Ontario is making world-class Chardonnay at very good prices compared to white Burgundy. Light straw in colour, it offers a minerally nose of spicy oak and apples. The wine is more concentrated on the palate than the bouquet suggests. Sweet melon and pineapple flavours fill the mouth, nicely balanced with well-integrated oak. It’s toasty and nutty on the finish.
Elegant bouquet proffers citrus and red fruit with floral notes and toasty, spicy and light caramel overtones. Brightly focused citrus flavour hits the palate initially, with Pinot red fruit providing a secondary kick. Typically Nova Scotian incisive acidity and mineral character contrast with fine creamy texture. Finishes with lingering fruitiness and yeasty biscuit notes. Affirms Benjamin Bridge’s growing credentials as a world leader in this style.
Here is a fruit-driven Pinot Noir, with dark cherry, blackberry and plum fruit meshing with vanilla, cocoa and spice from some new barrel-aging. Lengthy, supple tannins and medium acidity round everything out.
The South Okanagan’s sagebrush and ponderosa pines infuse the whiffs of dried herbs and wild berries. Snappy red-cherry acidity upfront leads to a lively, savoury mid-palate before the black-fruited back end. The 12.4% abv level and wet stone finish refreshes. Delicious with wood-fired pizza.
This blend of 44% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Franc and 19% Cabernet Sauvignon spent 12 months in a combination of French and American barrels. Mid-weight, the wine delivers a profile of cassis, spice, vanilla, raspberry and cocoa. There is very good length and a solid tannic structure. My suggestion would be to drink it over the next 4 years.
The perfume of this medium-bodied Syrah is a mélange of hickory, pepper, herbs, cassis, coconut, smoke and raspberry. It is elegant with soft tannins and very good length. Marinate some lamb chops in garlic and rosemary, hit the grill until medium-rare, and enjoy the pairing.
This wine is a selection of the best barrels from the Red Paw and Black Paw vineyards. A beautiful Pinot nose of cherry, plum and black raspberry melds with barrel nuances of vanilla, cocoa and spice. There is medium density, supple tannins, very good length and fresh acid rounding out the experience. Drink until 2017.