Niagara Wine Reviews

A thrilling Chateau des Charmes icewine leads Vintages release

hopslider

The Niagara wine release at Vintages Saturday has a distinctive Riesling theme going. And it’s Riesling done three different ways — super sweet, off-dry and dry.

The icewine from Chateau des Charmes, released just in time for the Niagara Icewine Festival, is classic Niagara sweet wine made at the top level. This is gorgeous wine that is thrilling now or can develop wonderful secondary flavours if you tuck it away in the cellar for five or 10 years (even longer).

Here are the Niagara wine releases at Vintages stores on Saturday.

PBE-RieslingIcewine2009 375_0Chateau des Charmes Paul Bosc Vineyard Riesling Icewine 2009 ($65 for 375 Ml, 94 points) — Wow, what a beautiful icewine. The nose is killer with sweet wild honeycomb, apricot, peach and quince that comes at you in waves. It’s thick and luxurious on the palate with sweet, concentrated fruits, honey goodness and balancing acidity. I wish I could buy a case and cellar for a decade but there is no way it would last that long. One to treasure or to treat yourself to.

Henry of Pelham Reserve Off-Dry Riesling 2009 ($16, 89 points) — A great example of an off-dry style Riesling from the quality Short Hills Bench. The nose shows mineral-wet stone, apple, citrus, and lanolin notes. The sweetness on the palate is nicely balanced out by racy acidity and reveals ripe grapefruit and citrus, peach and mineral. This will age and improve for five or more years.

2009-sussreserve-rieslingRosewood Estates Natalie’s Sussreserve Riesling 2009 ($15, 88 points) — Sussreserve is a style that uses unfermented Riesling grape juice that’s added back just before bottling which increases complexity and natural acidity. The end result is a lighter style of wine (less alcohol) with citrus-lime, grapefruit and lanolin aromas on the nose. It has a zesty entry on the palate with bright apple-citrus fruits and juicy peach flavours. Very nice.

Also being released, but not reviewed:

13th Street Merlot 2010 ($18)

Pillitteri Merlot 2007 ($18)

Ridgepoint Merlot 2009 ($18)

Vineland Estates Sauvignon Blanc 2009 ($17)