HOP continues to prove they are the Baco-masters! The heat of the 2016 vintage has produced an elegant Baco with blackberry, raspberry, smoke, chocolate, anise and scorched earth. Medium to full body with splendid length and enough tannins to allow 5+ years of aging, if so desired, but it is ready to drink also.
The king of Prince Edward County seems to be a master of delivering fresh, elegant, flavourful, layered and complex wines while maintaining incredible drinkability. We need to get over the “heavier is better” mentality and this wine goes a long way to help the cause. Remarkably, the alcohol content of this wine is only 10.9%.
Another impressive rendition of this wine! Full-bodied and complex; there is cassis, raspberry, smoke, roasted pepper, violets, pencil shavings, dried earth, tobacco and chocolate. Concentrated and ripe; there are good tannins, which make me want to pair with rack of lamb.
This CF is from vines at least 28 years old and aged in mostly French oak for 20+ months and bottled unfiltered. Such a bold nose of concentrated field raspberry, bramble, mulled herbs, violets, currants and toasted vanilla and oak spices. It’s a classically styled Niagara CF on the palate with bold cherry, graphite, a range of red berries, herbs, blackcurrants and spice.
Black fruit and vanilla play beneath a meaty gamy nose, followed by dusty wild blackberry and cassis on the plush and plummy, black-pepper palate, with moderate tannins through a close of lingering berries and spice.
This superb Syrah (and tiny bit of Viognier) is aged in a selection of French, Hungarian and American oak, about 30% of it new oak. It has a lovely, expressive nose of plums, boysenberry, figs, earth, bramble, peppercorns and an array of savoury and sweet oak spice notes. It’s vibrant and meaty on the palate with ripe plum, black fruits, dried herbs, savoury/peppery spices, liquorice and smooth tannins.
100% estate-grown at the Trout Creek Vineyard in Summerland, the wine opens with cherry fruit, subtle spice and a whiff of dried herb. Refined red cherry flavours come in an evolving velvety package as tannins are starting to soften. Needs a bit more time but already shows great promise.