I feel the need to discuss this wine, even though I know I’m the last horse out of the gate. Apparently it’s one of the main ways people are actually visiting my blog – plus my wine school friend and I had quite the discussion of Fuzion last night… and looking at the half empty bottle it definitely has me thinking.
In Ontario, this wine is $7.45 and it’s a Malbec/Shiraz blend. I actually discovered it before it got “hot” – I’m kind of proud of that – because I recognized the winery. I had a great Malbec from the Familia Zuccardi known as Zuccardi Q… I actually drank this wine while in Colombia and, upon my return to Canada, engaged in a fruitless search in Alberta, BC and Ontario until I found it at the Nova Scotia Liquor Commission (NSLC) – of all places. When searching for Zuccardi with the nifty LCBO product finder, I saw this very cheap Fuzion wine and made a point to pick up a couple of bottles upon my next outing.
There were tons of them at the LCBO. When I asked the guy for the wine, he just pointed to a bunch of boxes on an end and was like, “they’re over there.” That was before the articles and the raves had hit the wine press. I know that Natalie MacLean raved about this wine as a great deal – as did Beppi Crosariol from the Globe and Mail… however I never really took notice until we discussed it in class. Since Paul works at the LCBO, the class tends to pepper him with questions about availability of everything from general listing to Vintages wines.
Heading out of town that weekend (class on Wednesday, escape from the city Friday), I saw that Brockville had tons of bottles. I pulled off the 401 and popped down because I had some friends who were desperate to try it. The woman at the store told me that they had sold out of all their cases that afternoon – someone came in and bought the last 40 bottles they had. She then confided in me that the LCBO apparently has “tons of supplies sitting in some big warehouse” and that Fuzion would soon flow freely for all of us Ontario wine consumers who are concerned about our pocketbook.
What amazes me about Fuzion is was reviewed by some incredibly prolific wine writers - and yet people act as though it’s their secret discovery wine. I’ve had a couple of people “whisper” about this “great wine they discovered” to me. I actually think it’s fantastic. I love it when people are confident enough about their wine choices to share what they’re spending their wine dollars on. So many people seem to be intimidated by the choices available in a wine store or on a wine list… so when there’s a $7.45 bottle of wine, it’s like they’re safe to recommend it.
As for me? I do like Fuzion. I think it’s a great wine for the price – although I do find it to taste more like a shiraz than a malbec. It’s not the kind of wine you’re going to want to pick up and put away for a special occasion, and that’s not the point of this wine. Fuzion is there to drink every day, to pick up for a casual party or, to be completely honest, for a university student who wants to have a cheap night. It’s much better than the wines I would have bought while in school!
As for the supplies question – I can’t imagine that this wine will quickly disappear. I have absolutely no way to back this up, nor do I have some secret LCBO knowledge, but it’s been such a hit and there were easily two cases worth just sitting on the shelves in Quebec. Plus I think the LCBO is savvy enough to negotiate a pretty sweet deal in terms of volumes, especially at that price.
To be honest, if the wine does disappear and the LCBO’s supply runs out – doesn’t that just give us a chance to try out more cheap wines until a new discovery is made? Who doesn’t get a joy from finding a deliciously drinkable bottle for under $10? I’d rather try out and hate a $9 bottle than try out and hate an $18 bottle!
The joy of wine is that every year is a new vintage – so there’s always something interesting to taste, a new region to explore or a great wine experience to be had.
