WINES OF THE WEEK
Every week, Bill Zacharkiw identifies his top wine picks available at the SAQ and offers ideas for food pairings.
UNDER $17
Montepulciano d'abruzzo 2017, Ilico, Illuminati, Italy red, $16.25, SAQ # 10858123.
One of my favourite Italian red grapes, montepulciano always shows lots of character. There's a certain humility and honesty about the grape. While it tends to show less refined tannins than cabernet or merlot, in exchange every glass gives you a big mouthful of dark fruits and spice. Those tannins give the wine great length and are enough to handle a fatty steak. Never heavy, this wine always delivers.
Grape variety: montepulciano Residual sugar: 1.6 g/l
Serve at: 16 C. Drink now.
Food pairing ideas: T-bone with spice, chili con carne.
$17-$20
Bordeaux Blanc 2019, Château Ducasse, France white, $19.90, SAQ # 13477959.
I have great respect for white Bordeaux. To me, it's the ripest of the sauvignon blanc styles, and when blended with sémillon and muscadelle you get a complex fruit salad that covers everything from lemon and lime to grapefruit and peach. I dig the texture, with just a touch more richness and depth than you would find in a single-varietal sauvignon blanc. If you love refreshing whites, give this a try. Great quality for the price.
Grape varieties: sémillon, sauvignon blanc, muscadelle. Residual sugar: 1.4 g/l.
Serve at: 8-10 C. Drink now2023.
Food pairing ideas: apéritif, white fish with fruit and coriander salsa.
$20-$25 Côte Roannaise 2020, Éclat de granite, Domaine Sérol, France red, $23.35, SAQ # 14185000. Organic.
This is gamay with attitude. You get that super-fresh red fruit mix up front, but the finish is a mix of earthy and mineral. It reminds me of when rain just fell on your garden on a warm afternoon. I find that beautiful.
Lengthy, fresh, juicy — what more could you ask for in an easy-drinking red?
Grape variety: gamay
Residual sugar: 1.6 g/l
Serve at: 16 C. Drink now-2023. Food pairing ideas: apéritif, charcuterie and cheese plates, liver and onions.
$25 AND UP
Vacqueyras 2018, Séduction, Les Semelles de Vent, France red, $29.15, SAQ # 14730881.
Not a ton left in stock, but this wine blew me away. I love this type of grenache — iron-laden, fresh cherry fruit, with a focused, mineral finish. This is sleek in all the right ways. They call it Séduction — worked on me. Grape varieties: grenache, syrah. Residual sugar: 1.4 g/l.
Serve at: 18 C. Drink now-2025. Food pairing idea: jerk chicken, quail or other wild fowl.