No Fuss Wine Reviews. Always Under $20
Price: $8.45
Tastes Like:
Lime, Green Apple, Mineral
Chuck’s Take
Crisp and acidic with a slightly sour finish. Light body and dry. Nice sipper. Really enjoyed the lime notes in this wine as it’s not found often.
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Price: $15.95
Tastes Like:
Raisin, Cherry, Licorice
Serve With:
Grlled Steak, BBQ Ribs, Beef Shawarma
Sean’s Take
Montes (a Chilean brand) produces a highly sought-after and very pricey wine called Purple Angel. I have had the good fortune to try this wine and it is VERY GOOD. Purple Angel, like this wine, is also mostly Carmenère (carmen-yare).
This Limited Selection bottle is baby Purple Angel. Now, before you write me emails, let me be clear. It shares the same robust profile, generous fruit, and herb/earthy notes. Of course, at $15.95 it is not the same wine, but for this price, you can’t go wrong.
The fruit is forward and balanced. Lots of cherries and blackberry mixed together with some jam notes. The finish is really pronounced and is where the earthy licorice shows up but in a really nice way. If you want to try something new or just a really good deal for your next BBQ, get this one while it lasts!
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Riunite Lambrusco Frizzante
Riunite Lambrusco Frizzante Riunite Lambrusco Frizzante
Riunite Lambrusco Frizzante
Price: $10.00
Tastes Like:
Red Berry, Dark Plum, Black Cherry, Black Grape Skin
Serve With:
Apps
Chuck’s Take
This was a fun wine to drink that also turned out to be extra delicious. Very reminiscent of old-school wine and ginger ale spritzers. It’s sweet (55g/L) which is why it tastes ginger ale spritzer like to me. Lambrusco is slightly fizzy (frizzante) but not bubbly. This bottle is made from a blend of grapes and is non-vintage. It’s 8% and very drinkable (I’ve had beers stronger). Dark purple in colour. Try one out!
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Baron Pilippe de Rothschild Chardonnay
Baron Pilippe de Rothschild Chardonnay Baron Pilippe de Rothschild Chardonnay
Baron Pilippe de Rothschild Chardonnay
Price: $14.15
Tastes Like:
Honeysuckle, Honeydew, Melons
Serve With:
Tandoori Chicken, Spinach Pie, Lobster Rolls
Sean’s Take
CLASSIC French white table wine. Very drinkable, no one flavour/aroma stands out. Well made, the acid makes for a clean finish, very balanced.
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Wolf Blass Yellow Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2020
Wolf Blass Yellow Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 Wolf Blass Yellow Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2020
Wolf Blass Yellow Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2020
Price: $16.95
Tastes Like:
Dark Plum, Blackberry, Oak
Serve With:
Roasted Red Meat
Chuck’s Take
It’s not a bad cabernet at all especially on the scale that they make this stuff. It was hugely popular many years ago so it does have it’s following. It’s alright…but for $17 you can find something more interesting. I wouldn’t avoid it though.
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Fuzion Chenin Blanc Chardonnay
Fuzion Chenin Blanc Chardonnay Fuzion Chenin Blanc Chardonnay
Fuzion Chenin Blanc Chardonnay
Price: $8.80
Tastes Like:
Bosc Pear, Yellow Apple, Tangerine
Serve With:
Broccoli Quiche, Baked Brie, Chicken Fried Rice
Sean’s Take
Chenin Blanc is one of my favourite grapes but I don’t talk about it much because it can be hard to find. Here it’s mixed with Chardonnay resulting in a light and bright thirst-quenching white wine. Almost won the 5th star, but it misses a bit of depth. For under $10, it’s a terrific find.
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Piazzano Ventoso Sangiovese 2019
Piazzano Ventoso Sangiovese 2019 Piazzano Ventoso Sangiovese 2019
Piazzano Ventoso Sangiovese 2019
Price: $17.00
Tastes Like:
Barnyard, Earth, Black Cherry, Oak
Serve With:
Meaty Italian Dishes
Chuck’s Take
This one is different and if you love Brett / Farmhouse / Saison type beers you will love this wine. If you’re looking for fresh and fruity this won’t be your bag. Extra dry, grippy tannins, not fruity but more oak, funk, earth and black cherry. Very interesting and not for the faint of heart
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Amatore Rosso Verona IGT 2019
Amatore Rosso Verona IGT 2019 Amatore Rosso Verona IGT 2019
Amatore Rosso Verona IGT 2019
Price: $9.15
Tastes Like:
Oak, Red Berry, Red Cherry
Chuck’s Take
Medium-Light body and quite oaky which throws it a little off balance for me. Not sure I’d believe the 96 rating on the bottle or the ‘best seller’ tag from the LCBO website. I’d skip this one.
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The Pavillion Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
The Pavillion Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 The Pavillion Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
The Pavillion Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
Price: $12.05
Tastes Like:
Plum, Vanilla, Smoke
Serve With:
Smoked Salmon, BBQ Ribs, Fallafel
Sean’s Take
There is some raspberry, plum, and even some dark cherry. The oak, which translates to smoke and vanilla is a bit heavy-handed. I think there was a really nice wine under there that got covered up. That being said, some folks really like a smokey, oaky, vanilla bean. If that’s you, enjoy!
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Alchymia Duca di Saragnano Primitivo 2019
Alchymia Duca di Saragnano Primitivo 2019 Alchymia Duca di Saragnano Primitivo 2019
Alchymia Duca di Saragnano Primitivo 2019
Price: $19.95
Tastes Like:
Black Grape, Blackberry, Warm Spices, Oak
Serve With:
Antipasto
Chuck’s Take
Let this wine breath in the glass or decanter while you make dinner and you’ll get a lovely, dry, old world but very juicy full bodied red similar to a California Zinfandel
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Ironstone Petite Sirah 2018
Ironstone Petite Sirah 2018 Ironstone Petite Sirah 2018
Ironstone Petite Sirah 2018
Price: $17.95
Tastes Like:
Raspberry, Strawberry, Light Pepper, Light Oak.
Serve With:
Glazed Ham
Chuck’s Take
Firstly I thought Petite Sirah was akin to a baby shiraz but I was completely wrong, it’s it’s own grape variety that doesn’t get planted too much. This bottle could have fooled me if you told me it was a blend of Australian Shiraz and California Zinfandel (no surprise since it comes from Lodi Valley).
This wine was featured in Episode 013 How Much Sugar Is in a Glass of Wine? of the No Snob Wine Podcast.
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Cupcake Light Hearted Chardonnay
Cupcake Light Hearted Chardonnay Cupcake Light Hearted Chardonnay
Cupcake Light Hearted Chardonnay
Price: $15.95
Tastes Like:
Tropical Fruit, Melon, Tangerine Peel
Sean’s Take
A typical glass of white wine has around 120 calories in it. This wines labels boldly boasts 100 calories (per 188 ml). 188 ml? A standard glass of wine is 5 oz or 147 ml (appx. 5 glasses). So a hundred calories is a bit more than a glass, not a bad thing. However, if you divide 188 ml into a standard bottle of 750 ml you get 3.98 glasses. I suspect marketing just wanted “100 Calories” on the label.
Tropical Fruit, Melon, and Tangerine Peel sound delicious but they landed as flat and uninteresting followed by an intensely sour finish. Not sure if it’s the low alcohol volume (8%) or something else, but at the end of the day, this doesn’t really taste like Chardonnay. I’ll take the extra ~20 calories or whatever it is converted to a 5 oz. glass of wine.
This wine was featured in Episode 013 How Much Sugar Is in a Glass of Wine? of the No Snob Wine Podcast.