Canada Wine Tasting #WeekendWinedown

Tawse Quarry Road Vineyard Riesling 2016 (Niagara Peninsula, Canada): On the nose rubber ball, lemon, lime, apricot, green apple, honey, honeysuckle, and flint minerality. On the palate this wine was off-dry with medium minus alcohol and body, high acidity, and medium length and complexity. Notes of lemon, orange, sugared grapefruit, honey, apple, apricot, and flint. 

Dirty Laundry Vineyard Woo Woo Gewürztraminer 2015 (Okanagan Valley, Canada): Glue stick, yellow apple, lychee, dole peach cup, mango, rose water, and crushed rock minerality. On the palate this wine was dry with medium plus alcohol, acidity, length, and complexity, and medium body. Notes of yellow apple, rose water, lychee, peach cup, mango, wine gums, apricot, peach pit, almond, and crushed rock minerality. On the nose it smells sweet and has an oily texture on the palate. 

Stanners Chardonnay 2015 (Niagara Peninsula, Canada): On the nose burnt popcorn, cream corn, nutty, banana, bruised apple, apricot, honey, caramel, butterscotch, pineapple, apple blossom, smoke, burnt, subtle mushroom, and wet stone minerality. On the palate less burnt and more fruit forward. Dry wine with medium minus alcohol, medium plus acidity and complexity, and medium body and length. Notes of buttered popcorn, apricot, peach, apple, lemon, pineapple, peach yogurt, spice, almond, crushed rock, and a creamy mouth feel. 

Hidden Bench Pinot Noir 2016 (Niagara Peninsula, Canada): On the nose cherry, strawberry, rhubarb, baking spices, roses, twizzlers, cinnamon (big feet), meaty, iron, vanilla, tomato vine, black tea, beer root, and forest floor. On the palate this wine was dry with medium alcohol, body, and length, medium minus tannin, high acidity, and medium plus complexity. Notes of beet root, cherry, cranberry, black tea, baking spices, cinnamon, roses, strawberry, iron, and forest floor.

Stratus Cabernet Franc 2015 (Niagara-on-the-Lake, Canada): On the nose cherry, strawberry, rhubarb, vanilla, black pepper, baking spices, jalapeños, smoke, blackberry, raspberry, earl grey tea, tobacco, graphite, floral, and forest floor. On the palate this wine was dry with medium plus alcohol, body, and complexity, high acidity, and medium tannins and length. Notes of baking spices, raspberry, strawberry, blackberry, black tea, dark chocolate, vanilla, and forest floor.

Painted Rock Estate Growth Syrah 2014 (Okanagan Valley, Canada): On the nose dried herbs, tobacco, savoury meat, wood, smoke, tomato vine, leather, cherry cola, blueberry jam, green veggie stems, wet earth, and slight confection. On the palate this wine was dry with high alcohol, medium tannin, and medium plus acidity, body, length, and complexity. Notes of tomato vine, cherry cola, blueberry, blackberry, iron, black tea, cured meat, smoke, peppercorn, rare steak, chocolate, and dried earth. 

Viewpointe Lake Erie North Shore Cabernet Merlot 2010 (Ontario, Canada): On the nose black tea, menthol, black pepper, blackberry, smoke, leather, tomato, iron, barnyard, stewed plums and cherries, cilantro, ginger, cedar, vanilla, baking spices, and graphite. On the palate this wine was dry with medium plus alcohol, tannins, body, and complexion, high acidity, and a long finish. Notes mirrored nose with strawberry rhubarb jam, chocolate, baking spice, green pepper, cherry, and cloves. 

Osoyoos Larose Red Blend 2014 (British Columbia, Canada): On the nose ripe fruit, such as raspberry, strawberry, blackberry, plum, and black cherry, menthol, green pepper, vanilla, baking spices, mocha, chocolate, cedar, graphite, and fresh turned earth. On the palate this wine was dry with medium plus structure, and a full body. Notes mirrored the nose, however chocolate fondue covered fruits, and more mocha/chocolate presence.

Inniskillin Vidal Icewine 2015 (Niagara Peninsula, Canada): On the nose lychee, apricot, peach, pineapple, honey, lemon, and steel. It was an apricot bomb on the palate, with other nose notes as the backdrop. This wine was sweet with low alcohol, high acidity, and full body.