TasteCamp Day 3: Niagara, U.S.A. Population Potential

If you're a Canadian and ever wondered what it might have been like to visit Ontario wine country in the early days I'd suggest taking a trip across the boarder to visit the Niagara, New York wine route. Sharing the ancient glacial-shaped soils of Niagara, Ontario and its climate this is essentially one continuous region. But even if you've only ever done a day-trip to Niagara, Ontario's wine region it doesn't take long to realise things across the border are remarkably different. From talking to some of the winemakers, winery owners and wine workers at Tastecamp it comes down to this—Niagara, New York is at a much earlier stage in its development.

For all the issues Niagara, Ontario wineries face like laws limiting how and where they can sell or high taxes and costs making it virtually impossible to sell a quality wine under $12 a bottle there are many advantages to growing grapes in Ontario. Many of those advantages are hard-fought ones that Niagara, Ontario wineries have earned over the past three decades. The real key to it all is without a doubt VQA. Reading Linda Bramble's book you get the impression that wineries were both scared and motivated to improve quality as the talk of free trade via NAFTA and unfettered access for California and other foreign wine superpowers became a real possibility. Quality producers knew great wine could be made in Ontario but they also knew that the industry as whole needed time to establish itself as a quality producer and explore where its particular strengths might lie. One of the ways this was done was fighting for government incentive programs to pull out old labruscas and then hybrids for quality vinifera grapes which take at least three years before they begin to produce commercially. This never happened on the American side so the cost of a pull-out is entirely on the individual. Naturally there are still prime sites full of lubruscas there to this day. For these growers more money can be made growing these hardy prolific native grapes best suited for juices, jellies and eating than growing vinifera best suited wine. So without incentives or a unified body showing an alternative unless an individual has a passion for quality wine and money to burn there's not much of a reason for change. There are certainly a few passionate individuals leading the way but it will take some time, effort, money and likely a little heartbreak before things develop to the same level as Ontario.

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On such winery was Arrowhead Springs Growing vinifera on a modified Scott Henry trellis system, using rye and clover cover crops and fertilising with local horse manure as needed Duncan and Robin Ross have a focus on growing the best grapes they can. They also aren't afraid to experiment. They've barrel fermented some reds in local oak from from Key Stone Cooperage for instance. That's not a common practice given the difficulty of removing skins before barrel aging. After all barrels are meant to keep all but a bit of air out, let alone people, or else the wine inside would oxidise and ruin very quickly. One of Duncan Ross' favourite grapes to work with is Cabernet Franc for its hardiness against winter cold and disease pressure as well as its good yield. His 2008 was full of toasty oak-spice flavours as well as raspberry and some smoky tobacco notes.

Another memorable winery stop was Freedom Run. If you haven't heard of the Lockport winery you probably will soon because a recent purchase of 45 additional acres of pinot noir means the winery has five and half times the production than when it began. The fact that it is all pinot noir is also exceptional given that the persnickety grape is thin-skinned, prone to disease pressure and can turn on you if you so much as look at it funny. The sheer number is also significant considering that the terroir and pinot and chardonnay obsessed Le Clos Jordanne, co-owned by industry giants Constellation and Boisset, has 121 acres split between chardonnay and pinot noir. Six different 2010 pinot noir barrel samples were poured and all had an amazingly deep purple-ruby colour and a distinct bretty note that should be instantly recognisable to those who've have a Flemish sour ale. My favourite was probably the mixed vineyard blend which harmonized the characteristics of the single vineyard wines. It was full of black plum, raspberry and black cherry with medium plus acidity and a strong finish of bretty sour ale. Like a few wineries in Niagara, Ontario, most notably Foreign Affair the winery is also experimenting using the appassimento process of drying grapes to highlight and concentrate flavours.

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One winery to look out for is Leonard Oakes. The Medina, NY winery is one of the furthest east in the region and they are growing a mix of hardier hybrids and vinifera trying to figure what works best in the their corner of it. The winery's winemaker Jonathan Oakes graduated from the viticulture program at Niagara College and trained under Brian Schmidt at Vineland. That experience shows in this reserve riesling. With flavours and aromas of juicy lime, smoky gun flint and crushed rock it's a classic cool climate riesling from Niagara. It's also perfectly balanced down the middle when it comes to sweetness, mouthfeel and acidity letting the flavours shine through. It would be really interesting to see what he could do with some Weis 21B clone riesling which he'd love to plant if he could get his hands on some vines. His vidal icewine shows his Canadian training as well. It's classic Niagara with the sweet flavours of honeyed apricots, peach and pineapple flavours and aromas. What's makes it exceptional is it possesses the balancing acidity which can often be lacking in vidal icewine.

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One of the curious things common throughout the Niagara, New York reds was deep colour almost always at the medium plus level of intensity even in thinner skin varieties known to be fairly light in colour like pinot noir. In some cases producers are using enzymes like Color pro to aid in the extraction. The reason is that local market prefers its wine deeply coloured. What's a bit odd with this is that on the whole the body of the wines was lighter than the colour would lead you to believe—almost always a medium minus intensity even in cabernets, malbecs and syrahs. It was an interesting dichotomy that I would be be interested to see again if it changes in a few years as the vines get a bit more age. The other thing to keep an eye out for in Niagara, New York is the creation of a body made of industry producers to promote and push the industry forward. Both the VQA and Wine Council of Ontario have been instrumental in creating the framework for quality standards as well as tireless promoters to both the public and government. There's talk of trying to set something up like the VQA with formal but voluntary quality-focused rules providing a base standard which will ideally push things forward on the American side. If the same holds as it did in Ontario the sooner this happens the better. So with land being very cheap, the industry in its early years and a climate shared with Niagara, Ontario its American counterpart is a region to keep a close eye on over the next decade. I know I'll be making my next visit sooner rather than later.

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TasteCamp Day 2: up on the Bench Where it's Crisp

The focus of day two of TasteCamp was the Bench. The Bench is a colloquial term used locally to describe the wineries east of St. Catharines that are located along the escarpment. Higher-up, with vines on slopes and deep limestone-rich clay soils it really is a remarkably different growing area than Niagara-on-the-Lake.

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The first stop was Tawse. In its ten years Tawse has made a name for itself as a quality-focused producer. Its big coming out party was winning the Canadian Wine Awards Winery of the Year in 2010 under Paul Pender who was also recently recognised as winemaker of the year in 2010 at the Ontario Wine Awards. Pender is as passionate as he is humble. He's a firm believer that good wine begins in the vineyard and as such he has led Tawse through its organic and biodynamic certifications. The most likely spot you'll probably find him is amongst the vines so it was fitting that he led the group on an abbreviated version of a vineyard tour that he took bloggers on last year. After a tour through the gravity flow facility Pender poured a blind tasting of Tawse's two flagship Chardonnays. One was Robyn's Block from the home Cherry Ave. vineyard and the other the eponymous chardonnay from the Quarry Road vineyard. The Quarry Road Chardonnay is more linear with a tight focused minerality. The Robyn's Block is also an elegant taught chardonnay but it had a roundness and depth of flavour to go along with the pear, citrus and mineral-rich core. The wines taste quite different. Given that the winemaker and winemaking is identical it's a strong argument that terroir matters. But it's also an argument that vine age matters. Entering into its fourth decade Robyn's block is one of the oldest chardonnay plantings in Niagara. If you've followed Tawse for some time you know that Robyn's Block has evolved over time depending on who was making the wine at the time, but the current style with just enough oak to give it structure has been winning critical and consumer praise with elegance.

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Post-Tawse it was a visit to the house that Weis built—Vineland estates Winery. Under the care of the Schmidt family this Twenty Mile bench winery, located high-up on the escarpment on Moyer Rd., has a well deserved reputation for making some world class riesling. Winemaker Brian Schmidt believes that the St. Urban vineyard, where the Hermann Weis planted his Mosel Riesling clone, is a perfect place on the bench for the grape. The choice grape of Germany is a bit strong willed. As Schmidt explained when he was younger he tried tweaks to force the vines to do things he thought would make a better wine. For example, thinning down drastically to concentrate flavours. The vines just ended-up doing as they pleased anyway by doing things like growing bigger berries to compensate for the thinning. Over the years Schmidt has come to terms with fact that he's merely the caretaker for the vines and that the vineyard is truly the winemaker of the St. Urban Riesling. Now riesling is certainly a terroir-driven grape but it still doesn't make itself. One of the key areas where a winemaker shows his or her skill with riesling is in the blend. Schmidt showed this by isolating a 2010 riesling sample from a portion of the St. Urban vineyard called Field D. This sample came from fruit that was left on the vines until mid-October and had some botrytis. Made in an off-dry style it had ripe peach, apricot and tangerine flavours. The ripe flavours were balanced by mouth-watering acidity. Although this wine was brilliant on its own when it was added to the grapefruit, orange blossom, lime and minerality of the blended sample it really was on a whole other level. If you've ever done a blending session of a single variety wine the layering of flavours and complexity you can get simply by blending fruit from different blocks and sites is truly remarkable.

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Next was a trip to Flat Rock and blends were also the name of the game. The Jordan winery has always thought a little differently from passionately embracing the screw cap across its entire line (even changing the VQA rules to do so in the case of its recent sparkling) to being one of the first to promote a crisp, aromatic white blend like its Twisted. It's also taken the attitude that wine doesn't need to be pretentious as proprietor Ed Madronich likes to say. It just needs to be good. Since rain kept us out the vineyard staff did a great job with a retooled itinerary of various activities. One of the most engaging was trying to guess the blend of Twisted by tasting all the individual components. As humbling as blind tasting is guessing the composition of blend is even more. It might seem easy since you know precisely what makes it up but nailing down the proportion of the Riesling, chardonnay and gewüztraminer isn't easy.

The finish of the evening was a TasteCamp tradition—the bring your own bottle dinner. This is a chance for the group to share a special wine and stories with their fellow attendees. This year's was at Treadwell Farm to Table Cuisine. Service was attentive while allowing this large group the freedom to mingle and chat. The standout dish of the meal was a cold mint and pea soup with a perfectly seared scallop. It was done well enough that the caramelisation brought out the natural sweetness of the mollusc but rare enough that it was still tender. The fresh bright flavours the of peas and mint also really complimented the scallop's inherit creaminess and the light briny ocean flavours. Between the food, the conversation and the special bottles from all over the world being shared it really is a one-of-kind experience that any oenophile would be lucky to attend.

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TasteCamp Day 1: the Place Where it all Started

With all due respect to Cooksville and growers on the Beamsville Bench the birth of the modern Niagara wine industry began about 35 years ago on the St. Davids Bench when Bosc family planted the first 100% vinifera vineyard in Canada. With the experts saying the decision was foolish at best and that the vines would all die come winter to say it was a big risk is an understatement. But the Boscs weren't worried. Any risk they take is a calculated one and with a lifetime of experience as a fifth generation winegrower patriarch Paul Bosc Sr. knew that the vines could not only survive but they could thrive with plenty of hard work. So it was only appropriate that the Niagara edition of TasteCamp began at Château des Charmes. A pay-your-own-way wine blogger conference with some meals free or highly subsidised, TasteCamp was created by Lenn Thompson of the New York Cork Report as a way to completely immerse writers in a region that they know little or nothing about. By the end of the tastings, the vineyard tours, the winemaker talks and dinners, attendees have a solid grasp on what the region is all about.

As anyone who has ever spoken to him knows Paul Bosc. Jr. delivered an all encompassing overview of his corner of Niagara—the St. Davids Bench. His passion and knowledge of the region is undeniable. Part history, part geology and part viticulture Bosc went a basic overview of how the melting of a glacier during the world's last glacial period shaped the soil and landscape of Niagara. As it receded and water pooled into the forebearer of Lake Ontario, plateaus along the edge of the escarpment were created. One of them is the St. Davids Bench. The term was coined by Bosc after he heard early Beamsville wineries and growers talk about the Beamsville Bench area compare to flatter land that makes up much of Niagara-on-the-Lake. Up against the escarpment the St. Davids Bench, which takes its name from the nearby town, has similar characteristics. But that's not the only thing that separates the St. Davids Bench from the rest of the region. It happens to be one of the areas of Niagara that enjoys a little more growing degree days than the average, some of the highest elevations, protection from some of the cooler winds and deep clay soils and underground rivers that ensure the vines get the needed moisture even in a drought year. As Bosc explained the differences were first fleshed out by Brock University professor Simon J. Haynes. His research along with further work by fellow professor Anthony Shaw formed the basis for the VQA sub-appellations.

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St. Davids Bench is also an area steeped in history. As Bosc explained the town of St. Davids took its name from Major David Secord—a solider and politician in the late 18th and early 19th century when the country was still being settled and there were regular battles for bordering land with the Americans. You may also be familiar with his sister-in-law Laura whose bravery during the War of 1812 is the stuff of legend. Although knowing this isn't critical to enjoying the wine geography is. The g-word is so inextricably tied to and shaped by history that knowing it adds to the enjoyment of anything tied to the land to the extent that wine is. After all if it added nothing to the conversation you'd simply buy the wine online or pick-it-up off the store shelf and never feel the desire to visit the winery.

Another one of Bosc's key points is that there's human intervention and hard work to bring out the natural terroir. Yes, I realise that may sound like a contradiction but the vast majority of vitis viniferia vines all over the world are either a non-native species grafted on native root stock (North America) or either a native species planted on non-native root stock (Europe). For the most part all over the world vines are cultivated, trained to grow in a trellis, thinned, pruned and all around babied to grow the best possible fruit. When you consider this there's a strong argument that there's a significant human intervention element to what we call terroir. Bosc stressed you can't be dumb and you can't be lazy about if you want the fruit to show its best. That's why at Château des Charmes the vines are trained very low and the space between the rows is left bare. This allows the fruit to get more reflective heat from the ground. It's also why vine cuttings are mulched back into the soil returning the nutrients.

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Post vineyard talk the Boscs hosted a lunch cooked by the team at Spencer's at the Waterfront. Seasonal, fresh and bright, the light yet substantial lunch was a true wine country fare. The star was an Asian salad featuring shoots, cilantro, cucumber, carrots, mango puree and sesame seeds. A little crunchy, a little spicy, a little salty and a little sweet it was really everything you'd want in a salad. The pairing worked remarkably well too. It was the preview of the 2010 Château des Charmes Paul Bosc vineyard Sauvignon Blanc. It was full of bright citrus, passion fruit and gooseberry flavours and aromas with a hint of grassiness. The wine had the mouth watering acidity and a medium plus roundness on the palate that perfectly compliment the dressing and mango puree respectively. It also brought out the natural bright flavours in the fresh greens and the umami of the fish sauce used in the dressing.

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Sauvignon Blanc was also a focus of the next stop Hillebrand. Winemaker Craig McDonald took over last year after Darryl Brooker departed for the Okanagan. McDonald was one half of the winemaking team at Creekside, a winery that has built an argument for those skeptical of Sauvignon Blanc's place in Niagara. So when McDonald had a chance to let us in on one of his experiments it was no surprise it was a Sauvignon Blanc.


The wine in both glasses he poured was from 2010 vintage. The one on the left could be described as nothing short of a topical fruit bomb with starfruit, gooseberry and some grass just under the surface, but what really stood out was the passion fruit. This was probably the closest I've come across in Niagara to a clean, ripe, tropical New Zealand-style Sauvignon Blanc. For fans of that distinct style this Trius is one to pick-up.

But it was the glass on the right that truly intrigued. It had a slight golden colour and aromas more on the citrus side of things. This is wine that preferred the whispering method of seduction. Full of lemon zest, pineapple, spice and hints of vanilla this one was more Sancerre than Marlborough. The oak treatment it had seen provided a richness and roundness that was lacking in the first wine but it was by no means flabby. There was a lingering minerality and spicy funkiness on the finish that gave this wine complexity and an intriguing spark that wasn't in the first wine. This one was the 2010 Showcase Wild Ferment Sauvignon Blanc. McDonald whole bunch pressed to maintain the freshness and put a carboy of juice out in the vineyard. When the yeast took-off and it checked-out clean that was used to kick-start the rest of the juice fermenting in barrel.

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Yeast is one of the most underrated factors affecting a wine's flavour. People tend to love the romanticism of terroir, the geeky nature of clones and even the nuisances provided by different barrels but yeast often gets forgotten. I'm glad it's something that's being embraced in Niagara. As McDonald explained the reason he's so keen on wild fermentation is that when you taste really great flavours from the grapes out in the vineyard “you want to capture that in the bottle.” And in his experience those native yeasts really pick-up on what's in the soil. He isn't the only terroir-focused winery with the same opinon of what native yeast brings either. Hidden Bench and Le Clos Jordanne are exclusively natural fermentation for the same reason.


Post-tour with McDonald there was a tasting at Hillebrand with some local wineries. One stand-out was the Lailey 2009 Old Vines Pinot Noir. Winemaker Derek Barnett has crafted a pinot lovers pinot. It's full of roses, sour cherry and mineral tension that lasts on the finish. With the medium plus acid and tannin to match I think this will be one to watch develop over the next few years. Some of my other favourites were a trio of cabernet francs from Thirty Bench (the sister Beamsville winery under the same ownership as Hillebrand). Although Thirty Bench gets much of its well deserved recognition for it riesling, the cabernet franc has been quietly becoming a star first under the care of Yorgos Papageorgiou, then Natalie Reynolds and now Emma Garner. Although the ripe rich bramble and dark cocoa on the 2005 was beautifully balanced with some strong minerality what really got me excited was the 2006 and 2008 vintages. The spicy herbal tobacco edge in these cooler vintage wines added an intriguing dimension to that dark chocolate and ripe red fruit flavours.

The evening was capped with a dinner at Ravine and talk by Peter Gamble and Ann Sperling. I've always gotten the feeling talking to either of these winemakers that they've probably forgot more about wine than I'll ever know. But there are a lot of passionate and knowledgeable people in the wine world. What sets them apart is their willingness to share both that passion and knowledge with you in as much detail as you'd like. You really do learn something new and valuable each time you speak to them so it was a pleasure to hear them speak about biodynamic and organic growing once again. If you look at it from a scientific perspective some of the cosmic aspects of biodynamics might illicit a raided eye brow. But the important aspect is that being lazy in the vineyard and practicing biodynamics in a climate like Niagara just isn't compatible. So whatever the reason behind the techniques anything that has you out in the vineyards as much as possible growing the best grapes you can is a very good thing. The other great argument Sperling made for organics and biodynamics was that with winery workers out in the vineyard so often and for extended periods of time anything you can do to reduce the spraying of herbicides or pesticides that require wearing protection can't be a bad thing. It's not to say that spraying happens very often in a conventional vineyard especially on the small-scale ones that make-up much of Niagara—the cost is prohibitive. The difference between convectional and organic or biodynamic growing is more like the divide between preventative and reactive. If you can set yourself up to be in a situation where you're healthy with rest, a good diet, and exercise you're not likely to be sick. But should you get seriously ill it's nice to know there's the option for a conventionally accepted medical treatment. That's why even biodynamics allows the use of a copper-sulfur Bordeaux spray when there's very serious trouble in the vineyard.

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Some of the stand out wines during dinner were the 2008 Whimsy! Cabernet Franc. Although the juicy brambly ripeness of the 2007 is fantastic the tobacco undertone and the ripe red raspberry and cocoa make this the wine I'd reach for first. The high acid and medium tannins went beautifully with the roast suckling pig and crispest cracklings I've ever had. The 2007 Ravine Reserve Merlot was also a standout. Gamble isn't interested in making big showy wines, he prefers a little restraint and elegance—that's what you'll find in this wine. With black plum, black raspberry and violet flavours. With good acid structure and silky tannins it's drinking well now, but you get the feeling that it's holding back a bit and will really blossom with some time in the cellar. My favourite wine of the day was the 2005 Poetica Chardonnay poured from a magnum. It was everything you could want in an aged chardonnay. Lemon, peach, a bit of oak spice, funk and a caramel note that bordered on fudgy. It was round and beautiful but had the acid and minerality to keep it from being flabby. It won't appeal to those that prefer their whites steely and lean but it's a good example of how chardonnay can deliver something special in the hands of a good winemaker, the right oak and a bit of age. To me that's always a great way to end an evening.