Current Vintages
Each year we release a selection of wines based on their readiness. As we produce such small quantities, it is not unusual for us to sell out within days for our most popular wines, and weeks for the rest.
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Red Wines
VINTAGE: 2020
Block: Clone 7 & Clone 100
CASES: 108
RELEASE DATE: June 2023
PRICE: $65.20
Tasting notes:
One thing I love about making Syrah in a climate like Niagara is the vast array of wine styles possible based on vintage variation. The core terroir elements (pepper, floral notes, smoked meat, dark chocolate) are always present, but there appears to be an endless continuum of fruit components and savoury textural elements based on the vintage. As a youthful winemaker, I used to worry that this meant inconsistent wines, but now I fully embrace the differences. Enjoying a 2019 and 2020 Syrah side by side can illustrate this wonderful contrast in styles.
The 2020 Five Rows Syrah is a bold, ripe wine; exhibiting flavours, textures and colour that probably make it a bit of a one-off based on previous vintages. For those who prefer a more mellow Syrah, you may want to give it some time in bottle (3+ years).
VINTAGE: 2020
BLOCK: Old Block & Clone 169
CASES: 108
RELEASE DATE: June 2023
PRICE: $65.20
Tasting notes:
The vintage conditions in 2020 were the perfect recipe to unlock the potential ripeness of Cabernet Sauvignon in Niagara. Having said that, there is still an underlying elegance to this wine that belies its bold exterior. The aromas are intense, invoking notes of black currant, cherry, violets and vanilla. Given the requisite time to fully mature, this could be a wine that we look back on as a benchmark among those made from our fruit.
VINTAGE: 2020
BLOCK: Old Block
CASES: 122
RELEASE DATE: june 2023
PRICE: $65.20
Tasting notes:
The 2020 vintage was characterized by an early budbreak and some long stretches of the hot and dry conditions that winemakers dream about. There were the usual challenges, but ultimately the fruit came in ripe and beautiful on September 18th (21.6 degrees Brix, 7.0 g/L TA). Whole clusters were added to two separate bins (10%) and then filled with destemmed berries (90%). The clean fruit was allowed to soak in the bins for seven days before natural fermentation began.
Fermentations were punched down by hand three times daily, reached a peak temperature of 30C, and were dry after seven days. The new wines were pressed after a five-day post ferment maceration. Five French oak barrels were filled (20% new oak) and allowed to undergo malolactic fermentation over the next couple of months. The wine spent 24 months in oak before bottling 122 cases on April 6th, 2023.
I am in love with this Pinot Noir right now, mainly due to its striking aromatics of ripe cherry, black currant jam and truffle/mushroom. It is very tempting to advise enjoying it now, but I'm sure it will evolve and improve over the next few years. If you like a Pinot that exhibits a bit of youthful tannin, then by all means give it a go!
White Wines
VINTAGE: 2022
BLOCK: Jean’s Block
CASES: 126
RELEASE DATE: June 2023
PRICE: $40.20
Tasting notes:
The 2022 vintage marked the earliest harvest date we've ever had for this varietal - September 16th. This was mainly due to the light crop in Jean's Block, approximately 25% of our normal yield. It is generally preferable for Riesling vines to carry a slightly higher crop load than our other aromatic white varietals, in an effort to maintain acidity through ripening. Therein lied the challenge in 2022, and we opted to harvest earlier than normal to preserve the delicate flavours and acidity (18.0 degrees Brix, 10.4 g/L TA).
I employed the usual regimen of two separate fermentation tanks, each inoculated with a different yeast strain (W15 and X5). I love the dynamic complexity that using these two yeasts provides. The X5 tank shows beautiful, intense tropical and floral aromas, while the W15 tends to have more of a traditional Riesling profile of apple, pear and peach. Together they are fermenting bliss!
Fermentations were carried out cool (10C) for about a month until the wines tasted balanced at a specific gravity of 1.005. The tanks were then blended and allowed to bulk age until bottling on April 6th 2023. Total production was 126 cases and final alcohol was 10.5%.
The knockout aromatics of this Riesling are the real standout of this vintage, with intertwined notes of apricot, Honey Crisp apple and orange blossom. I tend to lose myself a bit while nosing this wine before the crisp natural acidity snaps me back to.
VINTAGE: 2022
BLOCK: Old & Young Block
CASES: 177
RELEASE DATE: june 2023
PRICE: $45.20
Tasting notes:
A noticeably riper and rounder version than previous vintages, there is also a crisp core to this wine that I find irresistible. Aromas include peach, lychee and pineapple with flavours of peach candy most prominent at this stage of its evolution. To that end, I am far more bullish on the notion of aging Sauv Blanc these days. We recently cracked a 2013 SB that blew me away, shattering my notion that aromatic Sauv Blanc is best enjoyed within a year or two of release. The fact that this wine could transform in such an interesting way after ten years in bottle, whilst maintaining its hallmark tropical fruit aromatics, was truly eye-opening. Who knew?
VINTAGE: 2022
BLOCK: Clone 53
CASES: 0
RELEASE DATE: N/A
PRICE: N/A
Tasting notes:
Due to very low yields in 2022, we are very sad not to be able to offer this wine in our online portfolio this year. Thankfully, the vines seem to have come through winter in good shape and we hope to have a full crop again in 2023.