this bottle is a respected household name among wine aficionados. Expect an explosive attack of gooseberry, lime and damp grass imbued with suggestions of sea salt, lemon grass, aniseed and white pepper. Then, it all tapers to a long lime oil finish. Score: 89