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The International Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration in review: ‘In one sense we are all Burgundians now,’

photoIt’s been around since the Middle Ages, a long-standing member of the wine aristocracy, and it has held its noble head up high through the centuries despite periods of downright mediocrity.

The name Chardonnay, derived from Cardonnacum, which means “a place of thistles,” has been linked to a village in the Mâcon region of Burgundy. It is in Burgundy that this most wonderful of white grapes truly struts its stuff.

Today, over half a million acres of Chardonnay is planted in virtually every wine region in the world. It is simply the world’s most popular and thrilling white wine. But for many, it is reviled as being bland, flabby, one-dimensional and insipid. It is all of those things and everything in between.

Chances are that the worst bottle of wine you ever had was Chardonnay. And you have an equal chance of Chardonnay being the best bottle of wine you ever had.

It is a divisive piece of work, worthy of debate.

oystersSo how wonderful it is to have a home-grown grass-roots group of Chardonnay lovers come together once a year to delve deep into the roots of this grape to put it all into perspective for us through tastings, discussions, food pairings and general conviviality over three days every summer. Anyone who wants to come is invited to the party.

The Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration is held annually to showcase some of the world’s best expressions of this grape. The event was envisioned in 2009 when a handful of Ontario winemakers lounged around a summer fire celebrating the success of one of their own. They gathered to raise a toast to the Canadian wine that had just triumphed at the 2009 Cellier Wine Awards in Montreal. In Canada’s own version of Bottle Shock a Niagara wine, the Le Clos Jordanne Claystone Terrace Chardonnay 2005, won the prestigious award, surpassing Burgundian and California Chardonnays in a blind taste test.

The significance of the win wasn’t lost on those celebrating, and the wheels were turning as the glasses were swirling.

These winemakers have long believed that Chardonnay — one of the most widely cultivated varietals in Ontario — is deserving of a renaissance. It is a wine that can be resilient and refined. It can be steely or floral, complex or focused. It expresses terroir better than any other grape grown in Ontario, those winemakers believe. And when Chardonnay is complemented with a cool climate — altitude, latitude, marine influence or by climatic conditions — magical things can happen. And thus, i4c was born to showcase not only Ontario Chardonnays, but all the great Chardonnays of the world’s most fairly representative of cool-climate Chardonnays.

I4c 2013Some quick facts about i4c 2014

The i4c is not a competition, rather it is a celebration of
The i4c mandate states that a minimum of 50% of the annual participants are from outside of Ontario to ensure a true exploration of the nuances of cool climate Chardonnay.
The 3-day celebration was held at various winery and vineyard locations across Niagara. The opening ceremonies and kick-off event was held at 13th Street Winery, and the i4c signature event — The Cool Chardonnay World Tour – was hosted by the Vineland Research & Innovation Centre.
The technical session was hosted at Brock University for winemakers, viticulturalists, media and interested guests. The School of Cool featured Keynote Speaker Tim Atkin (MW), Christy Canterbury (MW), W. Blake Gray, Miguel Torres Jr. and Jeremy Dineen.

Atkin was particularly entertaining.

“I think Chardonnay in some respects is a victim of its ubiquity,” he said. “We need to give Chardonnay a break. Let’s salute what I think is the greatest white wine in the world.”

Atkin, acknowledging that Chardonnay is the fifth fastest growing variety in the world (incredible, considering it is already one of the most planted grapes after, arguably, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo, Grenache Noir and the king of them all, Thompson Seedless), said that it continues to be planted in most wine regions in the world, with only Australia scaling back “because it was over-planted there,” he said.

“Chardonnay is about pleasure, even in its most minerally expression,” said Atkin.

International Cool Climate Chardonnay Association from the International Cool Climate CelebrationHe went on to say that Burgundy, the greatest region in the world for fine Chardonnay, is finding growing competition from key regions in, mostly, the New World.

“It’s not just about Burgundy anymore,” he said. “Fantastic Chardonnay can come from almost anywhere now. The quality gap has narrowed, however, the price gap hasn’t.”

And then this zinger:

“In one sense we are all Burgundians now.”

He means it metaphorically, of course, but there is some truth to the statement. What makes Burgundy so appealing is a direct result of the soil, climate and centuries of winemaking technique, all of which can be somewhat replicated in many cool-climate regions, including Ontario. It is starting to show in many of Chardonnays tasted at i4c from Niagara, Okanagan Valley, pockets of California (notably Sonoma), Languedoc, Oregon, Australia and Chile.

Burgundy has history on its side, but history can only take you so far as other regions learn from that history.

winesThat was made abundantly clear at The Cool Chardonnay World Tour hosted by the Vineland Research & Innovation Centre. The full-out tasting of hundreds of Chardonnays from around the world, which had to moved inside tents because of a steady downpour, showed the full range of styles and the giant steps various regions have taken to produce Chardonnays of character.

sandra winemakersIt was a more intimate affair at Flat Rock Cellars where a group of winemakers, photo above as a group and Sandra Oldfield) from Ponzi Vineyards, Flat Rock, Peter Lehmann Wines, Wagner Family Wines, Tinhorn Creek Vineyards and Vina Carmen talked about their own special terroirs.

The challenge for many of those wineries is finding a cooler climate in what are traditionally warm-climate regions. Carmen in Chile reaches for the cool climate of the Casablanca Valley while Peter Lehmann looks to the Eden Valley, a cool pocket in ironically one of the hottest wine regions on earth — the Barossa Valley — to give his Chardonnays their personality without being flabby and overripe.

winesOregon, Okanagan and Niagara shared similar cool-climate traits and all showed good minerality and zest.

One of the highlights of the Flat Rock tasting was the Ponzi Vineyards Reserve, a tasty little number that displayed a Burgundian flare.

Here is a selection of some of the favourites that I tasted (and I got nowhere near to tasting every one on display) at the grand tasting at the Vineland Research Centre’s signature tasting event.:

France

54_Domaine-Dublere-Bottle-Shot-Aux-terres-blanchesDomaine Dublere Les Terres Blanches Nuits St-George 2011, Burgundy ($105, 92 points) — Very young at this stage with aromas of citrus, pear, oyster shells, smoky minerality and soft spices. On the palate this intriguing wine is complex and structured with a lively finish that goes on and on.

Domaine Dublere Les Vergelesses Savigny-les-Beaune 2011, Burgundy ($59, 91 points) — The nose reveals pear-grapefruit, citrus, toasted spice and earthy minerality. It’s shows vibrancy on the palate balancing those unique mineral notes and integrated fruits and spice.

Maison Champy Vire-Clesse 2012, Burgundy ($26, 88 points) — An easy drinking Burgh with grapefruit citrus and slate-mineral aromas on the nose followed by smoke, lemon and subtle spice notes.

Gerard Bertrand Domaine de L’Aigle Limoux 2012, Languedoc ($26, 89 points) — A brisk and lively nose of grapefruit, lemon, green apple and subtle spice and mineral notes. The palate shows ripe pear, lemony citrus and roasted almonds that ride a core of fresh acidity and spice through the finish.

California

33_KISTLER-Bottle-ShotKistler Stone Flat Vineyard Chardonnay 2012, Sonoma Coast ($108, 94 points) — The superstar of the i4c event from one of the classiest Chardonnay producers in North America (in my opinion). This has it all, juicy and fresh citrus, pear, river rock minerality and well-integrated fine oak spices. It is plush and voluptuous on the palate but not over-bearing with ripe fruits, rousing spices, hazelnuts and good verve through the finish.

Kistler Les Notieres Chardonnay 2012, Sonoma Coast ($80, 92 points) — A generous nose of pear, pineapple, smoky minerality and oak-driven spices. It has depth and complexity in the mouth with bright fruits, wonderful acidity and length through the finish.

Clos Du Bois Sonoma Reserve Chardonnay Russian River Valley 2012, California ($26, 88 points) — An expressive nose of ripe pear and green apple with lovely spice in behind. It’s rich, textured and creamy on the palate with juicy pear and vanilla-oak spices.

Clos Du Bois Calcaire Chardonnay 2011, Russian River Valley, California ($29, 89 points) — A more refined Chardonnay than the reserve above, with poached pear, peach and a balanced approach to the spices. Lovely mouth-feel to go with ripe fruits, a touch of minerality and spice flavours all lifted by good acidity.

Niagara

Photo by Denis Cahill13th Street Sandstone Reserve Chardonnay 2011, Niagara ($35, 92 points) — A warm, inviting nose of swirling spicy-creamy goodness that combines baked apple, poached pear, stony minerality and just a touch of citrus. Beautifully elegant and finessed on the palate and showing fine balance between ripe fruit, cream, spice and acid.

Hillebrand Showcase Wild Ferment Chardonnay Oliveira Vineyard, Niagara ($36, 91 points) — This is from the Lincoln-Lakeshore appellation and possesses an extraordinary nose of smoky, flinty, apple, spice and vanilla. It’s texturally perfect in the mouth with full apple-citrus notes, a mineral note that runs through the core and lively acidity.

Stratus Chardonnay 2012, Niagara ($48, 91 points) — A more opulent expression of Chardonnay with poached pear, vanilla, toasted oak accents and spice on the nose. It’s rich and textured with succulent and highly extracted fruit, beautiful oak spices, buttery-vanilla notes and fairly decent acidity.

Flat Rock Rusty Shed Chardonnay 2012, Niagara ($25, 89 points) — Still a baby, with soft aromas of pear, tnagerine, toast and spice. It opens up on the palate with stony minerality, poached pear, vanilla and a healthy vein of acidity.

Okanagan Valley

27_-Blue-Mountain-Vineyard-Cellars_Bottle-Shot-2011-Reserve-ChardonnayBlue Mountain Reserve Chardonnay 2011, Okanagan Valley ($30, 90 points) — A pretty and inviting nose of pear fruit, white flowers and subtle spice notes. It starts on the palate with juicy tree fruit, subtle minerality and spice and all propped up by racy acidity.

Sperling Vineyards Chardonnay 2012 ($31, 91 points) — The nose shows pear, coconut, chalky minerality, apple pie and toasted spices. It has good concentration on the palate with complex flavours and spice with balancing acidity and a vein of smoky minerality.

Tinhorn Creek Chardonnay 2012 ($23, 88 points) — This is a softer style than I remember but still some nice aromatics of sweet peach, apples and underlying citrus and cream notes. The fruits on the palate are joined by soft creamy-spicy notes that are well integrated.

Oregon

38_PONZI-VINEYARDS-Bottle-Shot-11CHR_KOPonzi Vineyards Reserve Chardonnay 2011, Willamette Valley, Oregon ($56, 92 points) — This is a gorgeously balanced Chardy with pear and other tree fruit aromas to go with a subtle mineral note. Such purity of fruit on the palate that builds in intensity with each sip, adding integrated oak spices through the long finish.

Chile

Vina Carmen Gran Reserva Chardonnay 2012, Casablanca Valley, Chile ($15, 87 points) — The nose displays tropical fruits, some herbs, peach and soft spice. It’s a fruit-forward wine on the palate with ripe tropical fruits, creamy vanilla notes and decent spice.

Australia

Peter Lehmann H&V Chardonnay 2012, Eden Valley, Barossa ($20, 88 points) — Plenty of tropical fruit, citrus and charry oak spice on the nose. The acid helps moderate the wood spices, reveal delicious green apple and tropical spices.