Sadly, it’s time to say goodbye to Wines in Niagara

By Rick VanSickle

When Wines in Niagara published its first post on March 24, 2010, it was with little fanfare; a simple story that originally ran in the print edition of the St. Catharines Standard.

Also in this Ontario Wine Report: Our recommendations for Niagara wines being released at Vintages stores, including Wending Home Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, Foreign Affair Brut Rosé Sparkling, Cloudsley Pinot Noir, Rosehall Run Cabernet Merlot and Henry of Pelham Sauvignon Blanc.

I had no idea what I was getting into back then. The site was developed and built by students at Niagara College, and it was a learning curve for me to 1) feed the beast on a regular basis, and 2) keep up with the development of the website and take it from a repository for published wine stories/reviews to a full-blown website for original editorial content and advertising from the wine community it supports.

Two thousand, four hundred and ninety-six posts later, it’s time to say good-bye to this passion project that has been a part of my daily life for 16 years. After thousands and thousands of wine reviews, rants and raves on this and that, points of view that not everyone agreed with, breaking wine news, features on people who make (or made) the Ontario wine industry interesting, top 10 lists of every kind, harvest reports, wines of the year, annual Vintage Charts (the only one in existence for Ontario wines), food (Michael Lowe joined the site to bring Niagara dining to life), beer, cider and everything that makes Niagara, Ontario and Canada tick in terms of adult deliciousness — it is time for Wines in Niagara to go gentle into that good night.

Fun Fact: I wrote my very first wine column for print in 1999 for the Sunday edition of the Calgary Sun and haven’t taken a break from writing about wine since them.

With the biggest health battle of my life ahead of me, and my wonderful family and network of dear friends in my corner, I feel confident I can take on this new mission as long as I make it my top priority.

In the coming weeks, with no specific date in mind, any new content for WIN will end while the website will remain live for a period of time. We have a couple of new posts to come from contributor Lidija Biro. And there might a few other stories or opinion pieces we slide in before we turn out the lights, but then … that’s it.

Wines in Niagara began as an ad free website that gathered up all the freelance wine stories I was writing for various newspapers and magazines. At some point I said to myself: Why am I freelancing out my work when I can simply put it on my own website and monetize it?

I started by running Google Ads, which brought in pennies on the dollar (compared to print ad revenue) and paid for virtually nothing. Those ubiquitous Google Ads help Google get richer but provide little return for the people who actually provide the intellectual property and are of no benefit to the local economy whatsoever. Worst business plan EVER.

I reached out to Allie Hughes and her progressive thinking Hughes and Co. (now merged as Delta4 Digital) to help build SEO and transform the site into a vibrant ad-capable product for advertisers. It has worked out quite nicely, and the advertising dollars, for the most part sold out since the last redesign, have allowed Wines in Niagara pay for freelancers and improvements to the site over the years.

There have been too many advertisers over the years to thank them all here. You know who you are, and you are appreciated. You believe in local, independent wine content and a more traditional approach to wine coverage, unfettered by ulterior motives and pay to play. I wish you all great success in the future. We will be reaching out to current advertisers personally in the coming days.

While embarking on this website adventure, I have not done it alone. My wife (Maureen) took on the business side of the website while also working full-time. I can’t thank her enough. And also thank you to my talented daughter, Bri, who over the years has provided graphics (all those Most Thrilling Wines of the Year, The Mavericks and Vintage Chart logos) and social media help.

And to all the great writers who contributed to Wines in Niagara in various disciplines as we tested the market’s appetite for local journalism. It began with Michael Lowe, the incomparable authority on dining out in Niagara, with the writing and photography chops to always produce compelling content. Unfortunately, while restaurants loved the coverage they never did have the money to support the website.

Same story with beer — from Jill Currie to Stephen Beaumont, we gave beer writers (in Beaumont’s case, also spirits) a fighting chance but there just wasn’t enough interest in advertising from local brewers and spirits facilities. We even gave cider a chance with Tas Fraser writing compelling stories and reviews on the Ontario cider scene. Good content but no support.

Turns out, our success in its own modest way, is rooted in the very name of this website — it just took us a while to figure out who would support such a venture. There have been several contributors on the wine side. Currently, Lidija Biro and Peter Rod have been providing interesting wine stories and/or spot-on wine reviews while others, Monica Kosior and Lindsay Hatch (to name a couple of people) have helped in the past. Also, thanks to the brilliant wine-focused photographer Elena Galey-Pride (that’s her photo at the very top of this post) and the most authoritative voice on Cabernet Franc that I know of on this planet, Allison Slute, for their occasional posts over the years.

But most of all, it is you, Dear Reader, who deserves the lion’s share of thanks for whatever success Wines in Niagara has achieved in the last 16 years. Without you, there is no website. Period.

Fun Fact: This was the first wine ever reviewed on Wines in Niagara:

Vineland Estates Elevation Chardonnay 2007 ($25 at the time) — When I needed the perfect wine to go with a nice hunk of wild Pacific Sockeye salmon grilled on the BBQ, a quick stop at Vineland Estates was the perfect answer. This Chardonnay is top-notch. Even in the un-oaked style that winemaker Brian Schmidt likes, it shows elegance and finesse. The fruits are apple and citrus on the nose with a touch of wet stone/minerality. It possesses lovely mouthfeel and is clean and refreshing on the palate. It was a beautiful match with the earthiness of the wild salmon. Truth be told, I liked this wine with the fish more than a 1969 Vosne Romanee that I also paired with the meal. I rated this wine 89 points.

Our picks from two LCBO
May releases of Niagara wines

We recommend two Niagara wines from the Vintages release on Saturday. Here’s what we liked:

The Foreign Affair Brut Rosé Sparkling NV ($25, 89 points) — A smartly priced charmat style blend of Riesling with a bit of Gamay and Malbec (mostly for colour). It’s bright and lively on the nose with persistent effervescence and plenty of citrus, apple, and red/dark berries. It’s flavourful and zesty on the palate with citrus, green apple, and berries.

Wending Home Estate Vineyard Earth Series Sauvignon Blanc 2021 ($28, 91 points) — Winemaker and co-owner Ron Giesbrecht decided to create two versions of the estate Sauvignon Blanc for consumers to taste side-by-side and decide for themselves what style they liked best. The “Earth” series wine was fermented and aged in traditional earthen/ceramic vessels of various sizes that were purchased from China. Giesbrecht says the ceramic aging offers “a broader, more open and complex texture on the palate, with the mouth-watering tart fruit being mellowed by prolonged lees contact.” A unique feature of these vessels is that they allow minute amounts of oxygen to slowly find a way to react with the wine and soften it slightly, the winemaker said, migrating through the three-cm thick stoneware ceramic walls of the vessels. It’s bright and lifted on the nose with notes of grapefruit, kiwi, passion fruit, pear, and herbaceous accents. It has lovely texture and purity on the palate with tart citrus, pear, melon, fresh herbs, kiwi, and tingly acidity on the bright finish.

Other Niagara wines released but not reviewed by Wines in Niagara:

• Rosewood Blau 2023 ($25)
• Featherstone Gamay Noir 2022 ($19)
• Domaine Queylus Reserve du Domaine Pinot Noir 2021 ($51)
• Creekside Iconoclast Syrah 2022 ($25)
• The Organized Crime Sacrilege White 2024 ($25)
• Rosewood Gewcci 2022 ($40)
• Marynissen Heritage Collection Bock Vineyard Chardonnay 2023 ($28)

Niagara wines that arrived
at Vintages LCBO on May 9

Cloudsley Cellars Twenty Mile Bench Pinot Noir 2019 ($35, 91 points) — Cloudsley has established itself among the “terroir-centric” wineries on the Twenty Mile Bench specializing in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. This Pinot is from a blend of vineyards on the Bench and shows a lighter shade of red in the glass with a subtle reductive note before the perfumy floral notes kick in followed by red cherries, undergrowth, black raspberries, touch of anise, herbs, and integrated oak spices. It’s mouth-coating and shows more precision on the palate with tart cherries, brambly raspberries, violets, chalky tannins, sizzling acidity, and a spicy bump on the lifted finish. This is an interesting Pinot Noir that will carry its age well.

Rosehall Run Cabernet Merlot 2021 ($26, 92 points) — The grapes (60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot) were sourced from select old vine lots from around the Niagara Peninsula. A large portion of the blend came from the Schenck Vineyards in the Creek Shores sub-appellation. Aging was in French and American barrels for 16 months. No shrinking violet here with an assertive nose of dark cherries, cassis, anise, juicy plums and barrel spices that come at you in layer after layer. It’s nicely structured on the palate with ripe tannins in support of black currants, plums, kirsch, black licorice, light herbs, savoury/earthy notes and toasty spices on a long, finessed finish. Can cellar through 2036.

Wending Home Estate Chardonnay 2021 ($35, 91 points) — The estate Chardonnay is aged in French oak, only 10% new wood, for 11 months. It has a rich and savoury nose that opens to pear, lemon tart, yellow apples, nectarine and subtle vanilla and spice. It’s concentrated on the palate with a complex array of ripe pear, quince, smoky/saline notes, subtle butterscotch and spice all leading to a bright, lingering finish.

Henry of Pelham Shadow Rock Sauvignon Blanc 2024 ($22, 89 points) — Sourced from estate vines planted in 1999, the Shadow Rock grapes are late picked, and 50% barrel fermented in oak barriques and foudres, and 50% of the fruit fermented in stainless steel. The components are brought together and aged in European barriques for six months. This is a more elegant style of Sauvignon Blanc, with a nose of gooseberries, baked apple, grapefruit/lime citrus, white peach, chamomile and spices. It’s rounded on the palate with concentrated notes of summer peaches, yellow apples, lemon tart, melon and some oak spices on a lush, long finish.