deVine’s Daily Blog Article

December 18, 2016

Christmas Dinner Wine Recommendations

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 7:31 pm

turkey_ham_small Author: Dirk Chan

Wow…Christmas is almost upon us, so here is our annual picks to accompany the classic turkey and/or ham dinner with all its fixings. Start your evening off with a sparkling wine,followed by whites, reds, a dessert wine and perhaps this year add a little meditation course for Amaro or Port.

Sparkling Wines

Sparkling wines are a great way to start any function whether its a greeting aperitif or to pair with appetizers. Lively and clean, these will get everyone ready for what’s to come next.

xmas_house_dancing
2013 Domaine Rosier Cuvee du Rosier (Languedoc-Roussillon, France) – $19.99

NV Cantina Colli del Soligo Prosecco (Veneto, Italy) – $22.99

NV Francois Lichtle Méthode Traditionelle Brut (Alsace, France) – $26.99

Champagne

Now if you serve Champagne, your audience will immediately know you’re here to do some serious partaking and celebrating.

NV A. Margaine Rose Premier Cru (Champagne, France) – $59.99

NV Taittinger Reserve Brut (Champagne, France) – $65.99

NV Egly-Ouriet Grand Cru VP Extra Brut (Champagne, France) – $159.99

2006 Louis Roederer Cristal Brut (Champagne, France) – $349.99

Whites & Pinks

Whites with a touch of sweetness is preferred because of the sweetness of some of the fixings – candied yams, cranberry sauce, and honey for the glazed ham. A completely dry white will seem more austere and void of fruit due to the sweetness of the food so I recommend Rieslings (dry or off-dry, both work), Gewurztraminers or other Germanic or Alsace varietals. Having said that, some will always go with a dry creamy Chardonnay or Chenon irregardless and that’s perfectly fine. Also, don’t forget that rosés work really well too!

2012 Joh. Haart Piesporter Goldtropfchen Riesling Spatlese (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany) – $18.99

bellingham_cb 2015 Bellingham Bernard Old Vine Chenin Blanc (Coastal Region, South Africa) – $24.99

2014 Domaine Serge Dagueneau & Filles Les Montees Chardonnay (Loire Valley, France) – $27.99

2010 Domaine Lucien Jacob Savigny-Vergelesses Premiere Cru (Burgundy – Cote de Beaune, France) – $49.99

2011 Wine & Soul Guru (Douro, Portugal) – $64.99

2011 Ridge Monte Bello Chardonnay (California – Sonoma, United States) – $104.99

2015 Domaine Houchart Rosé (Provence, France) – $20.99

2014 Kranz Spatburgunder Rosé Trocken (Rheinfalz, Germany) – $22.99

Reds

For reds, try to avoid the big oaky tannic monsters. Oak and tannins are the enemies when pairing with slightly sweet food, try for a red with lots of up-front fruit, little oak and a soft tannins like a Beaujolais (served slightly chilled) or a Pinot Noir.

2014 Spinning Top Pinot Noir (Marlborough, New Zealand) – $21.99

2010 Julius Klein Rotwein Trocken St. Laurent (Austria) – $23.99

2014 Dominique Piron Chiroubles (Beaujolais, France) – $25.99

burgaud_py 2014 Jean-Marc Burgaud Morgon Côte du Py (Beaujolais, France) – $28.99

2012 Domaine Pavelot Savigny les Beaune (Burgundy, France) – $39.99

2014 Trisaetum Pinot Noir (Willamette Valley, Oregon) – $44.99

2011 Best’s Great Western Pinot Meunier (Victoria, Australia) – $52.99

2014 Bodegas Colome Autentico Malbec (Calchaqui, Argentina) – $55.99

2013 Envy Wines Calistoga Estate (California – Napa Valley, United States) – $69.99

2012 J.L. Chave Saint-Joseph (Rhone Valley, France) – $94.99

2009 Vietti Barbaresco Masseria (Piedmont, Italy) – $119.99

2010 Ghislain Kohut Echezeaux Grand Cru (Burgundy – Cote de Nuits, France) – $149.99

2009 Château Belair-Monange (Bordeaux – St. Emilion, France) – $269.99

Dessert

As for dessert, remember dessert wine should be sweeter than the dessert itself.

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2015 Elderton Botrytis Semillon (Barossa Valley, Australia) – $22.99

2013 Chateau Prince Coteaux de l’Aubance (Penedes, Spain) – $32.99

2009 Zind-Humbrecht Clos Jebsal Vendange Tardive Pinot Gris – 375mL (Alsace, France) – $59.99

2004 Chateau d’Yquem – 375mL (Sauterne, France) – $319.99

Port & Amaro (Post Dinner)

Port is always good for the final touches of a meal, but the digestif Amaro from Italy is on fire.

merry_xmas_dancing
Amaro Ramazzotti (Italy) – $27.99

Varnelli Amaro Sibilla (Italy) – $49.99

1967 Dalva Colheita Port (Douro, Portugal) – $249.99

2008 Fonseca Quinta do Panascal Vintage Port (Douro, Portugal) – $71.99

Messias 20 Year Old Tawny Port (Douro, Portugal) – $74.99

1983 Graham’s Vintage Port – $169.99

Finally, if you are pressed for time, try out our December Mixed Case – $231.13 where a lot of the wines would pair well with Christmas dinner.

Note our extended hours of operations leading up to Christmas and New Years.

Top of the Season to everyone!

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December 2, 2016

Support the Edmonton Food Bank

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 9:23 pm

edmonton_food_bank_small Author: Dirk Chan

As Christmas approaches, deVine Wines is running an online auction in support of the Edmonton Food Bank, who desperately need our help as supplies are extremely low due to the extra assistance required after the Fort McMurray fires displaced thousands of people this summer.

The auction is live as of now, and will end on deVine’s Customer Appreciation Day, Thursday, December 15th at midnight. Those so wishing may also email your final reserve bids to us at “info@devinewines.ca” and we’ll bid for you in $10 increments. All 100% of the proceeds generated by this auction will be donated to the Edmonton Food Bank to help with the seasonal rush, and prevent any families from going hungry during the holidays. We will be contacting winning bidders right away and ask that you pick up and pay (by cheque or cash only please) up by Tuesday, December 20th so there is enough time to use the moneys for the holiday season.

We’ve set up boxes at the store, so please bring in food item(s) on your next visit, or if you prefer, a box has also been set up to accept monetary donations. In this crazy world we live in, we have to think about those less fortunate than ourselves, we thank you in advance for participating in this worthwhile fundraiser.

Priority food items include the following:

beans with or without pork
canned meat
canned fish
canned fruit or vegetables
peanut butter
macaroni and cheese dinners
pasta and pasta sauce
cereal and oatmeal
school snack items such as juice boxes, fruit cups and granola bars

Please visit and bookmark our online auction page located https://devinewines.ca/eventAuctions/auction.html. We’ve reached out to our many agent friends and items will be coming fast and furious over the next several weeks so check back often and email us your bids..Thank You!

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deVine’s Customer Appreciation Day – Thurs, December 15th

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 9:21 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

Mark your calendar for Thursday, December 15th!

Every year, deVine Wines hosts our Customer Appreciation Day – Thursday, December 15th to say a special “Thank You!” for your ongoing support and patronage.

deVine Wines will be offering our customers a 10% discount ** on all in-stock regular priced wines and spirits. The sale will run all day, starting at 10:00 AM until we close at 9:00 PM. There will be four wine stations and one beer station set up for free sampling from 3-6pm. It’s a great opportunity to do all of your Christmas shopping in one day.

**The sale excludes beers and ciders as well as wines stored in our vintage keeper or vintage room. Cannot be combined with other sale items and no rain checks.

See you on Thursday, December 15th.

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Three Special Festive Packages

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 5:35 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

As usual, deVine offers three separate packages for the December festive Holiday Season:

1) Twelve Beers of Christmas Festive Case – $109.99 – every year, we do a specialty Christmas Festive Case for beer enthusiasts. This year was tremendous for the Craft beer scene in Edmonton, the enthusiasm and adventurous customer response enabled us to bring in many, many new products for you to try. This case epitomizes the year with both quality and excitement. Very limited edition – only 50 cases made.

Check it out here..

staff_picks_2016a
2) The deVine Wines Staff Picks Six Pack – $192.92 – every year, our favourite staff picks are packaged into a six pack box, for those who wants something a little extra special rather than the everyday drinker.

The wines represent great quality for price ratio, and also great food pairing wines. See which staff your palate matches up to.

Check it out here..

3) Our ongoing Case of the Month – $231.13 – for December’s case, we usually step it up slightly, but still manage to keep it in that affordable range.

There are wines here for the Turkey Dinner, with representation from numerous countries that represent varietally correct wines. Enjoy!

Check it out here..

Get yours early, these are limited editions and get snapped up pretty quick.

Seasons Greetings Everyone!

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November 27, 2016

104th Street Customer Appreciation Day – Thursday, December 1st

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 10:18 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

The annual 104th Street Customer Appreciation Day is set for this Thursday, December 1st. Come down and experience the vibrancy of the downtown core and take advantage of special offers from local businesses on Edmonton’s lively and historic 104th Street!

At deVine’s, four different agents (Untapped Craft Importers, Craft Beer Importers, 49th Parallel Group and Village Brewery) will be in-store to pour beer samples for you from 4-7pm. In addition, we will be offering a 5% discount on all beers, ciders and coolers (cannot be combined with other special offers). Also, in-store December Super Savings promotions with deep discounts will be in effect. We will be open till 8pm on December 1st.

Businesses along the street will also be collecting warm clothing donations for the Edmonton Emergency Relief Services Society while deVine’s also encourage you to bring some food with you for the Edmonton Food Bank.

Join the businesses #on104th as we say a collective “THANK YOU” for years of support in growing downtown and supporting local initiatives. See what our neighbor businesses are offering on December 1st by following this link – https://www.facebook.com/events/569600163243980/

deVine’s very own “Customer Appreciation” day will be Thursday, December 15th, mark your calendar for our biggest sale of the year.

See you all this thursday!

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November 13, 2016

Silent Auction In Support of Edmonton Food Bank

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 12:06 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

As Christmas approaches, deVine Wines is running an online auction in support of the Edmonton Food Bank, who desperately need our help as supplies are extremely low due to the extra assistance required after the Fort McMurray fires displaced thousands of people this summer.

The auction is live as of now, and will end on deVine’s Customer Appreciation Day, Thursday, December 15th at midnight. Those so wishing may also email your final reserve bids to us at “info@devinewines.ca” and we’ll bid for you in $10 increments. All 100% of the proceeds generated by this auction will be donated to the Edmonton Food Bank to help with the seasonal rush, and prevent any families from going hungry during the holidays. We will be contacting winning bidders right away and ask that you pick up and pay (by cheque or cash only please) up by Tuesday, December 20th so there is enough time to use the moneys for the holiday season.

We’ve set up boxes at the store, so please bring in food item(s) on your next visit, or if you prefer, a box has also been set up to accept monetary donations. In this crazy world we live in, we have to think about those less fortunate than ourselves, we thank you in advance for participating in this worthwhile fundraiser.

Priority food items include the following:

beans with or without pork
canned meat
canned fish
canned fruit or vegetables
peanut butter
macaroni and cheese dinners
pasta and pasta sauce
cereal and oatmeal
school snack items such as juice boxes, fruit cups and granola bars

Please visit and bookmark our online auction page located https://devinewines.ca/eventAuctions/auction.html. We’ve reached out to our many agent friends and items will be coming fast and furious over the next several weeks so check back often and email us your bids..Thank You!

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Big Bottles for Xmas

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 12:05 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

I’ve always been fascinated with big bottles at any event, it immediately adds that feeling of something special going on – partly because the size infers lots of people, fun and joviality amongst friends and relatives.

Also, wines from magnums and even bigger formats usually show youth and vitality because the airspace to wine ratio is lower, and supposedly the wine ages slower.

Next time you want to celebrate, consider a magnum party. At deVine’s, we buy magnums all year long just for this time of the year. As Christmas is fast approaching, here is a very large list of available big formats at deVines for your consideration (availability is very limited, most we only have one or two bottles for sale), so shop early for the best selection as this is the part of the year when these bottlings start disappearing fast.

Listed below are in magnum (1.5L) configuration unless specified:

NV Domaine Rosier Cuvee Ma Maison Rose Cremant de Limoux (Languedoc-Roussillon, France) – $47.99

NV Gremillet Brut Selection (Champagne, France) – $134.99

NV Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Yellow Label Brut (Champagne, France) – $159.99

2002 Moet & Chandon Dom Pérignon Brut (Champagne, France) – $649.99

2012 Leitz Rudesheimer Magdalenenkreuz Riesling Spatlese (Rheingau, Germany) – $59.99

2012 Max Ferdinand Richter Veldenzer Elisenberg Riesling Kabinett (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany) – $82.99

2011 Bodegas Lan Crianza (Rioja, Spain) – $45.99

2009 Frescobaldi Nipozzano Chianti Rufina Riserva (Tuscany – Chianti, Italy) – $79.99

2005 JM Fonseca Hexagon Red (Terras do Sado, Portugal) – $99.99

2012 Ridge Geyserville Zinfandel (California – Sonoma, United States) – $129.99

2009 Château Haut-Bergey (Bordeaux – Pessac-Leognan, France) – $169.99

2010 Vietti Barolo Castiglione (Piedmont, Italy) – $199.99

2011 Montes Purple Angel (Colchagua Valley, Chile) – $209.99

2006 Château Haut Bailly (Bordeaux – Pessac-Leognan, France) – $274.99

2005 Château Lagrange (Bordeaux – St. Julien, France) – $309.99

2011 Comm. G. B. Burlotto Barolo Monvigliero (Piedmont, Italy) – 3.0L – $359.99

2004 Penfolds Grange (South Australia, Australia) – $1,599.99

Have yourself a magnum of a day!

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November Case of the Month

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 12:03 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

Our November Case of the Month – $214.75 is a great sampler case for those wanting diversity, discovery and affordability in everyday drinking wines. We choose wines for this case to showcase their true varietal characteristics from wine regions from all over the world. It is seasonal in nature as well, more whites and pinks and lighter reds during the summer and now more full-bodied reds as fall approaches. It is a great way to discover your palate besides always having some wine on hand.

November features a wild assortment of wines from all over, with offerings are from all corners of the globe including Italy, France, Australia, Germany, Argentina, Spain, Greece and Chile.

You can read more detailed information and purchase the November Case of the Month online here..

Salute!

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November 6, 2016

Cocktail Basics: Vermouth and Amaro with Manuel Barreira

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 4:04 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

The well-documented “Cocktail Renaissance” is in full swing in Edmonton these days, with newer and cooler cocktail bars opening every other week. It can be an intimidating proposition for those uninitiated in the cult of cocktail to confidently order from the bearded and bespectacled bartender behind the counter. A little bit of education can go a long way in building confidence and discovering ones own taste.

Join us on Saturday, November 19 – $50 for an evening of enlightenment, as Manuel Barreira, a local cocktail expert who brings in a lot of our spirits, leads us through the history and contemporary usage of those essential cocktail cornerstones, Vermouth and Amaro.

While these Vermouths and Amaro’s are perfect to drink cold as an aperitif or after a meal as a digestif, they are more and more being used as an ingredient in refined cocktails, adding a special touch in new versions of great classics such as the renowned Negroni or the Americano.

Come taste these benchmark spirits, learn how they are used to enhance and build the most classic cocktails, and expand your knowledge of these special, bitter spirits. Only 30 spots available for this sit-down event.

More information and to register for the tasting, click here… (***NOTE – Event postponed to a future date).

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October 27, 2016

Our Annual Fall Top Drops Scotch Tasting

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 11:26 pm

Author: Dirk Chan

deVine welcomes Lee Hanson of Barrel Hunter Import & Brokerage Ltd for our annual Top Drops Scotch Tasting on Saturday, November 3rd at 7pm – $55. Lee will have with him a very special guest – Andrew Laing, Export Director of Hunter Lang & Co, the unrivalled blenders and bottlers of the special First Editions scotches that we will be tasting.

Founded in 2010, the origins of First Editions are rooted in the decades spent growing up in and around the scotch whisky industry, and with the respect and passion for the spirit this history has instilled. With a label inspired by the classic elegance of an antique manuscript, the First Editions brand is the mark of quality which appears across the core range of single-cask bottlings of malt whisky.

They review their maturing stocks on a monthly basis, drawing samples from casks that may be ready for bottling. Always mindful of the benefits of a whisky being from just a single cask, they will bottle it when it is at its best for drinking rather than being influenced by “round” ages such as 18, or 25 years old. The First Editions bottlings are always at cask-strength and, naturally, without artificial colouring or chill-filtration.

We strongly encourage you to attend (and bring a friend), this is a giveaway tasting given the quality of the drams presented. A not-to-be-missed event even if you’re remotely interested in discovery about rare and expensive Single Malts.

More information and to register for the tasting, click here….

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