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FOUR FABULOUS CANADIAN WINES UNDER $15
By Carolyn Evans-Hammond, published in Outreach Connection and distributed privately,
I’m starting to be persuaded.
Truth be told, I’m often chided for not recommending more Canadian wine. I champion them when I can do so in good conscience but, as I’ve said before, this country’s wines don’t often compare well against similar ones from elsewhere. And quite frankly, there are solid reasons for this fact.
Compared with many other winemaking countries, we’re still in our quality wine infancy. Before the late 1980s, Canadians made wine from native Vitis Labrusca grapes such as the Concord variety, which makes great Welch’s grape jelly but not such great wine—and certainly not stuff worthy of competing on the world stage. Wine from Labrusca grapes tastes something like wet animal fur, an unpleasant characteristic known within the trade as “foxy”. Only in the last 20 years or so have growers switched to better quality vines—namely Vitis Vinifera varieties such as Pinot Noir and Riesling as well as French hybrids like Vidal and Baco Noir. Compare that short track record with, say,
As well as identifying quality grape varieties that suit the Canadian climate at large, producers have to match grapevine type to vineyard-specific soils and microclimates. Learning what vines suit which pieces of land best and why is a painstaking process. It’s an exercise
Most of our country struggles with extremely cold winters that can damage and even kill vines. Just look at 2005 when low temperatures devastated a third of the crop and the government had to step in to let producers make non-VQA wine from up to 99 per cent non-Canadian juice to support producers. Other climatic hurdles include a freeze-thaw-freeze cycle in early spring when young shoots are very susceptible to frost damage; unpredictable weather at harvests, which can cause rot; humid summers that can foster vine disease; and shorter growing seasons with fewer sunshine hours to ripen fruit than many other cool climate wine regions. Sorry to bore you with the viticultural details but they explain why winemaking in
Despite all the challenges,
Seems Canadians are the only ones drinking our nation’s table wine though in any major way. Frankly, with few exceptions, it’s not exported much and when you mention
All that to say, I’m very excited when I come across a bottle of Canadian table wine that’s good value compared with other wines from all over the world. And today I’m happy to recommend four fabulous Canadian wines under $15. Here’s the list:
Inniskillin Brae Blanc Reserve 2007 VQA,
Konzelmann Pinot Blanc 2007 VQA, Ontario,
Hillebrand Trius Merlot VQA 2007, Ontario,
Pelee Island Pinot Noir Reserve 2007 VQA, Ontario, Canada (458521 $14.95) Outstanding value—especially for a Pinot Noir, one of the oldest and most difficult grape varieties cultivated for wine. And
All of these wines are stocked in the general listing sections of the LCBO, rather than in vintages sections. To check stocks at your local store, visit www.lcbo.com and search by the product names or numbers. Or call the LCBO infoline at 1 800 ONT-LCBO (1 800 668-5226) / 416 365-5900 in the
PS If you taste these wines, comment on them on my blog at http://www.wine-tribune.com/blog/
This column is distributed privately, appears in Outreach Connection weekly, and is posted as a blog at www.wine-tribune.com/blog. Seasoned journalist and qualified sommelier Carolyn Evans-Hammond has written for several major publications including Decanter Magazine, The Times newspaper, and Wine & Spirit International magazine in the U.K., as well as Maclean’s magazine, Taste magazine, Tidings magazine, The Toronto Star and The Province in Canada. Her bestselling book, 1000 Best Wine Secrets, is available at most major bookstores, and signed copies are available through her website.