Today I was looking forward to the latest wine releases from Le Vieux Pin and La Stella wineries. In case you haven’t heard or tried wines from these two wineries, Le Vieux Pin makes wine in a French style, while La Stella takes the Italian route. What do eggs have to do with this? Read on about the wines first. Egg info will follow.
La Stella Wines
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La Stella Leggiero Un-oaked Chardonnay 2011 Vivace Pinot Grigio, 2011. Lemony colour. Slight green herbal and stone fruit aromas. Quite aromatic. Medium body, dry with a lot of peach flavour. Some apple flavour too. Has a pleasant prickle in the mouth. Nice.
- Fortissimo 2009. A blend of Merlot / Cabernet Sauvignon / Sangiovese / Cabernet Franc. Medium garnet. Juicy cherry nose with vanilla and blackberry aromas too. Medium plus body with some roundness on the palate. Tannins kick in right from the start. Sour cherry and vanilla flavours. Strong tannins. Need to drink with food, or wait for 2-3 years for tannins to soften.
- Leggiero, Un-oaked Chardonnay, 2011. Light straw colour. Light tropical fruit nose. Medium body, quite round. A fair amount of acidity but supports in background. Tropical fruit flavour with a citrus finish.
- La Stellina Rosato, 2011. Screw top like the other wines La Stella wines (except Fortissimo). 100% Merlot. Light red apple skin colour. Nice strawberry, apple, and cherry nose. Light body, fairly high acidity, off dry. Apple and cherry flavours. An easy sipper.
Le Vieux Pin Wines
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Le Vieux Pin Syrah 2009 Ava 2010. A blend of mostly Viognier with some Marsanne and Rousanne. Pale lemon colour. Lots of orange on the nose. Very fragrant in the glass. Peaches, green, and a herbal tone to the flavour. Light bodied, fairly round. Toasty note too.
- Syrah 2009. This Syrah is co-fermented with some Viognier, which helps make a deeper colour and can add a flowery note to the wine. This wine was fairly deep ruby colour. Noticeable legs on the glass. Closed nose, as it was just opened. I was able to get a bit of dark fruit and smokiness on the nose. Very tasty. Full bodied, round with cherry, blackberry and blueberry fruit. It also had a high level of acidity. There were some tannins but they were not very strong. Dry with a long lingering cherry finish. The acidity left your mouth watering and wanting another sip.
After tasting these wines, there was also a separate tasting room that had a selection of syrahs from around the world, as well as 3 from Le Vieux Pin, a 2008 vintage, a 2009 vintage, and their 2009 Equinoxe Syrah. Speaking with their new wine maker (she has been here for one year now), we both prefer the Equinoxe Syrah 2009 first, followed by the 2009 Syrah, and then the 2008 vintage. To me, all three wines shared similar aroma and flavours. The terroir comes through. The 2008 was well made, and you can drink it now, but it is not a wine that I think will have as much aging potential as the 2009 wines. The Equinoxe Syrah is the smoother, more elegant older brother to the 2009 Syrah. There were other Syrahs from the Okanagan, from Washington and California States, and from the Rhone Valley in France. The BC Syrahs held their own against the Syrahs from the other countries. I thought that the Bergevin Lane Syrah from Walla Walla, WA was very similar to the Le Vieux Pin Syrahs.
What About the Eggs?
I expect the unexpected from Le Vieux Pin. Last year they brought in some premium olive oil from Italy that they sell at the winery. We were able to taste it and it was superb. This year’s tasting was free range eggs from chickens at their winery. I had read about their chickens last year. These are no ordinary chickens. They are 11 different breeds of Heritage chickens, many dating back to early-mid 1800s from countries such as Poland, India, Germany, France, and the USA. Rasoul brought out a expertly hand crafted wooden box for me, opened it and showed me the contents; 5 eggs, 4 are brown and 1 is white. I took eggceptional care taking the box with the eggs home. Soon these wonderful eggs will be part of an omelet which I will make with some artisan cheese from Mt. Townsend Creamery and maybe a slice or two of ripe tomatoes.
If you haven’t had a chance to try any La Stella or Le Vieux Pin wines, you will not be disappointed. In Vancouver, you can find their wines at Everything Wine and Liberty Wine Merchants. There may be other private wine shops as well. Search and you shall be rewarded. Enjoy!
