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Santé, Australia and Prince Edward County

Posted on May 1, 2006

Pour a glass of spring riesling (Vineland 2005 Semi-Dry leaps to mind) and read on. It’s a busy time…The 7th annual Santé Food and Wine Festival is underway in the Bloor-Yorkville district this week, featuring a mix of large and small tasting, dinners both grand and intimate, “Sip, Savour and Shop” opportunities and seminars by wine experts. Unlike many traditional wine fairs, this is not an attempt to jam a gazillion wines and people into one room for a few hours, then boast about numbers. Eighty international wineries will be supplying events spread over five days throughout the community—a grassroots graze, albeit in a real green pasture neighbourhood. Perhaps this slightly foreign concept is the reason Santé fails to ignite passions in some. Knowing there was a charity beneficiary might evoke more empathy as well. That said, there is plenty going on, and the open-minded always find food for thought.

County Terroir, Tawse, Lifford Highlights

Posted on May 15, 2006

Long weekend coming up! For a getaway, head east to Prince Edward County’s Terroir Wine Celebration at the Picton Crystal Palace on Saturday, May 20 from 1 to 7 p.m. Jamie Kennedy, who owns a vineyard in the County (no wines yet) will be among several star County-focused chefs pairing up with County wineries who are showing their new releases. Stay over and tour wineries the next day. Tickets and info at www.pecountywines.ca. There has been a spate of County events in recent weeks, and with all the activity one wonders if they will run out of their tiny amounts of wine by mid-summer. The following Saturday, May 27, the 7th annual Ontario Fruit Wine Festival is on at Archibald Winery & Cider House Golf on Liberty Street north of Bowmanville.

Mondavi, Chinese Fakes, Wine of the Year

Posted on May 29, 2006

I recently tasted a range of premium Robert Mondavi wines with Associate Winemaker (red wines) Gustavo Gonzalez during a visit to his Ontario agent Churchill Cellars. I was curious to get a sense of life at Mondavi under the new ownership of wine behemoth Constellation—the New York-based company that recently acquired Canada’s Vincor. Gonzales, who worked at the Napa winery before, during and after the transition, referred to the time before the Constellation takeover—at a time when Robert Mondavi was being publicly traded—as “the dark period” in terms of wine quality and direction (or lack thereof). He recalls that the Mondavi staff were actually petrified of Constellation’s arrival. “Given Mondavi’s long history of wine culture we felt like we were the Romans, and they were the invading Goths from the east," he said. “But, as it turns out, the Goths arrived and wanted to learn from the Romans.”

Niagara 2005 Whites, Cellar Reds, Wine in the Cour

Posted on June 12, 2006

The great appeal of this blog is writing in real time and being able to recommend wines before they disappear. Or wines of which only tiny amounts were made. The 25-winery New Vintage Niagara event at the St. Catharines’ Golf and Country Club on Saturday opened the window onto a handful of fine new releases that won’t make it much past the winery gate—a situation more acute this season with the 2005s being in short supply. About 50% of Niagara’s 2005 crop was wiped out by winter frosts, but what remained ripened to record levels during a summer in which the region enjoyed 30 days of temperatures above 30 degrees.

B.C.'s Okanagan, Alsace, July 8 Release

Posted on July 10, 2006

There's still plenty of time this summer or fall to plan a wining-and-dining week in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, and you should. I’m on a two-week busman’s holiday in this blessed corner of the world to lay ground work for the Wine Access Canadian Wine Awards to be held in Penticton in September, and to attend the 25th anniversary celebration for Sumac Ridge Estate Winery, the first estate winery in the Okanagan. The Valley has indeed come of age, bursting with confidence, energy, growth and traffic. Driving the wine route, I can’t believe the number of new wineries that have popped out of the hills—now over 100.

B.C.’s Jackson-Triggs & Inniskillin, Australia’s C

Posted on July 17, 2006

"In my conversations with Constellation they have said nothing will change. They told me, ‘Keep on doing what you are doing’”. Which suits Jackson-Triggs Okanagan winemaker Bruce Nicholson perfectly. The former Niagaran has piloted JTO to critical acclaim in international and domestic competitions since the turn of the millennium, and if Constellation Brands, the new American owners of Vincor Canada, do not make changes, then we should all be glad. He and viticulturalist Mark Sheridan are doing fine work with grapes from the massive Bull Pine, Bear Cub and SunRock vineyards planted in the Sonoran Desert astride Osoyoos Lake in southern B.C.

Buckhorn Festival, Unoaked Chardonnay, Fevre Chabl

Posted on July 24, 2006

Summery, mild-mannered, unoaked chardonnay is a style that Ontario does very well. Most refresh the palate like a crisp new apple, with better examples sewing in mineral and leesy complexity—just as in good Chablis, the spiritual homeland of the genre. I was reminded of Ontario’s growing prowess with this style while grazing at the 10th Annual Fiesta Buckhorn on Saturday in Kawartha cottage country. This event has grown from the vision of one local Ontario wine evangelist named Larry Paterson into a three-day wine, beer and culinary weekend that attracts hundreds and raises funds for the Buckhorn Community Centre, 30 minutes northeast of Peterborough on the Trent-Severn Waterway. It’s like summer camp for wine fans, with over 75 exhibitors stationed in a series of cabins plus the main community hall. 49 Ontario wineries were pouring, often skippered by proprietors and winemakers themselves. In other words it has become a big deal, and when part of leisurely summer weekend for Kawartha cottagers and Trent boaters it’s can’t help be relaxed and fun. It’s the most unpretentious, undressed wine event you’ll ever attend, so make a note now to attend next year—the third weekend of July.

Treadwell: A Father and Son Match

Posted on August 21, 2006

Many chefs and sommeliers talk of food and wine matching, but it’s always a joy to walk into a restaurant where chef and sommelier actually talk together—and then deliver outstanding matches at the table. Even better when they are a father and son with a genetically linked sense of flavour, and where the chef father has instilled passion for wine in son. It happened Sunday at Treadwell in Port Dalhousie, Niagara as James Chatto and I, along with group of 30 merrymakers, wound up our annual Tour of Niagara. Treadwell was the bon voyage lunch after a 48-hour matching extravaganza, in which we savoured and poked our way through 20 different courses and 46 wines. (There were several other great dishes and wines, some of which are covered in Chatto’s Digest this week.)

Ontario Pinot Noir with Your Turkey

Posted on September 25, 2006

If Thanksgiving is about celebrating local bounty, and you like cranberry with your bird, then there is only one wine choice for your holiday table—Ontario VQA pinot noir. This light red just loves poultry and is morphing into a specialty of our cool climate, with a number of promising pinots emerging, most since the 2002 vintage. New names like Flat Rock Cellars, Tawse Estate, and Coyote’s Run of Niagara, plus Norman Hardie, Rosehall Run and Long Dog of Prince Edward County are leading the way—although often, with limited production, the wines are found only at the wineries themselves. We eagerly await the debut of new pinots from Le Clos Jordanne, the Niagara-based joint venture between Boisset of Burgundy and Vincor. On October 17, the local media gets to taste the range and I will duly report on that at the time.

Notes from Tawse Cellar

Posted on January 15, 2007

I spent a couple of hours on Friday at Tawse Family Estate in Niagara, tasting from barrels of 2006 whites and reds just beginning to form into wines. At this stage, any winery’s barrel cellar is a giant hatchery, each barrel an individual offspring from different grape varieties, vineyard microclimates, clones or rootstocks. And each of these rests in a different oak incubator—French, American, Hungarian, even Canadian—from different forests, and coopers (barrel makers). The level of organization required is remarkable: following each barrel and noting its characteristics; making blending decisions based on flavour profiles; volumes required of a certain label; how much the grapes cost and for how much the wine might sell. I gained renewed respect for the winemakers and their teams, and what they are going through at this time of year. It is a frenetic, creative time, where teams either pull together or the wheels fall off.

Niagara Winemakers Choose Their Best

Posted on March 5, 2007

Wine of the Week
Thirty Bench 2005 Wine Makers Riesling **** ($18.15, 24133)
The top scoring white at the Cuvée Wine Awards announced Saturday in Niagara. It signals a rebound for this small Beamsville Bench winery now in the hands of Peller Estates. A very good vintage, old vines and new enthusiasm and talent from winemaker Natalie Reynolds have produced a vital riesling showing New World boldness with ripe peach-pineapple fruit, a touch of petrol and mouthwatering lime-like acidity. Plus Germanic finesse in a touch of sweetness. Also won Riesling class at Cuvée. A smattering of bottles remain in Vintages stores—check at www.lcbo.com. Also try Vineyards wine stores in the GTA.

Fielding's Finest

Posted on April 2, 2007

Wine of the Week
Fielding Estate 2006 Chardonnay Musqué ($15.95, Vintages 37879, score 88 points*)
Fielding has gained quite a reputation for its zesty, fragrant, floral aromatic whites. From a particularly fragrant clone of chardonnay, this is intentionally off-dry, yet very good lime-like acidity works to balance it out. Very lifted lavender, lime, tangerine and green apple and melon nose, with flavours staying focused through a very long finish. Chill it down a bit and enjoy on the deck this summer.

Prince Edward County Notebook

Posted on May 22, 2007

Wine of the Week
Huff Estate 2006 Rosé ($14.95, 89 points, www.huffestates.ca)
The belle of the ball at the Prince Edward County Terroir celebration this past Saturday. Winemaker Frédéric Picard blended 100% county cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon from Huff’s South Bay vineyards to create over 1,000 cases of a true rosé. (That is, not drawn off (saigné) from red wine.) It’s brilliant, soft pink with a piquant nose of red currant, strawberry and rhubarb compote. Zesty acidity bolts onto the palate and carries the sour red fruit flavours to very good length. As a sipping wine, it’s bracing and tart on the finish, but excellent with a fresh, leafy spring salad, tomatoes, and salmon.

Ontario’s Big Week

Posted on June 12, 2007

Grange of Prince Edward Trumpour’s Mill 2006 Pinot Gris ($16.95, 86 points, winery only)
Prince Edward County
Look closely at the fine print. This is among the first labels bearing the name of the world’s newest wine region—Prince Edward County. On Monday, the county’s VQA status became official at ceremonies held at Waupoos Estate Winery. This recently released gris from young vines in the Grange’s Isabel Vineyard needs another three to six months bottle aging, but is showing typical Alsatian (not Italian) style peach, almond, musk and lemon pinot gris aromas. Its light, crisp mineral-driven frame is typical of county wines—promising gris indeed. This wine will be coming to Vintages in September, and is, in the meantime, available at the winery.

Five Great Niagara Moments

Posted on September 12, 2007

Wine of the Week
Hidden Bench 2005 Vieilles Vignes Chardonnay, Beamsville Bench, Niagara Peninsula ($40, 93 points, 130 cases produced)
Hidden Bench has been making waves since it opened in June. From 30-year-old vines in the Rosomel Vineyard, this is an outstanding, intense yet refined, chardonnay with complex aromas of cashew, pineapple, peat smoke and custard. Great acidity holds it together; very vibrant yet rich, with flavours powering to outstanding length. It goes on sale September 15 at the winery only, along with first release reds—the elegant Hidden Bench 2005 Pinot Noir (88 points, $35, 240 cases produced) and a very fine cabernet-merlot Bordeaux blend called Terroir Cachet (90 points, $35, 450 cases produced). A new Niagara star is born.

Into the Northumberland Hills

Posted on October 9, 2007

Wine of the Week
Oak Heights 2006 Cabernet Franc, Ontario ($19.95, 88 points)
While there are vineyards at this impressive new winery in the Northumberland Hills, winemaker Mike Traynor has sourced cab franc (80 per cent) and cab sauvignon from the excellent Watson Vineyard in Niagara-on-the-Lake for this label. (Southbrook Vineyards has made great Watson cab franc in the past.) Traynor has done a great job making Ontario cabernet franc the way it should be—without over-oaking or heavy extraction. I tasted it three times over the weekend, charmed by its bright raspberry-currant fruit, gentle tobacco, spice and overall ease. But it has substance too; it handled Thanksgiving turkey. Drink now to 2011. Available only via www.oakheights.ca.

Ontario’s Search for a Signature

Posted on November 20, 2007

My colleague at The Globe and Mail, Beppi Crosariol, wrote last Saturday that chardonnay and riesling are Ontario’s signature grape varieties—white or red. I agree, to a point, especially about chardonnay, which can be awesome when low-cropped from old vines grown on the limestone-based soils of Niagara and Prince Edward County. Tawse 2004 Beamsville Bench Chardonnay (coming to Vintages Dec. 8) was the nation’s only gold-medal chardonnay at the 2007 Canadian Wine Awards. Riesling can be great as well, but so far I have had fewer great ones than I have chardonnays.

Le Clos Jordanne's 2005s

Posted on November 23, 2007

In a last-minute change of plan by Vintages, a limited selection of the first Le Clos Jordanne 2005s from Niagara will be available in some stores starting on Saturday, Nov. 24. You can read the full story about the groundbreaking Le Clos Jordanne winery in October’s issue of Toronto Life.

The County Wassails

Posted on December 4, 2007

Last weekend the wineries of Prince Edward County were wassailing, reviving an English custom that is something of a post-harvest, pre-Christmas song and mulled wine fest. They have plenty to wassail about in 2007—the biggest and best harvest in the region’s short history, and its first harvest as an official VQA-designated vineyard area. The Prince Edward County Winegrowers Association estimates that over 679 tonnes of grapes were harvested in 2007 (about 600,000 bottles). On a global scale, this is less than a drop in the bucket; indeed, some international wineries make single brands that exceed this amount. But within a local context, it is five times the amount that the county harvested in 2005. And despite a drought summer that reduced quantities in Niagara, the county’s slightly more fluid season has exceeded 2006 by about 40 per cent. Not to mention that in both Niagara and Prince Edward County, grape quality for 2007 may be the highest yet recorded. With vines now buried under their earthen hills—to protect against the very cold winter Environment Canada is predicting—the wineries have time to catch their breath and celebrate the holidays. Here, some Prince Edward County wines recently tasted, which are newly released or still in stock. Order via the Internet or take a trip to the county; most wineries are open on the weekends leading up to Christmas.

My favourite wine moments of 2007

Posted on December 27, 2007

1Hidden Bench 2005 Nuits Blanche, Niagara
My head-spinning first tasting of a brilliant bordeaux-inspired white blend of sauvignon blanc and sémillon that went on to win white wine of the year at the Canadian Wine Awards. Hidden Bench opened in June and came out of nowhere to take runner-up for winery of the year.

Organized Wine Crime

Posted on January 8, 2008

Many assume that the LCBO’s control of the wine business in Ontario is an outgrowth of the anti-alcohol movement in the ’30s—to protect us from demon alcohol. Not really. Government took control to take organized crime out of the booze business during Prohibition and reap the tax rewards for its citizens. Who knew that this monopoly would end up being obtrusive and demanding in the manufacture and purveyance of a legal product in Ontario—at least as perceived by many who toil to make a living in the wine business.

Prince Edward County bubbly is born

Posted on February 6, 2008

A couple of milestones were celebrated during last Friday’s snowstorm, with the pop of a single cork at Huff Estate Winery in Prince Edward County. It was the first pouring of the first sparkling wine made in Canada’s newest VQA region, and the debut of Ontario’s most expensive sparkling wine to date (not counting sparkling icewine). Its proper name is Huff Estate 2004 Cuvée Peter F. Huff, named in honour of proprietor Lanny Huff’s late son. The price is $49.95—right up there with the many basic French champagnes that it dares emulate.

Sweeping the pinot noir minefield

Posted on February 27, 2008

Every article I have ever read about pinot noir has noted that this is a grape that disappoints as often as it thrills—that it is necessary to be an adventurer, to be forgiving and able to get back in the saddle after forking out a substantial sum and finding the wine tart, mean or downright funky (especially when dealing with burgundy of lesser provenance) The red flag goes up again on March 1, when Vintages releases several burgundies from producers rarely seen here. There are a couple of winners, but overall the selection leaves me to ponder whether anyone is critically tasting these wines before they buy them. There is also a smattering from elsewhere, including Niagara, Oregon, California and B.C.’s Okanagan Valley, again with mixed results. As your minesweeper—and from the vantage point of pinot being my favourite variety—here is a review of every pinot I have tasted on this release, from best to worst:

The Best Fest in the West

Posted on March 5, 2008

I spent last weekend at the annual wine inundation known as Vancouver Playhouse Wine Festival—an event that locals and winery visitors argue is the best of its kind in Canada. It’s actually not even arguable, in my opinion (even if some easterners feel bruised by this admission). One would think that Toronto should be able to mount a show of this calibre, yet it never has. Hogtown’s big shows are for-profit, commercial ventures that tend to cheapen the content and keep the LCBO at a distance. The government cannot be promoting any commercial interest other than its own, and the reason that other wine shows work across Canada, including Playhouse, is that they have the full support of provincial liquor boards. One might ask why the government is in the wine retail business at all, but that’s a topic for another day.

B.C.’s Osoyoos-Larose Mid-Term Report

Posted on March 12, 2008

Vintages’ March 15 release features 1,000 cases of the 2004 vintage of B.C.’s storied Osoyoos-Larose, the Franco-Canadian joint venture rooted in the desert soils of the southern Okanagan. It is very good—88 points—but not excellent wine. At a reasonable $39.95, any serious B.C. and/or Bordeaux wine enthusiast can afford to decide for themselves, but a recent trade tasting of several vintages of Osoyoos-Larose at the Rosewater Supper Club in Toronto has not yet convinced me that a new Médoc is being minted in the Okanagan. Its creators argue they are not trying to recreate Bordeaux, but there is no question it is fashioned from the Bordeaux template, from the blend of the same five grape varieties to the winemaking staff to the techniques they have imported.

Matching with Malivoire

Posted on March 19, 2008

On a cold, snowy winter day (what else is new?) recently, I attended a wine tasting designed to be enjoyed as most of us actually drink wine—that is, with food. In the end, this meal was hardly average; it was served in the back of a tiny, fragrant bistro called Gamelle, where the tasters met with Niagara winemaker Martin Malivoire. We worked and played through 10 recent releases that were uncorked with a non-stop selection of small plates, sipping and nibbling in no particular order, unless a certain match made choirs sing and seduced us into tasting again.

The Great One Gets Better

Posted on April 4, 2008

When Wayne Gretzky launched his Niagara wines last summer, I was not impressed. Priced under $15, the wines were not awful but average, and why buy average when there are good bottles for the same price? I had higher expectations given Number 99’s reputation for doing things well, and the whole exercise seemed steeped in marketing opportunism. I was not wrong on this, nor were those who created the brand: the Wayne Gretzky label has become the hottest seller among Ontario VQA wines on the LCBO general list.

Nova Scotia’s New Eden

Posted on April 17, 2008

Nova Scotia might soon be a remarkable source of high-quality, expensive sparkling wine—the Champagne of North America.

Ontario wine’s prime time

Posted on June 11, 2008

June has become the month for grand wine events in Ontario, timed to kick off the summer touring season. And this is sure to be a good year to go wine tripping: local wineries are strutting some fine bottlings from the 2007 vintage—the best in recent memory (see Toronto Life’s July issue)—although some styles will not be released for a few months, like the barrel-aged whites and reds. To help you plan your trip, here is a quick primer on some of the best events in the days ahead.

Niagara Auction Previews: The 2007 Reds

Posted on June 17, 2008

The colour was deep and the fruit was ripe among 10 Niagara reds showcased in the first public tasting of heavyweights from the 2007 vintage. These excellent wines were decanted during a barrel auction as part of the lucrative Niagara Wine Weekend and Auction, which netted a substantial amount for the SickKids Foundation and St. Catharines General Hospital. Over 1,000 people paid $1,000 each to attend the second annual afternoon garden party and gala black-tie dinner in The Commons in Niagara-on-the-Lake.

David Lawrason

David Lawrason

David Lawrason has worked full time as one of Canada's leading, independent wine writers and educators for over 20 years. He was the founder of Wine Access magazine and Globe and Mail wine columnist for 13 years before becoming resident wine guy at Toronto Life, where he pens a monthly column and writes an exhaustive review of LCBO general listings for the annual Food and Wine Guide. As a wine educator he has taught sommelier programs at George Brown, Humber and Niagara Colleges, and has run popular public courses in Toronto since 1988. He has visited every major wine major producing country in the world, while focusing recently on the booming Canadian wine scene, as founder of the Canadian Wine Awards program, and Canadian wine columnist for Wine Access.

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