Four new wines to try this week form our first selection of new products for 2012. This program gets suspended over Christmas and starts again in January with new wines every two months.
Anyway, they are something to look for with opportunities to try something different.
Fairhills
Viognier (170100)
South Africa
$14.99
The Fair Trade logo is something we've gotten used to seeing on coffee and chocolate, but it is also applied to wine. This symbol means that those involved in the growing and making of the product are treated and paid fairly but also have a voice in the whole process.
Fairhills wine of South Africa has been Fair Trade-accredited since 2005. The 2011 Fairhills Viognier (170100) is one of those Fair Trade wines. This light-bodied, pale straw-coloured wine is quite light in aroma with hints of peach and those floral notes you can expect from a Viognier.
In the mouth I found it light and delicate and got bolder as it lost some of the chill. Still, this light gold-coloured wine had pleasant peach and tropical fruit flavours with just enough acidity to keep it fresh in the mouth. I think Viogniers go so well with seafood I recommend again you try this $14.99 bottle with shrimp or prawns with a buttery garlic sauce.
Newharbor Marlborough
Pinot Noir (682542)
New Zealand
$15.99
Sacred Hill winery of New Zealand has a new line of wines called Newharbor. We've had the Sauvignon Blanc on our shelves for a while now but with the New Product Introduction program we now have the Pinot Noir as well.
This wine is the child of winemaker Tony Bish, who is one of, if not the most, award-winning winemakers in the country. The 2009 Marlborough Newharbor
Pinot Noir (682542) was a complete surprise. The colour of this wine was a bright translucent red and a lot lighter than I expected as it is bottled in a green bottle.
It has bright and fresh aromas of cherry and raspberry with an earthy smell like those of a mushroom. In the mouth the flavours were equally as bright from tart raspberry to sweet strawberries - it is flavour-packed.
This Pinot Noir is $15.99 a bottle and good paired with any
seafood from shellfish to salmon.
Colby Red (201038)
United States
$15.99
First launched in Walgreens drug stores in the U.S., Colby Red (201038) is in part a fundraising effort for the American Heart Association (AHA).
This came about after eight-year-old Colby Groom, who had two back-to-back open-heart surgeries, came to his father - winemaker Daryl Groom - and suggested this as a fundraiser for the AHA. Daryl, a winemaker from Australia now living in California along with his recovering son, began to develop this blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Syrah, Merlot and Petite Sirah.
Grapes sourced from North Coast vineyards are blended to make this gentle and flavourful red wine. In the glass it is purple with aromas of blackberries, hints of peppery spice and a touch of vanilla. In the mouth I found it soft and gentle with lush plum, black cherry and blackberry.
No food is required to tame this wine and at $15.99 a bottle you might want to sip on it when next having a dark chocolate dessert.
Almansa
Laya 2009 (189902)
Spain
$13.99
From Bodegas Atalaya of the Spanish wine-producing region of Almansa we have another red wine, the 2009 Laya (189902).
This red is a blend of 70 per cent Grenacha Tintorera and 30 per cent Monastrell. The Grenacha Tintorera is a cross between Petit Bouschet and Grenacha and one I wasn't familiar with. The colour of this wine is a dense purple with ruby highlights.
There are dark fruit aromas here with herbs and almonds made tasting inviting. On the palate those dark fruits were plum, black cherry with firm tannins and a full-body.
There's spiciness and a touch of oak in the long finish.
This is a wine that is crying out for a grilled steak or a big beef stew. If you're not serving this wine with food at least decant it well in advance and enjoy for $13.99.
