by Mary Bailey
Roman Horvath M.W. (Domäne Wachau) and Ramon Miranda (Color de Vino)
Over 250 multigenerational families make up the Domäne Wachau co-op that spans all the Wachau Valley’s great vineyard sites—that means very small holdings that get lots of attention. Winery director Roman Horvath M.W. took us through the wines and Wachau’s classification system, unique to Austria. Steinfeder refers to dry whites meant to be drunk young, rarely exported. Federspiel: wines between 11.5 and 12.5 per cent, engaging, with energy and precision. Smaragd refers to age-worthy dry whites from fully ripe fruit with more intensity and complexity.
You will be reaching for the 2024 Grüner Veltliner Federspiel Terrassen all summer long. This is a fridge door wine, accessible, delicious, easy drinking, versatile.
2023 Grüner Veltliner Smaragd Axpoint has an attractive minerally character heightened by its appetizing acidity, and a stunning richness with all the density and texture you expect from excellent Grüner.
2024 Riesling Federspiel Trenning.The vineyard site is steep and chilly, but that’s not a problem for Riesling; the more challenging the better to bring out the energetic nerviness that good Riesling is known for. Lovely yellow stone fruit aromas and flavours and a lengthy finish.
This is how you do rosé in the summer; with a magnum of the 2024 Roseblood d’Estoublon Cotaux Varois en Provence Rosé. Enjoy the summer flowers aromas and fresh stone fruit flavours, plus bracing acidity. We won’t mind if you drink it over ice on very hot days.
Guy Hooper (De Martino) at Color de Vino
“All the farm is certified sustainable,” says Guy Hooper, of Chile’s De Martino visiting us from Isla de Maipo, “and 110 ha are certified organic. The soil is a gravelly mix on alluvial terraces and the vines have never seen phylloxera.” This 4th generation farm (1934) keeps producing highly regarded wines vintage over vintage at very fair prices.
The 2024 De Martino Estate Organic Sauvignon Blanc puts paid to any notion that Sauv Blanc cannot be a serious wine, though we do expect to be drinking this on patios all summer long. We love the texture created by the aging on lees and the citrusy passion fruit aromas and flavours. Crisp and dry, drink with flatbreads and smoked olives.
2016 De Martino Vigno Carginan. Carignan does well with a few years in the bottle and this is no exception—stunning black fruit aromas and flavours. A terrific bottle of wine to have with all the grilled meats.
Chile, like many countries with a long-standing wine tradition, is also rediscovering indigenous grape varieties. The 2021 De Martino Las Olivdadas Mezcla is a delicious example. This blend of Pais and San Francisco offers compelling dried herbs and dusty garrigue aromas and intense black fruit flavours along with a haunting finish. The winemaking is traditional using native yeasts and a zaranda, a wood and cane tool used to separate the grapes by hand.
Maxime Bourret (Tracy & Cie), Cynthia Vermette and Ian Searle (Bonvida)
2023 Château de Tracy Pouilly-Fumé, (Pouilly-sur-Loire, Loire Valley, France). Beautiful classic Pouilly-Fumé is the benchmark for so many wine lovers. The typical flint and Kimmeridgian soils bring out the flinty, minerally aromas and flavours. A beautiful example. Think oysters and other seafood. The sister company Tracy & Cie explores other appellations within the Loire where the rules allow a bit more play in labelling and vinification. The 2024 Tracy & Cie Sauvignon Blanc Les Marnes (IGP Val de Loire) offers citrus with some tropical fruit notes; it’s fresh and floral. Drink with quiche, hummus and chips, casual foods.
2024 Tracy & Cie Pinot Noir Les Marnes (IGP Val de Loire) is a lean style of Pinot, with outstanding red fruit (strawberry and raspberry) aromas and flavours, along with a spicy note and some minerality. Drink slightly chilled with skewers, tacos and grilled salmon.
Gurpreet Ranu, Anohka Distillery. Karly Watson photo
The Anohka Distillery in Parkland County keeps knocking it out of the park. The Tempest Dry Gin was awarded Best Canadian London Dry Gin at the 2026 World Gin Awards for the fourth time. “Tempest is our biggest and boldest gin creation so far, reflecting our belief that life is simply too short for boring gin and boring sensory experiences,” says Gurpreet Ranu, founder and head distiller at Anohka Distillery.
Anohka’s This Is Not Whisky (Alberta single malt spirit) was named Global Finalist for the Top Five New Make & Young Spirits at the 2026 World Whiskies Awards. This is the first win for the unpeated single malt spirit, made with 100 per cent Alberta malted barley from Rahr Malting in Alix, Alberta. The panel at the World Whiskies Awards said: ‘Perfectly cut, balanced, flavourful, and elegant with a wide range of flavours from sweet, citrus, lemon and herbal tones, with white pepper spice. Summer fruit, bright (and) beautiful plums.’
