| 3rd Annual Ontario VQA Trade Tasting |
| The location - the Stone Distillery at the Distillery District in downtown Toronto. For two and a half hours on June 13th, twenty seven Ontario wineries from Niagara, Lake Erie North Shore and Prince Edward County showcased their wines that recently won awards at the recent Ontario Wine Awards. All of the wines were made from 100% Ontario grown grapes and there were some definitely outstanding wines. Below you will find a list of the award winners who received recognition in the tasting notes: |
| 2005 Winners Creekside Estate Winery 2001 Reserve Merlot - Bronze Flat Rock Cellars 2003 Nadja's Vineyard Riesling - Bronze; Sold Out Magnotta Winery 2003 Vidal Sparkling Icewine - Bronze Birchwood Estate Winery 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon - Silver Lakeview Cellars Estate Winery 2002 Baco Noir Reserve - Silver Magnotta Winery 2003 Pinot Gris Special Reserve - Gold 2006 Winners Birchwood Estate Wines 2004 Gewurztraminer - Bronze Flat Rock Cellars 2005 Nadja's Vineyard Riesling - Bronze Stoney Ridge Estate Winery 2004 Reserve Chardonnay - Bronze Stoney Ridge Estate Winery 2004 Founder's Series Collection Charlotte's Chardonnay - Bronze Fielding Estate Winery 2005 Chardonnay Musque - Silver Mountain Road Wine Company 2002 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay - Silver Moutain Road Wine Company 2002 Gamay Noir - Silver Mountain Road Wine Company 2002 Moutain Road Red - Silver Stoney Ridge Estate Winery 2004 Reserve Baco Noir - Silver Flat Rock Cellars 2004 Nadja's Vineyard Riesling - Gold Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery 2004 Reserve Baco Noir - Gold Lakeview Cellars Estate Winery 2005 Kerner - Gold Magnotta Winery 2004 Gewurztraminer Special Reserve - Gold Mountain Road Wine Company 2002 Gamay Noir Reserve - Gold Stoney Ridge Estate Winery 2004 Reserve Cabernet Franc - Gold |
| Out of the 25+ wineries in attendance, four of them really stood out in the eyes of those attending. Throughout the afternoon you could hear friends and colleagues telling each other to go and check out: |
| Flat Rock Cellars Jackson-Triggs Vintners Magnotta Winery Thirty Bench Winery |
| Flat Rock Cellars brought their consistently great Nadja's Vineyard Riesling. Between the three vintages available that day, they had won the Riesling Off-Dry Award, the Dry Riesling Award and the Small Crush Award. Jackson-Triggs Vintners brought along a surprising addition to their wine list - Proprietors' Reserve Cabernet Franc Reserve Rose 2004. Jackson-Triggs in one of only a handful of wineries that make a Cabernet Franc Rose and the only one that makes a Reserve Rose in the province of Ontario. The real surprise of the day was Magnotta Winery. Their entire lineup of wines were award winners and all of them had great depth and complexity. My two favourites were the 2004 Gewurztraminer Special Reserve and the 2002 Enotrium which is a Meritage blend. The hands down favourite of the day was Thirty Bench Winery. They brought four of their Rieslings which are some of the best wines this winery makes. All four were from the same vienyard but from different blocks in the vineyard Each one brought something unique with the Steel Post Riesling being my personal favourite. So, whether you like a crispy, dry Chardonnay, a hearty and robust Cabernet Sauvignon or a sinfully delicious Vidal Icewine, there was something for everyone to enjoy at this tasting. I found some amazing Rieslings, Gewurztraminers and Meritage blends, not to mention the most fabulous Rose from Jackson Triggs. |