Hi Berserkers,
I spent the day at the 2011 Wine and Cheese and had a large sampling of dessert and fruit wines. Though there were wines from many different countries, none had the foresight to bring dessert wines with them (a problem I often encounter at many exhibitions with wines) so local Ontario wines dominated. Hopefully these notes will be of help to you if you’re in Ontario, Canada or can order them online. Many to recommend among the samples. Enjoy.
MUSKOKA LAKES 2009 CRANBERRY/BLUEBERRY WINE: Winemaker Matt French has crafted a lovely and refreshing wine from cranberry and blueberry juice. Berry nose, very light-bodied, ruby color with a hint of blue. Sweetness from the blueberries and tartness from the cranberries provide the same balance as you’d find in a good dessert wine. Always starts sweet and finshes tart.
One thing you should note, however, is that while the website lists the wine as an off-dry, it is in fact much sweeter. It has about 120 g/L of residual sugar and in my book (as well as on my tongue) this was a medium-sweet wine and not just an off-dry wine. That means that those of you with far more experience and expertise than me will have to match your food a little carefully with it. Matt informed me that the wine should be enjoyed young and should not be aged more than a couple of years.
MUSKOKA LAKES 2009 RED MAPLE DESSERT WINE: I was very hesitant to try this one due to the fact that it is fortified, and I always find fortification to be the undoing of any fruit wine without the words “port” or “sherry” or “madeira” attached to its name. (See my previous notes on Quady Essencia) It didn’t help that it was sweetened with maple, either. (See my previous notes on Crown Bench Altair maple/vidal icewine). I’m so glad I was wrong.
This full-bodied dessert wine balances the maple sweetness, cranberry tartness and the higher alcohol level into a great dessert wine, with no bitter alcoholic aftertaste in the finish. Winemaker Matt French mentioned that this new 2009 vintage is a lot crisper than the 2008 due to both newer age and a better crop of cranberries to work with to create this vintage thanks to great growing weather. Recommended. ![[winner.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/07ec25c9fd71159fe15d7f1ba5fad64e91238d0e.gif "winner"){kind=small}
DOWNEY’S FRAMBOISE DESSERT WINE: Another one I was hesitant to try due to the last raspberry-based dessert wine throwing me off with its cloying qualities and lacking the natural tartness of raspberries. (see my previous notes on Crown Bench Raspberry Ice)
I’m pleased to report no such problem here. This wine has won Downey’s several local wine awards and with good reason – they managed to capture the sweetness of the berries as well as their natural acidity into a greatly balanced fruit wine. It’s also a great value at $16.95 for a 500 ml half-litre bottle, a generous deviation from similar raspberry-based dessert wines at around the same price for only a 375 ml half-bottle. Medium-bodied, nice dark red color, and nose of (what else) raspberries. Recommended.
DOWNEY’S STRAWBERRY SUNRISE DESSERT WINE: Similar to their Framboise, but I have to honestly say not as successful. . Medium body, bright pink-red color, nose of berries. You get exactly what you pay for in your fruit dessert wines. It’s not as sweet as Hernder’s Iced Strawberry but also not as bold in its strawberry flavour which is then killed off a little by the alcoholic aftertaste.
Speaking of which, both of these wines are a high 14.4% (well, high for dessert wines so far in my experience so far) yet the winemakers assured me these high levels are reached naturally and without any fortification.
STONEY RIDGE 2008 GEWURZTRAMINER ICEWINE: Ah, a nicely balanced Gewurztraminer icewine. Peach and lychee aromas, nice full body, good acidity, honey sweetness but not too much. I’ve noticed this last little while that Ontario winemakers have really got a handle now on Gewurztraminer icewine as there are at least four now all making excellent new vintages (Royal DeMaria, Palatine Hills, Jackson-Triggs and Stoney Ridge) and I’d recommend any and all of them if you’re looking for a nice rich Gewurz icewine.
STAFF 2008 CABERNET FRANC ICEWINE: I suspected that the attractive blonde woman who was serving me at the booth wasn’t just a winery staffer and it turns out that she was quite literally and figuratively the “Staff” in Staff Estates Winery.
In fact, it was Sue-Ann Staff who is the “owner, winemaker and booth babe” as she herself put it multitasking at the show. She is the former head winemaker at Pilliterri Estates and studied and trained winemaking in Australia (where a surprisingly high number of working Canadian winemakers from Ontario have also learned their craft). She left Pilliterri after ten years to rejoin her family farm and open her own family winery.
Her Cabernet Franc icewine is a light-bodied, bright pink red gem of a Cab Franc icewine with a strong berry nose and taste of berries, honey, and a bit of orange peel. It’s sweet as most good Cab Franc icewines are but not too sweet.
There has been a tendency in general in Ontario lately to pull the icewines back from hitting the 240 -260 g/L of residual sugar seen often in early 2000 vintages (2005 icewines seem notorious for this) and back down to a more reasonable and refreshing 180 – 220 g/L. This icewine is a perfect example of the results of that change in approach. Good acidity keeps it all perfectly in check. Recommended.
CHATEAU RIEUSSEC 2006 ICEWINE: Oh boy, the grand finale. I actually got a brand-new bottle opened for my sample due to good timing and it was well worth it. A very nice sauternes with a terrific balance of sweetness, botrytis, fruit, and acidity. It’s Rieussec, I wasn’t expecting anything less than incredible and it delivered in full.
Scarily, fellow board member Mike Grammer tells me that while this is good, the 2007 vintage just kicks its ass every which way including sideways and has been getting high acclaim (and an ensuing much higher price) from all over. I can only imagine how good THAT bottle must taste!
