Niagara on the Lake Vacation

Our love of wine caused us to find ourselves in beautiful Niagara on the Lake, Ontario this past weekend. NOL is rich with great restaurants and wineries. During our vacation we stayed right in Niagara on the lake but stopped in Jordan, Ontario on the way.

In Jordan we stopped at Upper Canada Cheese and did a tasting... WHAT FABULOUS CHEESE!! I must say, as far as cheese goes, it left nothing to be desired. They has some smooth, some crumbly, some salty and some creamy. We purchased some fresh artisan bread along with some goat cream cheese and Vidal Grape juice to have for breakfast in bed at the hotel for the weekend.

We then headed to Toute Sweet Ice Cream. This was less than exciting. They had limited flavours and typical add-ins. Aaron enjoyed his creme caramel with brownie but I was less than enthused by my fig and port with walnuts since it tasted like figs with cream. That was it for Jordan and it was off to NOL!

Once in Niagara on the lake we got settled in to our hotel and made our way into town. They have a street full of old town shops and restaurants. We made our way to some of the shops but only ended up purchasing food and wine. We got some dips and things from Kurtz Culinary Creations and some Wines from the local LCBO.

Night Cap from local LCBO, Yummy's from Kurtz.

Dinner Friday night was the highlight of the culinary adventure in Niagara on the Lake. We ate at a tiny place called the Stone Road Grill. Now this place might just have made the best poutine in Canada! Foie Gras Poutine with Monteforte Cheese Curds and Cabernet Franc Jus! Now seriously, is there something that sounds better than that?? I don't think so! What else was fantastic is that this small restaurant brings in as many local ingredients as possible and proudly serves local wine only. We ate a charcuterie plate (all made in house) and Aaron had lamb 3 ways and I had the Duck leg... all cooked to perfection. The duck skin was crispy and the meat was moist and tender. The lamb was delish! Even the lamb meat was from the winery up the street. They used the lamb to eat the branches off the lower vines and then send them off to slaughter.

Charcuterie Plate, Foie Gras Poutine,

On our guided wine tour we had a great time. We did a lunch tour with 3 other couples and ended up really enjoying the company. We would definitely do a guided tour again. We stopped at 4 different wineries which included Pondview Estates, Marynissen, Niagara College Teaching Winery and Colaneri. We made purchases from Colaneri and Niagara Teaching College. The other 2 were less than exciting for our taste. The teaching winery also has a brewery on site but we didn't have the time to take a trip there, next time for sure. Our favourite, by far, was Colaneri. The had a Late Harvest style Pinot Grigio that was superb! Then they had a Cabernet that was just amazing. They also have a Amarone that will be released early next year which we plan on ordering. I will definitely blog later about the wine's once we drink them! We also made a personal stop at Pillitteri to pick up some of their Pinot Grigio which was the wine I drank during appetizers at The Stone Road Grill. We also made a stop at Jackson Triggs to pick up some Cab. Franc ice wine for my brother. We got there on the perfect day since the Cab. Franc ice wine was on sale for $25.00 rather than $74.99. Needless to say we picked up a case of 6, 3 for us and 3 for my brother.

Colaneri Estate Winery, Niagara College Vineyard.

Grape Vines and Grape Clusters from Jackson Triggs.

Our last day was spent fishing the Niagara River. We spent a few hours trying to land some Salmon in the fast flowing area of the river but we didn't have any luck. We moved to a nice calm area and threw on some crayfish and caught a couple Bass. It could not have been a nicer day for fall fishing. The sun was shining and the wind was cool. We ended up having a great time together and our guide was cool and really helpful.

Photos from the beautiful Niagara River including The Lewiston-Queenston Suspension Bridge!

Niagara Escarpment, Dam

Our 2 Bass.. Aaron is holding my fish!

Overall, we had a great time and spoiled ourselves rotten on our trip. We not only ate well but we drank well and enjoyed great company.

Some Toronto Brewed Pumpkin Ale, Dessert in bed.

View from Our Room @ Queen's Landing, Our Wine Lot.

Cooper's Hawk Vineyards

A new local winery opened last week and we decided to stop by for a sampling. The winery is called Cooper's Hawk Vineyard and they have 4 wine's so far, 3 of which are from their own harvest. Their Cabernet Merlot grapes were purchased off site but the wine was made in house. We stopped by with the kids in the car (Megan was sleeping) so I ran in and sampled 3 of 4 and purchased 2. I grabbed the Riesling and the Cab. Merlot. I wanted to get their unoaked Chardonnay but didn't grab it. I told aaron they were all pretty good so he ran in and tried the Rose... which was the one I didn't try. He loved it and grabbed a bottle of that as well as the unoaked chardonnay. I was rushed during my tasting and had been eating fresh local blueberries in the car so I didn't have much of a fresh palate to really gage the flavours of the wines. We have drank the Rose already which was made from Cabernet Franc grapes. It was a tad sweet, perfect for a summer afternoon, and very fruity. It was clean and crisp and well balanced in spite of its sweetness (3). I will definitely post once we do a proper tasting of the others.

2010 CHV Authentic Cabernet Franc Rosé This Rosé was made from hand picked Cabernet Franc from a single varietal estate vineyard and was pressed and fermented cold and clean with a brix of 22, allowing natural residual sugars to balance with natural acidity. No additions or corrections were used in the making of this delicious light, crisp, fruity wine. Tasting Notes: Strawberry with a hint of orange zest and mint. 10.9% alc./vol. 750 ml White Wine/Product of Canada, Vin Blanc/Produit du Canada

Back to mmmmm.

Now that we are no longer expecting children or nursing we have been drinking wine again! Its really nice to cook a nice dinner and cork a bottle of wine and sit together as a family and enjoy the flavours of a good wine. I decided to rummage through our stash and notice that many are drink now or a year past their prime. I figured this meant we should start having a bottle or two per week. I really missed wine... and beer. We have been having a few brews per week as well, maybe 4-6 drinks per week... not to sound like some drunk. We did drink some wine from Sanson Estates which is a local winery. They have an Autumn Harvest Vidal which is fantastic. Then there is a Bacobama, after Barack Obama of course. It is a blend of Baco and a white wine which makes for a light red with easy drinkability and perfect for summer. I often find reds difficult to drink in the heat of the summer and prefer a nicely chilled white. this Bacobama gives the perfect balance.

Sanson Estates Winery

Autumn Harvest Vidal 2008 - $12.95

I really don't think I have ever visited Sanson Estate without someone coming in during my time there and buying

a couple of bottles of this wine. It seems to be a staple for Essex County locals. Vidal is actually a hybrid grape

that was designed to survive Canada's inclement winters but it found a niche as icewine – actually celebrating

those same cold months. Harvested a little late in the fall, after the fruit has had time to accumulate extra ripeness

this wine shows round, honeyed aromas of pineapple and peach that carry to a soft, round, full palate.

It's simply an easy-to-drink, slightly off-dry, unoaked wine that is great on its own or will compliment

a surprising range of foods – anything from pan-fried fish to roast fowl to spicy.

Bacobama - $13.95

Wine for Change! Bacobama is a unique blend of Baco, with just a hint of white wine to offer you a lighter red.

Softer notes and slightly on the off-dry side, this wine is perfect for the first time red wine drinkers or try chilling

it 10 minutes in the fridge for an easy drinking glass of wine. This product is produced from red and white grapes

grown and fermented at our Amherstburg Ontario Winery.

Niagara-on-the-Lake

We are taking a vacation! Aaron and I have decided to take a vacation in September to Niagara-on-the-Lake. We are going to stay at Queen's Landing and visit some wineries, doing some tours... maybe a bike tour, weather pending. We are also planning a guided fishing trip while up there. I think Aaron and I will have a great time catching some fish together. It will also be harvest season and so hopefully we can taste some grapes and drink some wine of the same vines from previous years. I think it will be such a great time and a well over due romantic trip for the two of us.

2007 Prince Pirate: Merlot/Cab Franc

Aaron and I had tried the 2006 of this wine from the Opimian Society and loved it. We kept the name and purchased a case the following year, being 2007. The 2007 we received and tried a bottle and it is divine.
The nose is of dark fruits and fresh cut grass with a hint of wood and leather, possibly some cinnamon or nutmeg.
The taste is light and smooth with very mild tannins. It has a lush and jammy mouth feel. There is a wonderful explosion of fruit on the finish.
This wine can be drank with almost anything or nothing. I would avoid any peppery meals and overly sweet desserts since they would overpower the wine, but just about anything else would be a great pairing.
We rated the wine a 4.5/5 stars!

Opimian Society

The Opimian Society is a wine group in Canada. They offer cellar offerings from small vineyards around the world. They send out offerings 8 times each year, and each offering is from different regions. They also offer a select program which sends you 6 bottles automatically from each offering. We have been members of the select program for 3 years now and have recently canceled. We found that they send from the same wineries each year and often the same wines. Also, sometimes each offering comes with 6 bottles from the same winery. It is a good program to do for one year to get your cellar going but once you have a good starting point, it is my advice to just order when you see something you like. Another downside to the society is that you have to order 6-12 bottles of each wine you select. This means if by chance you don't like it you are stuck with 6-12 bottles. Therefore, it is nice to have a group of people to share the wine with and split the cost. Only down side to this is if you really like the wine, you now have to give some away. Either way is a risk, but so is purchasing any wine. They also send you Tidings Magazine (free) which is a nice magazine primarily about food and wine and offer tastings in major cities of most provinces (extra cost). We do enjoy the society and plan to continuing our membership.

Wine: Pelee Island Winery Visit-2009

Aaron and myself visited Pelee Island Winery recently. We were running low on our white wine selection and I tend to enjoy their white selection. Opposed to the LCBO, the winery has limited editions as well as simply a larger selection available. We did a few tastings and found some we enjoyed and one or 2 we did not. We purchased the 2008 Eco Trail-White-VQA, a blend of Auxerois and Chardonnay, which I rather enjoyed. It was light and fruity with a hint of acidity, a bit green for Aaron's tastes but he thought it was alright for an unoaked white. We also purchased the 2008 Pinot Grigio-VQA which is always one of my favourits. This Pinot Grigio has a great balance of fruity and grassy notes and is great to sip on its own or with some fresh summer salads. We also tried their unoaked Chardonnay which neither of us was very keen on. It was flat and not very complex as you would expect a Chardonnay to be. We also grabbed a bottle of their 2006 Umbrealla-Gewurztraminer Riesling which is 50% of each grape variety. We had the bottle a while after our visit and it was alright. Not what I was expecting but not terrible. It was a bit unbalances for me. It didn't have enough acidity to accompany the fruity palate and dry finish, it needed some crispiness to it, if you know what I mean.

Wine

Aaron and myself drink our fair share of wine. We used to own a brew on premise wine store, which we have since sold, and we are currently members of the Opimian Society. The area we live in is home to a astonishing 13 wineries, some of which we visit frequently. Some being small and quaint such as Erie Shores and some are quite large such as Pelee Island. You can consider us self proclaimed "wine experts". Taking all of this into account, I think its just common sense that we write about the wines we drink and the wineries we visit. We will start writing all about the wines we drink and evaluating them and offer pairing suggestions.
Cheers!