It’s Harvest Time…

I love this time of the year – spending time with family and friends, the smell of Roast Turkey wafting from the kitchen, helping friends harvest their local vineyards, and the knowledge that in about a year, those grapes you helped harvest are going to be a delicious bottle of wine.

This year, I was helping my friends at Lacey Estates Vineyard & Winery harvest their Chardonnay. Each year it is different – my first year was Pinot Noir, last year was Baco Noir, this year it was a white grape. Just before we started picking early on a Saturday morning in October, I decided I should update my Facebook status to “Picking Chardonnay at Lacey Estates today”. Within an hour of posting that, I was receiving comments on my status like “And great Chard it will be!!” and “Excellent, always nice to open a bottle of wine that you know you had a hand in making.” Honestly, I could not agree more with these two statements. I have already tried Lacey Estates inaugural vintage of Chardonnay and, not being a major Chardonnay fan, I can unequivocally say that it is one of the best Ontario Chardonnay’s I have had in a very long time. As for the second comment, this is what I said, “Most definitely. I was thinking yesterday what a sense of pride winemakers must have when they finally have a chance to try the final product.” In fact, during the whole picking process – which is back breaking work – someone said to me that when it is in the bottle it all feels worth it.”’

With all of the hard work going on in the vineyards at this time of the year, it is very easy to think with longing towards the end of the day and the wonderful meal set to take place at the end of the day. You know, in a way, this is one advantage that – I think – Canadians have over Americans. All of the wine producing regions in North America are in full harvest mode but, for us lucky Canadians, this is also the time of year that we have Thanksgiving while the Americans have to wait a month and a half for their Thanksgiving feast. Canadian Thanksgiving weekend invariably falls half way through harvest time in Ontario so there is almost always a harvest party to enjoy if you are not joining a family celebration for the weekend but, in my family, we always have this wonderful, delicious moist Roast Turkey with all the fixings.

Now, I am sure a lot of you have heard the old adage when it comes to wine pairing – “White Meat, White Wine; Red Meat, Red Wine.” This is the one time of the year that I like to show people that you can completely break those rules and go bold with a Red wine with your Turkey or Ham. A number of years ago, a friend came to me to ask me for a recommendation on an Ontario wine for Thanksgiving dinner so I decided to give him my ultimate change of mind recommendation – Willow Springs Baco Cab Franc. Now, unfortunately, the winery does not make this as a blend every year but they do make each of these wines individually so buy a bottle of each, and blend it in a decanter together. This year, another wine friend of mine (and his) asked him what his wine choice was for a turkey. It turns out he still does the Baco Cab Franc blending…it must be a favourite with his family. So, with this in mind, let me share with you some of my favourite wines to pair with your next Turkey dinner.

Rosehall Run Vineyards 2006 Rosehall Vineyard Pinot Noir
$29.75 per bottle
https://www.rosehallrun.com/aspx_orderwine/orderpage.aspx
I speak from experience when I say this one pairs extremely well with Roast Turkey because we had this with our Turkey dinner on Sunday. Black cherry and mocha aromatics give way to a fruity, smoky palate. It has an almost barely there structure to the palate but with the slight tannins and grip to the finish, this wine will be ready to drink anywhere between 2009 and 2012.

33 Vines 2007 Cabernet Franc
$24 per bottle
info@33vines.com
Quite simply – a really great wine! I love the colour in the glass – it is an inky purple almost black colour. The aromas scream blackberry, jam, violets and currants with a slight hint of herbal at the end. Before you even take your first sip of this wine, it is screaming to be paired with chocolate…and who are we to deny a wine that?

The palate has a hint of spice at the tip of the tongue but only if you are trying it without any chocolate. It is mostly jammy but with a good base of currants and black fruit to bring complexity to the flavours. The great thing about this wine is that not only does it pair extremely well with Roast Turkey, it also is a wine that begs for chocolate so you could easily keep going with this wine through dessert.

Lacey Estate Vineyards & Winery 2007 Baco Noir
$20 per bottle
http://www.laceyestates.com
Baco Noir is one of those great Ontario wines that is over the top fruit in both the aromas and the palate. It is that fruity nature that makes it a perfect match with Roast Turkey and, especially, cranberry relish. Lacey Estate’s Baco Noir is currently sold out but it is definitely one that, year after year, will pair beautifully with Turkey or Ham plus all the fixings.

Cattail Creek Estate Winery 2007 Cabernet Franc
$18.00 per bottle
http://www.cattailcreek.ca/boutique.html
Cabernet Franc tends to have the fruitiest character of the Cabernet grapes – cherry, plum, black fruit all abound in typical Cabernet Francs and this wine has all three. In this particular version, they also mix and mingle with cigar, tobacco, vanilla and that oh so wonderful chocolate flavour to make this a truly complex wine. Out of all the red wines out there, this one would probably be the heartiest that I would pair with Turkey or Ham but if you do not want a hearty Chardonnay, this is an excellent choice for you.

Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery 2005 Baco Noir Reserve
$24.95 per bottle
http://www.henryofpelham.com/wines.php?sub_id=28
In the last two years you keep hearing how the 2007 vintage was absolutely outstanding for Ontario wines. Well, two years prior to that – the 2005 vintage – Ontario made a name for itself with red wines specifically. The intensely hot summer was great for the red grapes allowing them to have concentrated fruit flavours and aromas. Consequently, you have a wine here that is super fruity, has great structure to it (i.e. does not taste “wimpy”) and more than holds up to any kind of heavy meal like roasts tend to be.

Chateau des Charmes 2007 St David’s Bench Gamay Droit
$16.95 per bottle
http://www.chateaudescharmes.com/gifts/wine.php
Gamay Noir is the lightest tasting of red wines available in North America and the Gamay Droit clone is unique to Chateau des Charmes winery. Gamay is typically a very fruit forward wine, not at all heavy, and pairs well with a wide variety of food dishes. The major flavours and aromas are cherry and berry fruit but there are the added components of spices, pepper and tannins making this a very interesting wine.

Stoney Ridge Estate Winery 2006 Reserve Cabernet Franc
$17.95 per bottle
http://www.stoneyridge.com/our-wines/reserve-series/2006-reserve-cabernet-franc/
Like the other Cabernet Franc mentioned above, this wine has some major fruit components. A combination of cherry, cedar and bell pepper aromas with flavours of red berry fruit, vanilla and oak, this wine definitely has all the necessary components to pair well with either turkey or ham. This wine has the ability to age for another 4-5 years if you so desire.

Remember, if you have already had your Thanksgiving dinner, try some of these wines out the next time you have a big family dinner. You will be amazed at how well red wines go with white meat. Cheers,

A Collection of Wine Reviews

Every now and then I try to look back over past wine reviews, pick out some of my favourites and repost them in a collective blog entry. This particular entry will focus on my favourite Ontario wines – some from Prince Edward County, some from Niagara and some from Lake Erie North Shore. If you happen to be a winery owner and would like to get in on these or other blog entries that I post, feel free to get in touch with me and I will give you the details on how to get wine to me so I can review them. In the case where these wines are older vintages, due to the consistency of these wineries, I highly recommend that you seek them out and try them – you will not be disappointed.

33 Vines Winery 2007 Cabernet Franc

Wines are few and far between where I can say “I Love that colour” – this particular wine is inky purple and you could easily just sit there admiring the shade and nuances but then you would be missing something much more spectacular.

The aromas scream blackberry jam, violets, currants with a slight herbal quality to the end. It begs for chocolate before we even taste the wine. Without the chocolate there is a hint of spice at the tip of the tongue. The flavours are mostly jammy but with currants and black fruit sharing the palate.

We tried to pair it with 65 percent chocolate which was a little too light. The conclusion was that it was a better pair with the 99 percent. If you are not a chocolate fan (I understand that some people are not) you could try pairing it with goat cheese. We had a cheese from Georgia called Drunken Goat that it paired with rather well.

33 Vines Winery currently does not sell their wines in the LCBO so if you would like to get your hands on this particular wine – and I highly recommend that you do – please contact the winery directly at:

Telephone: 613-373-1133
Email: Info@33vines.com

Bergeron Estate Winery 2007 Gamay Noir

Gamay is one of those grapes that is very light and a lot of people turn their noses down at. If you are not a light red wine drinker, 30 minutes or so open will change this wine immensely.
In the beginning (of the glass) there were aromas of currant, red berry and the palate had a bit of spice and hints of leather but it is predominately red fruit. At the very bottom of the glass, on the very last sip, something very earthy comes through - mushroom. If you let the wine air even longer there is a distinctive Chinese Gunpowder Tea present in the flavours.

This is one of those wines that works well with a variety of dishes - light goat cheeses, pasta with meat sauce, white fish. The list is endless so be creative and find your perfect pairing. Bergeron Estate Winery is another winery that is not available in the LCBO – which is something I appreciate about the smaller wineries – but you can pick up their wines at their retail store outside of Adolphustown. Free delivery is available to Kingston or contact the winery to place an order:

To order by phone please call 613.373.0181 or wines@bergeronestatewinery.com.

Featherstone Estate Winery 2005 Estate Bottled Canadian Oak Chardonnay

The oak has been coming from the same farm outside of Brantford for the past four vintages but the cooperage house initially used to craft the barrels was not a perfect match. David Johnson, Winemaker, reworked the formula and ended up switching to a California based cooperage house which has resulted in a far superior Chardonnay using oak that comes from our fair lands.

The aromas are mostly pear with toasty undertones but every now and then you get a faint whiff of apples. The palate, although David admitted to the wine being over chilled at the time he served it to me, was extremely powerful with a lot of caramel and buttery notes. Equally predominant was the crème fraiche flavours which I am sure would have been even more powerful had this been served a few degrees warmer.

Featherstone Estate Winery does not sell any of their wines in the LCBO and there are no current plans to do so. To pick up any of their wines (please note the minimum bottle amounts and shipping costs), go to the following link and print out the order form:

http://www.featherstonewinery.ca/orderforms.html

Joseph's Estate Wines 2001 Cabernet Franc Icewine

Amazing light brown colour - like that of a Tawny Port.
Nose is strawberry, a bit of raspberry and some honey.
Palate is lots of honey with a slight hint of lemon on the finish. Has great balance and, despite this particular vintage, it shows no sign of Ladybug taint.
We have a theory that this would be great in an Icewine Martini. If you have a chance to try it out, let me know. To purchase wines from Joseph's Estate Wines, go to the following link for ordering information:

http://www.josephsestatewines.com/april2009b.pdf

Lacey Estates Vineyard & Winery 2007 Chardonnay

Have you ever encountered someone who likes to eat steak but insists on drinking only white wine? I have and let me tell you - this is THE WINE for them.

Chardonnay is the most full bodied of white wines and this one more than delivers. Just enough creaminess to perfectly compliment the green apple and stone fruit flavours and aromas. It has this wonderful, slightly lingering finish that leaves you wanting more and more.

Aside from being a perfect partner to steak done on a summer BBQ, try mixing this up with Veal or Pork Tenderloin as well. Lacey Estates Vineyard & Winery just opened this past May so to get you hands on their amazing wines, contact the winery directly at:

laceyestates@laceyestates.com
613-399-2598

Rosehall Run Vineyards 2006 Sullyzwicker VQA

An interesting blend of three grapes with an equally interesting name – 49% Ehrenfelser, 46% Riesling and 5% Gewurztraminer. Ehrenfelser was developed at the Geisenheim Research Station in Germany in 1929 and is, essentially, a frost resistant substitute for the Riesling grape. Due to the fact that it is a winter hardy version, it makes it a perfect grape to grow in the cold winters that Prince Edward County receive every year. The Riesling came from vineyards in both Prince Edward County and Niagara while the Gewurztraminer comes solely from grape growers in Niagara. All three grapes were fermented separately and than blended just before bottling giving this particular vintage a sugar code of 1 (or off-dry) and alcohol at 10%.

That 10% alcohol translates into a lighter, easy drinking white that is perfect by the patio or with light food dishes including seafood (I keep picturing grilled shrimp fresh off the BBQ) and grilled vegetables. As I carried my glass of wine upstairs with me tonight I kept getting magnificently strong aromas of flowers but with undertones of apple and peach. The flowery aromas carried over onto the palate where they mixed with a lot of mineral qualities that seemed to keep going on forever and ever.

Rosehall Run Vineyards is not available at this point in the LCBO so to get your hands on this wonderful wine, you can make a trip out to Prince Edward County between May and November, phone 1-888-399-1183 or e-mail Lynn Sullivan at info@rosehallrun.com.

Smith & Wilson Estate Wines 2004 Frambuesa

The Spanish word for Raspberry is Frambuesa and that is exactly what this wine is! There are some wines out there that can only be described using one word – WOW! This is definitely one of them – a dessert style raspberry wine that will pair amazingly well with most kinds of desserts. Anything chocolate is highly recommended to pair with this wine but my favourite pairing is a glass of this with classic crème brulee. Available directly through the winery, in 500 mL bottles, this is one wine that should be bought and enjoyed frequently.

http://www.smithandwilsonestatewines.ca
1.888.676.5867
smith.wilson@southkent.net