By Amy Sanderson
Torontonicity was invited to taste wines with the Sun Media’s national wine columnist and co-founder and editor of Vines, Christopher Waters at The Chase Fish & Oyster, which recently opened on Temperance Street. Waters revealed InterVin’s Winery of the Year for 2013, Wolf Blass, and discussed available tastings at the upcoming Gourmet Food and Wine Expo in Toronto.
We enjoyed Wolf Blass’s Gold Medal winning wines with a selection of small plates from The Chase Fish & Oyster. Did someone say oysters?
Wolf Blass’s Sparkling White is fresh and fruity and tastes like a top-notch champagne. You can buy this wine f0r $30 at Vintages. The Riesling has a tin top note with apples and tree fruit brimming underneath. I detected pear and butter undertones.
Time for some appetizers to enjoy with these wines. The Beef Tartare on crostini featured a slight zest of horseradish. A moist, delicious mustard seed gave it a slight burnt flavour. Tasty!
Wolf Blass’s Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon has a thick pepper nose with a burnt tone. The wine produces a slightly meaty, gritty mouth feel.
The winery’s Platinum Label Barossa Shiraz is the star. The 2008 vintage gives a gorgeous velvety mouth feel with pepper overtones and a Rubik’s cube’s complexity underneath.
The Shiraz tasted superb accompanied by blue cheese, resulting in a silky texture that melts in your mouth. This wine is not for sale; it’s only on consignment at $130 bottle.
Time for another appetizer. The Tuna Tartare with horseradish was delicious.
Wow! Some really spectacular wines from Wolf Blass paired with some delicious plates from The Chase Fish & Oyster. I’m definitely looking forward to attending the Gourmet Food & Wine Expo in November to sample more of these great vintages.
