Canadian wines suitable for romance, big game bromance

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/02/2025 (581 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Some weeks the topics for a drinks column come easy — a new brewery opening, wines for Thanksgiving, recounting a wine country adventure or profiling a particular region or grape. But when you’ve written about drinks for nearly 20 years, some weeks you feel you’ve done it all before, and have no good ideas.

This week is certainly not one of those — in fact the ideas are so plentiful it’s almost a problem.

With the threats of tariffs seeing American booze briefly pulled from shelves (only to be restocked the following day), the “Buy Canadian” movement is, of course, a hot topic. (More to come on this as the next tariff deadline looms ever larger.)

But Valentine’s Day is Friday, meaning this week is the last chance to get any romantic recommendations out to readers.

And what about the Super Bowl? Sure, Canadians want to spend their hard-earned loonies on goods from our own backyard, but that won’t stop the many football fans, and those looking to take in the spectacle of it all, from tuning in.

What to drink with all those finger foods?

So this week’s Uncorked, for better or worse, attempts to kill three birds with one stone — test-driving four Canadian wines and offering both Valentine’s Day and Super Bowl pairings.

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Wines of the week

First up is the Indigenous World 2021 Hee-Hee-Tel-Kin White (Okanagan Valley, B.C. — $32.99, The Pourium). A blend of Muscat, Pinot Blanc and Gewürztraminer, this aromatic British Columbia white blend offers a lively mix of peach, chalk, spice, apricot, red apple and lemon notes on the nose.

It’s light-plus-bodied and off-dry, with lovely peach, red apple, melon, chalky and ripe citrus notes, with medium acidity and, at 12.6 per cent alcohol, a modest finish.

Cosy up with a board game with your sweetheart, or enjoy during the big game with spring rolls, shrimp rings or jalapeño poppers. 4/5

The Garage Wine Co. 2021 Popcorn Chardonnay (Niagara Peninsula, Ont. — $17.49, Liquor Marts and beyond) is medium gold in colour, with some of the hallmarks Chardonnay fans might expect of a California example — ripe peach and red apple, vanilla, hints of spice — as well as subtle herbal and toasted nut notes.

It’s medium-bodied and dry, with bruised red apple, peach candy and vanilla flavours, along with hints of brown sugar, spice and mango, all with low acidity and a modest 12 per cent alcohol.

The dominant oaky, buttery component could use some zippier fruit to match — a newer vintage could help there.

Snuggle up and stream a movie with your beau, or crack it open on game day with popcorn (obviously), chips, chicken wings or veggies and dip. 2.5/5

The Henry of Pelham 2023 Pinot Noir (Niagara Peninsula, Ont. — $18.99, Liquor Marts and beyond) is on shelves with this new-to-us vintage, so be sure to check the year on the label while shopping, as there may still be some older bottles out there.

It’s pale garnet in colour, offering cherry, violet, plum, raspberry and subtle earth and mocha aromas. On the dry, light-plus bodied palate the ripe cherry, raspberry, plum and spice notes come with hints of oak (a portion of the wine is aged in barrels), light acidity and tannins and a medium finish.

This sustainably grown Pinot from a stalwart Ontario producer is a solid (but notably lighter) alternative to those coming from south of the border.

Enjoy while sharing some quiet reading time with your significant other — or for game-day food, try with stuffed mushroom caps, pork tenderloin or ribs. 3.5/5

Last but not least is the Culmina Family Estate Winery 2021 R&D Red Blend (Okanagan Valley B.C. — $25.99, Liquor Marts and beyond).

There’s a local connection here — the R&D stands for twin brothers Ron and Don Triggs, pictured on the label as kids, who grew up on a Manitoba farm. (Don co-founded Jackson-Triggs before starting Culmina.)

This Merlot-dominant red blend features fruit primarily grown in the Golden Mile Bench sub-region of the Okanagan Valley; aromatically it offers blackberry, anise, black cherry, cassis and plum notes as well as white pepper and a slight smoky component (the latter due to wildfires).

On the dry, full-bodied palate it offers tart cherry, plum, cassis, anise and white pepper, with medium tannins, hints of smoke and a medium-length finish (it’s 14 per cent alcohol). Drier than your typical big California red blend, but will hit the spot.

Let this warm you up after a winter walk with your sweetie, or crush this with sliders, steak bites, chili or taquitos. 4/5

uncorked@mts.net

@bensigurdson