Argentina

Finca La Chimiza Cabernet-Merlot 2008
Mendoza $7.95 (62047) 13% alcohol
This tangy, juicy delicious blend opens with expressive aromas of savoury herb, spice and dark cherry. There’s excellent balance with loads of racy zesty flavours—sour cherry and cranberry—with an ameliorating wave of black cherry and plum. It’s medium weight, well textured and sports a juicy flavourful finish. This really shines when paired with meat-laden pizza or spaghetti Bolognese. (Vic Harradine)

Australia

Hardys ‘Stamp of Australia’ Riesling Gewürztraminer 2008
South Eastern Australia $9.95 (448548) 11.5% alcohol
This off-dry blend is highly aromatic with rosewater, mineral and exotic spice notes on the nose. Gorgeous soft flavours of ripe tropical fruit are nicely balanced by racy citrus tang on the lingering finish. It’s medium weight with a silky smooth texture and a sweet and tang lingering finish. It punches well above its weight providing good value. Pour alongside spicy Asian dishes. (Vic Harradine)


Hardys ‘Stamp of Australia’ Shiraz Cabernet 2008
South Eastern Australia $10.95 (338012) 14% alcohol
This offers very good value, earning its final half star because of it. Look for fresh red berry fruit and black currant on the nose and palate. There’s also a gusher of pie cherry and pomegranate on the finish making this a delicious wine sipped on its own or a perfect pairing with chicken, veal or red meat. Pair this with burgers, pizza or whatever red meat you pull off the Weber at your place. (Vic Harradine)


Wyndham Estate ‘Bin 525’ Shiraz Grenache 2008
South Eastern Australia $16.40 (96826) 14.5% alcohol
There are loads of sweet fruit flavours on the nose and even more on the palate with ripe succulent cherry, mulberry and brambly berry to the fore. This is medium bodied, generously textured, and well balanced—sporting a solid underpinning of firm tannin and excellent moderating acidity. There’s a glorious fruity finish that layers on a few sprigs of mixed herbs and spice. Decant/aerate for a couple hours then pour alongside grilled lamb tenderloins. (Vic Harradine)

California

Gnarly Head Chardonnay 2007
California $16.95 (68932) 14.5% alcohol
There’s a lot going on in this full-bodied fully textured Chard. The involved nose gives aromas of tropical fruit, vanilla and coconut while the palate’s treated to a persistent stream of focused flavour of spiced green apple and tropical fruit. It’s round and fleshy with a buttery lengthy finish, but still well integrated and not overblown. Roasted fowl with all the fixings or lobster dipped in clarified butter pair well. (Vic Harradine)


J. Lohr Estates Chardonnay 2007
Arroyo Seco $20.55 (258699) 13.5% alcohol
This is a gorgeous offering that delivers a huge mouthful of delectable flavour. Vanilla, tropical fruit and toffee apple aromas drift off the nose while flavours are a persistent stream of spiced green apple, more tropical fruit and well-integrated wisps of seasoned oak. It’s full bodied, well textured and sports a lengthy deftly balanced finish. Pour alongside rich creamy chicken and veal dishes or roast pork tenderloin in a whiskey cream sauce. (Vic Harradine)


Smoking Loon Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
California $17.95 (55517) 13.5% alcohol
Exotic Asian spice and black plum compote aromas drift off this round, mellow and ready-to-drink Cab. Rich and concentrated dark fruit flavours—cherry, mulberry and currant—wash over the palate. It’s medium bodied with a firm finish that layers on a moderating hit of sour cherry that keeps this deftly balanced and lip-smacking good. Pair with spicy pizza or pasta puttanesca. (Vic Harradine)

Chile

Concha y Toro ‘Casillero del Diablo Reserva’ Chardonnay 2008
Central Valley $10.95 (58420) 13.5% alcohol
This is a solid-value white wine well suited to serving with a variety of foods like roast chicken or roast pork. Nutty, vanilla and green apple aromas settle into a refreshing mouthful of crisp flavours—green apple, pear, pineapple and melon. It’s medium to full bodied, well balanced with a nicely textured with a lingering finish. (Vic Harradine)


Concha y Toro ‘Casillero del Diablo Reserva’ Merlot 2008
Rapel Valley $12.95 (427088) 13.5% alcohol
Expressive rich dark plum and spice box aromas provide segue to this gorgeously textured full-flavoured beauty. Deep dark berry fruit and tarry plum flavours wash over the palate while the ripe tannin structure adds interest and weight. It’s well balanced and sports a tangy fruit forward finish. Good to go on its own, it pairs particularly well with stuffed pork tenderloin or roast chicken. (Vic Harradine)


Concha y Toro ‘Casillero del Diablo Reserva’ Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Central Valley $10.95 (578641) 13% alcohol
This is a delightful blend of racy freshness complemented by tropical fruit flavours; look for grassy herbaceous aromas and lip-smacking flavours of lemon-lime citrus mingling with pineapple, gooseberry and melon. It’s light to medium bodied, generously textured and finishes crisp, clean and refreshing. This is a lovely deck-sipping wine pairing well with fish and shellfish. (Vic Harradine)


Concha y Toro ‘Casillero del Diablo Reserva’ Shiraz 2007
Rapel Valley $12.95 (568055) 13.5% alcohol
Here’s a popular crowd-pleasing red that deserves a spot on your summer barbeque list. It’s dark berry fruit and mocha on the nose while the flavours that drench the palate include sweet succulent blackberry, black cherry, and spiced black plum. It’s straightforward and fleshy, medium bodied and silky smooth. It finishes the way it starts making it a willing partner with burgers, gourmet sausage and other red meats you pull off the Broil King. (Vic Harradine)

Germany

Gustav Adolph Schmitt ‘Spätlese’ 2007
Prädikatswein Niersteiner Rheinhessen (262337) $10.95 9.5% alcohol
Floral and white peach aromas open this light-on-its-feet sweet wine—a (4) on the sugar code. It hits the palate with succulent ripe fruit flavour—yellow peach, ripe apple and sweet yellow plum—then finishes well integrated with a moderating squirt of citrus. A perfect summer sipper on its own, it also pairs well with fresh fruit salads or flans. (Vic Harradine)

Italy

Montalto Pinot Grigio 2007
IGT Sicilia $9.95 (73148) 13% alcohol
Tropical fruit and ripe yellow peach on the nose, this showers the palate with crisp and mouth-watering citrus flavours along with honeyed pear and green apple. There’s a hint of yellow plum on the finish as it cleans up crisp and refreshing. This is paired perfectly with pan-seared freshwater fish under a squirt of freshly squeezed lemon. (Vic Harradine)

New Zealand

Monkey Bay Pinot Grigio 2007
New Zealand $14.95 (93666) 13% alcohol
Lovely aromas of beeswax, honeyed pear and ripe apple mingle with perfumed wild flowers dancing off the glass of this medium-weight generously textured Kiwi. There’s an abundance of flavour—mouth-watering citrus tang, exotic spice and a pristine stream of sweet succulent apple and pear—that persists through the lingering finish. This extremely well-priced offering—it earned its final half star because of it—sips beautifully on its own and pairs well with spicy Asian cuisine. (Vic Harradine)

Ontario

Harbour Estates Winery Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
VQA Niagara Peninsula $13.15 (101238) 13% alcohol
Inviting aromas of dark berry, spice box and toasty notes provide segue to this juicy, rich and complex Cab. Flavours of cherry, cassis and mixed field berry bathe the palate in a persistent stream. They’re complimented by moderating acidity and underpinned by a ripe tannin structure. You can easily smooth them out with a two-hour aeration/decant and/or a thick juicy strip loin grilled rare to medium rare. This offers exceptional value, don’t miss out. (Vic Harradine)

Spain

Conde de Valdemar ‘Crianza’ 2004
DOC Rioja $13.95 (356089) 13.5% alcohol
You’ll find a ladleful of racy and zesty sour cherry and pomegranate flavours in this powerful serious Spanish red. There’s a solid stream of fruit—mulberry and red cherry—that’s still wound in a grainy tannin structure. The finish is grippy and lengthy. This needs a couple of more years, but if you can’t wait, decant/aerate for three hours then pour with grilled rib eye, done rare to medium rare. Good value here. (Vic Harradine)