Day 5 - last day in Niagara

on my last day in Niagara, i went back to Pillitteri to make my purchase.  the winery parking lot was packed!  luckily, my friend at the winery was able to set me up at the tasting bar again.  Justin and i have had wine discussions for a while now and although he works for Pillitteri, we discuss our favorite and not so favorite wines of the region.

after my week long tour, this is what i had to say about the wines we tried and discussed.

Tawse Winery makes the best chardonnay musque in the region.  the musque clone means it inherited certain qualities of the muscat variety - which is a very aromatic grape.  i've tried the chardonnay musque from chateaux des charmes and pillitteri but Tawse was my favorite.

i was not a fan of Pillitteri's Pic'd line of wines.  it didn't wow me in terms of finish, taste, and aroma.  the interesting thing about that line is that people can send in photos they've taken and it might end up on a label of one of the wines from the Pic'd line of wines.  it's been a popular series and although it's a great idea, i couldn't bring myself to buy one.

as i mentioned before, the Exclamation series cabernet franc was one to buy and i ended up picking up one for the road.  

the ice wine trio that i tasted at Pillitteri were quite good.  i'm not a big fan of sweet wines but the Sangiovese ice wine was definitely interesting, as were the Vidal and Cab Franc.

Vineland Estates cabernet franc for their Elevation Series is terrific for $25.  the general list is okay for $12 but if you have the money, spend it on the Elevation Series.  i also think Vineland Estates makes a fantastic riesling.  honestly, you can't go wrong with the Cave Spring estate bottled riesling or even Tawse Sketches of Niagara riesling. all three of these are priced in the $18-$20 range.

speaking of rieslings.  one of my last stops was at an up and coming winery called Back 10 Cellars.  i found them via twitter and decided to stop in since i was in the area.  Back 10 Cellars was easier to find than Henry of Pelham even though the winery didn't even have a sign up!  i met Andrew, co-owner of the vineyard .. and he was a super nice guy to talk to.  he gave me a brief history of how he and his wife ended up in Niagara and the significance of the number 10.  their dream of owning a vineyard started 10 years ago and after all these years of buying the land, cleaning it up, preparing it for vines, planting, growing, pruning, and producing fruit .. it has finally paid off.  they currently do not have a retail store or tasting room and no bottling facility on site.  all of their wine is produced by Featherstone Winery.  but already their first riesling vintage has won an award at wine competitions.  i got to try their riesling and it was .. interesting.  i'm not sure if my glass wasn't clean but there was a distinct ... chicken coop aroma coming from my sample.  there was minerality, some tropical fruit notes but definitely chicken coop or some odd barnyard that is not the same as the barnyard from a pinot noir.  

nevertheless, i think Back 10 Cellars is a winery to keep your eye on.  it just started but i think they bought a gem of a piece of land.  they have a cabernet franc coming out in October 2013.  if you're in the area, stop in and try it.  i know i will.

the drive home was a test of my patience and my patience lost.  as much as i tried to avoid taking the 407 home, i eventually caved and hopped on the 407 from Dixie Road to Kennedy.  that's going to be one heck of a toll bill.  :(