Many will say Alsace vints the best Gewurztraminer. A few years ago I may have agreed with that statement until I tried Gewurztraminer from Mayhem Wines and Meyer Family Vineyards in British Columbia’s Okanagan. The trouble is that the British Columbia wines are small batch hence reach a small audience. Pierre Sparr is a bigContinue reading “RKS Wine: Pierre Sparr Gewurztraminer 2020 Grand Réserve”
Category Archives: Wine
RKS Wine: Tirana Tigress and Penniless Pensioner Back in Toronto
After hoodwinking the Russians in Operation Payback Lola Frieberg aka Tirana Tigress and the Penniless Pensioner wisely decided to head back to PP’s home in Toronto a luxurious penthouse The Lonsdale on Avenue Road with a huge wrap around balcony and a view of the campus of Upper Canada College. If the Russians ever gotContinue reading “RKS Wine: Tirana Tigress and Penniless Pensioner Back in Toronto”
RKS Wine: Listening to Customers: Canada Pricing Itself Out?
A couple of months ago at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario I encountered two gentleman shopping for a backyard wedding reception. They asked me what might go with the salmon which was one of the foods for the backyard wedding barbeque. Earlier in the year I had received some samples from a BC wineryContinue reading “RKS Wine: Listening to Customers: Canada Pricing Itself Out?”
“Travels to a Different Time” :August 2006 Samos Wine Festival
Samos had been famous in antiquity for its sweet wines made from the Muscat grape. Times change and very few North Americans know about this famous wine. A co-operative holds a monopoly on the production of wine in Samos. Each year there is a wine festival. This year it was held in a parking lotContinue reading ““Travels to a Different Time” :August 2006 Samos Wine Festival”
RKS Wine: A Tidal Wave of Price Increases for Wine: Chile Remaining Affordable
If you have seen the latest Liquor Control Board of Ontario’s October 22 Vintages release catalogue you may say WTF has just happened! Prices are obscene. This makes the wines of Chile most compelling from a price and quality perspective. Most Chilean wines appear to be rated by James Suckling a hero it seems toContinue reading “RKS Wine: A Tidal Wave of Price Increases for Wine: Chile Remaining Affordable”
RKS Wine: The Penniless Pensioner and The Iranian Drones: Operation Payback
I received yet another Skype call from the Penniless Pensioner currently residing in Tirana Albania at 4 a.m. Toronto time. The poor fellow was distraught as Lola Freiberg aka the Tirana Tigress had been arrested by the Albanian Interior Ministry police and was in the notorious Tirana Prison for Hardened Criminals. What the charges wereContinue reading “RKS Wine: The Penniless Pensioner and The Iranian Drones: Operation Payback”
RKS Wine: The Greatest Wine Since Sliced Bread? How Do We Deal with an Argentinian Monster?
After I review a wine, I may look what other reviewers have to say about it. Some critics I take seriously and others not so and then there is Luca Maroni who often scores wines in the 90’s when they deserve to be in the 80’s. What would you deduce from insanely high ratings? ForContinue reading “RKS Wine: The Greatest Wine Since Sliced Bread? How Do We Deal with an Argentinian Monster?”
RKS Wine: The Velvet Devil Merlot: Avoiding Dancing with the Devil
The label for The Velvet Devil Merlot 2019 is stark yet catchy as most wine labels from Charles Smith are. So it grabs your attention stylistically but what about after the bottle is opened and reality sets in? Yes, it is also cheaper than many Washington State Merlots but can it match their quality? OnContinue reading “RKS Wine: The Velvet Devil Merlot: Avoiding Dancing with the Devil”
RKS Wine: Stratus Wildass 2019 Merlot: Giving Ontario Merlot Another Chance
In the past few years I have given up on Ontario Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon as a single varietal wine. Could it be that Ontario doesn’t have the terroir and climate for these two grapes? However earlier this year I spent a few days at Niagara-on-the-Lake and discovered a Two Sisters Merlot that impressed atContinue reading “RKS Wine: Stratus Wildass 2019 Merlot: Giving Ontario Merlot Another Chance”
RKS Wine: The Return of the Penniless Pensioner and the Tirana Tigress in Albania
After months of radio silence, I received a Facetime call from the Penniless Pensioner from the capital of Albania, the glistening Tirana. We chatted like it was yesterday! His last love affair with the Russian Svetlana crumbled rather quickly after her yacht was confiscated in Montenegro. Apparently her yacht was stolen from Crimea when theContinue reading “RKS Wine: The Return of the Penniless Pensioner and the Tirana Tigress in Albania”
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