By Rick VanSickle
In these days of disruptive tariffs and boycotts of American wines, more and more wine lovers are (finally!) reaching for wines made in their own country.
Many have been weaned on the Joshes, Bread and Butters, and J. Lohrs of the world but are now doing what every good Canadian is doing (and should have been doing long before the boycott), looking for domestic solutions for their wine fix along with everything else from food to everyday consumer goods.
Facebook and other social media threads are loaded with panicked, confused wine drinkers desperate to discover something to fill the gap left by California wines, now wiped clean from booze shelves across the country. Many are shocked to learn that wine made in their own country can match or surpass their Cali cravings across most of the varieties they are used to.
Can Josh be duplicated in Niagara? Nope. And that’s a good thing. The Bordeaux varieties — Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet France, for the most part — perform differently from region to region. A steamy hot environment, such as most of California, produces super ripe, high alcohol, low natural acidity reds that have a sweetness that seems to be popular among casual wine lovers. Niagara isn’t like that, just like Bordeaux isn’t like that either, though climate change is concerning for the future of the more balanced red wines from the traditional home of the Cabernets.
In Niagara, where climate change is as real as it is everywhere else, we are starting to see increased growing days, more hot vintages than ever before and winemakers making bigger reds more akin to Bordeaux than Napa Valley.
So, to those who say Ontario or B.C. can’t compete with Josh, you just aren’t trying hard enough to find a replacement. They are out there and getting better every year at all price points. And they are doing it with less sugar, lower alcohol, and most importantly, far more freshness and finesse.
Wines in Niagara has been tasting a good cross-section of Bordeaux-variety Niagara wines and blends recently and I have noted an uptick in quality across the board, or at the very least, more ripe fruit without sacrificing issues of freshness on the finish. And, by the way, Niagara’s big red wines are built to age in the cellar and improve for 20 years or more in the best vintages. Try that with Josh!
My latest foray into Niagara’s robust red wine scene was at Bella Terra Vineyards, the Niagara-on-the-Lake winery, formerly known as PondView. Marketing/sales director Marcel Morgenstern reached out to go through some back, current and future vintages of his top tier Cabernet Francs, Cabernet Sauvignons and Meritages. The wines are all crafted by Fred DiProfio (above), who has a particular fondness for making robust red wines. I leaped at the chance.
Bella Terra is in the heart of Niagara-on-Lake in the Four Mile Creek sub-appellation. The family farms 50 acres of grapes that have been tended to by the Puglisi family since 1974.
Here’s what we tasted (and retasted) and what I liked, with bubbles and new white wines poured first:
The bubbles
Bella Terra Blanc de Blanc 2018 ($39, 93 points) — This stylish traditionally-made, 100% Chardonnay sparkling wine from Bella Terra spent four years on the lees with a modest 4.4 g/L of residual sugar. It has such a lovely toasty/brioche nose with lemon chiffon, baked apples, hazelnuts, pear and nectarine with robust bubbles in the glass. The vibrant fizz carries to the palate with notes of quince, fresh lemon, pastry notes, baked brioche on a lifted and brisk finish.
Bella Terra Blanc de Blanc 2019 ($39, released soon, 92 points) — Made similarly to the bubbles above, the 2019 vintage shows lovely salinity, toasty brioche, ripe pear, lemon curd, green apples, nectarine and a lively mousse. It has lovely saline minerality on the palate with a persistent bubble, stone fruits, lemon tart, a touch of flint, toasted hazelnuts and brioche with a long, finessed finish.
The white wines
Bella Terra Sauvignon Blanc 2023 ($22, 89 points) — A vibrant and fresh nose of grapefruit, passionfruit, kiwi, pear and herbs. It’s bright and zippy on the palate with fresh cut citrus, kiwi, grassy/herbaceous notes and mouth-watering acidity on the back end. A fresh and expressive style of Savvy.
Bella Terra Viognier 2021 ($24, 91 points) — The estate Viognier is aged in acacia wood barrels for 18 months. It has a vivid nose of poached pear, apricots, white peach, subtle lemon/citrus and spice notes. The acacia wood adds lovely texture and weight on the palate while caressing the ripe peach, apricot, lemon verbena, mango, pear and just a pinch of spice on a round, luxurious finish.
Bella Terra Chardonnay 2020 ($34, released late spring, 92 points) — The Chardonnay is aged in French oak barriques, 10% new, 50% second fill, and 40% three years of older, for 24 months. From the warm 2020 vintage, this is a big, robust and generous wine with a ripe nose of poached pear, peach pie, lemon curd, yellow apples and toasted vanilla and spice. It’s rich and textured on the palate with a creamy entry, a touch of flinty/matchstick, ripe orchard fruits, toasty vanilla and spice with still plenty of zip and finesse through the lifted, long finish. Can age two or three years but drinking mighty fine as is. For fans of brash, bold Chardonnays from a unicorn vintage in Niagara.
A vertical of Bella Terra Cabernet Franc
My tasting with Morgenstern was an exploration of how the top tier red wines at the estate evolve over time. We tried a range of wines from the Cabernet Francs to the Cabernet Sauvignons and Meritages over several vintages.
Bella Terra Cabernet Franc Unfiltered 2020 ($44, retasted, 93 points) — This is the current vintage of the top Cabernet Franc, and I originally tasted it in July of 2023. The 2020 vintage allowed optimum ripeness across the board for Bordeaux varieties, especially for fruit grown on the east side of the canal. This unfiltered CF has a rich and ripe nose with a melange of red berries, earthy/savoury notes, some cassis, and pepper with woodsy spice notes. It is now coming into better focus from the last time it was tasted, with much more harmony and integration. It’s highly structured on the palate with a concentrated and deep profile of rich red berries, anise, touch a eucalypt, dried tobacco, black licorice, tar fine oak spices that are new seamless with a long, lifted finish. Can cellar through 2035 and beyond.
Bella Terra Cabernet Franc Unfiltered 2017 ($98, 93 points) — The 2017 back vintage is loaded with concentrated red and dark berries, leather, earth, integrated spices and subtle eucalypt notes. It’s super concentrated on the palate and showing full integration of fruit and spice with a silky texture and a long, echoing finish. A beautiful, more elegant style of Cab Franc. Can cellar to 2032.
Bella Terra Cabernet Franc Unfiltered 2016 ($98, 94 points) — The 2016 vintage was not unlike 2020 with heat all summer and fall and a long growing season with optimal growing conditions that favours the Bordeaux varieties. This is a wonder that’s fully integrated and harmonious on the nose and palate. It shows some maturity on the palate, but still has room to grow and get even better for another five years.
The rest of the top tier reds
Bella Terra Cabernet Sauvignon Unfiltered 2017 ($80, 93 points) — All the bickering these days over the boycott of U.S. wines in Canada and how in the world will consumers ever replace their beloved Cabs from California is getting a bit ridiculous. It’s pure fallacy that Ontario can’t match the concentration and punch of those big Cabs from Napa Valley and other AVAs in California. In a lot of ways, the Bordeaux varieties from Ontario, especially Niagara, offer concentration, complexity and structure along with finesse, something often lacking in California reds. This is true of the 2017 Cab Sauv. It has a profoundly expressive nose of black currants, blackberries, ripe red berries, leather, earthy/savoury notes and rich spices. The tannins are still popping, and still integrating with the ripe dark and red berries that come at you in layer after layer all the way through the lifted, finessed finish. Still going strong and will continue to improve through 2035.
Bella Terra Cabernet Sauvignon Unfiltered 2020 ($45, current vintage, 94 points) — It’s such a treat to see this variety perform well in a near perfect vintage like 2020. It was still a bit tight when tasted in 2023, but after swirling vigorously those profound notes of blackberries, cassis, anise, black currants, sweet tobacco notes, cocoa and elegant spices begin to emerge. It’s highly structured on the palate with evident tannins supported by a rich broth of ripe dark berries, peppery notes, dark chocolate, subtle herbs, and fine oak spices all leading to a long, smooth finish. Can cellar through 2038. A beauty.
Bella Terra Meritage Unfiltered 2017 ($140, 93 points) — This has a lovely, perfumed nose in support of enticing black currants, plums, ripe maraschino cherries, black raspberries, cassis, elegant spice notes and subtle earthy/savoury notes. It’s coming into balance on the palate with softening tannins, the melding of dark and red berries, integrated spice notes on a still finessed, layered and long finish. A beautiful wine that will keep evolving for another 5+ years.
Bella Terra Meritage Unfiltered 2020 ($49, available in myriad bottle sizes all the way up to 6-litres, current vintage, retasted, 94 points) — The blend for this special meritage is 40% Cabernet Franc, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 10% Malbec sourced from the best barrels made at the estate. It’s magical on the nose with such an elegant array of sweet oak spices, black cherries, warm blueberry pie, black currants, mulberries, lifted perfume notes, and beautifully integrated spices. It all comes perfectly together on the palate in a melange of blackberries, blueberries, black currants, macerated cherries, wild summer raspberries, brambly, subtle earthy/forest floor notes, lovely spice, polished, yet still assertive, tannins, and a smooth, long finish with finesse. Tuck some away in the cellar in forget about them for a decade, maybe more.
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