Question: What Barossa wines prominently display cassis flavours?

Answer: Your scribe usually thinks of cassis as a prominent note in the early fruit aromas and tertiary bouquet of especially Pauillac & St. Julien wines from Bordeaux. It resembles the French sweet liqueur “crème de cassis,” made from blackcurrants, including some tart acidic flavour notes for overall balance. Cassis can also be found in other wine regions, including the Barossa in Australia. It shows most prominently in some of their Cabernet Sauvignon wines but also in those blended with some Shiraz. Sometimes you find a riper cassis fruit with some minty chocolate. Similarly, Shiraz and GSM blends can show cassis, but for me it seems styled differently, leaning more towards sweeter blackcurrant jam in character. Check out some of the Torbreck wines – like The Laird Shiraz – to see if you enjoy that rendition of cassis. A lot depends on how you define cassis in your own tasting experience. Suggest you taste more different Barossa wines to find your cassis nirvana.

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Your scribe has been fortunate to study the 2015 vintage of red Bordeaux at two horizontal tastings within a month. The first of nine wines for the March 17 IWFS Vancouver event is linked here, with more details. A second selection featured six higher classification wines with three each from the Right Bank and the Left Bank. La Commanderie de Bordeaux Vancouver organized the event on April 17 at The Vancouver Club, led by Le Maitre Fred Withers and Cellarmaster Alvin Nirenberg. The first session, featuring more affordable wines gave an impression of freshness with variability though the star was a Margaux Fourth Growth Chateau Marquis De Terme. Again, the Margaux appellation showed regional favour in 2015 with an excellent Chateau Kirwan. Look for additional Margaux wines from the 2015 vintage!

This black tie affair started with 2013 Joseph Perrier La Côte à Bras Brut Nature Vintage Champagne from a six generation House in Chalons-en-Champagne, founded in 1825. Since 2007 they have focused on this single, south-facing vineyard in Cumières, which has clay-limestone soil: 100% Pinot Noir planted in 1982 in Parcel A H 83. The 2013 vintage, which arrived mainly in October, favoured the Chardonnay grape but this production of 7568 bottles of Pinot Noir shows well. With zero dosage and long aging on the lees, it displays peachy salty fruit plus citrus & orange acidity—all interesting combinations. The dessert wine was 2008 Chateau Coutet (derived from the Gascon word for “knife”) from Barsac, 14% ABV, with freshness & subtle minerality paired appropriately with the pear tart.

The main 2015 feature was in two flights with my brief comments:

2015 CHATEAU CANON-LA-GAFFELIERE SAINT-EMILION Premier Grand Cru Classe from Comtes von Neipperg, composed of organically farmed 55% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Franc, and 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged 17 months in 55% new oak at 14% ABV. It was highly applauded upon release, ranking #2 on Wine Spectator’s Wine of the Year Top 100 List. Young dark look with prominent, open Cabernet aromas, featuring accessible, round, plush plums in a modern style. Attractive and deliciously drinkable.

2015 CHATEAU CANON SAINT-EMILION Owned by Chanel since 1996, this Premier Grand Cru Classé is composed of 72% Merlot & 28% Cabernet Franc aged 18 months in 70% new oak at 15% ABV. Nicolas Auderbert and his team grow this on the clay-limestone plateau of St. Emilion in a more classic balanced style. This impressive, ripe velvety Merlot shows rich, round, complex cherry notes and spiciness, with full structure provided by the Cabernet Franc. It shows elegance and finishing length. Development will continue. Group favourite.

2015 CHATEAU LE GAY POMEROL Vignobles Pere-Verge picked this highest 90% Merlot & 10% Cabernet Franc from Pomerol between September 27 and October 8; it spent 18 months in 100% new oak at 14.5% ABV. Lovely, but it seems less fragrant, less densely opulent, and less charming than expected for a top Pomerol in this vintage. More oaky herbaceous notes for me. Enjoy it now. Not in the league of outstanding quality from an exceptional 2015 Pomerol group that includes Vieux Chateau Certan, La Conseillante & L’Evangile.

2015 CHATEAU SMITH HAUT LAFITTE PESSAC-LEOGNAN Double celebration vintage for the 650th anniversary of SHL & the 25th Vendange of the Cathiards. Sadly Daniel Cathiard passed away this past January but the fantastic Florence brilliantly carries on, along with their longtime winemaker, Fabien Teitgen. This vintage is a great tribute to the whole team and their outstanding dedicated development success of this amazing Estate. They used 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot with 65% new oak for this 14.5% ABV beauty. Shows some typical sous bois but with many more exotic cherry, plum, mocha, and graphite notes, all so creamy lush. Congrats!

2015 CHATEAU LYNCH BAGES PAUILLAC Famille J-M Cazes used 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, and the remaining 6% for Cabernet Franc & Petit Verdot in 75% new oak at 13.5% ABV. This big powerful Pauillac has acidity and tannins well structured for further aging. Nick Wright found it “a bit tighter.” St. Estephe had Fall weather issues in 2015 and Pauillac & St. Julien were more variable but this is a good one. Your scribe likes the rich minty classic character of the Cabernet Sauvignon. Patience.

2015 CHATEAU KIRWAN MARGAUX Schroder & Schyler, managed by Jean Henri Schyler until his death in 2016, is now run by his three children: Yann, Sophie, and Nathalie. Here: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc & 5% Petit Verdot, aged for 18 months in 50% new oak at 13.5% ABV – for the first time in the new cellars. Picking commenced on September 18 with yields just over 50 hl/ha with Eric Boissenet as Consultant. This Kirwan improves every time I try it, confirming the top quality seen in 2015 due to favourable weather conditions for the Margaux AC – just like in 1983. Admire the flowers, spice, and classy elegance all in harmony. Balanced. Well done indeed. It is not as big or silky a wine as the opulent 2015 Marquis de Terme. Try some interesting 2015 red Bordeaux.

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Question: Is there a difference between wines made from Blaufrankisch and Kekfrankos?

Answer: Not really as they are the same grape. They use the name Blaufrankisch in Austria, Kekfrankos in Hungary, and Lemberger in Germany. There are terroir differences between the growing regions to explore but both wines have good fresh acidity, tannins, and spicy notes. They are often used in blends rather than as a single variety. For example Kekfrankos has an increasing role in the well known blend of Egri Bikaver (Bull’s Blood), replacing the Kadarka grape. Blaufrankisch is really making a name for itself in Austria especially in Burgenland. I suggest you do a comparative wine tasting of both grapes to learn more.

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Confrerie des Chevaliers du Tastevin Sous-Commanderie de Vancouver held an excellent Une Soiree de Printemps dinner on April 7, 2026, at Blue Water Cafe. Dr. Christine Collison Grande Senechale organized the event so well. Your scribe again appreciated how Blair Curtis and his team smartly selected the three flights of wines for interesting comparison purposes and meaningful insights into the specific appellation and vintages. The wine service organized by Melissa Lu Assistant Wine Director and the whole culinary service crew was exemplary. We started with JEAN LALLEMENT ET FILS CUVEE RÉSERVE NV VERZENAY GRAND CRU BRUT CHAMPAGNE, composed of 80% Pinot Noir & 20% Chardonnay disgorged on June 15, 2022. These special 4 hectares of north facing older vines yielded a Champagne that offers great value, creamy textural richness, and vibrancy. The two hors d’oeuvre warrant special mention; they were exquisite salmon aburi and octopus so perfectly matched with the fine bubbles.

The meal began with mixed seafood in puff pastry, paired with two Puligny-Montrachets from nearby similarly high-slope terroir, both from outstanding producers in different vintages:

2010 PULIGNY-MONTRACHET LES CHAMPS GAINS PREMIER CRU PIERRE-YVES COLIN-MOREY: Outstanding white Burgundy vintage with lower yields on thin soil at elevations up to 360 metres in the north near St. Aubin, which started picking on September 22. Les Champs Gains is a 10.7 hectare vineyard where determining the optimal picking time is difficult; avoid picking too early or too late. Bottle variation at 15 years of age, but the grape selection is well-chosen, maintaining a rich, ripe, intense, complex, and mineral-pure focus with still fresh acidity at 13.5% ABV. Lovely delicious plateau now.

2007 PULIGNY-MONTRACHET HAMEAU DE BLAGNY PREMIER CRU ETIENNE SAUZET: Hameau de Blagny is only 4.28 hectares situated just north of Les Champs Gains with Jadot’s La Garenne to the west. Also on thin stony soil without the body of vineyards lower down the slope. Sauzet has only a small holding of less than 1 hectare (.18) with attractive mineral character, this wine is approaching 20 years old and needs enjoying now as it is more forwardly mature from this variable white vintage.

The local quail course, prepared by Executive Chef Frank Pabst and his brigade, was truly outstanding and complemented the wines perfectly. 2016 CHOREY-LES-BEAUNE ROUGE DOMAINE TOLLOT-BEAUT: This appellation below the highway covers 154 hectares, consisting of over 90% red grapes, and contains no Grand Cru or 1er Cru vineyards. Nonetheless, the wines produced are underrated, especially those from the top quality house from 1880 of Tollot-Beaut, which has 8.28 hectares (and also 1.47 hectares of their denser single vineyard, La Piece du Chapitre). During many visits to Burgundy in the eighties & nineties, your scribe stayed at the Gite in Chorey-lès-Beaune across the street from the winery and on several visits admired the conscientious work of the dedicated family including fifth-generation Nathalie Tollot. Purchased quite a few vintages of their great Corton-Charlemagne .24 hectare vineyard (6 bottles of the amazing 1985 in January 1988 for $44.70/bottle and 3 bottles of the elegant 1979 for $25.50 all from importer Al C. Giusti Wine Company in Portland, Oregon). I’ve always marvelled at the fantastic ageability of all their wines and finished the last bottle of each C-C in 2025, still in remarkably fresh, complex condition! This 2016 C-L-B harvested September 20 (after a dry & sunny Summer) is surprisingly darker and deeper than 2015 even though 2016 was affected by late April frosts and rain until mid-June. Like the young primary intense cherry fruit notes. Will improve.

2015 CHOREY-LES-BEAUNE ROUGE DOMAINE TOLLOT-BEAUT: This highly touted vintage was released with hype after the less ripe vintages of 2014, 2013, 2012, and 2011. It’s a bit lighter at the rim than the 2016, but it has riper aromatics with fruit concentration plus fair acid tension lift. I like the structure, and it will develop nicely. An educational comparison of two good quality young red Burgundy AC wines at lower, restaurant-friendly prices. Well done.

The main flavourful Chateaubriand with sauce Bourguignonne (and cheese course) had two classy Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru wines to study and enjoy:

2006 CHAMBOLLE-MUSIGNY 1ER CRU LES CHATELOTS DOMAINE GHISLAINE BARTHOD: Chambolle-Musigny has 24 Premier Cru vineyards with magical sensual attributes. This is 2.96 hectares (GB has .33) in a bit earlier maturing vineyard situated north of and above Aux Combettes & Les Charmes, bordering Les Feusselottes to the west and Les Gruenchers to the east. It has less rich soils, containing more stones and pebbly limestone sometimes resulting in “sappy” notes for the wine. Ghislaine Barthoid has been a highly respected producer since 1987. However the family roots trace back to the 1920s when Marcel Noellat’s daughter married Gaston Barthod. Later, their daughter Ghislaine married Louis Boillot (who is also excellent). They keep both domaines separate, but their son Clement has been managing both since 2019. Admire their meticulous approach in the vineyards (now with 11 different 1er crus) and the cellars, which results in powerful, elegant wines that age well. 2006 is variable with the possibility of rot so sorting is the key. Grapes are destemmed, briefly cold-soaked in stainless steel and concrete vats with punch down (rather than pumping), and aged in 20-30% new oak with only one racking after 18 months. Slightly darker than 2009 – again a surprise. This wine is very clean, delicate, with minerality, sous-bois notes, and soft tannins. Approachable now. No rush.

2009 CHAMBOLLE-MUSIGNY 1ER CRU LES CHATELOTS DOMAINE GHISLAINE BARTHOD: This vintage is driven by the very ripe larger crop of 2009 fruit. What a difference. They must have picked the grapes when they were phenolically ripe with firm yet silky tannins and developing structure. Very long and impressive. It needs further aging to show all its sensual brilliance, but it’s enjoyable already. Another good comparison of vintages.

Your scribe on April 10 was at another dinner where the 2006 MUSIGNY GRAND CRU DROUHIN-LAROZE (one of two in Chambolle-Musigny with Bonnes-Mares) was served. This 10.32 hectare vineyard is without a doubt one of the world’s greatest! Even from the variable 2006 vintage and not from the highest priced producers like Comte de Vogue, Roumier, or Mugneret, this shone brightly indeed. The sensual perfume, elegance, and velvety texture are beautiful at 20. It will develop further complexity but is already otherworldly. Not that the 1er Crus weren’t worthy but this is what a Grand Cru is all about. Noted: a memorable comparison of Grand Cru & Premier Cru in Chambolle-Musigny. However, perhaps 1er Cru Les Amoureuses would have been a fairer closer match. Fun.

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Question: I hear there is a relatively new grape used to produce Amarone. What is it?

Answer: It is OSELETA. This old Veronese grape variety has been brought back to add more structure and fruit depth to the blend with the traditional Corvina for some Amarone & Valpolicella.

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