#91- Saperavi

In Georgia, the grape is known as Kindzmarauli but we know it as the Saperavi grape. It literally means "paint or dye" and it's a very dark, almost black wine. To me, it had a very purplish tinge to it. It's also known as the Kakheti grape. it's a great wine to age.

In Georgia, farmers still store their wine in cone shaped clay jars and bury them underground with wooden lids. Modern winemaking has since taken over though and the wines are reminiscent of Southern Hemisphere wines that are fruit driven, warm climate wines.

I was limited that night to just a few red wines and this was the only one I had that would go with my hearty dinner of....wait for it...Bavarian sausage! I never eat sausage but maybe I was feeling sentimental from my time in Eastern Europe and especially Austria and Germany, so I picked up a packages of the sausages. It might be a cheap meal, but I see nothing wrong with matching it to a nice wine.

And in my opinion, the match worked! I really enjoyed this wine and actually drank it over a couple of nights and I liked it more and more as the wine oxidized. The wine is full of flavour- beautiful black berry flavours and a beautiful hints of cherry.

The winery is Tbilvino in Georgia. And this wine has won a ton of awards. I'm pretty sure that this was one of very few bottles even available here in Edmonton. I found it at Sherbrooke Liquor on their specialty wine rack and I paid close to $27 for it. But it was definitely worth it.

I would recommend this wine and definitely buy it again if I see it. This would probably be a great wine to cellar and open it in a few years to see how different it tastes.

Now would someone build me a cellar already?

#89- Seyval Blanc

Another great Canadian find and my second review to come from the Jost Winery in Nova Scotia. I just recently reviewed their Marachel Foch wine and loved it and now I am reviewing their Seyval Blanc wine and...am loving this wine too. Go Nova Scotia!

It's a shame that we Canadians don't support our local wine industry as the Americans support theirs, the French and Italian and the Portugese and Australia....you get the idea- we don't support the industry as much as we should. Some if it's not our fault. Often the wine from our very own backyard so to speak is just as expensive if not more expensive than some of the wines we import. For goodness sake the French sip on 3 euro wines every night that here would run us $30 or more at least. But they know their biggest consumer is right there in front of them. Wineries here should be doing the same here- cheaper, more readily available wine. Case in point- it is very hard to get Nova Scotia wine in Alberta. Why is that?

We're just a frigid country. Scared of wine. We've made it taboo and mostly illegal for anyone under the age of 18 or 19 depending what province you're in to even touch the stuff to their lips. That's just stupid and outdated thinking. I can be 17 years and 364 days old and not be responsible or mature enough to drink wine but on my 18th birthday I suddenly am? Really? Just like that? And we wonder why we are a nation of binge drinkers and alcoholics...

To me, wine should be shared by everyone. It's often drank with meals, so why not let the 14 year old have a small glass? Why not take away the mystery of alcohol and show them at a young, supervised age how to drink responsibly? Am I just a naive thinker?

In any event and my rant aside, the Seyval Blanc wine from Jost is just a fabulous drink. And the description of the wine actually matches what you taste and smell (have you ever read some wine description? There's sometimes more fiction written about a wine than there is in a Jackie Collins novel). But this description of the wine fits the bill.

It has a very aromatic citrus aroma with a hint of pear. I immediately taste the citrus notes on my palate but get a hint of apricots. There is a blackberry taste to it (a little unusual for a white wine). But it is just a fabulous wine. It is off dry and quite acidic. It's quite balanced in it structure and full bodied.

I really enjoyed this wine and I am having my second glass of wine as I write this. I paired this wine with a chicken dish mixed with shrimp and vegetables. I thought it was an extraordinary food pairing.

I would definitely suggest this wine to anyone who is looking for a good Canadian wine that isn't from our better known regions of Niagara and Okanagan and especially a grape that isn't as well known as others.

Who's paying for my trip to the East coast for a wine tour? I think I asked this already but I'll ask again....anyone?