quicksearch
I was reminded this week just how brilliant Canadian Chardonnay can be.
John Szabo and I presented a Canadian wine masterclass at ProWein titled Rooted in Cool: Discover Canada's Sparkling and White Wines, where we poured a lineup of chardonnay and riesling for 50+ international trade. The diversity was thrilling, from the riveting Blomidon Estate Winery Extra Brut Late Pick Sparkling Chardonnay 2011 in Nova Scotia, to the textural Hidden Bench Estate Winery Felseck Vineyard Chardonnay 2014 from Short Hills Bench, Ontario, to our orchard-echoing Haywire Secrest Mountain Chardonnay 2016 here in BC. Quite literally coast to coast, we are capable of producing stellar chardonnays, of numerous styles. In BC, it is one of our most consistant and successful grapes, equal parts fresh and fruity, acidity and amplitude. In the (hands-off) hands of top winemakers, the wines show site rather than winemaking. Chardonnay is a blank canvas, easily coloured by decisions in the vineyard, and winery. With both the Haywire mentioned above, and the Quails' Gate Rosemary's Block Chardonnay 2016 also shown at ProWein, and reviewed below, the wines clearly demonstrated to the crowd that chardonnay is very well rooted here, and highly worth exploring.
Here are ten of our top BC Chardonnay tasted recently at GOW.
*Want to taste many more of Canada's (and beyond) top cool climate Chardonnay? Tickets are on sale now for the 2018 International Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration this July in Niagara. Not to be missed.
