Ontario Wine Route impressions (long)

Last weekend we convinced a couple to go with us on a short tour of part of the Ontario Wine Route to check out some of the wineries there. This couple's only experience with wine was in a cardboard box or jug so we thought we'd try to move them up the scale a little.

We're no experts either but I thought I'd briefly share our experience and my thoughts on the wines and wineries for those interested in checking some out. The descriptions of the wines are not complete. Because of time, I relied on my first impressions of what I was willing to spend money on.

We started late on Saturday since we were staying in Toronto for the weekend.

First stop was Cave Spring Cellars. We decided to take the public tour for the benefit of our guests. The woman giving the tour was very knowledgeable but was able to translate a lot of their philosophy and wine making process to something understandable to the neophytes. She took her time and answered all the questions. During the tasting at the end of the tour, she took the time to explain how to examine the wine and some tips on what to look for when sniffing and tasting. This proved invaluable to our newbie guests for the rest of the weekend. My thoughts on their wines: I've always enjoyed their Reisling late harvest (called Indian Summer) and Icewine. Their CSV estate label Reisling I also enjoy. Supposedly, the CSV line is from their oldest vines (20+ years) with no contract grapres. The Vidals do not do anything for me but that's just my prejudice. Others like them. As for their other Reislings, for some reason they all taste too light or watered down to me (both the 98 and 99 vintages). Their Gewurz is too dry for me and doesn't even come close to a Trimbach or Albert Mann. I've got a bottle sitting in the cellar to see what happens with a few years.

Next was Henry of Pelham. I don't know if they have guided tours but there's not much to see wine-wise around the shop on your own. Their grounds are pretty and we took a stroll through the vineyard. Being this early in the season, I couldn't tell which vines were what. They seem to have a lot of activities on the weekends for visitors. Overall, a nice place to sit, sip and relax. More than Cave Springs, I love their botrytis-affected late harvest Reisling and Reisling ast weekend we convinced a couple to go with us on a short tour of part of the Ontario Wine Route to check out some of the wineries there. This couple's only experience with wine was in a cardboard box or jug so we thought we'd try to move them up the scale a little.

We're no experts either but I thought I'd briefly share our experience and my thoughts on the wines and wineries for those interested in checking some out. The descriptions of the wines are not complete. Because of time, I relied on my first impressions of what I was willing to spend money on.

We started late on Saturday since we were staying in Toronto for the weekend.

First stop was Cave Spring Cellars. We decided to take the public tour for the benefit of our guests. The woman giving the tour was very knowledgeable but was able to translate a lot of their philosophy and wine making process to something understandable to the neophytes. She took her time and answered all the questions. During the tasting at the end of the tour, she took the time to explain how to examine the wine and some tips on what to look for when sniffing and tasting. This proved invaluable to our newbie guests for the rest of the weekend. My thoughts on their wines: I've always enjoyed their Reisling late harvest (called Indian Summer) and Icewine. Their CSV estate label Reisling I also enjoy. Supposedly, the CSV line is from their oldest vines (20+ years) with no contract grapres. The Vidals do not do anything for me but that's just my prejudice. Others like them. As for their other Reislings, for some reason they all taste too light or watered down to me (both the 98 and 99 vintages). Their Gewurz is too dry for me and doesn't even come close to a Trimbach or Albert Mann. I've got a bottle sitting in the cellar to see what happens with a few years.

Next was Henry of Pelham. I don't know if they have guided tours but there's not much to see wine-wise around the shop on your own. Their grounds are pretty and we took a stroll through the vineyard. Being this early in the season, I couldn't tell which vines were what. They seem to have a lot of activities on the weekends for visitors. Overall, a nice place to sit, sip and relax. More than Cave Springs, I love their botrytis-affected late harvest Reisling and Reisling [ 000000000000000000000000000Icewine. Very fruity and sweet but balanced well with acidity. Their tasting staff was very knowledgeable about the wines and steered our guests to wines they liked after talking with them. Something I hadn't seen before is their Sauvignon Blanc. First impressions were lightly grassy mixed with pears. Good enough to pick up a few bottles for future drinking. I think at least 6 months to a year would help the flavors settle out since it was a 2000 vintage.

We were going to stop at Thirty Bench mainly because I liked the last Cab Franc-Merlot blend I had but ran out of time. That ended our trip along the Beamsville Bench/Niagara escarpment.

Sunday I wanted to compare the cooler climate wines of Saturday with the slightly warmer Niagara-on-the-Lake region. Once again, a late start due to a night on the town in Toronto.

First stop was Chateau des Charmes. First sight was of the huge 'chateau'. Quite impressive compared to what I'm used to here in the Northeast. They have public tours several times a day that last about 45 minutes. We skipped that and headed right to the tasting room. They have an impressive list of wines. There were several that struck me. The Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc was delicious

Hi Ed.

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Glad to hear that you enjoyed your visit, it sounds like you had a good time. Unfortunately a lot of the wineries get pretty crowded on weekends, especially those on main routes. Best bet is a weekday trip if possible, or some of the smaller wineries off the main roads. The 'tourist thing' is getting big in the area. Next time you're in the area check out Penninsula Ridge and/or Daniel Lenko in Beamsville. Both are new wineries that are making some excellent wines. I'm big on Peninsula Ridge, I really like their Cabernet and Reserve Chard. Haven't had the chance to try any of Lenko's wines yet (maybe in the next few weeks), but based on his reputation as a long time grower, they should be up there with the best in the area.

Regards Darko