Late Summer 2011 Wine Note

Late...Summer 2011 Wine Newsletter
Greetings friends and fellow wine lovers...
My apologies for how long it has been since my last wine note...its embarrassing actually. Since my last note was back in April I will give you a brief family update prior to moving on to the wine selections. Ellen and I sold our apartment in Vancouver at the beginning of April and moved to Thetis Island full time (we are now wondering what took us so long, as we love it so much). Early in April we travelled to Spain to meet up with daughter Kelsey who was attending University in the small Spanish city of Huelva. We had a fabulous month in Spain and Portugal, with lots of adventures, great wine drinking, good birding, fabulous beaches, fantastic food and great weather.

The spring and summer has been busy on Thetis Island, between golf, tennis, swimming, the garden (despite the cool spring we have had a bumper crop of tomatoes, boysenberries, garlic, kale, potatoes, lettuce, peas, beans, turnips, spaghetti squash, zucchinis and beets, not to mention the bounty of plums, apples and figs), social engagements (Art Auction and Soiree, the Thetis Island Open, Ruby's trousseau party, beach parties, a Sauvignon Blanc tasting event, a harrowing mountain bike ride on Valdez Island, a fishing derby, a red Zinfandel and Noble Grape tasting party, the annual PGA {Progressive Golf Activity} dinner, the Thetis Island Parade and Dance Party, a summer solstice party, Auntie Kay's 90th birthday party, niece Carolyn's party, and I could go on and on), and a steady stream of visitors, whom we love to see.

Now that fall is starting to show, Kelsey (see Facebook page 'House of Zon') and Monica (www.monicarushdesign.com) are back at Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo for their fourth year of Global Studies and Graphic Design respectively.

Wines: All of them have been taste tested, except the Eturnum Viti...and worth trying...


Thornhaven Gewurztraminer 2010, Okanagan Valley, BC
Price: $18
UPC: 00626990012313
Score: 90/10 (AG)
Remarks: This is a wine that you may want to hunt down. This year it has been made available in BC government liquor stores and it is well worth the look. Terrific intensity and length. 'The combination of freshness, varietal character and ripe citrus, lychee fruit flavours with a strong floral undercurrent are exceptional. Nobody does it better in BC or Canada'. We had this a few weeks ago as an aperitif, with brie cheese and fresh cherry tomatoes from the garden. Have I mentioned how fabulous the tomato crop is this year after a very slow start. Absolutely 'epic' as the girls like to say.


Emiliana Novas Limited Selection Chardonnay Marsanne 2010, Valle de Casablanca, Chile
Price: $18
UPC: 007804320476650
Score: 88/100 (AG)
Remarks: 'This unusual blend is an organically grown 60 - 40 blend of Chardonnay and Marsanne. The nose and palate are a mix of melons, lemons, pineapples perfectly balanced by ripe red apples with bits of honey and apricot in the finish; the textures are round and ripe. Perfect for that Thai curry, or grilled fish with fruit salsa'. We had this with BBQ ribs and was enjoyed by my resident chardonnay critic. The bottle was finished off a few nights later with some fresh crab. Almost any chardonnay is a good choice with crab.


Fat Bastard Chardonnay 2008, Languedoc, France
Price: $15
UPC: 3700067800045
Score: 87/100 (AG)
Remarks: 'A solid southern French label with a modern twist. It is fresh, light and elegant on the palate with a slightly sweet warm entry. Honey, baked pineapple, lemon peel and mineral flavours dominate its simple, fruity, forward style'.  We enjoyed a bottle of this earlier in the summer with friends and had it as an aperitif with a few nibblies...Enjoyed by all. This wine is readily available in BC.


Bleasdale Second Inning Malbec 2009, Langhorne Creek, South Australia
Price: $16
UPC: 09316475001949
Score: 88/100
Remarks: A rare Australian variety that is fun to try. The plum jam, spice and savoury vanilla, coffee, tobacco, boysenberry jam flavours with a dusting of mushrooms in the back end went wonderfully with BBQ'd hamburgers...but then again, I like hamburgers with almost all wines.


Marques de Riscal Rioja Reserva, 2005. Rioja, Spain
Price: $28.95
UPC: 8410869450014
Score: 88/100 (AG)
Remarks: On our trip to Spain, Ellen and I were on a flight from Seville to Barcelona, our seat-mate was an American fellow who worked and lived in Israel. We got to talking about all sorts of things including wine. He recommended that we try this particular bottle of wine. He described it perfectly down to the white label and the wire around the bottle...and it sold for $14 Euro's. Sure enough, we were able to find a couple of bottles to bring back to Canada. We had one of the bottles back in May on my birthday with Monica and BBQ'd lamb chops. It was wonderful. The second bottle was given to a good friend who did us a favour around the house while we were away. I have found it in quite a few BC Liquor stores, including Duncan, Nanaimo and West Vancouver, the wire is the give away.


Eternum Vite 2008, Toro, Castilla-Leon Spain
Price: $25
UPC: 008437002948153
91/100 (AG)
Remarks: I have not tasted this one yet. It is in the cellar for a five year stay. This 'Toro tempranillo is made from 30 to 40 year old vines, 50 percent of which is is aged in new French oak barrels. Expect an inky black, red wine with a dollop of vanilla on the nose and bits of earth and black fruits. The palate is smooth and warm with more blackberry/blueberry fruit flavours. This wine needs five years to really come around but lamb chops would easily tame its fine grained tannins if you want to drink it now'. I have seen it in many BC Liquor stores.


Myself and a load of fresh tomatoes. Ruby Tuesday in the background. For those who have not yet met Ruby...she is mannequin that we bought while we were staying with Carels in Naramata Bench last year. She has been a real hit, and even had her own trousseau party earlier in the summer.

Enjoy the rest of your summer and I look forward to hearing from you.

Best Regards,

Keith Rush