The pandemic has encouraged many people to travel locally. Why not keep this good habit and take the opportunity to visit all the magnificent vineyards nearby, in Quebec and Ontario? There are so many good wines and beautiful estates to discover! Here are two to whet your appetite, as well as a very nice Syrah for meat lovers.
Posted at 4:00 p.m.
Dry and fine rosé
Here is a delicious Ontario rosé, at a good price and perfect for an aperitif or the table. And completely dry! Do not trust the sugar levels indicated on the SAQ website: they are not updated each year, and the vintages follow one another but are not alike! This Malivoire Lady Bug Rosé Niagara Peninsula 2021, made with 56% Cabernet Franc, 36% Gamay and 8% Pinot Noir, has a sugar level of 3 g/L. The nose is delicate, with notes of flowers, raspberry and herbs. Very fresh and light on the palate, but with structure and even a certain chewiness, which makes it an excellent companion for the table. Perfect for summer cooking and meals al fresco : BBQ pizza, grilled chicken, chicken wings, grilled cheese, watermelon, feta and mint salad.
Malivoire Lady Bug Rosé Niagara Peninsula 2021, $17.65 (13747891), 12%
Laying down: to drink
Charming Frisant to savor the summer
PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE ORPAILLER
L’Orpailleur Frisant 2021, 10%
This latest addition to the Vignoble de l’Orpailleur, in Dunham, a pioneer of viticulture in Quebec, is a summer wine par excellence. It already charms with its pretty, very pale pink color. Then what a nose! Made with muscat osceola and muscat de New York, two very aromatic hybrid grape varieties, L’Orpailleur Frisant 2021 opens with aromas of fruit and flowers: fresh grapes, orange blossom, rose, raspberry and cherry. We almost expect a little sugar, but it is completely dry, carried by a tonic acidity. Light, and a little simple, just like its bubbles (resulting from carbonation), it is nevertheless terribly charming and the bottle empties in the blink of an eye! Low in alcohol, it will be perfect for an aperitif or a picnic on a hot day.
L’Orpailleur Frisant 2021, 10%, offered at the vineyard ($22) or online ($24, delivery included)
Laying down: to drink
Expressive and generous Syrah
PHOTO FROM THE SAQ WEBSITE
Pierre Gaillard Syrah The Last Vine Local Wine from the Rhodanian Hills 2020
If you like the suave and opulent character of Côte-Rôtie wines, you will surely appreciate this luscious Syrah from a very small vineyard north of Vienne. Vines almost 50 years old, a soil of rolled pebbles which store heat and a one-year aging in barrels, with a good part of new wood, give a rich and generous wine. Very expressive, this Pierre Gaillard Syrah La Dernier Vigne Vin de Pays des Collines Rhodaniennes 2020 opens with a fragrant and complex nose: blackberry, raspberry, violet, sausage, leather, anise and white pepper. The palate is ample, with a velvety texture and moderate, ripe and coated tannins. Generous, certainly, but perfectly balanced and very harmonious, it is made for the table. To be enjoyed with a rib of beef, lamb chops or duck breast with blackberries.
Pierre Gaillard Syrah The Last Vine Vin de Pays des Collines Rhodaniennes 2020, $25.95 (14862015), 14.5%
Aging: 3 to 5 years