Cellared in Controversy

The centre of their discontent is Cellared in Canada (CIC) wine, a grossly misleading name for foreign or imported juice bottled inside Canada. The perpetrators are the country's largest wine producers, ably assisted by the provincial retail monopolies, who openly condone the sale of what is essentially imported wine in the Canadian sections of their stores. In Ontario, the law requires such wines to contain 30 per cent local grapes (it's been as little as 10 per cent) while in British Columbia the same bottle does not require a single drop of Canadian-made juice to be in the wine. Regulations and semantics aside, it's all a racket.

Robinson termed it the "great Canadian con," while the Economist is asking "... why the government thinks consumers should be hoodwinked." Even the Wine Spectator has waded in the mess, backing Ontario grape growers who claim the practice is tarnishing the reputation of local wine and jeopardizing their livelihood.

Let's not muddy the waters by talking about the welfare of Canadian grape growers or the amount of Canadian grapes allowed in CIC wines as if it is vital to their survival. It's all a smokescreen.

Any Canadian grapes that are dumped into a wine bearing the "Cellared in Canada" or Product of Canada" labels are not worth measuring or talking about. What is important is, when a wine made with foreign juice is bottled in Canada, by a Canadian winery, in a Canadian cellar, it does not mean the wine is "Canadian."

Nor should it be displayed in any retail environment where its origin can be misconstrued as being from Canada, or worse, British Columbia or Ontario.

If wineries believe there is a market for imported blends made in Canada, then they should have no problem telling consumers what it is: imported juice, blended and bottled in Canada, end of story.

Retailers should cease and desist from the current practice of muddying the origin of CIC wines by placing them in the Canadian wine section as if they had something to do with 100-per-cent locally-grown and produced Canadian wines, because they don't.

It's been more than 20 years since the Free Trade Agreement was employed, along with some substantial buffers, to help local producers make the jump to the world stage, but it's time for the handouts and mollycoddling to stop. It's time to grow up before we become the joke of the wine world.

To say Canadian wine laws are out of date is an understatement. Ironically, the success of 100-per-cent grown and produced VQA wines may well be the downfall of Canadian wine if we do not move to a revamped system which recognizes all audited wines of Canadian origin. This must be clearly delineated on the front label. The longer we condone the current mess, the louder the protests and all the hard work going on in Canadian vineyards will be for naught.

Many have suggested Cellared in Canada must go before it ruins the reputation of Canadian wine. I would suggest that the latest trends, including a call for a boycott of producers using the Cellared in Canada nomenclature, are ruining the reputation of those Canadian wineries whose owners are recklessly playing both sides of the market.

We now return to wines that are properly labelled.

You will love the honey, nutty, grassy, dried fig, grapefruit aromas of the Bersano Cortese 2008, from Piedmont. It has a dry, lean, elegant palate with good acidity and nutty, melon rind, lemon, mineral flavours. A clean, simple white for clams.

Also along the refreshing style is De Martino Legado Reserva Chardonnay 2007 from Limari Valley, Chile. Look for a creamy, spicy green apple nose with nutty, toasty lees, baked apple skin, citrus, vanilla and butter flavours. It has style and complexity for the money and should be great with an array of seafood.

Rodney Strong Chardonnay Chalk Hill 2007 is one of those Sonoma chardonnays that can restore your faith in the entire California chardonnay category. It opens with a bright nose of green apples and nectarines and offers creamy, toasted nutty textures flavoured with nectarines, mineral, pears and citrus. It is delicious.

I cannot say enough about the elegant, aromatic and enticing Boutari Moschofilero 2008 from Greece. The entry is light and refreshing, with hints of lime, lemongrass, jasmine and mineral notes that resound on the palate, as well. No oak and modest alcohol makes this a great seafood wine.

The driest year since 1983 has produced an intense Jim Barry The Lodge Hill Shiraz 2007. This wine is overtly aromatic with its white pepper, rosemary and cinnamon nose and blueberry licorice fruit. Juicy friendly and ready to drink, you can serve this 100-per-cent Clare shiraz all fall with grilled meats.

Château d'Argadens 2006 is a 45-hectare estate in the Entre-Deux-Mers. The blend is 63/32/5 merlot, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc best described as a modern interpretation of Bordeaux that focuses on finesse and elegance with a modicum of fruit and oak. A subdued but stylish workhorse red for mid-week dinners.

Bersano Cortese 2008, Piedmont, Italy

Price      $16

UPC       008000192006202

Score     87/100

Remarks              Solid, simple, clean style for clams.

De Martino Legado Reserva Chardonnay 2007, Limari Valley, Chile

Price      $19

UPC       07804395000323

Score     88/100

Remarks              Fine style and complexity for the money.

Rodney Strong Chardonnay Chalk Hill 2007, Sonoma County, California, United States

Price      $25

UPC       087512923256

Score     90/100

Remarks              The textures are creamy with nectarine and pears and citrus fruit.

Boutari Moschofilero 2008, Mantinía, Peloponnese, Greece

Price      $19

UPC       5201022574233

Score     89/100

Remarks              No oak and modest alcohol.

Jim Barry The Lodge Hill Shiraz 2007, Clare Valley, South Australia

Price      $30

UPC       9314487457013

Score     90/100

Remarks              Juicy, friendly and ready to drink you can serve this all fall with grilled meats.

Château d'Argadens 2006, Bordeaux, France

Price      $25

UPC       003394150026957

Score     88/100

Remarks              A subdued, stylish workhorse red for mid-week dinners.