New Australian Shiraz ...
When the new CellarCraft Showcase Shiraz from Darlington Point, in the Riverina district of New South Wales, was blind tasted against four popular and acclaimed South East Australian Shiraz', one of the commercial wines - Wyndham Estate 2005 Hunter Valley Bin 555 ($16.25 at the LCBO) -- enjoyed a slight edge over the other wines. The other three commercial wines and the CellarCraft Shiraz were tied, just a notch behind the well-aged Wyndham. The other wines in the tasting, and their price per 750mL bottle, were:
Rosemount Estate 2007 ($16.99 in BC)
Penfold's 2006 Koonunga Hill ($16.30)
Wyndham Estate 2005 Hunter Valley Bin 555 ($16.25)
Cookoothama, Nugan Estate 2007, Darlington Point, Riverina ($14.00)
CellarCraft Showcase Shiraz ($7.60*)
This blind taste testing shows how on premise made wines stand up to commercial wines and offer wine lovers extraordinary value for their wine dollar. When a very young CellarCraft Showcase Shiraz does this well, imagine what some gentle bottle ageing will do -- perhaps it will be "best in show", not merely the best value, at a subsequent tasting!
Source Vineyard: The grapes for this wine were sourced from a noted family estate which directly borders on the Murrumbidgee River. The soil has a neutral pH, good levels of calcium, boron and zinc, and very low sodium and salinity. Judicious hand-pruning of the vines and restricted application of water holds the yields to an average of 4.5 tons/acre for good concentration of flavours. The grapes are night harvested to avoid the daytime heat.
The Wine: Deep crimson in colour with purple undertones, this Shiraz has a soft, rounded expression of dark fruits, spice and oak. Tannins are in gentle harmony with the overall impression and create a well defined yet delicate frame for the wine.
The wine is surprisingly approachable after just 4 weeks in the bottle, although it will continue to develop for 2-3 years. Make now and uncork at Christmas!
Food Pairings: This Shiraz will prove to be a good match with a wide range of foods: steaks, braised lamb shanks, pizza, pasta with tomato-based sauces, game birds, chicken wings, Indian Tandoor and Tikka dishes and root vegetable-based casseroles.
Reserve your CellarCraft Showcase Riverina Shiraz today: The tasting results speak for themselves and this will be an extremely popular wine amongst Bloor West Winery customers. You can join them simply by calling 416-604-8463 and reserving it. We will hold the wine -- or order it, if we are out-of-stock -- until you can come in to start (and pay) for your purchase.
*Price of $7.60 per 750mL bottle based on the purchase of a full selection (30 bottles). Price includes all costs -- even the applicable taxes -- but does not include the container. Purchase a matched set of new bottles (which can be refilled many times) or bring your own.
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July Weather Forecast: Hot ... hot ... hot ...
Perfect for a cold, cold, cold beer!
The Big and Easy Bottle Brew makes it easy for your to make your own beer without kits, kettles or kerfuffle.
You buy a 2L bottle of finished wort ... drop in a yeast capsule ... and let the wort ferment right in the bottle. (This is actually the orginal method for brewing quality beer.) When your beer has fermented (7-14 days depending on room temperature), refrigerate for at least 12 hours and then enjoy. We have all three styles in stock:
Premium Pilsner -- An extraordinary European-style beer, deep amber in colour, full-bodied, with a pronounced but pleasant bitterness. Brewed only with the finest imported German hops, including the world famous Hallertau, you'd have to travel to Germany to enjoy a beer of this quality and this freshness.
Mexican Cerveza -- Bring back great memories of winter vacations past with this cold, refreshing Mexican-style beer.
Red Lager -- The very popular Canadian beer lets you enjoy thedark richness of a British-stle ale as well as the smoothness of a North American lager. Its caramel flavours deliver a slightly sweet aftertaste.
Enjoy!
Each of these Big and Easy Bottle Brew beers is just $5.99 for 2L (plus PST). At this price, they are like the "buck a beer" brands but worth drinking!
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For the second consecutive year,
Bloor West Winery is a top rated
on premise winery in Toronto.
Bloor West Winery was awarded gold, silver and bronze medals in the 2009 Winemaker International Amateur Wine Competition, as published on the magazine's website at www.winemakermag.com/competition.
These awards rank Bloor West Winery as the #1 on premise winemaking business in Toronto.
This year's wine competition was the largest and most diverse of any kind -- commercial or consumer made -- in North America.
In all, 4,474 different wines from 49 American states, 8 Canadian provinces and 5 other countries were judged in the competition using the UC Davis 20-point wine scale evaluating appearance, aroma, taste, aftertaste and overall impression.
Bloor West Winery's winning wines are .
GOLD:
CellarCraft Limited Release Red Mountain Syrah (2008)
SILVER:
CellarCraft Showcase South African Pinotage (2008)
CellarCraft Showcase Chile Carmenere (2007)
CellarCraft Showcase Rosso Fortissimo (2008)
Cru Select Platinum French Merlot (2008)
BRONZE:
CellarCraft Showcase Lodi California Old Vine Zinfandel (2007)
All of these wines were made at Bloor West Winery using the standard winemaking instructions and filtered water. None of the wine recipes were modified in any way -- which means that you can expect the same award-winning quality when you make these wines with us.
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"Readers' Choice Awards" Winners Announced ...
The Friday, April 24th issue of The Etobicoke Guardian includes a special section that announces the 2009 winners of their Readers' Choice Awards. Thanks to your ongoing support, we are again honoured to have been voted the #1 Diamond Award winner in the "Make You Own Wine" category.
Our advertisement in The Etobicoke Guardian makes reference to our "ferment on skins" red wines, in particular those from CellarCraft.
CellarCraft was the first company to include varietal-specific wet grape skins packs with its prepackaged red wine juices in its Showcase line. The company describes Showcase as a 6-week wine, but in our experience the reds take a full 8 weeks to make and some time in your cellar. That is why spring is the time to make these wines for Christmas and winter entertaining. By so doing, you will realize a fabulous return on your investment!
Then, about 2 years ago, CellarCraft launched a line of 5-week reds with skins -- that line has been a runaway success.
Fermenting grape juice on skins not only replicates traditional winemaking methods but it also adds colour, body and tannin to the finished wine. Here are the CellarCraft Showcase Red Wines that you can make (well, in the legal sense!) at Bloor West Winery. Some are vineyard specific -- the best on premise equivalents of commercial wines made in the same region.
CellarCraft Showcase Reds
make now for Christmas entertaining!
(The numbers following each wine refer to Oak/Body/Sweetness
on a 1-5 scale. Those with two values for Oak use a two-stage oaking process during winemaking.)
Please note that not all Showcase varieties are in stock at all times. If you know which Showcase Reds you want, please call us in advance at 416-604-8463 and we will hold or order your wine styles.
Amarone-style (2/5/0)
Rosso Fortissimo (2-3/5/0) -- The #1 Showcase Red
Chateau Du Pays (1/5/0)
Malbec: Argentinian (4-5/5/0) -- A personal note: Makes Fuzion taste like water!
White Sands Vineyard, Yakima Valley, WA
Merlot (2/5/0)
Du Plessis Organic Vineyard, Breede River Valley, South Africa
Pinotage (3-5/5/0)
Rattlesnake Valley Vineyard, Yakima Valley, WA
Syrah (4-5/5/0)
Old Vines, Ferrero Vineyards, Lodi, CA
Znfandel (1-2/5/0) -- A personal note: Wonderful!
Weigut Huber, Traisental, Austria
Zweiget (4-5/5/0)
Bare Ridge Vineyard, Walla Walla, WA
Cabernet Merlot (3-5/5/0)
Colchalgua Valley, Chile
Carmenere (5+/5/0)
Piedmont, Italy
Barbera (1-5/5/0)
La Mancha, Spain
Tempranillo (5-5+/5/0)
Sunset Ridge Vineyard, Red Mountain, WA
Cabernet Sauvignon (4-5/5/0) -- A personal note: Gotta have it!
Stellenbosch Hills Vineyard, South Africa
Shiraz (3-5/5/0)
NEW! Darlington Point, Riverina, NSW, Australia
Shiraz -- This wine profiled above
Our prices include everything -- and we mean everything -- except bottles. "Ferment on Skins" wines made on premise start at $158 for 23L (approx. 30 750mL bottles).
*****
A bargain that is virtually effortless ...
Ask any of our regular customers why they return time and time again, and you would learn all about the tremendous value, experience and fun that on premise winemaking provides to them.
The very best on premise wines replicate those wines you’ll find in your local bottle store —
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They come from a single wine-producing region, or even from a single vineyard,
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They are a single varietal or are a true blend, and
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Red wnes are fermented on skins and require bottle ageing to reach their full potential.
The differences are clear as well — on premise made wines are largely free of tax, just as they have much fewer additives than commercial wine.
Saving all that tax money does require that you participate in the winemaking process - it’s the law - but your two visits will be easy and fun. On your first visit, you select your wine and start the fermentation. Then, you leave all the intermediate steps to us.
Once your wine is ready, you return to bottle and label your wine. We provide all the easy-to-use equipment, all the supplies and an organized work-space.
Always, your satisfaction is 100% Guaranteed. Since I am shouldering all of the risk, my question to you is simple and clear: Which wine will you make today?
Bloor West Winery
2869 Bloor Street West (at Prince Edward)
Etobicoke, ON M8X 1B3
Telephone: 416-604-8463
Fax: 416-604-8050
Winery Hours:
Tuesday - Thursday, 11AM to 7PM
Friday, 11AM to 6PM
Saturday, 9AM to 4PM
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