deVine Thoughts

Author: Jim Phelan

For the first time in several years, deVine Wines & Spirits is hosting a formal sit-down beer tasting!

As craft beer’s market continues to gain traction, diversify, and expand, it truly has become a wonderful time to be a beer drinker. This expansion of great beer can also be quite confusing at times. What defines a certain beer style? How many different types of beer are there? What is the difference between craft and domestic brewing? How hoppy and bitter should an IPA be? We here at deVine’s might be able to help.

Join us on Saturday March 21st, for a sweeping sit-down survey course across the world of beer. Accessable to beginners and beer-geeks alike, we will taste through thirteen different products spanning from lagers to barley wines. We’ll be sticking to some of the most readily available styles seen in North America for this tasting, but with a few surprises thrown in for even the most seasoned beer guru! We will talk about what differentiates different styles of beer and where they came from, go over tasting techniques, look at how craft beer grew so popular over recent years, and even offer some basic beer and food pairings.

Only a dozen spots left as of this writing. You can register for this event here..

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Author: Dirk Chan

Another in a series of deVine’s 10th Anniversary tastings, we and International Wine Cellars welcome Johan Erasmus, General Manager of Glen Carlou, who will lead us through a set of six wines from their sparkling portfolio in this special sit-down event, scheduled for Thursday, February 19th at 7pm. Erasmus is an engaging and knowlegeable speaker who will inform and engage you with anecdotes, history and revealing wine talk.

Glen Carlou is located in Paarl (Southern Cape), South Africa and has been doing wonderful things in their short 28 year existence. Under the ownership and management of the world-renowned Hess Family (with additional holdings in USA, Australia and Argentina), Glen Carlou has been offering passionate and consistent wine for a great price for the last two decades and is now one of the country’s leading producers. Of special interest are the splendid Quartz Stone Chardonnay (oldest block single vineyard) and their Gravel Quarry Cabernet Sauvignon (best vines named after the distinctive gravel soils from the old quarry site where the winery stands today) and ending with the sweet dessert Welder Chenin Blanc (single vineyard under careful canopy management, and named after winemaker Arco Laarman’s nickname). Only 34 spots available for this tasting.

More details and registration for this event here..

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Author: Ed Fong

Ever wonder how deVine chooses what wines make it onto our shelves? Join us on Thursday, February 5th as we open 25 white and red German and Austrian wines not currently available in the Alberta market to taste, evaluate, and ultimately decide what will be listed.

Led by Ed Fong and the deVine team, this is a great opportunity to taste along with a group of wine professionals and have your voice heard in the listing process!

This is yet another one of our special 10th Anniversary tastings – only 18 spots available for this sit-down event so sign up fast to avoid disappointment. All proceeds from this tasting will be donated to further community development in Edmonton. PLEASE NOTE that this is a technical tasting and due to the number of wines being tasted spitting is mandatory to comply with liquor service regulations.

You can register for the unique event here..

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Author: Dirk Chan

Situated 700 to 1100 meters above sea level in Mendoza, Argentina, Achaval Ferrer was formed in 1998 and is famous for their old-vine Malbec. Today, winemaker and partner Roberto Cipresso is in charge.

The winery’s passion is to make great wines which are faithful gifts of the soil from where they begin. Under Italian and Argentinean ownership, their philosophy engulfs green harvesting, leaf thinning and minimalist interference, reduced yields all to produce a better end-product. Wide temperature changes (warm days and cool nights), desert-like climate, poor soil composition and irrigation waters from the pristine snowmelt off the Andes encourage the maturation process of grapes which converts into wines with character, profound structure and complexity. All of the Achaval wines are bottled unfiltered, and decanting is recommended.

There several single vineyard Malbecs that Achaval is famous for:

Finca Altamira is located La Consulta, Uco Valley and has existed since 1925, is 5.2 hectares on native rootstocks grown at 3400 feet above sea level. Only 825 cases made of this terroir driven Malbec.

Finca Bella Vista is 105 years old, with alluvial soil, rolling stones and layers of silt, 13 hectares that co-exists with olive trees at an altitude of 3100 feet. The yield is a measely .75 tons per acre (that is 1/3 of a bottle of wine per plant)resulting in great black fruit, the greatest depth and opulence and an endless finish. Under 1000 cases made.

Finca Mirador is 13 acres in the village of Medrano on alluvial and clay soil grown at 2400 feet above sea level on the west bank of the Tunuyan River. Half the vines were planted in 1928 and the other half in 1942, the latter pruned double-Guyot rootstocks. Very expressive nose, aged in new French barrels for 16 months. Only 843 cases made.

The Quimera blend of Malbec, Merlot, CabSau, CabFranc and Pett Verdot pays hommage to the Bordeaux style blend. Both their large production Cabernet Sauvignon and Mendoza Malbec have been bestsellers at deVines and represent excellent value.

deVine and Brett Norrie of Empson Wines will be hosting a special sit-down tasting of the Achaval Ferrer wines on Saturday, January 31st at 7pm where we’ll taste six wines including all of the aforementioned single vineyard Malbecs from the great 2009 vintage, all of which scored between 96 and 99 points from The Wine Advocate magazine.

Advanced registration is required, and can be done online
here..

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Author: Dirk Chan

From all of us at deVine’s to you and yours, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year in 2015 with all the best for happiness, good health and prosperity.

May good fortune and luck follow you wherever you go and in everything you do for the coming year.

We thank you for your continued patronage!

From Ed, Annabelle, Chad, Dirk, Mark, Chris, Rick, Bill, Kandice, Jim, Bob and Darren

For the last minute shoppers, here are some gift recommendations:

Riedel Apple Decanter – $49.99

Franmara Wine Glass Marker – $4.99

Glencairn Malt Whiskey Glass – $14.99

Riedel Water Carafe – $59.99

Nuance Silver Spirit Wine Perfector – $44.99

Riedel Microfibre Polishing Cloth – $13.99

Franmara Two Prong Cork Extractor – $9.99

Torre & Tagus Clip Silicone Drink Markers – $7.99

Riedel Sommelier Mature Bordeaux Glass – $93.99

Franmara Steel Ice – $39.99

Author: Ed Fong

Every year, deVine Wines and our neighbors on 104th-St. get together to say a collective “Thank You!” for your ongoing support. This year, Customer Appreciation Day will be held on Thursday, December 18, 2014.

Saying Thank You at deVine Wines: deVine Wines will be offering our customers a 10% discount on all regular priced wines and spirits. The sale will run all day, starting at 10:00 AM until we close at 9:00 PM. The sale excludes beer and wines stored in our vintage keeper and vintage room.

Savings of up to 30% will be extended to a select group of wines.

Customers can enjoy free tastings between 2:00 PM and 8:00 PM while they shop. Great wines and premium spirits can be sampled while you browse.

Customers can enter to win a free gift basket of wine when you visit us in December. The draw will be made on December 18, 2014.

Please Help Us Help Others: All participating merchants and deVine Wines would like to extend a helping hand to those less fortunate. We are collecting knitwear on behalf of the Edmonton Emergency Relief Society. If you have any new or clean second hand toques, mittens, gloves or socks, please drop them off at deVine Wines. To learn more about our neighbor and charity of choice, please visit their website at
http://www.eerss.ca

deVine Wines is also collecting food for the Edmonton Food Bank. To learn more about the needs of the Edmonton Food Bank, please follow this link
here..

Community Spirit – The 104th-St. Action Committee is planning additional special events to get everyone in a festive mood:

2:00 PM – A special ceremony is being organized for the winter opening of the Pocket Park located at 10120-104 Street. The park can be found just north of Jasper Avenue, on the west side, between the alley and the Icon I Tower.

City officials, park personnel, representative merchants and members of the Downtown Edmonton Community League and the Downtown Business Association have been invited to dedicate our new park.

To celebrate winter and the festive season, a fire barrel will be lit and festive season lights turned on. Come and enjoy a choir. Perhaps you can even meet a special guest from as far away as the North Pole! You never know who you can run into on 104th-St.!

4:00 PM – Our first choir is scheduled to perform at various points on 104th-St. and in businesses. Hot chocolate will be served in the Pocket Park courtesy of the Coast Edmonton Plaza Hotel. A fire pit will be available to roast marshmallows and toast your buns in the park! Knitwear for the Edmonton Emergency Relief Society can also be dropped of at the Pocket Park.

6:00 PM – The second choir will start their performances. Activities in the Pocket Park will continue until 8:00 PM.

Saying Thank You on 104th-Street: 19 of our neighboring businesses will also be hosting Customer Appreciation Day. For a complete list of participating businesses and details of their event, please visit this link
here..

We look forward to seeing everyone on our street on Thursday, December 18th.

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Author: Dirk Chan

Since 1988, the popular American Wine Spectator magazine reviews 18,000 wines per year, and they publish a Top 100 list mid November of each year. There is always a rush to get the top wines this year is no exception.

The 2014 edition of the Wine Spectator Top 100 is surprising with the number of Portuguese wines chosen – never before have this kind of love (3 of the top 4 and 4 in the top 13) been shown and rightly so – 2011 is a legend of a year for both Douro reds and their special long-aging Vintage Ports.

Some interesting tidbits, the average score of the wines in this year’s list is 93 points, and the average price is $47. Sadly once again, no Canadian wines represented (we can only hope for next year), though it is nice to see Israel represented.

We have a limited number of wines (and in limited quantitites) and you can check them out here. Do purchase them early as they tend to go fast and compare your taste with those of the critics.

deVine as usual will be doing our annual stand-up Wine Spectator Top 100 Wines tasting – $50, where a selection of wines that made the grade will be featured at our first tasting of the new year. Be sure to sign up early to avoid disappointment as this sells out annually as it makes for a great Christmas present.

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Author: Jim Phelan

Advent calendars are among of the most trending and popular gift ideas for this upcoming holiday season. For the agnostic or uninitiated, an advent calendar is a specially constructed calendar used to count or celebrate the days in December leading up to Christmas from the 1st to the 24th. The ‘advent’ part comes from Christian tradition, whose 24 day advent season generally starts between November 27 and December 3rd. Each physical advent calendar presents a rectangular “window” front with 24 doors in non-consecutive order to be opened, one each day until Christmas.

Whereas traditional calendars opened up to reveal an image, poem, or verse, more contemporary calendars have grown ever more popular. More contemporary calendars feature small gifts, toys, or chocolates, and even the Hubble Space telescope has its own online calendar, viewable here.

Here at deVine, we’re formed a slightly different take on advent for this holiday season: craft beer calendars! At last, adults again get to open one advent calendar door each morning with the same excitement as their childhood, except instead of chocolates or toys inside, you’ll find beer – delicious, unique, and interesting craft beer. deVine’s is offering two different beer calendars available to buy:

Phillips Snowcase Calendar – $99.99

The favourite of December staff parties and craft parties everywhere is back! From the folks over in BC at Phillips Brewing, this calendar is best enjoyed in conjunction with the official website, www.snowcasecalender.com,

updated each day in December as new beers are opened. Regardless of whether you’ve already had many Phillips beers, this calendar has enough fresh releases to keep you guessing. It is an opportunity to release your inner child as part of an exciting interactive Christmas themed game, or just have an excuse you can use with your significant other to have a beer every day.

Central City & Parallel 49 Mystery Gift Holiday Countdown Calendar – $99.99

The Mystery Gift Holiday Countdown features 22 of the best and most sought-after craft beers from Central City and Parallel 49, as well as two special collaboration beers, one from each brewery. This marks the first time two North American craft breweries have come together to collaborate on an advent-style holiday beer pack.

All of the 2014 calendars are perfect for beer geeks and adventurous beer drinkers, great gifts for yourself or others. Try one, or try them all! With only two weeks left until December, and calendars selling fast, it’s best to avoid disappointment and get your calendars now before they’re all gone! Purchase is available online or in-store.

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Author: Dirk Chan

As is tradition, on the 3rd thursday of November, the world awaits in anticipation the arrival of Beaujolais Nouveau. deVine’s shipment will arrive by 4pm today. As usual, deVine will be offering the 2014 Georges DuBoeuf Villages Beaujolais Nouveau – $22.99 this year.

For the price, the Villages is a much better bottling than the regular Nouveau. The Gamay grapes were picked just three weeks ago, and after a very short fermentation, it is bottled for its freshness while offerinig beautiful strawberry, black currant, bannana and some hints of cedar with a nice backbone that gives off bright, lively flavors of morello cherry confiture and finishing with hints of allspice and cloves. Nice smooth mouthfeel and virtually tannin free due to the short exposure to the skins. So, for your Beaujolais Nouveau party, serve this slightly chilled with some poultry or spicy meatballs and for something ambitious and over the top, a roast duck with a reduced cherry sauce.

Some interesting Nouveau tidbits:

1) The region of Beaujolais is 34 miles long from north to south and 7 to 9 miles wide north of Lyon in southeastern France

2) there are nearly 4000 growers in the region

3) Gamay is the only grape permitted for Beaujolais and only grapes grown in Beaujolais or Beaujolais Villages is permitted in Beaujolais Nouveau, there are no grapes from the Cru vineyards allowed

4) Beaujolais Nouveau must be drank sooner than later and served slightly cool at about 13C.

5) Beaujolais Nouveau is a marvel of modern day advertising, with the marketing engine in full force, arriving just in time for the American thanksgiving, and 70 million bottles overall. How they manage to ship everything in a timely manner boggles the mind.

There’ll be many Beaujolais Nouveau parties this weekend, enjoy this with a large group of friends or family

Purchase your 2014 DuBeouf Beaujolais Nouveau online here..

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Author: Chad Gascho

Back in earlier days, when we first had a vision of what deVine Wines would be, we couldn’t have imagined so many things – our amazing customers, the ability to bring great wines and spirits to the city that we love, and, more recently, being given an award that bears the name of one of the giants in our industry here in Alberta.

On September 30, deVine Wines received the Irv Kipnes Award for Excellence in Liquor Retailing. This honour, bestowed upon us by the Alberta Liquor Store Association (ALSA) was a moment for us to take a deep breath and realize how far we’ve come. This award is given to the store that encompasses all that a liquor store should represent – from a diverse product selection, store ambiance, excellent customer service, marketing, online presence, and representation in the community.

We’re grateful for this award, given to us by ALSA, the group that helps ensure equitable, fair, and consistent representation for liquor retailers in Alberta, is momentous; and we’re pleased and proud to be a part of the membership of such an effective advocate in our province. Being nominated for this award by the vendors and product representatives that help us give you the best products we can only serves to make it even more special, and we’d like to thank them for their support. However, the thing we cherish most about winning this award is that it reminds us that we are able to do what we love because of you, our customers.

Back in our early days, there was a certain amount of risk and uncertainty when we first envisioned what a fine wine, craft beer, and spirits boutique in the heart of downtown Edmonton would look like. We came together, and with hard work, sweat, hope, and a lot of sleepless nights, we opened for business on February 28, 2005. It was with baited breath that we opened our doors to the first customer, and, thankfully, we’ve been going strong ever since.

However, it wasn’t until we received a similar version of the Irv Kipnes award in 2006 that we realized we, in all probability, had a good shot of making our vision of success a reality. Back then, the award was named the ALSA Edmonton and area liquor retailer of the year award, but it meant just as much to us then, if not more, than it does today. It meant that we were doing something right. It meant that our customers were able to find products that they loved; and, quite possibly, were introduced to some new wines, craft beers, and spirits that they hadn’t previously encountered, and would be back for more. It meant that our relationships in the industry were valued by more than just us. It meant, that for the time being, our vision, our business, our dream was a success.

Forward to present day, and to finding out that we had once again been nominated for another prestigious award, but this time, it was named after a legend in our business. Forward to finding out that we had won, that we had once again been given the recognition of our peers as having provided an atmosphere that allows our products, our staff, and mostly, our love of our work, to shine. There is no greater achievement than knowing that all of our hard work paid off and that we are still able to provide you with a store that you love to come and visit. A store that can provide you with the top notch wines, beers, and spirits that you choose to bring to your family, your friends, your tables, and your most special occasions. A store that stays true to the vision we had almost 10 years ago; one that we know wouldn’t be what it is without each and every one of you.

So, while we are extremely grateful to the ALSA, to our product representatives and vendors, and to Mr. Kipnes, our gratitude must be expressed mainly to two very important groups of people. The first is our wonderful employees – without their knowledge, dedication, commitment, and drive to provide outstanding customer service, we could never hope to win such an award. The second is you – our customers. Without your continued support we would not be able to come to the store that we love and do what we do every day. You continue to inspire us to provide you with the best that we can, from our website, to our staff, to our products, to our relationships with you. In reality, this award belongs to you all, and we’re honoured to be able to share it with you. For winning this award, and for helping us make our dream an award-winning reality, we thank you. Your support continues to inspire us to provide you with the deVine Wines that you (hopefully) love.

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