Canadian Wine Guy

We grabbed this one at the winery while on our tour of Niagara on the lake. Pale in color with a mild nose. On the mid pallet this is softer well made chard dominated by some oak, some vanilla, slightly creamy with some lovely fruit coming through. There’s also some lovely varietal Niagara on the lake minerality. The finish is on the lighter side of medium in length. This is a beautiful wine, very food friendly. We paired it with Shrimp penne Alfredo and it went very well. I would give this wine an 89-90. Very nice. Not in the LCBO so you will have to take a trip out to the winery to get it. $19.95. The 2009 is in the LCBO for $17.95. Not sure how it compares.

From the Winery’s web site:
2010 Silver Series Chardonnay

Our Chardonnay is soft pressed, malolactic fermented and barrel-aged in select barrels for 1 year. This wine full bodied with creamy caramel and vanilla notes, apple, lemon and buttery flavours that express the essence of the Niagara terroir.

I tasted this one at the winery as well as at The Charles Inn at dinner. Pale in color with a nice nose with some, with some green grassyness, and minerality coming through. On the mid pallet nice green flavors and some acidity to match the nose. On the finish there are some mild grapefruit tartness. Medium in length this is a nice food friendly wine. I would give it an 88-89. It’s unfortunately not in the LCBO. Available at the winery for $20.20. A lovely example of minerality from Niagara on the Lake.

Garnet in color with an earthy almost pinot noir like nose. Quite pleasant and inviting. On the mid pallet the wine displays some nice pinot noir like flavors, some mild strawberries and some nice firm rustic flavors. On the finish the wine has some lovely tannins, medium in length, some nice dryness and great complexity. This is a lovely wine. I would give it a solid 89. Not available in the LCBO but available at the Winery for a shockingly low price of … $12.80.

My nephew has been encouraging me to stop by Marynissen for a while now so when we were in Niagara on the Lake we stopped by the winery. I have to say I was impressed with the wines. Niagara on the Lake has been making wines longer than (thus older vines) the Beamsville area that I know better. And I am told Marynissen is one of the original wineries in Niagara! In my time in Niagara on the lake I discovered the whites to be more mineral and the reds to be softer (in comparison to Beamsville area).

Pale in color with a mild nose showing some varietal chard bouquet. On the mid pallet this is a chablis style chard. The fruit comes through nicely. The oak is well under control. If your looking for a buttery creamy chard this ain’t it 🙂 It’s got some lovely minerality, and the fruit is forward on the tongue. The wine is medium in length with a nice crisp mouth feel and a finish that builds nicely in the mouth! This is a food friendly wine. Be sure to not serve this wine too cold or you will miss a lot of the depth of this wine. Allow it to warm up once it’s out of the fridge. I would give it an 88-89. None of Marynissen’s wines are in the LCBO so a trip out to the winery is in order. The wine is bargain price of $12.80 a bottle. Wow!

Stopped by the Red Lobster the other day and this one was on the by the glass menu. I’ve had a string of good Niagara Sauv Blanc’s lately so I thought I’d give it a try. Pale in color with a grassy nose. On the mid pallet there’s a grassy flavor to go along nicely with the nose with a hint of sweetness. The wine is on the lighter side of medium on the finish. I would give this an 88 or so. I paired it with Snow Crab (which I have to say the Keg does better) and it went well. I was reasonably impressed by this wine. Not bad at all. It’s a softer wine. Very food friendly.

From the LCBO web site:
HENRY OF PELHAM SAUVIGNON BLANC VQA LCBO 430546 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 14.95
This is a VQA wine

Made in: Ontario, Canada By: Henry Of Pelham Family Est. Winery

Style: Light & Crisp Wine, White Wine 12.5% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content: 5 g/L
Sweetness Descriptor: XD – Extra Dry

Check LCBO stock.

When I’ve traveled down to Niagara I have spent a lot more time in the bench area near Beamsville. So I don’t know the Niagara on the Lake area (where this wine is from) very well. The tastings I have done down in this area have show much softer reds and more minerally whites. I’m looking forward to the iYellow tasting at Liberty on June 21st where they are featuring Niagara on the lake wines! By the way you can find iYellow on facebook as well as Niagara on the Lake wineries also on facebook. I digress …

I tasted this one at the Toronto Wine and Spirits festival. This wine is pale in color mild varietal chard nose. On the mid pallet this wine is a beautifully made fruit forward chard. Slightly buttery, slightly creamy. The oak is very much in check with little to no vanilla present. The wine is on the lighter side of medium on the finish. It builds very nicely in the mouth with the fruit forward tastes coming through nicely. I was VERY impressed by this wine. I would give it a solid 89. Sadly, there’s almost none of this left in the LCBO 🙁

From the LCBO web site:
SOUTHBROOK TRIOMPHE CHARDONNAY 2010 VINTAGES 117572 | 750 mL bottle Price: $ 21.95
This is a VQA wine

Made in: Ontario, Canada By: Southbrook Farms Winery
Release Date: Jun 23, 2012

Wine, White Wine 13.1% Alcohol/Vol.

Sugar Content: 5 g/L Sweetness Descriptor: D – Dry

Description
Our Quality Assurance Laboratory has determined that this organic wine has <6 mg/L of free sulpher.

Tasting Note
This has a lovely, ripe nose consistent with the warm 2010 season. Expect yellow pear-pineapple fruit, even a trace of raisin, nicely fitted with floral notes and background cream and butterscotch from the barrels. It is quite rich and rounded but stays vibrant and even a bit delicate thanks to fresh youthful acidity. The 13.5% alcohol gives it volume but there is no significant heat on the finish. Very good to excellent length. Drink over the next three years; I am not sure it has the structure to age as long as some previous vintages. Score – 90. (David Lawrason, winealign.com, March 2012)

Check LCBO stock.