What wine to pair with Bach?

Our good friends Mark and Sandra invited me to Montreal's Bach Festival...for a wine tasting! A very intriguing concept - what wine to pair with Bach's Goldberg Variations?

Not a concept really, as research has shown that music can affect our appreciation of wine. Well, eXcentris, Matt Haimovitz and sommelier Nicolas Charron Boucher took this research to heart, enlisting Nicolas to pair wine with the nine canons of the Variations (Dmitri Sitkovetsky’s arrangement for String Trio), as performed by cellist Matt Haimovitz, violinist Jonathan Crow and violist Douglas McNabney.

Taking his cues from musicians' descriptions on the pieces, Nicolas chose as follows:

Actually, the first pairing started not with the first canon, but was the Aria. For this piece Nicolas chose the Xerez Manzanilla Papirusa Solera Reserva Lustau. Almondy, oxidized, with hints of orange peel, this tart and crisp liquid slashed across the palate, yet smooth and sunshine-y at the same time. I question the music pairing, but a good example of Spanish sherry.

Variation III, the Canone all'Unisono, featured a 2008 Domaine Landron Amphibolite (Muscadet de Sevre et Maine sur Lie). Soapy and minerally with citrus and white flowers on the nose, fresh and lively white grapefruit on the palate. Really a delicious white wine, with great persistency - a highlight of the evening, and it even paired beautifully with the music.

Variation VI, the Canone alla Seconda, featured a 2007 Chateau Thivin Cotes de Brouilly. Not a hit with my friends, but I really liked this stark, smokey and earthy Bojo replete with ripe strawberries...light and silky it danced across the palate, an incredibly long finish and a good pair with this music.

Variation IX, the Canone alla Terza, paired with a 2007 Inama Vigneti Foscarino Soave Classico Superiore. It's been a while since I sipped a Soave, so this nose of lychee, peach, pears, flowers and cheese rind was a glorious reminder of Soave's potential. Minerally, flavourful and well balanced, a great summer white and a good music pairing (but another miss with my friends).

Variation XII, the Canone alla Quarta, was matched to Portuguese red, the Casal do Jordoes Guardiao Vinho de Mesa Tinto. A hit with the whole gang, a nose of sour cherries, spicy oak, tobacco and violets, a palate of crisp cherry fruit, delicate tannins and great balance...bitter citrus peel later on. A wine worth seeking out, and a decent pairing for this music.

For Variation XV, the Canone alla Quinta, we moved north to France, a pairing with the 2007 Chateau Haut Marsalet (Bergerac). Green, musty forest notes...blackberries, violet, pepper and fresh mint as well. Very dry, with dense grainy tannins and a touch hot. Rather similar to the Grinou that I like, a good pair with the music.

Variation XXI, the Canone alla Settima, featured the 2007 L'Ocre Rouge, a Vin de Table from the Rhone. Tarry blueberry fruit, earthy and warm, sweaty old leather...greener and crisper than I expected on the palate, but still a fruit bomb. Needs a steak, a great pair for the music.

Variation XXIV, the Canone all'Ottava, was paired to a wine from one of my all time favourite wineries. The 2006 Chateau Bouscasse did not disappoint - rustic, yet complex, with liquorice and funky new leather on the nose, green herbs and gravel as well. Smooth green tannins, tart cherry fruit and a great finish, mmmm....and it worked reasonably well with this piece.

The ninth, and final, wine for Variation XXVIII (Canone alla Nona) was a 2002 Muenzenrieder Trockenbeerenauslese, a dessert wine from Austria. A terrific wine to pair with our final Variations....rather simple - sweet apricot notes, soft and sweet on the palate, very elegant.

Once again, my notes are too long, but it was a special evening worth of journalistic record!

So, the highlights? Hats off to the entire trio for a lovely afternoon of music, and as my son is a budding cellist Matt's playing was particularly noteworthy. And kudos to the organizers for coming up with this idea - it is a foundation to build on and I look forward to attending this event in the future.

Anything I'd recommend for future events? Nine glasses of wine and not a cracker or hunk of bread to munch on?! The deluge of wine, especially such different wines, was difficult to take on an empty stomach - a small basket of oyster crackers would have sufficed.

Many thanks to Mark, Sandra and Shira for organizing, Cheers!

Joe's Wine Moves to Toronto (Almost)

Source: Wikipedia

Montreal is a great wine town, with a love of food and wine that is unequaled in North America. We Quebecois each consume 20 litres per year of the stuff, (not quite up to European standards, but a respectable clip) and in North America it is the only major city I know of where wine with lunch is a common, acceptable practice.

Our love of wine is untainted by the presence of a local wine industry, so while there is a strong French influence in our wine culture we taste and enjoy most of the world's wines. Add to this a bevy of great restaurants and a government monopoly that occasionally passes on the savings from its buying power and we have it pretty good. Nothing is perfect, but pretty darn good.

With that background it was with great sadness that I began drafting a departure post in mid-December, as all things pointed to an imminent move of the family to Canada's "other city", Toronto.

Well, life throws you some curves - the family will be staying in our adopted hometown. To my Toronto-area friends and family, I am sorry I won't be joining you and drinking more LCBO wine. To my Montreal friends and tasting group - how could I leave you?!

In homage to Montreal stay tuned for some additional posts featuring "all things great and vinous" in Montreal.

Sante!

Bu, Bar à Vin?

Bu is a Montreal wine bar ... well, sort of. Yes, it has an extensive list of wines and special "flights" of wines by the glass (constantly changing), but technically you cannot just sit down and have a drink - you have to order from the kitchen.

Which brings me to the main reason you need to visit Bu - the food. Yes, the wine list is great and the flights are interesting and challenging, but the star is Ms. Alba Delgado, "la chef de cuisine", who brings her twenty years in Italy to a tight selection of flavourful and impeccably-made Italian classics. I've been twice now and I had the "risotto du jour" both times - amongst the best risottos in town. But I digress....

Tonight's intrepid trio of wine tasters included myself, Marcus (who has moved over to Facebook), and my bro-in-law. Our opening flight featured a few whites:

2006 Cecilia Zeta del Tucano (Vermentino di Toscana)
2006 Odysseus (Priorat)
2006 Domaine Larue St-Aubin 1er Cru "Murgers des Dents de Chien" (Burgundy)

The Cecilia was thin and light, with creamy apple and key lime notes... crisp, green and unoaked, not bad. The Odysseus, crafted from Pedro Ximenez grapes, was soft and flavourful on the palate...cantaloupe, pears and applesauce on the nose, a touch hot - I had it pegged for a dry Jurancon (see Alder's winery description). The Domaine Larue was my first from this Burgundian appellation - an oaky, creamy, smokey-apple chardonnay with an up-front minerality that I thought was Californian - expensive and too much oak.

After we washed down the appetizers with the whites we switched to reds for the main course:

2004 Domaine Confuron-Cotetidot (Chambolle-Musigny)
2005 Philippe Alliet Coteau de Noire (Chinon)
2001 Joseph Swan Mancini Ranch Zinfandel (Russian River)

The Alliet Chinon was my favourite and easily identified...green pepper, damp undergrowth, flint and inky blackberry - dry woodsy tannins and crisp acidity on the palate, a long finish, YUM. The Domaine Confuron-Cotetidot had to be the least typical red Burgundy I have ever tasted - meaty walnuts and red berry fruit on the nose, but unbalanced on the palate with a sharp acidic frame and flavours of rusty nails - no one picked this as a pinot, much less Burgundy. The Swan Zin was tired, old, alcohol-y cooked fruit, I was thinking Nero d'Avola on this one (a term I occasionally use to describe an unidentified red wine I don't like...).

But Swan made it up to us, as we enjoyed a glass of the 2001 Joseph Swan Trenton Estate Syrah (Russian River) to finish the evening - meaty, dark berry fruit and cedary black pepper on the nose, blackberries wrapped in velvety tannins on the palate, a wine that is hitting its stride at 7 years old.

Sorry for the delay, Marcus - cheers!

Dinner at Toqué!

After many years in Montreal we finally visited the highly-regarded restaurant Toqué! to celebrate our wedding anniversary. And in a sign of just how strong this relationship is, my wife provided me a camera to take a picture of the label above, and even lent me a pen to score the wine (yes, that was a score sheet in my pocket...). I dare you to try that on your anniversary!

Facing a rather confusing pairing - Guinea Hen Sausage and Duck Comfit Ravioli for appetizers, scallops and Guinea Hen for the main course - I threw myself at the mercy of sommelier, Pascal, who quickly steered us to the 2004 "Les Bruyères" to pair with all (I was thinking Chablis, so we weren't far off, and he saved me some dough). This wine, a Chardonnay produced by Stephane Tissot in the Arbois region of Jura, is my first encounter with a Jura wine. Rather unlike any Chardonnay you have ever tasted, it was a bold move by Pascal - I am not sure this would have gone over very well with everyone. Probably the first time I have seen a white decanted at a restaurant, it wasn't for show, as this wine had a powerful, pungent aroma that needed some oxygen. Straw yelow, it started with an overpowering scent of petrol and oak, very un-chardonnay. As the oxygen massaged it, the wine threw off scents of lemon peel, almonds and fresh cut grass, with a subtle hint of white flowers. On the palate I wrote medium- to full-bodied, minerally, substantial, with a nice bitter aftertaste. Very unusual, very powerful, this wine needs time in the cellar.
13.5% alcohol
Score: 16.5/20

Finally, I should congratulate Toqué! A pricey restaurant, but the food was exquisite and the service was outstanding. And they know their customer - they even took me down to visit their cellar, noticing my rather obvious drooling at the glass...

SAQ Sale!

FOR MY MONTREAL READERS:




I just got this email from the local SAQ Signature store:

PROMOTION
LE SAMEDI 28 ET DIMANCHE 29 JUILLET 2007
OBTENEZ UN RABAIS DE
10 %
AVEC TOUT ACHAT DE
$100 ET PLUS
* Les titulaires de permis ne peuvent participer à cette promotion

For my Montreal friends, this means it is time to re-stock your cellars. Here are few quick JoePicks to lighten your wallet. I have checked to make sure these are available in decent quantity, but you should check the SAQ website for the store nearest you.

Modest Price (<$15):
2005 Cabernet-sauvignon Casillero del Diablo Concha y Toro (Chile)
2005 Syrah Les Jamelles (vin de pays d'oc)
2006 Chardonnay Carmen (Chile)

Premium Price ($15-30):
2003 Chateau Hanteillan (Bordeaux)
2005 Domaine de la Garrelière Cendrillon (Touraine)
2005 Pio Cesare Gavi
2000 Château Bouscassé (Madiran)
2004 Castello Nipozzano Riserva Frescobaldi (Chianti Rufina)
2000 Meerlust Rubicon Stellenbosch (S. Africa) (limited, but worth seeking out)

Line of Credit Price ($$$)
2000 Château Bouscassé Vieilles Vignes (Madiran)
2003 San Vincente (Rioja)

By no means exhaustive, I wish you happy shopping, and don't forget to check Dok Weingolb, The Caveman and Méchant Raisin for some other SAQ picks.

Cheers!

PS - I will confess that I have my eye on some wines that I cannot disclose due to limited availability - sorry!

2006 Chateau Taillefer Lafon

So, how did Joe turn a family event into a wine tasting? While out berry picking we drove by a suspicious-looking, modern-styled building in the farm district of Laval with a modest sign: "Chateau Taillefer Lafon". The rows of vines out back could mean only one thing - leave it to Joe to find a winery in suburban Montreal (pop. 3 million)!

I left the car idling and ran into the winery, figuring I could quickly buy two bottles and run back to the car. The tasting room host would have none of that, and made me taste his entire line of wine - white (unoaked), white (oaked), vendange tardive (late harvest) and ice wine. I successfully avoided the rose and the red, despite his hospitality and enthusiasm, as I am terrified of Northern Reds. After 5-10 minutes in the tasting room, I returned to the car with two bottles to face a scowling family - you know, they could be more supportive of Daddy's hobby.

Tasted at home, the 2006 Chateau Taillefer Lafon Cuvee Premium (unoaked) was a pale straw yellow. It was Fruitopia on the nose, with scents of fresh pink grapefruit, pineapple and pear - mouthwatering. On the palate this light-bodied, viscous wine was slightly off-dry with nice balance and good acidity, but somewhat dilute. Very competent, well-priced, and I wonder how the wines will improve as the vines mature... Worth a visit - my other purchase was their Ice Wine.
11.5% alcohol
Score: 14/20
Price: $14.75

So, to my Montreal readers, especially those in the Laval area, stop by the winery on your way back from the nursery and pick up a bottle of estate-bottled St-Laurence Valley wine. The tasting room is opulent, the hosts are gracious, the wines are very competent, and the location - well it doesn't get much closer than this. Cheers!