By Gaby Israel
All of the following wines can sit in the cellar for 8-12+ years (in ideal conditions) which makes them GPCi-worthy: the cost divided by the number of cellaring years is lower than 3.5. Depending on your budget this weekend, I’d buy 2-6 bottles from each.
2008 Pirramimma Cab Sauv $24.95 – Pirramimma has never produced anything less than exciting. From their beautiful Petit Verdot, to Shiraz and this Cab Sauv. Just bang-on and affordable.
2007 Dauvergne Ranvier Vin Rare Gigondas $31.95 – The Gigondas is a bit more expensive than usual (most 07 are sold at the LCBO for around $26), but the reviews are setting a high bar. It’s another great 2007 example. Expect a CdP-like for less money and as such, can be cellared for 10+ years.
Speaking of CdP – 2009 La Célestière Tradition, A.C., Châteauneuf-Du-Pape $38.95 – this is one of the first 2009 CdP on the LCBO stores and it seems to caught the critics eyes (and palate). 2009 was a spectacular vintage, perhaps more like 2005 – very age worthy. Enjoy the 2009 La Célestière Tradition with a nice grilled venison. If you don’t have the patience to cellar it, decant it for 2 hours.
2006 Michele Castellani Amarone Della Valpolicella Colle Cristi Classico $39.95 – The review of this one is more than positive and unanimous across the board (Natalie Maclean rewarded it an amazing 96!). For more deeper pockets, but seems to worth every dime. These Amarone can usually lay down for 7-12 years. Expect the dry fruit combined with dark chocolate liqueur. Lots of ‘goodiness’ in a glass…
2009 René Muré Gewurztraminer Signature $17.95 – nothing beats a great Gewurz from Alsace with spicy Asian/Indian dish. A very supportive review by Natalie Maclean for the right price… Stock ’em up before the summer days are over.
2007 Peachy Canyon Petite Sirah, Paso Robles $19.95 – my hunt after this variety continues especially if it comes in a $20 package from Paso Robles. Expect ‘in your face’ Petite Sirah. Oh yeah…
2009 Concha Y Toro Carmenère Marques De Casa Concha, Peumo Vineyard $19.95 – when it comes with a ‘Kosher certificate’ such as Concha Y Toro, you know it’s a risk free buying. This one is no different. Their Marques De Casa Concha is a great QPR.
2005 Château Teyssier , A.C., Montagne-Saint-Émilion $26.95 – if you like the good wines from the 2005 Bordeaux vintage (who doesn’t?) and you like the right-bank Montagne St. Emilion sub-region within it (who doesn’t?) and all of them for $27 – just buy, uncork, relax and enjoy. Life is good :)
Gaby Israel has been providing wine tasting notes and buying recommendations for several years now. The name WineGPCi (pronounced Wine Gypsy) was given by his friends. GPCi stands for Gaby’s Potential Cellaring Index. While searching for “treasures for the cellar” without going to the bank, the GPCi was initially used to calculate the ratio between the price of the wine and the number of years it can potentially be cellared for; trying to find the wines that had the smallest index/ratio possible.
Any good wine that had a GPCi of 3.5 and under, was worth buying (mainly if you were planning to develop a cellar). Many years and “750 bottles in the cellar” after, his knowledge, experience and passion continued to grow. He continues to focus on helping the consumer finding “logical” ways of buying wines and planning the budget for it.
His great passion for wine revolves around old-world wines such as Spain, France and Italy while experimenting the new world exciting regions of Chile, Argentina, Australia, Canada, the US and others.
