There’s no doubt that Vineland’s Tawse Winery has the golden touch in Niagara these days.
The winery was named Wine Access Magazine’s Winery of the Year for the second year in a row in 2011 and earned an unprecedented 24 medals in the competition, including a record-setting six gold medals. The winery was also awarded seven silver and 11 bronze medals.
All the grapes grown in the estate bench vineyards on the Niagara Escarpment are farmed organically and biodynamically with no pesticides, fungicides or chemical fertilizers. Two of the vineyards — Cherry Ave. and Quarry Road — have been certified organic (Ecocert Canada) and biodynamic (Demeter) since 2010 with the other vineyards in the process of being certified.
The winery’s portfolio is one of the deepest in Niagara but excels at Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, especially the single-vineyard wines. It also has a second label called Sketches of Niagara that features more affordable wines but made with the same commitment from the winemakers as the very top wines.
Owner Moray Tawse is building a second winery, not far from the Vineland site in the Lincoln-Lakeshore sub-appellation, called Redstone Vineyard. It is here where Tawse and his team will craft up to 5,000 cases of the bigger styles of red wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah as well as more Riesling from a recent vineyard purchase, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris (the first bottling of Pinot Gris is reviewed below from the Redstone Vineyard).
The winery will have a restaurant featuring locally inspired cuisine and an outdoor amphitheatre for summer concerts.
I have just recently tasted through the extensive portfolio of new wines now available. Here’s what I liked:
Riesling:
Tawse Winery Quarry Road Riesling 2011 ($25, Vintages, winery, 90 points) — A nose of pure lime-citrus with touches of mineral, grapefruit and white peach. It’s off-dry on the palate but mouth-watering with lemon-lime, wet stone, and juicy green apple all lifted by racy acidity.
The Chardonnays:
Tawse cuts its teeth on single-vineyard Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, with some of the most distinctive, terroir-driven wines in Niagara. The two single-vineyard wines are a fascinating comparison and so different even with similar oak and winemaking technique in finishing the wines.
Winemaker Paul Pender has always stood back and let the terroir and vintage variations do the talking in his wines. The less time he spends in the winery, the more attention he pays to the vines, he is fond of saying.
Tawse Estate Chardonnay 2010 ($38, winery only, 92 points) — A blend of Twenty Mile vineyards from Robyn’s Block, David’s Block, Quarry Road and Hillside all biodynamically farmed and aged 12 months in French oak. The nose is gorgeous right out of the glass with apple, vanilla, clean wet-stone minerals, pear and spice. It is so good in the mouth, broad and flavour-packed yet dances lightly on the palate. The fruit is integrated with elegant spice and a fine vein of minerality through the finish. Beautifully built wine.
Tawse Estate Quarry Road Chardonnay 2010 ($35, Vintages, winery, 91 points) — From the certified organic/biodynamic Quarry Road vineyard and the same oak as above. The ripe apple, citrus and oak spice aromas are persistent on the nose and work nicely with the gunflint minerality. This is about the fruit on the palate, ripe and defined apple and touches of pear, citrus, minerality, a kiss of butterscotch and wonderful balance through a long finish.
Tawse Estate Robyn’s Block Chardonnay 2010 ($46, winery only, 93 points) — Also organic and bio certified and the same oak treatment as above. This is the star of the show in the 2010 vintage, a tour de force and a shining beacon for terroir-driven Chardonnay. It’s fresh and clean on the nose with a stream of minerality, soft green apple, lemon-citrus zest and such elegant spices in the background. On the palate, oh my! An opulent, vivacious wine with tremendous quince, toffee-oak spices and mineral flavours that are persistent yet beautifully elegant and build in intensity in the mouth. It’s lavish and weighty but lifted by firm acidity through a long, long finish.
Tawse Sketches of Niagara Chardonnay 2010 ($20, Vintages, winery, 88 points) — A nicely balanced Chard from sniff to swallow with ripe apple, citrus, vanilla toast and spice on the nose. The palate reveals charred oak, toasted vanilla and butterscotch flavours to go with tasty apple, tropical fruit and citrus zest. It’s all held together by a razor-sharp beam of acidity.
The Pinots:
Tawse Growers Blend Pinot Noir 2010 ($33, winery only, 90 points) — The popular Growers Blend in made from sourced Niagara fruit and is barrel fermented and barrel aged for 12 months (like all the Tawse Pinots). The nose shows gritty cherry and raspberry fruit, tart cranberry and some savoury-beefy notes. It’s earthy and meaty in the mouth with ripe tannins, savoury red fruits, anise and silky texture through the finish.
Tawse Estate Quarry Road Vineyard Pinot Noir 2009 ($35, winery, Vintages in December, 91 points) — Quarry Road is in the Vinemount Ridge appellation and the vineyard is farmed biodynamically. The nose shows sweet oak, cherry-raspberry fruit, violets and a lovely perfumed note. It is like silk on the palate with woodsy-earthy flavours and red plums, red fruits and anise. It has length and persistence and the flavours reveal themselves in layers. One for the cellar.
Tawse Estate Cherry Avenue Vineyard Pinot Noir 2009 ($58, winery only with 3,000 bottles produced, 93 points) — This is the flagship of the Pinots from Tawse and it shows with this smart wine from the fine 2009 vintage. Such a striking nose of perfumed fruit, forest mushrooms, black cherry, red currants, blueberry and loam. It is wild and untethered on the palate, a complex and layered Pinot with a wonderful array of fleshy red fruits, poised oak spice and earthy minerals delivered on a bed of fine-grained tannins. It’s an intense wine through a long, lingering finish. Buy, hold and enjoy.
The rest of the portfolio:
Tawse Redstone Vineyard Pinot Gris 2011 ($25, winery, 89 points) — As far as I know, the first Pinot Gris from Tawse released to the general public (there was one made in 2009 for club members from the Hillside Vineyard). The fruit is sourced from the recently purchased Redstone Vineyard, formerly owned by Thomas and Vaughan, in the Lincoln-Lakeshore appellation where a new winery, restaurant and amphitheatre is planned. The nose shows apple fruit, melon and juicy tropical fruit aromas. It’s a nice, fruit-forward and delicious Gris with enough acidity to balance out the ripe flavours.
Tawse Estate Quarry Road Vineyard Gewurztraminer 2011 ($25, winery, 88 points) — This was the very first wine made from certified organic and biodynamic grapes at Tawse a couple of vintages ago. The nose shows showy grapefruit, honeysuckle, lychee and sweet, exotic spices. It’s an off-dry style that’s layered and honied with sweet grapefruit and Asian pear flavours to go with spicy cloves all lifted by good acidity.
Tawse Estate David’s Block Spark Brut 2009 ($40, winery, 92 points) — This is the second vintage of sparkling wine from the David’s Block vineyard. It’s made with 100% Chardonnay and crafted in the traditional Champagne method with the wine spending 30 months on the lees for added flavour development. It shows a vigorous mousse in the glass and aromas of vanilla toast, ripe apple, lemon pie and brioche. It’s zesty and vibrant on the palate with crisp lemon, baked bread and lively acidity through the long finish. A tasty, classy bubbly.
Comment here