The Cuvee Awards celebrate Ontario's wines with a grand ceremony, like the Oscars of wine, every year. I've highlighted the best of the reds, whites and sparklers because, high above King Street, I had a preview of the shortlist... ** UPDATED**
The fog and rain sort of ruined the view from the 68th floor of the First Canadian Place, but the room sure was nice anyway. There was a media tasting of the shortlist of 50 or so wines chosen by a panel of Niagara winemakers, movers and shakers that will be in this year's Cuvee competition. There are a number of categories, including Best Red, Best White, Best Sparkling, and then other grape varietal awards.
This year, over 50 wineries are participating in the gala and judging and, while that's a lot, it's less than half of the number of wineries in Ontario. Additionally, it is up to the wineries to choose which three of their wines to submit. So while this is a good broad representation of wines, it's not comprehensive.
General impression: as usual it was the whites I liked best, but I was disappointed that I didn't get excited by more of the reds. They were mostly from 2006, which wasn't a great year, and, though 2007 is talked up as an excellent year... I don't know. They're all drinkable for sure, and even nice (86 and 87 point scores mostly) but I didn't feel any of the reds merited a 90 point + score. The whites, on the other hand, averaged higher scores.
I tasted the wines blind courtesy of a numbered box system created by Michael Vaughan - it is useful both for not showing favouritism towards certain wineries and also checking varietal correctness. For example, I liked and guessed correctly on the one gamay. But of the six pinot noirs, I guessed that two of them were also gamays - a grape which can be very nice, but tends to lack the complexity a pinot can achieve. Less consequential were misfirings on the whites - I guessed a chardonnay musque (a Niagara specialty, rare elsewhere) as a viognier and that one of the gewurztraminers was a blend.
The winners of the Cuvee competition have now been released. I initially posted the 23 wines I think showed the best in February, with truncated notes. In case of a tie, my personal favourite has an asterisk. First the sparklings, then the reds, then the whites. I did not rank the icewines due to time constraints.
I was a bit miffed that five of the wines that won mentions were not presented at the Toronto tasting - I might have rated them well... worse, I did not score the winning red because I thought my sample was off (as opposed to a generally bad wine): I had a note to "re-taste from new bottle" but the tasting ended before I could do that.
These bumps in the road make it difficult to compare where my palate stands in relation to the judges. Nevertheless, the judges and I concurred on 16 wines being noteworthy and, of the wines I tasted in Toronto, I liked 7 that they did not award anything to and they liked 5 wines that I didn't consider noteworthy.
The 16 wines I picked that also won awards have their names in bold.
The winning red - Small Lot Cabernet Franc by Thirty Bench - costs $35 and the winning white - Cattail Creek Estate Winery Barrel Fermented Chardonnay - costs $19. See the list of winners here.
My Sparkling Wine Picks
VIEW Old Vines Brut 2006. Maleta Estate Winery. $27.95
Fairly muted nose with apple. Lively bubbles, rich lemon fruit with a sweet note, ripe stone fruit, bigger, fuller body, good finish. 89 points
* Cuvee Catherine Brut NV. Henry of Pelham Winery. $29.95
Quite ripe apple fruit and a nutty note on the nose. Small and elegant bubbles, nice mousse. Good acidity, a sweetish note with some honey, hint of oak. 88 points.
Showcase Sparkling Riesling 2006. Hillebrand Estate Winery. $35.00
Minerally nose with white fruit and a tropical hint. Muted bubbles, a lemon note, very dry, light and elegant. Good finish. 88 points.
My Top Ten Reds
Pinot Noir 2007. Flat Rock Cellars. $19.95
Muted nose of dark red berry fruit. Smooth and fresh on the palate. Tannins high but balanced. Good cherry fruit that's a little restrained. Nice finish. 89 points.
Reserve Cabernet Franc 2006. Stoney Ridge Estate Winery. $29.95
Restrained but ripe red fruit on the nose. Smooth, elegant palate which has sour cherries and tobacco. 88+ points
* Gamay Sandstone Old Vines 2006. 13th Street Winery. $25
Very light colour, spicy nose with red cherry fruit. Smooth and ripe on the palate, which has more spice, some oaky notes and a nice finish. 88+ points
Pinot Noir 2007. EastDell Estates. $14.95
Very pale colour, cherry and strawberry on the nose, which is quite bold. This pinot feels like a Beaujolais, but with a darker, meatier edge - more serious. Light but nice fruit. 88 points
Dean's List Pinot Noir 2007. Niagara College Teaching Winery. $32.95
Dark cherries on the nose, which has a hint of balsamic. Very fresh cherry fruit on the palate, which is nicely oaked and has medium tannins. 88 points
* Grange Cabernet Franc Northfield Block 2007. Grange of Prince Edward Estate Winery. $29.80
Light red fruit on the rather elegant nose, which has a slight powder note. Smooth and sleek on the palate, which has ripe cherry fruit and a darker oaky note. Very light for a cab franc - but that can happen. 88 points
Shiraz Cabernet 2006. Wayne Gretzky Estates. $22.95
Lively spicy nose with light red fruit. Very spicy on the palate, which has sour cherries. Acidity and tannins both high, but it's smooth. 87+ points
Merlot 2006. Harvest Estate Winery. $14.95
Very ripe cherry and plum fruit with a hint of spice on the nose. Cigar notes, powdery vanilla, smooth on palate. 87+ points
* Cabernet Shiraz 2007. Dan Aykroyd Winery. $16.95
Rich and fruity nose - a little bit candied - with a vanilla note. Super smooth and simple on the palate - easy drinking - but wonderfully ripe plummy, cherry fruit and a nice finish. 87+ points
Cabernet Merlot Reserve 2006 Pelee Island Winery. $14.95
Dark red fruit with a slight sourness and a woody note on the nose. Fairly smooth on the palate, which has sour cherries and wood. 87+ points
My Top Ten Whites
Sketches of Niagara Riesling 2007. Tawse Winery. $18
Petrol hint and light lime fruit on nose. Acidity +, ripe fruit including lime and pineapple. 90 points.
* Signature Series Sur Lie Chardonnay 2007. Peller Estates Winery. $30
Rich muted nose with vanilla note. Woody feel on palate, acidity +, smoke note, smooth, yellow plum fruit, good finish. 90 points
Triomphe Chardonnay 2006. Southbrook Vineyards. $21.95
Great oaky nose - toast and smoke over lemon and apple. Fresh lemon, reasonably muted oak notes, toast, green apple. 90 points.
* Twin Barrel Chardonnay 2006. Hernder Estates Winery. $32.95
Muted, elegant., clean, ripe yellow plum and sweet oak note. Very oaky on palate, with vanilla and lemon. Smooth. On the lighter side. 89+ points
Elevation Chardonnay 2007. Vineland Estates Winery. $25.20
Light and minerally nose with a bit of lemon. Smooth lemon fruit with a sweet note, some yellow plum. NIce finish with again a sweetish note. 89+ points.
Riesling 2006. Angels Gate Winery. $16.00
Lightly aromatic, with white fruit and some lime. Smooth and fairly full, ripe peach fruit, lime, good lingering finish. I highlighted this wine as "good value" in a release last March (when it was $13.95) and gave it 88 points... it's now even better (and pricier): a reminder that rieslings can improve with age. 89 points.
Sauvignon Blanc Wismer Vineyards. Peninsula Ridge Estates Vineyard. $18.75
Bold and even aromatic nose with ripe peach/nectarine notes. Smooth and fairly full bodied, lemon, white fruit, a floral note and a herbaceous undertone. 89 points.
* Riesling Reserve 2003. Legends Estate Winery. $29.00
Darker and muted nose, ripe white fruit, bit of petrol. Smooth and ripe on palate, ripe apricot, apples, very smooth. 88 points
Gewurztraminer 2007. Calamus Estate Winery. $15.20
Aromatic and powdery nose of light white fruit. Rich fruit on palate, which is off dry and has a grapey note. Good acidity to balance. 88 points.
Viognier 2007. Creekside Estate Winery. $24.95
Muted nose with aromatic notes, a bit of lemon and some white fruit. Floral hints on palate, tropical fruit and lime. Nice finish. 88 points
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