Category: Prince Edward County

Today starts my unveiling of Ontario Chardonnay; a terroir-driven exploration of elegance and expression.  Chardonnay has long been a cornerstone of Ontario’s viticultural identity, offering a compelling canvas for terroir to shine.  Ontario’s cool-climate Chardonnay reveals a spectrum of styles, from taut and mineral-driven to richly textured and barrel-aged.  Here is an unoaked and an unoaked Chardonnay from two different wineries:  Featherstone Estate Winery Unoaked…

Cabernet Franc has found a remarkable home in the diverse terroirs of Ontario, producing wines that are both vibrant and distinctive. Over the past several months I’ve tasted through 28 different bottles of Cabernet Franc, primarily from the Niagara peninsula, but also two bottles from Prince Edward County.  I wanted to examine how the unique climate and soil composition of the Niagara Peninsula,…

These next two Ontario Cabernet Franc wines come from a slightly different area than the other Ontario wines, I’ve been tasting so far.  Prince Edward County is a small region jutting into the north side of Lake Ontario.  It has a cooler climate compared to the Niagara region on the south side of Lake Ontario.  This area is best known…

This is my seventh year interviewing winemakers or winery principals in Ontario about their latest grape harvest and wine production.  Now that it is early December and the wines are all in tanks or barrels, how did the Ontario grape growing season and harvest fare?  I interviewed three winemakers/winery principals this year: Chris Thompson, Winemaker at Lighthall Vineyards in Prince Edward…

This is my fourth year interviewing winemakers in Ontario about their latest grape harvest and wine production.  To get a more complete picture of the harvest I asked the following questions to three winemakers in three different grape growing regions of southern Ontario, which should have some differences in climate and harvest.   The three winemakers I interviewed this year are:…

Red Tail Vineyards Pinot Noir 2018 (ON $24 for 2019 vintage) I’ve raved about Ontario Pinot before, and well, I’m here to tell you I probably won’t ever stop. And the latest Ontario Pinot that I devoured was Red Tail Vineyards Pinot Noir 2018. This was a smooth traditional tasting cool-climate Pinot that was light-bodied with a medium finish. It…

Grange of Prince Edward Winery Unfiltered Pinot Noir 2016 (ON $35.99 from Fresh City Farms) I haven’t featured an Ontario wine in a while, so it’s only fitting that I share one of my fave Pinot Noirs. If you don’t know this already, Ontario makes fantastic Pinot. Our terroir and climate makes that diva grape shine – and honestly, I…

Closson Chase Vineyards 2018 Closson Chase Vineyard Pinot Noir (ON $36) One of my favorite dishes to make for dinner year-round is risotto. I find it so versatile – really you can use whatever is in season to create a unique risotto every time. So the other night, I was making a risotto with a bunch of veggies I had…

Hinterland Wine Co. Rosé 2016 Method Traditional (ON $39.75) Back after a few days in the woods and since I’ve been on a bubbly kick lately, it really should come as no surprise that one of the wines I packed for the getaway was a rosé bubbly. This one is a local beauty from Hinterland Wine Co. in Prince Edward…

Grange of Prince Edward 2013 County Crémant (ON $38) Today I wanted to highlight a beautiful sparkling wine from Prince Edward County, Ontario. Grange of Prince Edward’s 2013 County Crémant – becomes sometimes midweek just calls for bubbles.  Am I right? First off, this colour, it’s so aesthetically pleasing.  The grape varietals used in this crémant are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir,…