What are Natalie's Wine Reviews?
Where do I subscribe to the reviews?
Why should I subscribe to the reviews?
How are the reviews and newsletter different?
How do you review wines?
How do you score wines?
What do the codes mean on your reviews?
Why don’t you review the entire Vintages release?
Do you review wines from the Classics Catalogue?
How do I find the wines you recommend where I live?
How do I find the wines you recommend in the LCBO?
How do I find your past reviews of wines?
How do I find a particular wine on your site?
Which wines should I cellar?
How do I find a wine from a particular year?
How do I find the price of a wine I already own?
How do I renew my subscription each year?
How do I give a gift subscription to a friend?
Do you recommend organic wines?
I can’t find my password?
How do I submit a wine for you to review?
Do for you offer a PDA, Blackberry and mobile format?
I have a question that’s not answered here.
What are Natalie's Wine Reviews?
Each year, I publish at least 26 sets of wine picks, and each set includes 30-50 wines. This includes all of the Vintages releases and the rest are from the general list for a total of between 800 and 1,300 reviews a year. These reviews are available to subscribers for $24.99 a year. To see a sample of these reviews, click here.
Where do I subscribe to the reviews?
To subscribe to the Natalie's Wine Reviews, please click here.
Why should I subscribe to the reviews?
For roughly $2 a month (less than the cost of a Starbucks cappuccino), you’re guaranteed to get the inside track on how to find delicious, reasonably priced wines. And if these reviews help you to avoid buying even one bad bottle a year, your subscription will pay for itself. As a subscriber to the wine reviews, you’ll get:
- My concise and unbiased monthly reviews of wines that are widely available and reasonably priced, many in the $10-$15 range. These will include a good mix of red and white wines, bubblies and dessert wines.
- If you enjoy more mature wines, I also review pricier bottles that are cellar-worthy.
- You’ll get helpful details such as food matches, prices, alcohol levels and scores.
- You’ll have lots of choice with between 800 and 1,300 picks a year.
- You’ll have exclusive access to a searchable database of thousands of previously reviewed wines.
Find out what current subscribers say about why they subscribe about Natalie's wine reviews.
How are the reviews and newsletter different?
The Nat Decants Wine Reviews, posted on a password-protected area of my web site for subscribers, will include all of the wines I describe and rate each month. The e-mail newsletter, which is free, has articles, events, recipes and links, but not the reviews (although it will alert you to when the reviews are posted on the site each month). You can sign up for the wine reviews anytime, even if you did not do so when you signed up for the newsletter.
How do you review wines?
Each month, I taste between 300 and 500 wines and whittle these down to those I believe are worthy of your attention. I feel that my tasting notes are more important than the scores. I may rate a pinot noir at 95 out of 100 because it's a fantastic example of its type, but if you don't like silky, medium-bodied wines, then who cares about a high score? You need to check that the style seems to be what you want rather than just drink the numbers.
You'll also notice that I'm not into exotic fruit. I haven't smelled jingleberries, have you? OK perhaps you have, but I try to keep within the everyday realm of fruit and other aromas so that they're easily understood. The flip side is that you'll notice that some fruit are repeated. But I promise never to compare a wine to a gerbil cage.
I try, when possible, to note food matches or the aging potential of wines but this isn't always possible since I won't guess if I'm not certain. The drink dates are when I believe that the wine is ready for drinking up to the time after which it will fade. When I quote from the Vintages catalogue in my wine reviews, I put VC before the quote. These notes are then separated with the words "My note" to distinguish my comments.
Each release now has more than 200 wines, and the Vintages catalogue recommends them all because as a sales tool, they want you to consider buying all of the wines that they sell. However, as an independent journalist, I taste all of the wines but only recommend 30-50 of them per release. I weed out the poorly made and over-priced wines and give you an unbiased recommendation of only the most delicious and reasonably priced wines.
I hope that these reviews lead you to wonderful bottles that are shared with friends who don't keep score. Wine is a mighty subjective thing: Taste and see if you agree.
How do you score wines?
I use a scale of 100 points, although the wines that I'll recommend will all be scores of 80 to 100. Wines scored 80 and above are all worth drinking: it's up to you to decide your own cut-off point and whether a wine at 86 is worth $12, $17 or $25.
So how much better is a wine scored 86 than one scored 85? That's a tough one to answer since the whole exercise in rating wines isn't scientific. I'm just trying to put a number on a subjective experience mainly because that's what people want. Grades are an easy-to-understand shorthand that recognize how busy we are these days.
Generally, 80-84 means that I think the wine is good, pleasant, something you'd be happy to bring to a casual get together with friends or to drink on a weeknight. Those scored 85-89 are delicious with some interesting flavors and textures. The range of 90-94 means that the wine gives me pause: It's lovely, rich in character, unique, complex. A wine 95-100 means that it’s extraordinary, spectacular, words fail to capture it, your eyes will get that distant look when you remember it.
Natalie's 100-Point Scale
95-100 Brilliant, Exceptional
90-94 Excellent, Superb
89.5 Hovering on the doorstep of excellence, better than very good
85-89 Very Good
80-84 Good (still worth buying and drinking)
Favorite Wines: This isn't necessarily the wine with the highest score, as high scores go to the wines that best typify their region and style. Rather my favorite wines are just that: the ones that appeal to me most personally and to my own taste.
Best Value Wines: Not necessarily the cheapest wine, but the one that maximizes the price-quality ratio. (Although I don't always go by strict mathematical ratios on this either, but rather what seems to me to represent tremendous value.)
What do the codes mean on your reviews?
I use alphabetic codes to indicate the level of sweetness in the wine and numeric codes for the product numbers.
Residual Sugar Codes
XD = Extra Dry
D = Dry
MD = Medium Dry
M = Medium
S = Sweet
The residual sugar in wine (the amount left over after fermentation) may also be expressed numerically, with 0 for a completely dry wine, “1” stands for 1 gram of sugar per liter of wine for a wine with 0.1% residual sugar and ranging up to 25 grams/liter or more for a very sweet wine. Most dry-tasting red and white wines have residual sugar levels of 0, 1 or 2 or expressed alphabetically XD or D.
Product Codes
This is the multi-digit number noted just before the size of the bottle to identify it, as in 654768. Product codes are used LCBO stores and several other chains, but not everywhere. They are different from the UPC code which is scanned at check-out.
Why don’t you review the entire Vintages release?
Why not include wines that I would rate under 80? They're not worth your time: Who wants to keep track of all the bad wines when there are thousands of good ones?
Do you review wines from the Classics Catalogue?
I don't get to taste the Classics Catalogue wines as I do those wines in the Vintages and general list sections, so all we both have to go on are the descriptions in the catalogue.
How do I find the wines you recommend where I live?
Most of the wines I recommend are widely available in North America, the U.K., Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and many other countries. I wish I had the time (and staff) to track inventories by province, state and country, but alas I am human and so I taste and review as many good wines as I can.
To find these wines, visit your best local wine store that has a good selection and a knowledgeable staff. Then get to know one or two people there who can tell you if the store stocks the wine or wines of a similar style. You can take the list into your local store to see if the wines are on the shelves or if they can be ordered for you. Developing a relationship with a local retailer and customizing your wine shopping is a good move to make anyway.
Most of the major liquor store chains and outlets have online search engines where you can check if they stock the wine, which stores have it and even request a store transfer for more convenient pickup. Many stores also have customer hotlines and can tell you when a wine might be coming into their store or give you the name and contact of the importer who represents the brand.
Here are just a few of the major liquor store sites and hotlines in Canada: Yukon Liquor Corporation (867-667-5245; 800-661-0408), BC Liquor Stores (604-252-3000), Alberta Liquor Stores (780-447-8696; 800-272-8876), Willow Park Wines Calgary (403-296-1640), Kensington Wine Market Calgary (403-283-8000; 888-283-9004), Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (306-787-4213), Manitoba Liquor Control Corporation (204-284-2501), Liquor Control Board of Ontario (416-365-5900; 800-668-5226), Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ) (514-254-2020; 866 873-2020), New Brunswick Liquor Commission (506-452-6826), PEI Liquor Control Commission (902-368-5710), Nova Scotia Liquor Commission (902-450-6752; 800-567-5874) and Newfoundland Labrador Liquor Commission (709-724-1100).
In the U.S.: Sam's Wine and Spirits (800-777-9137) and Sherry-Lehmann Wine and Spirits (212-838-7500).
In the U.K.: Berry Rudd Brothers (44 0870 900 4300), The Wine Barrel, Laithwaites, Farr Vintners (44 020 7821 2000) and Jeroboams (020 7288 8888).
For a listing of more wine stores, click here.
Another alternative is to order the wines online if you live in an area where direct shipping is legal. Some of the best online wine retailers include WineOnline.ca, Wine.com, Appellation America, Vinfolio.com.
Another great way to find which retailers stock a wine is www.wine-searcher.com and www.winefetch.com. You can visit the winery’s own web site to see which retailers or agents represent the wine near you.
How can I buy a Canadian wine when I don’t live in Canada?
In the U.S., the retailer The Cuvee specializes in selling and shipping Canadian wines to American customers. To buy Canadian wines that they don't stock or if you live outside the U.S., your best bet is to contact the winery directly for shipping possibilities. There are many restrictions but it could be possible. The winery may have a representative where you live, or at least in your country, which may be easier for shipping. I have a list of Links to Canadian wineries on my web site that you may find helpful.
How do I find the wines you recommend in the LCBO?
The wines I review are all available in the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO). To find the wines in a particular LCBO store, call 800-ONT-LCBO or 416-365-5900. They'll tell you if there's any wine left and which stores have it along with their phone numbers so that you can either drop by to pick it up, or if it's out of your area, call to request a store transfer to an outlet close to you. On the LCBO web site, you also search its product database to find out which stores carry the one for which you’re looking.
The hotline is also a good resource to use when you’re looking for a wine that the LCBO doesn’t carry because they may be able to tell you the name and phone number of the sales person in Ontario who represents the wine. You may then be able to order a case of the wine directly from the agent.
If you live in Ontario, but not Toronto or Ottawa, you can still get some of the better wines even if your local LCBO doesn't have a large Vintages section. You can request these wines before the release, but you need to do it by Tuesday before the release on Saturday. A percentage of stock is set aside for customers outside these metropolitan areas.
I've included the LCBO product numbers that apply broadly across Canada, but perhaps not elsewhere. Keep in mind that as the vintage or year changes on the wine stocked on the shelf, the LCBO product code stays the same. So I could recommend a particular wine from a great year and you may find that wine in the store, but from the next vintage. It could, as a result, be very different from the one I recommended, based on the weather the following year.
If you miss a release and want to find out if there's still some bottles of a particular wine in any store across the province, call 1-800-ONT-LCBO.
How do I find the distributor, importer or winery agent for a wine?
I don't have that contact information, but if you call the LCBO's helpline at 800-ONT-LCBO or 1-416-365-5900 they should be able to tell you the name and phone number of the importer or sales rep who represents this brand in Ontario. I also have a partial list of wine retailers and distributors in my Links section. You may find it helpful to e-mail or call some of them.
How do I become a distributor, importer and winery agent?
Steven Trenholm teaches an excellent course in Toronto. Even if you don’t live in Ontario, you may want to contact him at cstrenholme@sympatico.ca to ask for his suggestions on finding similar courses in other regions.
How do I find your past reviews of wines?
You can find thousands of wines that I’ve reviewed in my searchable database.
How do I find a particular wine on your site?
If you can’t find a particular wine on my site, whether in the recent reviews or in the database, then I haven’t reviewed it.
Which wines should I cellar?
How long do wines age? When should I drink this wine? Are vintage charts useful?
The right time to drink wine depends on the region, the climate that year and the wine's longevity. I've suggested maturity dates for the wines I recommend that I think will age well.
I also suggest that you consult a vintage chart online, such as the excellent one from Berry Brothers & Rudd. You can also pick up one of two excellent pocket guides to wine vintages: Hugh Johnson's or Oz Clark's They will tell you whether it was a good year for almost every good bottle on the market and whether the wine needs more age or may be over the hill. Keep in mind that 99% of wines are made are meant to be consumed within a year or two of buying them.
You can also check the articles section of my site for more advice.
How do I find a wine from a particular year?
Would you please recommend wines for my child’s birth year?
I plan to tackle the topic of buying cellar wines made the year your child was born. It requires some serious research to answer properly. It’s hard to generalize about wines: not only do vintages and regions vary, but so do wineries and even wines within wineries.
Bordeaux and port age best; there’s some debate as to whether the wines of California and Australia and other New World countries can age past ten years.
You can search my wine reviews by using multiple criteria: indicate the year you desire, score, price and region for example.
How do I find the price of a wine I already own?
If you can't find your wine by searching my database of reviews, then I suggest that you visit Wine Searcher, an excellent web site for finding the prices of new and mature wines around the world.
How do I renew my subscription each year?
About two weeks before your subscription expires, you’ll get an e-mail to this effect. Your subscription will be automatically renewed for you unless you choose to cancel it.
How do I give a gift subscription to a friend?
To give a gift subscription of Nat Decants Wine Reviews to a friend, click here.
Do you recommend organic wines?
Yes I recommend organic wines regularly. To find them, use my search engine and type in the word organic in the wine/grape type blank.
Would you please recommend a wine that won’t give me a headache?
I haven't researched the causes of headaches and hangovers in-depth, but you may find my article on hangovers in the Articles section helpful. This may be something to ask your doctor the next time you have a check-up. You can also click on the search button, which is dedicated to my site. Search for particular wines, regions, grapes or winery names.
Do you review non-alcoholic wines?
I don't evaluate non-alcoholic wines often as they’re not widely available. You'll find a few of them among my picks if you use the search engine. You can try searching the web for some evaluations.
I can’t find my password?
For password help, please click here.
How do I submit a wine for you to review?
I do accept samples. For details on how to do this, please click here.
Do for you offer a PDA, Blackberry and mobile format?
Yes, I have formatted both the wine reviews and a more compact version of the search engine for PDA, Blackberry, iPhone, cell phone and other handheld mobile devices. As a subscriber, you can easily read and search the wine reviews on a smaller screen when you're shopping in the liquor or dining in a restaurant. You can bookmark your login here.
There's also a sentence on the Wine Reviews homepage that says "Subscribers with mobile devices login here."
I have a question that’s not answered here.
Please visit my Frequently Asked Questions to find more answers.
