Serious Wine From Serious Producers At Bargain Prices

As the government plods ahead with its bizarre interpretation of privatization, premium wine producers are clearly worried about who will sell their products and where.

Government officials are quick to point out there are close to 319 LRSs or (Liquor Retail Stores) in the province with many more to come, but few, if any, are suitable replacements for government specialty stores or even the 35 or so designated "wine" stores.

Particularly frustrating is the government's insistence on shaping the future retail market when they have already admitted they bring no special expertise to distribution or retail.

If I owned a winery in the Okanagan I'd be very worried about who's going to be selling my wine in the future. As the fine wine market collapses to the bottom shelf of beer, wine and liquor stores, you can forget about selling much wine over $10 (and that's the vast majority of VQA wine).

Then again perhaps you can better picture your premium, single-vineyard wines for sale at one of the following B.C. establishments seeking a LRS license (there are hundreds of other similar businesses awaiting their license): Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre Hotel, Blue Horizon Hotel, Cedar Cottage Pub, Oscar's Pub, Sunset Bar & Grill, Burrard Motor Inn, Atrium Inn, Cambie Hotel, Clarence Hotel, Dufferin Hotel, Terminal City Club, Steamworks, Dakota Hotel, Cobalt Hotel, The Rage Cabaret and even a Royal Canadian Legion Branch.

In some cases the cost to park at downtown hotels could exceed the price of the wine you'll buy. With that news we turn to this weeks picks many of which will undoubtedly be difficult to find in the post-monopoly era.

If 2000 is the greatest vintage in Bordeaux since 1945, the 2001 harvest in Germany is similar in stature. The key with excellent vintages is to find an inexpensive wine made by a serious producer. One such label is the Lingenfelder Riesling 2001 (known more widely as the bird label in reference to its label illustration). Expect an inviting honeyed-citrus nose with similar fresh tasting fruit and a squeeze of mineral and grapefruit in the finish. The perfect wine to complement Asian/Indian cuisine.

The big news concerning the Kendall Jackson Collage Cabernet Sauvignon - Shiraz 2000 is the price. Over the last year it has dropped from $19.95 to $14.95 in the face of fierce competition. It's quite soft and forward on the palate with spicy, earthy, green bean and cassis flavours and a dry blackberry, oak and vanilla finish. Good value from California is a rare commodity these days.

Castaño Hecula 2001 is made from 100 per cent Spanish monastrell grapes. Its 40-year old grapevines, the French call mourvèdre and the Americans mataro, are dry farmed and the wine is bottled "unfined and unfiltered."

It has lovely plum jam and earthy notes on the nose and rich, peppery, savoury, fruit flavours in the mouth. The dry, smoky, lean (Euro) finish demands food. Anything grilled on the barbeque should work well but lamb would be the classic pairing.

Several Chilean producers unveiled a syrah label at the Playhouse festival and one to look for on store shelves is Valdivieso Syrah Barrel Selection Reserve 2000. It has a smoky leafy nose with intense, cassis jam and blackberry fruit. It's round and easy to drink with a fine, dark coffee and pepper character in the finish.

Back to the celebrated millennium Bordeaux crop and the Christian Moueix Merlot 2000: The wine, created for the U.S. market in the 1990s, is made from a selection of vines grown in the Cotes de Castillon and Lalande de Pomerol, Cotes de Bourg and Cotes de Francs, Bordeaux.

Look for a waxy, plum, citrus rind and earthy aroma followed by soft, round but dry peppery, cedar bark, olive and earth flavours. The aim is to make this drinkable from the start and that was accomplished. Serve with food for maximum enjoyment.

Lately the odd year harvests such as 1997, '99 and '01 have been the winners in Chile and the Trio Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 is no exception. Look for a minty, ripe cassis nose with mocha smoky shoe leather and earthy aromas. On the palate you'll find spicy cassis and mocha with underlying lifted berry fruit flavour. This is a bright, well-rounded, easy-drinking cabernet with good textures and a smooth vanilla finish.

Sun wine columnist Anthony Gismondi is also co-host of The Best of Food and Wine, which airs at noon each Saturday on CFUN 1410 AM.Weekend Wine: A Global Selection.

INEXPENSIVE WINES -- SERIOUS PRODUCERS

Wine: Lingenfelder Riesling Kabinett 1999, Pfalz, Germany

Price: $15.99

UPC: 4017974070003

Score: 14.5/20

Comments: Honey citrus and grapefruit

Wine: Collage 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon - Shiraz, California

Price: $14.95

UPC: 81584000198

Score: 14/20

Comments: Good value from California.

Wine: Castaño Hecula 2001, Yecla, Spain

Price: $15.95

UPC: 8422443001802

Score: 15/20

Comments: Plum jam, earth, pepper and savoury fruit flavours

Wine: Valdivieso Syrah Barrel Selection Reserve 2000, Region del Valle Central, Chile

Price: $16.95

UPC: 7802180097633

Score: 15/20

Comments: Easy to drink red with a dark coffee, peppery character.

Wine: Christian Moueix Merlot 2000, Bordeaux, France

Price: $18.95

UPC: 3328150006879

Score: 14/20

Comments: Soft, round peppery fruit streaked with olive, cedar bark and earth flavours

Wine: Trio Cabernet Sauvignon 2001, Valle de Maipo, Chile

Price: $14.95

UPC: 780432520001

Score: 14.5/20

Comments: A well-rounded, easy-drinking cabernet with smooth textures