La Villa Spa

Best Red Wine under $30

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GameBoy27

GameBoy27

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Nov 23, 2004
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bassetto87 said:
Hmm I had no idea people did that.

I went on a tour of the Trius winery in Niagara a few years ago for a corporate event. Really nice place, great wine, and run by great people. That region would be great for a weekend romantic getaway too.
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Trius makes some excellent VQA wines. Unfortunately the good ones are quite expensive. I can usually find excellent quality wines from France, Chile, Italy, California, Oregon, Argentina, Australia and Portugal for half the price. But I certainly don't like everything from those countries. It mainly comes down to the producers and even then, I've had a nice Zinfandel from a particular grower one year but the next is not nearly as good. Usually due to a variation in climate, rainfall etc.

That's why if I'm looking for something new, I'll taste before I buy. In the off chance I buy on a recommendation from an LCBO Product Consultant or a write up and I don't like it, I stick the cork back in or the cap back on and exchange it for something else. One thing the LCBO is good for. Don't like? Return it!

My go to (red) varietals:

- Zinfandel (Primitivo)
- Syrah (Shiraz)
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Mourvedre (Monastrell)
- Grenache (Garnacha)
- Malbec
- Merlot
- Pinot Noir
- Sangiovese

I'm also a fan of blends, especially when Zinfandel is the main ingredient.

It's important to note, there's both really good and really bad wines made from those above grapes. Equally important is that everyone has different tastes. If you find a wine you really enjoy, then by all means drink that wine. If you found it in vintages and you really like it, buy lots. Typically once it's gone, it's gone.
 
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alwilm

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Jul 10, 2010
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Autumn, there is such a huge range of styles of wine... My suggestion is that you try as many as you can and begin to discover the flavour profile you like. The more you can say the easier it is to find you a wine that you'll love.

Salut!
 
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notthemama

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John Henry said:
I used to buy only wine that was 100% Ontario grown but not anymore . A large number of Ontario Wineries are foreign owned so why bother . Gretzky winery , Dan Aykroyd to name a few . They live in the US , profits go states side . Forty Creek Distillery in Grimsby was 100% Canadian and doing well but was sold to a foreign invest .
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If only to the US. Several Niagara wineries have been sold to the Chinese in the last couple years along with significant tracts of land.
 
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notthemama

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GameBoy27 said:
I think notthemama should do a little research before making such a claim. Unless you're consuming all organic grains, fruits and vegetables, you're likely getting far more pesticides/herbicides and fungicides than in any wine you consume sold through the LCBO. Let's not forget about all the hormones and antibiotics in meat and poultry.
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Don't be too optimistic about the pesticide residues in your wine.
I used to grow a significant acreage of fresh fruit and wine grapes.
Nothing compared to the grapes spray wise.
Drive though the local growing areas with your windows down during spraying season. Your headache will come as you drive past a vineyard.
The pesticide residue on apples and peppers actually aren't so much from field applications.
After harvest this produce is put through a wax and fungicide spray when it is being graded before going into storage so it lasts longer and doesn't dehydrate .
Contact me late next summer and I can show you the grapes in the field just loaded with (mostly) fungicide and insecticide.
No other produce, at least around here, uses more herbicides/acre than grapes.
 
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Kirby2006

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Spanish wines have not been mentioned. Two in particular at the moment are Beronia Rioja (red label $13-14) and it's older brother,Beronia Rioja Reserva 2009 (blue label $20).Both are easy drinking,the Reserva more complex and full bodied. For something truly unique Kafe Kultur Pinotage, $13-14, from South Africa. Strong notes of coffee and chocolate. All delish and excellent value.
 
GameBoy27

GameBoy27

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notthemama said:
Don't be too optimistic about the pesticide residues in your wine.
I used to grow a significant acreage of fresh fruit and wine grapes.
Nothing compared to the grapes spray wise.
Drive though the local growing areas with your windows down during spraying season. Your headache will come as you drive past a vineyard.
The pesticide residue on apples and peppers actually aren't so much from field applications.
After harvest this produce is put through a wax and fungicide spray when it is being graded before going into storage so it lasts longer and doesn't dehydrate .
Contact me late next summer and I can show you the grapes in the field just loaded with (mostly) fungicide and insecticide.
No other produce, at least around here, uses more herbicides/acre than grapes.
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According to the LCBO: "Bleak though some selective studies might seem, there’s heartening news. Perhaps the best barometer of all is here at home, where the LCBO in Ontario performs a chemical analysis of every wine sold in the province. The liquor board’s executive vice-president, George Soleas, a PhD scientist, tells me that, while pesticides were an issue many years ago, the lab now rarely detects residues. And generally those concentrations fall significantly below the LCBO’s guidelines, which are stricter than government limits."

Are you saying you know more than the LCBO testing lab when it comes to the amount of pesticides in wine? I think their method of actually testing wine is a little more scientific than your method of looking at the grapes in late summer.
 
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Kirby2006

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Agriculture is a very risky business. Herbicides,insecticides,fungicides,and fertilizer are very expensive. No one will repeat an application just for the hell of it. It's not fun. It's work. Your cost/benefit analysis of each input had better show a substantial net gain given the risks. Speaking of risks, driving or walking to Whole Foods will kill you long before the residue in a bottle of wine.
Live long and prosper my friend. Cheers!
 
GameBoy27

GameBoy27

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Kirby2006 said:
Agriculture is a very risky business. Herbicides,insecticides,fungicides,and fertilizer are very expensive. No one will repeat an application just for the hell of it. It's not fun. It's work. Your cost/benefit analysis of each input had better show a substantial net gain given the risks. Speaking of risks, driving or walking to Whole Foods will kill you long before the residue in a bottle of wine.
Live long and prosper my friend. Cheers!
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This ^^^
 
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notthemama

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Kirby2006 said:
Agriculture is a very risky business. Herbicides,insecticides,fungicides,and fertilizer are very expensive. No one will repeat an application just for the hell of it. It's not fun. It's work. Your cost/benefit analysis of each input had better show a substantial net gain given the risks. Speaking of risks, driving or walking to Whole Foods will kill you long before the residue in a bottle of wine.
Live long and prosper my friend. Cheers!
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I grew up on a fruit farm. Towards the last couple decades we grew increasing quantities of grapes. If anyone knows how expensive the inputs are, it is I.
With many of the current grape varieties grown you do not have a choice to spray or not.
Insects require limited applications. You can track their life cycles and spray at appropriate times.
It is the fungicides. The varieties grown are not native and do not do well in our humid climate fungus wise. Powdery mildew is one of the major culprits. It not only ruins the fruit it also gets into the wood, weakening the plant and reducing it's winter hardiness. For this, farmers apply fungicides on a regular cycle. You cannot start to spray when it has started to become a problem. Under hot humid conditions it can envelope a whole vineyard in a day. You can't physically keep up with it.
You spray before there is a problem, even if there may not be one. You can't take the risk.
Certain varieties are more susceptible than others and it is these I have issue with.
As far as the LCBO testing goes, remember when Doctors said eggs would kill us and smoking wouldn't?
 
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Chantelle@TP

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Oh man I really love wine but try my best to keep it under $15 unless it's a special occasion. I track my spending in a spreadsheet....you don't want to know what my wine expenditure was in 2015.....I need to stop hosting parties lol New goal, only buy wine twice a week and look for the best value. So, I've been sticking to the Chilean reserves with the occasional trip to the vintage section.
 
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t.o.leafs.fan

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Jul 19, 2006
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Monarch by Pelee Winery for a cheapie Ontario product. Often can be had for around 10 on sale...I like it!
 
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