I was fortunate enough to head to Nova Scotia wine country with a fellow new CAPS certified Sommelier, Billy. We spent 3 days, 2 nights exploring what N.S. wine country had to offer and trust me, we were both impressed.
We flew to Halifax from Toronto, rented a car and drove one-hour north-west to Wolfville. This was in the heart of the Gaspereau Valley which is a subregion of the much larger Annapolis Valley.
It is located in the western part of the Nova Scotia peninsula, formed by a trough between two parallel mountain ranges along the shore of the Bay of Fundy. What makes the Annapolis valley special is its ability to warm up and grow fruit, specifically grapes. Most of the wineries are located at the north-east tip of the valley on the Minas Basin, a part of the Bay of Fundy. This basin helps to bring in the moderating air which helps to keep things cool on hot days and warm on cool nights.
Luckett Vineyards.
I started with their 2016 L'Acadie. I love how they age 1/3rd of the wine in Hungarian oak for 8 months to soften this rather fresh crisp white wine. It's simple, fresh, softer from the oak and full of stone fruit. I loved it.
Next up, their Tidal bay. Let me set the record straight because there are even some wine bars in Toronto that label their wine as Tidal Bay implying a specific location, which it is not because it is a style. For a wine to be called Tidal bay up to 19 different varietals of grapes can be used but have to be grown in Nova Scotia, see no oak, be between 9-11% ABV and most importantly have a similar characteristic of a fresh crisp white wine. There is a formal tasting panel which will either approve or disapprove of a wine to be called, Tidal Bay. I enjoyed this wine as it was very crisp, fresh, full of salinity and balanced, perfect with lobster!
Next up was their 2017 Rosetta, a blush wine made from Marechal Joffree and L’Acadie. It had a nice spritz, fresh, crisp attitude perfect for a patio and seafood. Luckily it just happened to be a beautiful sunny 15C day outside with no wind.
Next up, their 2016 Triumphe which was a good effort at a big red but not my cup of tea. It was like a car with sports exhaust speeding down the street...just a tad too loud and big for me. I look for a bit more of a velvet wrapped iron first as opposed to just the iron fist.
That being said, I want to talk about the 2016 Phone Box Red for a minute. This wine offered raisin, prune and stewed black fruit from a blend of partially dried Lucie Kuhlmann, Marechal Foch, Castel and Leon Millot. Aged in Hungarian and American oak barrels for 14 months this wine was quite nice and I picked up a bottle for home. I'd pair this with braised meats like a nice winters stew. Nova Scotia Red, who would have thought?
We also tried "The Old Bill" which was another big red and their Vidal ice wine. The Ice Wine as you can imagine in this cool climate was amazing while the red was in my opinion, ok.
I'll be honest, I was not blown away by these "Big Red's" that every winery seems to have a passion for. I can appreciate the motivation for diversifying, I can appreciate the want to satisfy the red wine drinkers, I can appreciate how these wineries may be planning on a warming future with climate change but as it stands right now, I'll stick mostly to white and bubbles while out east.
I'll say it again so I don't upset anyone, I picked up a bottle of the 2016 Phone Box Red as I did enjoy it but if I had to sum of my trip thus far on Nova Scotia wine it would have been Bubbles and Icewine first, whites second and big red's last. I'm not being cold, just the climate is.
I have to hand it to Drew at Luckett who passionately defended their decision to make several red's because he is part of a cultural push to help bring Nova Scotia out of only whites and bubbles into reds. Perhaps he is ahead of his time and I have my head in the sand because I am a traditionalist in both varietals and styles. I'm only going on pure instinct for what tastes good as a trained sommelier. I do however believe that in 10 years or more Luckett with will be an excellent producer of red wine as time may be beneficial for these vines to age and the climate to warm.
This is what is so beautiful about Nova Scotia wine county and yet slightly tragic. Its current tragedy is its very cool climate which prevents them from growing warmer climate varietals well. The beautiful part, however, is that their same cool climate is what will help place itself on the international map in the future. With alcohol levels and ripeness surging higher and higher due to a warming climate these pockets of cool climate viticulture will surely shine brightly into the future.
We also had a chance to make it to Blomidon Provincial Park at low tide, simply stunning. I highly recommend you check it out!
Where else can you drink world-class locally grown wine, walk on Mars and then eat some of the freshest seafood you've ever had?
Why Nova Scotia Wine Country of course!
Happy Sipping,
Ryan Sullivan
