Canadian Wine Guy

This write up is from our trip summer 2010 to the Prince Edward County area. See the entire article at my Prince Edward County trip blog

None of these are in the LCBO (for now).

Closson Chase

We encountered a very enthusiastic wine lover behind the counter and he imparted a lot of knowledge of their design points with which they use to make their wines. They use minimum fining, filtering, yiests etc and try and go for as natural a process as the area will allow. The tasting is the most expensive one we encountered. $10 for a flight of three and the price is not waved even if you buy a bottle.

2008 ccv sans Chene $25 Unoaked
Right on the bouquet you could get the tart minerality. Slightly Chard in flavor.

2007 CCV South Clos Chard $39.95 Oaked
This wine on the bouqet is spot on Chard. A lovely Chard fruit flavor on the mid pallet and then the typical tartness on the finish. This is one of the better Chards I had in the county and in spite of the high price, I bought it for it’s uniqueness. I personally wonder if given a year or two of aging if the two flavors will start to meld together. The fellow behind the counter thought it might age 5-7 years.

2006 Closson Chase Chard (VQA Beamsville)
A very light chard with nothing particularly distinctive to it.

Tasted this one at the winery. Pale in color with a nose of flint. I noticed this was common on a number of the chards from Niagara on the Lake on this trip. Sometimes (not this time) it’s so strong I almost thought I smelled sulfur, like a match. The nose was not all that appealing. On the mid pallet this wine has a bit of a fight going on in the mouth between the inherent Niagara on the Lake minerality (read acidity) and some of the sweet from the fruit. The juxtaposition was not intense but for me it just didn’t go nicely in the mouth. Medium in length on the finish. I would give this an 87 or so. Just not to my tastes. $19.95 at the LCBO, $20.20 at the winery.

From the Lailey web site:
2009 Chardonnay VQA: Flavours of pineapple, melon & peach with a rich mouthfeel and balanced by a good core of acidity that carries the wine to a long citrus finish. Gentle oak ageing has left this wine with the perfect balance of vanilla spice and fruit.

Hard to say for sure but I think this is the one in the LCBO Check LCBO stock.

Picked up this one on our trip to Niagara on the lake at the winery. Inky dark in color with a nice nose of black berries. On the mid pallet this wine has some lovely dark berries, almost to the point of blue berries, almost jammy, almost sweet. On the medium finish the wine has some dry, fine tannins and some spicyness. This is a nice wine. I would give it an 89 or so. It’s 24.95 at the winery, not in the LCBO.

I was walking out of the grocery store and they were tasting this one. Dark in color with mild nose. On the mid pallet this wine is dominated by BIG acidity and firm tannins and a very long finish. The fruit is totally overwhelmed. There are some black berries there but hard to tell. They had an aerator on the bottle and that should have been a dead give away. This wine needs either to breath significantly or age for a bit. Then maybe you might be able to taste some of the fruit. Wow …

From the Inniskillin web site:
2009 Core Series Meritage VQA Niagara Peninsula

Viticulture/Vinification
Each component of this blend was fermented at warm temperatures in contact with the skins for 14 days to extract colour and tannin followed by full malolactic fermentation to soften the wine’s acidity. The wines were then aged separately in new and older French and American oak barrels for 12 months to enhance its structure and aromatic complexity. The final blend was assembled after ageing.

Vintage Conditions
The 2009 Vintage was characterized by a cool, wet growing season which created a compressed harvest period beginning at the end of September and finishing in early November. The challenge of minimal sunshine reduced warmth but was managed by successfully reducing the fruit load to keep the quality high and achieve ripeness. The cool, wet summer allowed for cool climate grape varieties, including Chardonnay, Riesling and Pinot Grigio, to do well. September brought a welcomed Indian Summer with consistently sunny, warm days and cool evenings during the ripening period. This minimized disease pressure and helped to bring on the fruit and keep the quality high in all varieties. Look for wines from 2009 to reveal terroir, express pure fruit character and display great depth of colour in the reds.

Tasting Notes
Red berry, spice and vanilla are present on the nose of this blend. The palate is medium-full and approachable with red fruit and spice being the dominate flavours. The finish is clean and balanced showing the delicate spice and floral components of the wine.

From the LCBO web site for the 2008:
INNISKILLIN MERITAGE 2008 VINTAGES 91132 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 15.95

Made in: Ontario, Canada By: Vincor International Inc.
Release Date: Feb 4, 2012

Wine, Red Wine 13.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sweetness Descriptor: XD – Extra Dry

Tasting Note
Merlot-centred blend with aromas of currants, sour cherry, saddle leather, vanilla bean, spice and a touch of smoke. Dry with plenty of ripe fruit surrounded by gentle tannins and fresh acidity. Medium-full bodied with a lingering, fruity, soft-tannin finish. Can age 2-3 years, but is ready to drink tonight with gourmet sausages, steaks or grilled chicken. (VINTAGES panel, July 2011).

Check LCBO stock for the 2008 vintage.

I’m not a huge lover of Rose but my GF enjoys them so we grabbed this one. It’s light in color with a mild nose of red berries. On the mid pallet this wine is slightly fruity with red berries and strawberries coming through and some mild sweetness. This wine isn’t sparkling. On the finish the wine is on the lighter side with no tannins. It fades quickly. This is not a bad wine but not a lot too it either. The Hidden Bench Bistro red had a lot more going on in the finish. I would give it an 87-88. We were having scallops for dinner and did some reading and the top three recommendations for pairing were Sauv Blanc, Chard and Rose. I personally didn’t find Rose was a good pairing, although it did go well with Pizza! For me Chard goes the best with scallops!

From the LCBO web site:
MALIVOIRE LADYBUG ROSÉ (V) VINTAGES 559088 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 15.95

Made in: Ontario, Canada By: Malivoire Wine Co.
Release Date: Apr 18, 2012

Style: Medium-bodied & Dry Wine, Rosé Wine 12.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content: 6 g/L Sweetness Descriptor: D – Dry

Description
DID YOU KNOW? Malivoire uses many tools in their sustainable farming toolkit in order to craft quality wines at all price levels. The wine is usually a blend of Cabernet Franc, Gamay and Pinot Noir. FLAVOUR & STYLE: Fresh, vital and zesty. Lots of cherry, raspberry and redcurrant aromas and flavours. FOOD MATCH: Everyday: charcuterie and olives. Take-out: deli hot dogs. Fine Dining: goat cheese crottin on endive.

Check LCBO stock.

I tasted this at the iYellow Niagara on the Lake tasting event.
Very pale in color, with a mild nose. On the mid pallet the wine is semi sweet, varietal chenin blanc. Some light peach flavors. This is a good patio wine. Easy sipping. It builds quite nicely in the mouth. The complexity for the price is quite good. I would give it an 88. $13.15 at the winery.

I last reviewed the 2009 that I tasted at Big White Ski resort and was impressed. Okanogan wines have a very distinctive taste. This wine is dark in color with a mild nose. Right out of the bottle this wine has some strong acidity and overly firm tannins. This passes quickly with a little breathing. Once a bit of time has lapsed this wine has a deep lovely mid pallet dominated by dark berries. On the finish the wine has some lovely firm tannins and nice dryness. This is a big wine, very typical of Okanogan wines. I really enjoyed this wine. I paired it with Elk sausage. It held up but didn’t pair well, largely because the sausage was dominated by pepper and spices. I would give this wine a solid 89. Yumm. The LCBO are clearing this out so if you find it grab a few. It will easily keep a good couple years!

From the LCBO web site:
PROSPECT WINERY HAYNES BARN MERLOT CABERNET VQA LCBO 145144 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 15.95
Wine, Red Wine 13.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : 1

Made in: British Columbia, Canada By: Artisan Wine Co.

Tasting Note
clear deep ruby colour; cherry, raspberry and plum with toasty oak notes in aroma; dry, medium body; black fruit and oak spice on palate, balanced acidity and medium tannins to finish.

Check LCBO stock.