Feeling Wine & Food - El ABC del Vino in English

(By Marina La Forgia) Akel, which means red in the Mapuche language, is the name of the new wine from the Chilean winery Montgras that has arrived to the SAQ gondolas. A blend of Syrah, Garnacha and Carignan that surprises and pleases thanks to its pronounced notes of red and black berry fruits, leather and cinnamon. The palate is very unctuous and pleasant. Although it has spent 12 months in the barrels, the oak contribution is gentle, subtle and elegant, respecting the great potential and splendor of these three red varieties that grow and mature so well in the Colchagua Valley. A little advice to enjoy it at its best? Leave it uncorked or poured for about 15 minutes before tasting it ... that way all its pleasant and full bouquet of aromas will blossom! Montgras is one of the wineries in the region that practices sustainable agriculture and its wines have in my humble opinion an excellent price-quality ratio. The new red Akel is another label that could confirm it.

DeGras Reserva Fumé Blanc 2016 Viña Montgras DO Colchagua Valley - Chile Sauvignon Blanc 100% SAQ Price: $ 10.20 For those addicted to the expressiveness that this variety offers us in Chilean lands, I would like to introduce you to this new arrival: the Viña MontGras Fumé Blanc with an excellent price-quality ratio. Already used to the versatility of its reds, this winery in the Colchagua Valley, which has practiced reasonable agriculture since 1993, is now trying to seduce local consumers with a new proposal: a fresh, aromatic and affordable white wine. With subtle nose notes of citrus fruits, fresh herbs and green tea, it is a light and seductive wine. In the mouth, it gives us some mineral notes, but they are without doubt its citrus characteristics that provide that notorious but very pleasant acidity that leaves us a refreshing and enveloping finish. Ideal to accompany summer salads, shrimp cocktails or grilled white fish, DeGras Fumé Blanc is a zestful and fresh wine ...

Arboleda Carmenere 2015 Arboleda Wines Aconcagua Valley - Chile SAQ Price: $ 21.95 A new specialty product has arrived at the SAQ shelves. Let's welcome this Carmenere Arboleda 2015, of the wonderful and unique Aconcagua Valley, that perfectly fit our avid palates of good wines! Pure chilean essence, it is a 100% of this red variety that, in my humble opinion, is one of the most mysterious, different, interesting and almost exclusive one from the Andes terroir. In the nose is a soft and elegant wine, with pleasant notes of red and black fruits, such as raspberry, gooseberry or blackberries. All this fruity profile is complemented by balsamic and spicy aromas. A wine with an exquisite, subtle and delicate bouquet! Once in the mouth, it reminds me that it is a wine with a certain structure and body, given by its passage through french oak barrels for 12 months. Some notes of cinnamon, pepper and licorice make it slightly refreshing, and in the end it expresses with finen...

Montgras Quatro Cabernet Sauvignon - Carmenere - Syrah - Malbec DO Colchagua Valley - Chile SAQ Price: $ 17.15 Much has been said about the particularities of the Chilean terroir and its influence on some varieties. In my opinion, Cabernet Sauvignon coming from these South American lands has a particularity that I can not find in other wine regions of the world. Its menthol aromas make a different and pleasant cabernet. And when added with other varieties such as Syrah, Carmenere and Malbec in order to make it rounder and stronger, the result can be spectacular. Such is the case of this Montgras Quatro, a red wine of great structure and personality. The wines of Viña Montgras use to please the Quebec consumer because of its excellent price-quality ratio. Made from the four emblematic varieties of Chilean reds, which were assembled after standing independently in oak barrels for 9 months, we have a wine overflowing with ripe fruit, rounded tannins, generous, enveloping ...

 Have you ever heard about the Aconcagua Costa appellation? It is perhaps Viña Errazuriz, the winery of great prestige in the Canadian market, the pioneer in putting into the world map this unique geographic region, perfect for the cultivation of the vines. Thanks also to the savoir faire of its winemaker Francisco Baettig, this new coastal area, along with the classic Aconcagua from the Cordillera (mountains), becomes a special terroir that gives a new identity to Chilean wines. It is exactly as if we find in this South American region everything that characterizes the terroir of the old world in the new world: less exuberance, more finesse and elegance. From this appellation, I would like to introduce you today the Chardonnay and the Pinot Noir. Two different, fresh, and very delicate wines, that show a new facet of Chilean wine and that fortunately are available in the market of Quebec since a few weeks. Errazuriz Chardonnay 2015 Aconcagua Costa – Chili SAQ Price: ...

Caliterra Tribute Sauvignon Blanc 2015 Viña Caliterra DO Leyda Valley SAQ Price: $ 15.55 I have already said it on many occasions: the Sauvignon Blanc grape has in Chile one of its best terroirs in the world. It is always a delight for me to taste the available wines of this variety, as it is one of my favorite white ones thanks to its great display of intense and particular aromas and for its so refreshing character and acidity. For those enophiles who enjoy this variety as much as I do, I invite you to discover the Caliterra Tributo, a wine that surprises for its versatility, but also for its originality. The typical citrus notes are present, along with other more floral mixed with aromas of dry grass. It is in the mouth where I found it very attractive, the Caliterra Tributo Sauvignon Blanc has a mineral texture and a refreshing character that make it a young white wine, but with body and structure able to perfectly matcht with creamy and unctuous dishes. I allowed myself to ma...

By Marina La Forgia Chile has been one of the celebrated countries along with Argentina in this last edition of La Grande Degustation de Montreal. It has been a pleasure to me to walk through the Chilean pavilion, to have the opportunity to taste a lot of wines and to deepen my knowledge on them. The Chilean wines are wines with personality and they continue positioning themselves strongly among the preferences of the Quebec consumers. From chardonnay to sauvignon blanc, from syrah to cabernet sauvignon, the diversity the offer is one of the Chilean hallmarks, that makes possible to satisfy with different options this demanding market. Here are my favorites, all very particular wines that I invite you to discover. In my opinion, there are two varieties to follow closely if Chile is concerned: sauvignon blanc and syrah. It is in this South American country that these two varieties seem to have found one of their ideal terroirs... Cheers! Viejas tinajas Muscat 2015 from De M...