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The final Vintages release of the year is a big one for Ontario wines

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The last Vintages wine release of the year on Saturday is o

ne of the largest I have seen for Ontario wine this year.

It runs the gamut from exciting sparkling wines and Rieslings to finessed Pinots and a selection of well-aged reds that are being released to grab the attention of gift buyers looking for ready-to-drink wines from the very hot and ripe 2007 vintage.

I have chosen a few to highlight, including a nice and affordable Pinot from our friends in Prince Edward County and an Oregon Chardonnay with a Niagara connection.

A couple of notes worth mentioning here to do with two of the wines being released.

7727102376_b3a10fedfcThomas Bachelder, who is releasing his fine Oregon Chardonnay 2010, will be at the Glendale Vintages/LCBO store in St. Catharines (near the Pen Centre) along with his business partner and wife Mary Delaney on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. for a tasting of their wine. They invite everyone to come chat, sip and visit.

And on Saturday and Sunday, Calamus winery in Jordan is releasing its new lineup of 2010 reds and they invite wine lovers to come taste the new wines from noon to 5 p.m. both days. I have tasted through the collection that includes a Pinot Noir, Cab Franc, Merlot, Cab Sauv and Meritage, along with the Cosmic Red (being released at Vintages Saturday) and can tell you that these are some very fine wines. The Cab Franc and Meritage were my favourites.

If you are still looking for the perfect gift of wine to give this holiday season, there are some nice bottles arriving on shelves Saturday.

Whites

Flat Rock Cellars Riesling Reserve 2009 ($30, 92 points) — This remarkable reserve Riesling from Flat Rock is sourced from a small lot within the estate vineyards. This is the first vintage for the new “red label” reserve wines. The wine uses a mix of wild and cultured yeasts and went through partial malolactic fermentation. It’s a weighty, powerful Riesling done in the Alsatian style with vibrant citrus, developing petrol notes and wet stone minerality. It’s complex, bold and has wonderful length on the finish. A real treat that will develop beautifully in the cellar for 10 years or more. And a perfect bottle (or two) to give to the wine collector on your holiday shopping list.

There is one other Riesling in the release, the Paul Ross Riesling 2007 ($35), which I have not tasted or heard of before.

CIMG25621-450x600Inniskillin Legacy Pinot Gris 2009 ($35, 91 points) — Winemaker Bruce Nicholson chooses his limited Legacy series wines carefully before he decides to put his signature on the gold label series. This is another winner. Such a great nose of hazelnuts, vanilla, toast, creamy peach and added tropical fruits chiming in. It’s honied and layered on the palate in an off-dry, elegant and concentrated style that shows oak, vanilla, nuts and gorgeous fruit from beginning to end. A perfect Pinot Gris done in a style that’s a showcase for Niagara fruit.

Bachelder Oregon Chardonnay 2010 ($30, 90 points) — It was winemaker Thomas Bachedler’s intention to make two wines from Oregon, a regular bottling and a single-vineyard Chard from the Willamette Valley but the Vintages allotment called for more wine than he had available and it was decided to blend all the fruit to make one single wine. I have re-tasted this wine since it was first bottled this summer and re-scored it here. The nose has opened up to show lovely minerality, stone fruits, green apple and integrated and toasty oak vanilla and spice aromas. It is a minerally-drive wine on the palate with spicy fruit and fine oak stylings. A lovely Chard that’s held together by a firm seam of acidity.

Other whites in the release include: Cave Spring Chenin Blanc 2009 ($18), and Lailey Unoaked Chardonnay 2011 ($15)

Reds

09_QuarryRoad_PinotNoir_Large copyTawse Estate Quarry Road Vineyard Pinot Noir 2009 ($35, 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. Another one for the cellar.

Casa-Dea Pinot Noir 2009 ($20, 88 points) — This Pinot from Prince Edward County, especially at this price point, really impressed me the more I drank it. It’s text book Pinot, reminding me of village level Burgundy, with beautiful dark cherry, clove, mineral and cedar notes on the nose. The flavours in the mouth range from sour cherry to wood spice and minerals. Just delicious from start to finish with nothing out of balance or over done.

Henry of Pelham Estate Cab Merlot 2010 ($25, 89 points) — From the ripe and hot 2010 vintage, Henry of Pelham has created a juicy and age-worthy blend of Cab Franc, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The nose displays lovely cherry, plum, red currants, smoke, leather, oak vanilla toast and spice. It’s nicely structured on the palate with earthy fruits, mocha spice, bright acidity and a smooth texture through the finish. This will get better if you lay it down in your cellar for a few years.

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Calamus Cosmic Red 2010 ($20, 88 points) — Calamus winemaker Arthur Harder goes through a rigorous process of identifying the best barrels and lots of wine every vintage. The very best goes into the estate bottlings while what’s left goes into the second label Cosmic Red and White. This wine is a blend of Cab Franc, Cab Sauv, Merlot and Pinot Noir. It is a very fine red blend with a nose of ripe red berries, currants, violets, mocha spice and subtle earth and bramble bush notes. It has decent structure and medium weight on the palate, but the lush fruit flavours, a hallmark of the warm vintage, shines through with blackberry, cherries, raspberries and cassis dominating the oak and spice. An approachable red with a bed plush tannins.

Other reds in the release include: Inniskillin Winemaker’s Series Select Vineyards Shiraz/Cabernet ($25), Jackson-Triggs Delaine Syrah 2010 ($33), Lailey Cabernet Franc 2007 ($30), Ravine Reserve Red 2007 ($55), Rosehall Run Rosehall Vineyard Pinot Noir 2007 ($38), and The Foreign Affair The Conspiracy 2010 ($20)

Sparkling

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Cuvee Catharine Estate Blanc de Blanc Carte Blanche 2007 ($45, 92 points) — In a lot of ways, the first vintage dated sparkling wine from Henry of Pelham reflects the warmth of the 2007 season even though the Chardonnay grapes for sparkling wines are picked much earlier in the season to preserve freshness and acidity. The nose shows warm bread, toasty brioche, complex citrus, stone fruit and lemon curd. The mousse is soft and luscious on the palate with baked apple, lemon-citrus and creamy quince fruits to go with pastry, toasted hazelnuts and enough juicy acidity to carry the flavours through a long finish. This is a fleshy sparkler, to be sure, but it’s what you want from a wine that’s already five years old. Drink now or watch how it ages for a few years.

Jackson-Triggs Entourage Grand Reserve Methode Classique Brut 2008 ($23, 89 points, also available in Wine Rack stores) — A fabulously delicious (in a manly way) bubbly with raspberry, wild field berries, kirsch and plums with toast and spice to boot. Made exclusively for that favourite man in the house who needs a little sweetness in his life.

Rose

Southbrook Triomphe Rose Cabernet Franc Rose 2011 ($20, 87 points) — A delicious and inviting rose with cherry-strawberry fruit and a whiff of cranberry. It’s a touch off-dry on the palate with broad red-fruit flavours but balanced out by fairly good acidity.