Grab-and-go at the LCBO
Ever wonder about all those little bottles and cans at checkout? Here’s your guide to the best of them
If you’re in a rush — and who isn’t these days — here’s a tip. When nipping into the LCBO for wine in a hurry, grab a basket and head straight to the cash area.
Then fill ’er up with some actually fantastic ready-to-drink wine cocktails and half-bottles of vino.
Like buying gum at a convenience store, you’ll be in and out in a jiffy. Here’s what to snap up.
In the can
The NV Rosehall Run Pixie Petite Rosé Spritzer from Ontario in the 355-mL can (LCBO 19301, $3.95) thrills with a bracing, off-dry attack of Vidal and Pinot Noir. It shines silvery pink in the glass, dances with lively effervescence, then glides in with optimal refreshment as it nods toward wild berries and lemon-lime sorbet. Made in a style that’s more subtle than fruit-forward. Score: 90
Popular elsewhere and now rolling out across the province is Hoxie Lemon Ginger Rosé Dry Wine Spritzer from California in a 250mL can (LCBO 36804, $3.95). Made with spring water, rosé and natural extracts and botanicals of lemon, ginger, lime and rose, this pale-hued spritzer tastes complex and sophisticated. The citrusyspicy-floral suggestions of everything found in the name are found chiselled and pristine on the nose and palate. Score: 92
Also new and exciting at the LCBO is the NV Bread & Butter Rosé from California in 250-mL can (LCBO 31472, $6.95). Expect wispy aromas of just ripe strawberry, watermelon, hibiscus and violet followed by a tinglingly fresh attack that spirals in. The flavours echo the aromas tasting sheer, crisp and dry — but not bone dry. Score: 90
When nipping into the LCBO for wine in a hurry, grab a basket and head straight to the cash area. Then fill ’er up with some actually fantastic ready-todrink wine cocktails and half-bottles of vino
Half-bottle wonders
When you want a good glass of wine and figure two and half glasses would be the perfect amount, halfbottle formats fit the bill. So here are a couple of tried-and-true bestsellers in that size — a red and a white — sold at the cash of many LCBO stores.
The immediately appealing 2022 Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio Valdadige DOC from Italy (Vintages 687558, $11.95/375 ml) is an affordable bottle to rely on for easy elegance.
From its quiet fragrance of lemon zest and sliced apple laced with sea salt and stone to its silky sweep of understated vinosity that persists on the finish, this white is a total charmer at a reasonable price. Pour it to elevate lunch, happy hour or dinner. . Score: 92
The 2021 Josh Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon from California (LCBO 25267, $11.95/375 ml) is a brilliant buy. It bursts with bold aromas of cassis, black cherries and jam before the velvet entry drenches the palate with unabashed deliciousness.
Flavours float plum jam to ripe raspberries to chocolate-dipped cherries with a drizzle of blackcurrant liqueur and a dusting of crushed almond. Score: 93
Full-bottle splurge
The 2018 Château Beau-Site from the Saint-Estèphe region of Bordeaux, France (Vintages 647933, $48.95/750 ml) is the wine to keep on hand to punctuate important moments. This is what fine Bordeaux tastes like, at a very reasonable price for what it is.
Frankly, it tastes more expensive than it is.
The 2018 Château Beau-Site is a bone-dry, deeply savoury blend of 73 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon, 25 per cent Merlot and two per cent Petit Verdot that’s cashmere-textured and unspools slowly, slipping from dark forest fruit to spice cake to tobacco and clove.
Notes of bittersweet chocolate, a touch of salty licorice and toasted hazelnut score the rich fruit centre and come to the fore on the long, riveting finish. Outstanding focus, tension and depth here with a decidedly serious disposition.
This full-bodied slow-sipper with 14.5 per cent alcohol will certainly reward patience if properly cellared — for about up to 10 years if you can wait — but it drinks beautifully now. Gift it with pride.
Or serve it with your favourite, wine-loving people. Score: 94