A deep colour paves the way to a complex wine full of cherry, plum, earth, spice, vanilla and dark cocoa. There is exquisite length and a grippy finale. Hold until 2017 and then drink until 2030.
The grapes for the wine were sourced from the Fox Croft Vineyard, one of the top 3 for Cabernet Franc in the Niagara Peninsula. The dark cherry colour heralds a bouquet of cassis, smoke, violets, graphite, herbs and vanilla. Medium- to full-body, there is pronounced acidity and tannins, ensuring a long life ahead. Hold it until 2013 and then enjoy it until 2020.
This plush, French oak–aged, Bordeaux-style blend features softly textured Merlot (59%), well-structured Cab Sauv (23%) and peppery Cab Franc (18%). Gushes with aromas and flavours of raspberry, plum and cassis. Well-proportioned tannins propel a chocolaty finish. Grill up a charred New York strip steak.
Pale straw with green tinges. Bodacious nose of Granny Smith apple, peaches and a bit of green bark. Medium-bodied, tastes of apples and melon. A crisp “deck wine” and sufficiently complex and minerally to cleanse the palate when eating oily food, such as chicken confit.
Dark ruby. Red and black berries, black ink and a hint of eucalyptus announce a sturdy wine. Indeed, its full-bodied, compact and tight palate has chewy tannins fully wrapped in fruity extract. Generous, it keeps all the components integrated with one another and in perfect balance. 10-year potential.
Husband-and-wife team Kari and Clayton Stenson are making luscious ales out of their 2-year-old brewery in the windy town of Swift Current. Their milk stout is my favourite: made with 5 different types of malt barley, wheat and oats, this jet-black brew will shatter your misconceptions about dark beer being bitter and foreboding. Notes of dark chocolate, figs and plum, with a ribbon of creamy sweetness, ride on a smooth, silky body.
A slight green hint to the colour, quite fresh with hints of lemon and mineral, and a touch of fizziness, pleasant and easy to drink. Tasted at the winery, which amplified the fact that this is a wine that is best when young and fresh and too often loses some of this liveliness by the time it makes its way to the store shelves in Canada. A blend of Trajadura, Loureiro, Arinto and Azal.