When 13th Street Winery released its first vintage dated sparkling wine in 2013, which was six years in the making, it instantly solidified its place among the best bubbly producers in Niagara.
The winery had already firmly established itself as a capable sparkling producer with the Cuvée Rose NV, a popular and regular bottle on the shelves at Vintages, but the remarkable 2007 Grand Cuvée Blanc de Noir kicked it up several notches.
For winemaker Jean-Pierre (JP) Colas (photo above), it was a learning curve with sparkling. And he went to school on the 2007 base wine.
“I’m getting more passionate about sparkling,” he told me a recent tasting of 13th Street wines. “I was not even a big fanatical drinker of sparkling wines. For me, it needs to be fresh and fruity.”
He’s been working with the 2007 sparkling wine for years and saved one last expression before the base wine finally ran out. It’s called 13th Street Grand Cuvée Blanc de Noirs “Brut 0” 2007, a different take on the previous bottling, with zero dosage, no sugar added to the October-disgorged sparkler.
“It’s more my style,” Colas says. “It has much more mouthfeel, more weight.”
2007 Grand Cuvée was produced exclusively from Pinot Noir sourced from two estate vineyards. The grapes were carefully hand-picked in small bins so no fruit damage would result.
They were transported immediately to the press where only the first press juice was gently extracted and moved to stainless steel tanks for primary fermentation.
Once complete, the wines were kept cool enough to avoid the onset of malolactic fermentation, thereby preserving the all-important malic acidity, which provides the life and backbone to this sparkling wine. In the spring of 2007, the final blend was made and the wine was bottled along with the ‘liqueur de tirage’, a blend of base wine, yeast, yeast nutrients and sugar. The ‘prise de mousse’ was then started and all CO2 created was trapped in the bottle. After the secondary fermentation, the fine yeast remained in contact with the wine for an aging period of more than 48 months. The initial disgorging of this wine took place in March 2013 with a dosage of barely 2 g/l sugar.
The Grand Cuvée Brut 0 has two extra years on the lees and no dosage, with a mere 100 bottles for sale at the winery. You won’t see another Grand Cuvée until the 2012 vintage has aged at least five years.
It is a special wine and speaks to how Colas has schooled himself on Niagara wines. It hasn’t been easy for the Chablis-trained winemaker whose career was shaped at the notable Chablis house, Domaine Laroche, where he oversaw production for a period of 10 years before coming to Niagara. During his tenure at Laroche, Colas produced Wine Spectator Magazine’s 1998 White Wine of the Year, an award he received for his Domaine Laroche Grand Cru Les Clos 1996. Also in 1998, Jean Pierre was awarded with the Best Wine in Wine Enthusiast, Grand Cru Chablis Blanchots “Reserve de l’obedience” 1996 (99 points).
Working almost exclusively with Chardonnay from the mineral-rich vineyards of Chablis is a far cry from the diverse climate and multi-varietal Niagara region, but Colas has adopted well and even excelled with the core varietals grown and made into wine at 13th Street: Sparkling, Riesling, Chardonnay, Gamay and a range of red wines, including Syrah and Cabernet Franc.
And then there are his signature wines of terroir from the wonderful June’s Vineyard (5th Ave. and 7th St.), wines that speak to where they are grown. June’s Vineyard is located in the Creek Shores sup-appellation, a unique site with significant levels of decomposed yellow limestone and heavy clay scattered throughout giving the wines an extra dimension of stony minerality on top of ripe fruit aromas and flavours. The site was planted in 1999 and continues to deliver exceptional Chardonnay and Riesling, made in a pure, unadulterated way with absolutely no oak.
As Colas says, “it’s a little bit of home,” referring the terroir-driven Chardonnays of Chablis.
“You want Chardonnay, you’ve got Chardonnay. It comes from the roots and, if it’s good enough, you don’t need oak. Barrels would kill that signature.”
Colas says making an unoaked Chardonnay is “more challenging, but when it’s good, it works.”
The Riesling from June’s is equally stunning with aromas and flavours, especially a well-placed note of ginger spice, which sets it apart from other versions of Niagara Rieslings.
Here’s what I tasted and can recommend from 13th Street’s upcoming and recently released wines after tasting with Colas and Ilya Rubin, the winery’s marketing manager, at the estate’s new private tasting room.
13th Street Grand Cuvée Blanc de Noir Brut 0 2007 ($70, only 100 bottles available at the winery, 94 points) — As mentioned, seven full years on the lees, zero dosage, disgorged in Oct., this adds complexity and freshness to the low-dosage Grand Cuvée regular bottling. The nose shows fresh baked bread, brioche, toast, lemon curd, wet stone, green apple and vanilla cream. There is a fine and dainty mousse to go with biting acidity that props up the wonderful smoky citrus, toast, vanilla, butter and mature apples on the palate with gorgeous complexity and mouthfeel through the finish. It’s highly recommended you grab a bottle or two of this fine sparkling wine.
13th Street Grand Cuvée Blanc de Noir 2007 ($59, Vintages now and winery, 93 points and previously reviewed, but re-tasted) — A gorgeous and generous nose of lemon and brioche, green apple and fresh baked bread with creamy vanilla and toast accents. It’s built in an austere style, with very low dosage, chiselled acidity and a fine mousse that tickles the palate and gives way to fresh apple and lemon flavours that are just beginning to soften. Tertiary notes of warm toast, custard and tangy minerality add to the complexity of this well-built sparkler. Drinking rather well right now but can still cellar a wee bit longer to draw out further nuances.
13th Street Cuvée Rose NV ($25, Vintages, winery, 90 points) — This reasonably-priced staple from 13th Street is a Pinot Noir-driven blend with Chardonnay and a touch of Gamay added. It spends two years on the lees. The newest release is primarily from the 2012 vintage. The nose shows fresh red berries, lovely yeasty-toasty notes and a subtle anise accent. The colour is a rich pink hue that is luminous in the glass with an energetic mousse. The flavours range from rich cherries and raspberries to bolder cranberry and toasted vanilla. Showing more elegance than the previous version with a clean and fresh finish.
13th Street June’s Vineyard Chardonnay 2014 ($22, summer release, 91 points) — This signature unoaked Chard from the estate’s June’s Vineyard located in the Creek Shores sup-appellation is a favourite of mine from this producer. Such a lovely, pure and fresh nose of apple, grilled pineapple, citrus and slate minerality. On the palate, this Chardonnay is all about freshness and flinty minerality with a touch of smokiness that combines apple and lemon flavours all perfectly balanced through a perky finish.
13th Street 13th Street Vineyard Riesling 2014 ($24, spring release, 89 points) — Formerly called Funk Vineyard, this estate Riesling is made in a dry, austere style with a nose of pure citrus, lime cordial and minerals. It’s quite concentrated on the palate with lemon-lime, some weight and beautiful freshness through the finish. This deserves some time in the cellar to settle all the moving parts.
13th Street June’s Vineyard Riesling 2014 ($20, spring release, 93 points) — I know, a hefty score, but it’s worth every single point. This took me by surprise, such a beautiful Riesling from vines planted to Clone 49 in June’s Vineyard with 10 g/l of residual sugar. The nose is redolent in grapefruit, green tea, citrus and a lovely vein of minerality, earth and ginger. This is an exotic and unique expression of Niagara Riesling with swirling grapefruit-citrus on the palate, marzipan, white peppery notes and vineyard-inspired ginger through a fresh and vibrant finish. Stunning, really.
13th Street Burger Blend 2014 ($15, Vintages Feb., 87 points) — A blend of Gamay and Pinot Noir, this casual, easy-drinking red was brought back into the portfolio after a bit of a hiatus. It shows pure red fruits with touches of earth, cassis and plums on the nose. It’s bright and cheery on the palate with cherry, raspberry and cassis fruit.
13th Street Pinot Noir 2012 ($24, winery now, 89 points) — A lovely nose of spicy red fruits, cran-cherry, cassis, cedar and smoke all nicely matured and integrated. The bold flavours are complex on the palate with raspberry and cherry fruits, earth and spice all held together with grippy tannins.
13th Street Gamay Noir 2014 ($20, winter release, 88 points) — The regular Gamay is a combination of estate fruit and Niagara-on-the-Lake’s Sandstone Vineyard. The fruit only sees stainless tanks, so no oak. The nose is fresh with aromas of plums, cherries and a lovely floral component. As Colas says, this is “just the beauty of Gamay” with flavours of raw cherry, juicy plum, a hint of spice and juicy, racy acidity that keeps it brilliantly fresh. Simply delicious.
13th Street Sandstone Vineyard Gamay Noir 2013 ($30, winery now, 92 points) — Long before Gamay had its own hashtag (#GoGamayGo) there was 13th Street Sandstone Gamay, one of top examples of this grape from anywhere in Canada. Planted in 1983 with a rare, old clone of Gamay Noir, the Willms family manage this vineyard with a minimal interventionist approach utilizing cover crops between rows, low yields and integrated pest management techniques. Drip irrigation systems were installed after severe drought conditions in the 2007 vintage but water is only used now for new vines and in very severe weather conditions. Four Mile Creek is one of the hottest, sunniest sub-appellations in Niagara. That combined with the dry, crumbly, Sandstone loam soils and old vines provide ultimate ripeness and a unique expression of this grape in Niagara. For Colas, who is using less and less oak in the Sandstone, and, with this vintage, minimal sulphur in the wine: “The grapes are king. I don’t want to showcase the winemaker, I want to showcase the grapes.” He has created a beautiful Gamay from the 2013 vintage with an attractive nose of rich red fruits, super-charged cherries, ripe plums, black currants, subtle spice and a floral note. It has wonderful mouthfeel, chewy tannins, underbrush and spice to go with a basket of red fruits, currants, leather and rousing acidity. This is serious Gamay to be enjoyed now or cellared for up to five years.
13th Street Essence Syrah 2013 ($45, fall release, 93 points) — Oh, so good, and even better, in my opinion, than the sensational 2012 vintage. Colas puts all the fruit for this Syrah, sourced from the Wismer Vineyard on the Twenty Mile Bench, in used French oak barrels. Three of the barrels see no sulphur at all and the other four get only a low dose of SO2. Such a thought-provoking and exciting nose of cured and grilled meats, cracked black peppercorns, concentrated cherry, boysenberry, blueberry pie, earth, black currants and garrigue. This is a wild, untethered Syrah loaded with personality on the palate. It shows rich and spicy red and dark fruit that is all propped up by firm tannic structure and bright acidity that lends an air of elegance to the finish. A thing of raw, classic beauty.
13th Street Meritage Reserve 2012 ($35, winery now, 92 points) — You may wonder why two of the 2012 Bordeaux-style reds (the other being the Cab Franc) from 13th Street are just being released now, two of the last in Niagara from that warm, near perfect vintage. “I couldn’t release it before now,” Colas says, “it’s too big, it has to age slowly. This is going to take time.” Indeed, he is quite correct, so many of the bigger Niagara reds were released far soon and likely consumed long before they had a chance to show their true colours. This meritage, a third each of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot, is unabashedly bold on the nose with concentrated black currants, blackberry and cherry/kirsch notes followed by lavish barrel spice and violets that is altogether (to coin a phrase from the The Who) Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy. This is a mouth-filling wine that’s highly extracted on the palate with a mass of tannins, thick, layered fruits and defining spice notes. But wait for it, five years minimum, with many years to come after that. Your patience will be well rewarded.
13th Street Cabernet Franc 2012 ($30, released when winemaker JP Colas says so, 92 points) — The Cabernet Franc for this sensational vintage was picked late and went through a long maceration period for maximum extraction and colour. It’s made to be a big, bold wine, from a big, bold vintage. Mission accomplished. It is thick and rich on the nose with gobs of ripe, savoury red and dark fruits, elegant oak spice, caramel, tobacco and cedar notes. It’s simply electric on the palate and built on a firm core of chewy tannins. Such a savoury and spicy mélange of red and dark fruits that combines cigar-leaf tobacco, bay leaves and earthy/loamy notes followed by a long, long finish. “You just have to do something special with the 2012 vintage,” says Colas. If you need to drink this wine upon release, he suggests a big juicy steak. Otherwise, “there is no rush.”
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