- What: Vineland Estates Winery
Where: 3620 Moyer Rd., Vineland.
Tastings: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily
Proprietor: DeGasperis Family.
Winemaker: Brian Schmidt
Specialties: Ask the winemaker and there’s no question what Vineland does best: Riesling and Cabernet Franc
Must try: While this winery specializes in top-notch Riesling and Cabernet Franc all the way from the entry level wines to the top Elevation cuvees, there are some other new wines just being released that are definitely worth checking out. The Reserve Fume Blanc and Chenin Blanc are both stunning wines. Also, make sure to sample the Reserve Cabernet Franc 2007, and both the St. Urban Riesling 08 and the Elevation Riesling 08.
Availability: Winery, web, LCBO/Vintages.
Website: www.vineland.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/benchwineguy
By Rick VanSickle
Brian Schmidt is like a kid in candy store. And it’s his own store.
I am hustled into the tank room where the Vineland Estate winemaker reveals, with giddy excitement, his latest experiment — a masterful display of not just single-vineyard Rieslings from the 2009 vintage but a trio of single-parcels of Riesling within a vineyard that Schmidt says further lends credence to the raging debate that terroir, that sense of place where the grapes are grown, has a profound affect on the flavour profile of wines.
Vineland Estate is one of Niagara’s most popular producers of Riesling. Its main estate vineyard, which surrounds the Vineland property, is called St. Urban. Schmidt has isolated three distinct plots in a portion of the St. Urban vineyard that he calls Field D. All three small plots are with within 150 meters of each other but are distinct because of their varying soil compositions.
Schmidt harvested all the grapes from the trilogy of plots on the same day, used the same yeast and picked the grapes with the same residual sugar. But the results are remarkably different.
As we taste from tank samples, Field D, west side, with its stone-gravel soil, shows an electric acid profile with lime and minerals. The Field D, centre, with its sand and limestone composition, is a lemon-citrus zest bomb and is softer, rounder. The Field D, east, on loamy soil, has a sweeter taste on the palate with lime-peach notes and not nearly as aggressive on the acid.
Schmidt is going to bottle all three separately to prove his terroir point and then bottle a blend of all three, which we sampled, and it was a stunning wine, even at this early stage, with balance, minerality and a firm acid backbone.
Schmidt is a believer in Niagara Riesling and the many sides of its personalities as you move from appellation to appellation, and vineyard to vineyard. And he’s also a believer in his Riesling program from the entry level, every day Semi-Dry Riesling to the top tier Elevation wines.
“I’m more impressed with a winery’s high volume wine. It’s our bread and butter, that’s what pays for the lights,” Schmidt jokes as starts setting up bottles of his Vineland Estates Semi-Dry Riesling on the tasting table from the current 2008 Vintage all the way back to 1989.
It’s an impressive array of wine and evident as we taste through them that Riesling, even at the entry level, has such huge potential in Niagara. Schmidt says that both Riesling and his other favourite grape variety, Cabernet Franc, will be the two wines that define Niagara within five years.
Vineland makes about 14,000 cases of its popular Semi-Dry Riesling mainly through the LCBO at $14 a bottle. At one time it was made entirely from estate St. Urban vineyard grapes but, because of the huge production is now about 50% estate grapes and the rest purchased.
The 2008 version (4 stars) is an amazing little wine with citrus, lime, quince, minerals and a playful tug of sweet and tart all delivered with bracing acidity.
As we moved on through the vintages, the 2005 (4.5 stars) starts with a full blast of petrol and mineral that turns to juicy fruits on the palate. The 2003 vintage (4 stars) is softer with more honey notes, less petroleum to with fleshy, round fruits. The 1998 (4.5 stars) is a blockbuster from the year “that turned everything around” with bees wax/lanolin to go with bright, vibrant fruits that fill the mouth with a rush of flavours, minerals and soft petrol notes.
We also tried the 1995 and 1992 vintages before Schmidt opened on of his last 12 bottles from 1989. “Oh, my, God,” he exclaimed as he tasted it. “What a gem!” That a bottle of entry-level Riesling is still drinkable 21 years after it was made is amazing, but to have the flavours of peach and marmalade, the kind Grandma makes, with Christmas cake, spice and honeycomb is something special.
Schmidt also laid out a vertical of his entry-level Cabernet Franc ($13, LCBO) with similar results that show the wine holding up and improving over time. Cab Franc is Schmidt’s “absolute favourite varietal.” His entry level is made without oak and he employs micro-oxygenation, a soft infusion of oxygen in the wine-making process, to craft his flavourful and personable Cab Francs. This lovely red shows cassis, floral notes, currants and nice spiciness. Spectacular for the money. His reserve Cab Francs spend 20 months minimum in a combination of aged French oak barrels.
Here are some reviews of Vineland’s Cabernet Franc Reserves and some other wines from the portfolio:
Vineland Estate Reserve Cabernet Franc 2005 ($40, winery, web, 4.5 stars) — This is a monumental red only to be eclipsed by the soon to be released 2007. Small red berry aromas on the nose to go with cassis, fine oak and toasted spices. It is layered, textured and smooth on the palate and drinks like a fine Bordeaux with big, ripe tannins, dreamy oak, lavish spices and a long finish.
Vineland Estate Reserve Cabernet Franc 2007 ($40, winery, web, 4.5-5 stars) — This is already on my Top 10 wines for 2010 list. Pure elegance on the nose and palate with blueberry, kirsch, raspberry, violets to match with rich spices, oak and a long, long finish. Buy as much as you can and lay it down for a few years.
Vineland Estate St. Urban Riesling 2008 ($20, winery, Vintages, 4.5 stars) — This Riesling from the iconic St. Urban vineyard oozes minerality to go with peach, tropical fruits and citrus on the nose. This is a focused wine with a profound mineral edge from nose to finish. It all travels on a racy acidity spine that cuts through the subtle sweetness. Also try the Elevation ($25, winery, web, Vintages, 4.5 stars) with its more exotic profile and layers of flavours.
Vineland Estates Chenin Blanc 2008 ($15, winery only, released May 24, 4 stars) — This is one heck of a Chenin and reminds one of the great wines from the Loire in France. A spicy, richly aromatic nose with lovely floral-honey notes. It’s beautiful on the palate with lush fruits and a sweetness that is tempered by racy acidity. Great first effort!
Enjoy!
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