Benjamin Bridge, Nova Scotia

Hey Fellow Winos

I was fortunate enough to head to Nova Scotia wine country with a fellow new CAPS certified Sommelier, SommBilly (Instagram). 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, in the heart of the Gaspereau Valley, a subsection of the much larger Annapolis Valley. The Annapolis Valley is a valley and region in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. 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 with 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. 

In early June of this year, an epic frost wreaked havoc in the vineyards of Nova Scotia. In some parts of wine country, it got as low as -4C while the buds were flowing and it killed for some vineyards vines upwards of 60% or more which is truly devastating. Some vineyards were less affected, but with even, a 10% reduction in vines could mean the difference between profit and loss for the whole year with 50% potentially putting you out of business. This was very serious with one winery manager referring to it as a "100 years frost". 

I spoke with several wineries about what could have been done to save more vines and solutions from flying helicopters over the vines to blow down warmer air, windmills to spread warmer air downwards, spraying the vines with water to cacoon the vine in ice to literally burning fires in each row of vines to try and keep things above 0C. One winery, for which I will not mention, lit hay bales on fire in each vineyard row and had a person monitoring each bale all night long only to have the fire department show up because someone though the whole vineyard and winery was on fire. 

The winery employee agreed perhaps a bit of notice to the fire department would have been a good idea but at the moment it was pure hysteria with all hands on deck to try and save the vines. No one in the wine business slept that night as it was the night from hell. Some wineries were more fortunate than others and hopefully, with lessons learned, better techniques and practices will be able to better tackle another epic frost if it strikes again. The 2018 vintage will be a special vintage, even if a bit tragic. 

Below are three photos of Chablis, Northern Burgundy, France, during their epic frost of 2017. #ClimateChange 

Onto Benjamin Bridge. 

I'll be honest, I have a strong bias towards Benjamin Bridge. I've been sipping their wine for a few years now and even my amateur photography skills have landed me in one of their ad campaigns. I guess I just feel a love for them. Just know I will be honest in my review.  

We pulled up to BB to have Brent meet us for an afternoon tasting. Brent and I have been chatting on Instagram just prior to the trip so I was happy to meet him in person. You can find BrentWinsor on Instagram and for some shameless self-promotion, RyansWinePicks on Instagram as well. 

We were driven around the vineyard to check out the different vines with a little BB NV Brut. This must be how the rich and famous live...or so I could only believe. 

After some exploring, back to the main hub where there was a large heated tent for a more serious tasting. 

We sat down and started with a 2013 Brut Reserve which was 71% Chardonnay and 29% Pinot Noir with 4 years lees ageing. It was a big, rich, complex and quite an exquisite sparkling wine. 

Then we cracked the 2012 BB Brut Reserve. This sparkling wine was made from 65% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Noir and 10% Meunier. This wine was made under the expert guidance of winemakers Peter J. Gamble, Jean-Benoit Deslauriers and the late Raphaël Brisbois as this was his last vintage. I told Brent I like rich champagnes like Bollinger that have a good amount of Pinot Noir and Meunier over chardonnay and this one delivered. While it was made with over 50% chardonnay it was quite rich, voluptuous and stunning. This had to be the best sparkling wine I have ever had that was made in Canada! The richness, minerality, the salinity, the complexity....the lengthhhhhhhhhhh. Grand Cru Champagne quality with a Moet price. 

Next up, their 2013 Sparkling Rose made from 66% Pinot Noir, 23% Pinot Meunier, 11% Chardonnay. It was good but I never been blown away by a sparkling rose before, perhaps that's just me. Last Christmas my partner and I had Lobster Benedict with their Sparkling Rose and while solid stuff, it just didn't tickle me like the 2012 Brut Reserve did. 

Here is where things started to get interesting as we tried their small lot 2016 Chardonnay. Let's set the record straight here, I came out east expecting to taste some fabulous bubbles, some ok white's and what I assumed was pretty rough red's. The reason sparkling wine does so well out here is the climate is so cool the grapes only ripen so much, leaving a lower sugar and higher acid content perfect for sparkling wine. The reason there are so many hybrids out here is that most Vitis Vinifera doesn't do well out here. Varietals like Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon simply don't get the heat units they require to fully rippen....or so I thought. 

The 2016 Chardonnay was on the vines ripening until late October. For some perspective, in Burgundy, they have been picking as early as August lately due to climate change. This wine had 2-day skin contact, wild ferment, French oak barrels and gravity fed. The intense minerality, salinity, elegant oak use, this was probably my favourite wine of the trip next to my beloved 2012 Brut Reserve. Biased? Taste it for yourself and tell me otherwise! 

We dived into the 2016 Cabernet Franc. The nose, quite floral and pretty but the palate was lean and mean. I argued again how it was too cool to grow this type of wine out here to which Brent, much like Drew at Luckett, disagreed with me. I think in 10-20 years time when these vines are old and the climate is warmer I think this Cabernet Franc will do wonders, but for now, I'll slide that in the "maybe later" category. 

One thing that was a first for me, was trying a base wine for their future sparkling wines. We tried a fully fermented Chardonnay from one of their concrete eggs. Brent asked us "Can't you taste how rich this Chardonnay is" to which my fellow sommelier and friend Billy looked at each other in confusion. Compared to the French oaked chardonnay we tried before, this was battery acid. I started to wonder if my palate had suddenly stalled, have I lost my mind. We finally clued in that he meant rich for a sparkling base wine. I've never had a sparkling base wine before (before the second fermentation to make the bubbles) but as I have read it is low alcohol, low sugar and very high acid. I'm a trained Sommelier who can taste finished wines and tell you everything about them but to be a winemaker and know which ratio of these different acidic base wines to blend to know how they will taste after their second fermentation and 20 years in the bottle is quite frankly mind-blowing. To make wine you have to see what the future has in store for a wine, much like witchcraft. 

Let's take a minute and congratulate all of the winemakers in Nova Scotia for battling the brutal cool climate while striving for greatness.

We thanked Brent for a great afternoon only to have the cellar master drag us back into the facility for a Pinot Noir barrel sampling as we were walking out. 

What a day, only to be finished at Le Caveau Restaurant. If you let Kim the Sommelier pair your wines with dinner, she won't disappoint. The highlight was trying for the first time, a Chasselas Ice Wine from Lightfoot and Wolfville Vineyards. FYI, I have never head of Chasselas grown outside of Switzerland, let alone Nova Scotia. 

What a trip!

Happy Sipping, 

Ryan Sullivan 

Canadian Thanksgiving

Hey, fellow winos, it’s Ryan

I’m sitting here in my parent’s backyard in Kelowna, British Columbia. It’s a beautiful sunny fall afternoon but you can definitely tell the cold weather is slowly moving in. The sun is shining, the sky is blue but the leaves are starting to turn that beautiful golden colour. It’s Thanksgiving weekend.

I thought that since we are having Canadian Thanksgiving, let's choose a selection of Canadian wines that I think would be perfect for your family’s table this weekend. Sure I could recommend some Beaujolais from France or some Gewürztraminer from Germany but let’s drink local this weekend and celebrate our nations finest. 

Everything I'm recommending below pairs well with chicken, turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, squash, and into dessert... you name it-I'm pairing it. 

N.V. Henry Of Pelham, Cuvée Catharine Rosé Brut, Niagara Peninsula, Canada at $29.95
"Pale salmon colour with fine beads; enticing aromas of brioche, wild strawberry and lemon curd; extra dry, medium bodied, with flavours of biscuits, strawberry rhubarb pie, fresh apples and a creamy textured mousse." Says the LCBO. 

2017 Closson Chase K.J. Watson Vineyard, Pinot Gris, P.E.C. Canada at $22.95
"Honey-dipped pear, apricot and exotic spice aromas are precursors to a luscious balanced and beautiful gusher of racy lemon curd and pineapple interwoven with tingly spice on the palate and a dry, lip-smacking finish. This is medium weight and unoaked with plenty of creamy-smooth mouthfeels and mouth-watering, mineral-laced aftertaste; it's crisp, clean and refreshing," says Vic Harradine from winecurrent.com. 

2015 Charles Baker Picone Vineyard Riesling, Niagara Peninsula, Canada at $37.20

"... only very recently bottled ... and done entirely up with a wild, indigenous ferment. Youth calls out as the understatement in where this sits ... Citrus never had it so good in Picone and aridity is a five letter word. That word is not yet written but should see to utterance and put to paper in a year or so. For now, this needs some fat in your diet, like pork belly or some particularly sharp charcuterie" says Michael Godel from winealign.com 

2015 Culmina Dilemma Chardonnay, Okanagan Valley, Canada at $47.95

"Reminiscent of a lightly browned galette, Dilemma envelops the senses with pronounced baked apple, pear, mineral, and fresh green cardamom pod aromas. Integrated fresh tree fruit flavours follow, girdled together by stone, classic oak toast, and caramelized butter characters. A surprisingly firm acid backbone carries the generous palate through to the long, briny finish." as per producers tasting notes. For the nerds out there (like me) oak use was 35% New French Oak 35% Used French Oak 30% Stainless Steel. 

2016 Tawese Gamay Noir, Niagara Peninsula, Canada at $19.95 

Five years deep the Tawse Gamay continues down a (Côte de Brouilly) Beaujolais cru road with a consistency of style, making use of one-fifth new oak for eight months. The fruit darkens to variegated inflections of blackberry and black cherry with a decidedly toasty char. A silty streak of mineral salts runs through this meaty gamay like a vein of sapid caramel in a roll of bresaola. There is quite a bit of gastronomy in the '16 so it should be both food versatile and develop further character for two to three years. I see some licorice, porchetta in its not too distant future." says Michael Godel from winealign.com 

P.S. Don't forget to chill this one, at least a little bit. 

2016 Closson Chase Vineyard, Pinot Noir, P.E.C. Canada at $34.95

"Bright red fruit, cherries, smoked meat, earth and white pepper are displayed in the nose. The fruit carries through to the palette, dried cheery skins, beets, spices and the minerality that defines the County is all there. Floral nuances, cedar and those tea like tannins round out the finish." says Closson Chase. 

P.S. - This is a staple in my home, year after year! 

2015 Stratus, Cabernet Franc, Niagara Peninsula, Canada at $38.65

"With fourteen different blocs dating back to 1986, barrel and bloc selection always result in distinctive, complex and age-worthy Cabernet Franc from the Stratus vineyard. Aromatics of cassis, white pepper, steeped tea, black plum, oak char, and herbs de Provence crescendo into a well-structured and nicely balanced wine on the palate. The cool climate vibrancy of acidity and tannin is beautifully supported by ripe, sweet red and black fruits that echo throughout an ever-evolving finish." says Stratus. 

2016 Cave Spring, Indian Summer Riesling, Niagara Peninsula, Canada at $24.95
"This sweet wine offers aromas and flavours of apples and honey. It is balanced enough that it could be paired with spicy Asian noodle dishes, as there is ample acidity to curtail some of the sweetness. It is finished with 75 g/L residual sugar." says Paul Gregutt, Wine Enthusiast. 

Serve chilled in tiny glasses to sip and savour with dessert. 

Jackson-Triggs Reserve Vidal Ice Wine, Niagara Peninsula, Canada at $34.95"Nectar-like in both flavour and texture, this Icewine boasts delectable notes of honey and vanilla, which are perfectly complemented by bight green apple and citrus zest. The lush and creamy mouthfeel is perfectly supported by a vibrant, fresh acidity, while flavours of lemon candy linger on the finish," says Jackson-Triggs. 

Happy Sipping,

Ryan 

Top 4 - LCBO Vintages Release Saturday, April 28th

Hey, fellow wino’s I’ve chosen 4 terrific wines that you can pick up in store or order online today, and I suggest you give at least one of these a try. 

• 2016 Hidden Bench Estate Riesling, Niagara Escarpment, Canada at $23.95 “Hidden Bench places the purity of the fruit and the clarity of the expression of place first and foremost. To this end, they employ a non-interventionist approach to their winemaking, which includes the use of geothermal cooling and heating and natural yeasts. Since 2015/2016, the majority of the wines crafted at Hidden Bench, including this Riesling, are vegan-friendly and certified organic by Pro-Cert. Look for a zesty, mineral-rich wine with bright citrus, peach, and apple fruit.” Pair with Choucroute Garnie. 

• 2012 Château-Thébaud,Melon de Bourgogne,“Muscadet” Loire Valley, France at $24.95 “A smoky character on the nose, magnified by notes of white peach and salty minerals with intriguing hints of almond paste and white flowers. It has a richly textured, beautifully integrated palate with a rewarding zip of lychee and stone fruit. There is a lifted acid freshness with a satisfying, lingering finish; a very precise wine.” Pair with freshly shucked oysters or other shellfish. 

• 2014 Xanadu Chardonnay, Margaret River, Australia at $39.95 “Predominantly estate-grown on the Stevens Road and Lagan Vineyards, Gingin clone, hand-picked, whole bunch-pressed, and wild yeast-fermented in French oak (21% new), matured and stirred for 9 months. There is an inevitability about the very high quality of the Xanadu wines these days; thus this very intense and powerful, yet perfectly delineated and balanced wine is no surprise, nor is its extreme length.” Perfect for perhaps a Sunday roasted chicken. 

• 2013 Ramirez de la Piscina Crianza,Tempranillo, Rioja, Spain at $16.95 “Fresh and vibrant forest leaves and ripe berry fruits. The palate has a smooth, elegant and plush texture with cassis and black cherry fruit flavours.” Perfect for BBQ meats from hamburgers to steak.  

Happy Sipping, 

Ryan Sullivan