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Hidden Bench - December 2014 Visit

For this year one thing I will be adding to www.andrewinereview.ca are expanded tastings from my visits to wine country. I am very pleased to have Hidden Bench be the first winery to be profiled. The owner of the winery is Harald Thiel. I have had the pleasure of bumping into Harald at various wine events, most recently at the walk around tasting hosted at the ROM. Every time I have had the chance to taste what Harald is pouring I have enjoyed the wines immensely. When I tasted the Pinot Noir that was being poured at the Rom Event I immediately asked for a Magnum ... which had to be picked up at the winery. So I made Hidden Bench a priority stop to pick up my bottle of wine.

Other than the Pinot Noir I have always connected Hidden Bench with the fantastic Riesling that they produce. I had the opportunity to taste through three current wines all from the same vintage. As I am writing this blog post it is -14C and all I can think about is pairing this wines with some of my Grandma's Hungarian and German Cuisine. Chicken Paprikash, Potato Pancakes and Perogies with Sausage. If you're not looking to pair these wines with anything it would be fun to pick up all three bottles and do a side by side tasting.

2012 Romans Block Riesling - ****+ - $32.00 - Very clean and crisp with bright vibrant flavours of lemon and lime in the glass. There is slight sugar on the finish that is offset with great acidity. The reality is that this wine only has 9.43 g/l sugar, so even though you can taste the sugar it is barely there.

2012 Felseck Block Riesling - **** - $28.00 - The flavours are very similar to Romans block but a little softer. What you really notice on this wine is a nice chalky note on the finish that punched right through the clean acidity on the finish of this wine.

2012 Estate Riesling - **** - $23.95 - Softer on the nose and in the mouth. This has nice presence of lemon and lime and slight mineral on the finish... but not as intense as with the Felseck Riesling. Perfectly balanced with nice acidity on the finish.

The Chardonnay from Hidden Bench is oustanding. They are big and complex. While for me I have a hard time not serving Riesling with food when it comes to a big complex Chardonnay I prefer not to pair it with anything. I like to serve them cold (like right at the fridge temperatur) in a big glass and let them open up in my glass like a flower blossoming.

2011 Tête de Cuvée Chardonnay - ****1/2 - $45.00 - Massive and wonderful. The nose is vanilla and buttered popcorn. The flavours are deeply orange and roasted pineapple with nice vanilla on a finish that lasts for ages. Unless you are an Iron Chef it would be a damned shame to pair this wine with anything but good company.

2011 Felseck Vineyard Chardonnay - **** - $38.00 - There is a pronounced mineral note on the nose. You will also find Citrus and a less potent Vanilla on the nose. Flavours are more citrus with vanilla. This wine is good and balanced with a more pronounced acidity on the finish. The higher acidity would let this pair well with creamy pasta dishes or roast chicken, duck or turkey.

2011 Estate Chardonnay - **** - $28.75 - The nose on this wine is apple and mineral. As with the estate Riesling this is the softer side of Hidden Bench Chardonnay. There is apple and citrus flavours in the glass. This is very easy drinking and has nice acidity on the finish making it the most food friendly of the three.

Pinot Noir is the reason I planned my visit to Hidden Bench in the first place. I had the chance to taste the Estate Pinot Noir at an Event hosted at the ROM last fall and Harald told me that they had it in Magnum. I told him I would be by in the New Year to pick it up. Pinot from the Bench is a beautiful thing. It isn't quite as fruit driven as the delicate Pinot Noir from Prince Edward County and it isn't as earth driven as the Pinot Noir from Niagara... just like Goldilocks and the Three Bears it's just right.

2012 Estate Pinot Noir - **** - $29.75 - There is a heavy damp deep floral nose on this wine... It's like a garden in spring right after a rainfall. The flavours in this wine still have some subtle elements of the floral from the nose but also cherry with a good earthiness on the finish.

2011 Felseck Pinot Noir - **** - $38.00 - There is Clove, Violet and Ripe Cherry and Raspberry on the nose and in the glass. Typical of all the Felseck wines there is a touch of mineral on the finish. This is very fruit driven but still strikes a nice balance between earth and fruit on the finish.

2011 Locust Lane Pinot Noir - ****+ - $45.00 - The concentration of the fruit flavours are just incredible on this wine. This is a very fruit driven Pinot with lots (and I mean lots) of Cherry and Raspberry that fill your whole mouth right to the cheeks until the last drop rolls off the back of your tongue and you get a bit of earthiness on the finish.

oh and BTW ... I ended up buying a Magnum of the Locust Lane Pinot Noir instead of the Estate.

#Hidden Bench #Riesling #Chardonnay #Oaked #Barrel Fermented #Barrel Aged #Pinot Noir

Eye on Taste Local - VQApalooza

The LCBO has been working over the past couple years to tweak the campaign that was once known as "Go Local". Last year the promotion was called "Shine On", and let's face it the name just didn't quite pop even though the wine selection was very good. This year the campaign definitely hits closer to the mark as it's called "Taste Local". You will notice over thirty new Ontario wines hit LCBO shelves between September 14 and October 11. Here are the highlights:

Sauvignon Blanc from Ontario is crisp, bright and loaded with citrus flavours. It can sometimes have a savory edge on the finish as opposed to the sweet flavours of riesling. It pairs well with oysters, and white fish... but with it's high acidity it will pair with just about anything.

Sandbanks Sauvignon Blanc - LCBO 355974 - $16.95 Peller Family Series Sauvignon Blanc - LCBO 371864 - $11.95 (Fantastic Value)

Riesling from Ontario is also crisp and citrus but you will also find flavours of honey and sweetness in the bottles. Sometimes Riesling is bone dry but there is no savory on the finish. Riesling pairs well with just about everything because it also has palate cleansing acidity. The great thing about these three rieslings are that they are all under fourteen dollars... so why not try all three? Wayne Gretzky Estates Riesling - LCBO 144865 - $13.95 - Off-dry Peninsula Ridge RIesling - LCBO 387043 - $12.95 - Off-dry Angel's Gate Riesling - LCBO 160523 - $13.95 - Dry

Chardonnay from Ontario seems to come in three flavours lately. Unoaked, Lightly Oaked and Fully Oaked. Unoaked Chardonnay can be a swiss army knife for you fall entertaining as it will pair well with Chicken or Pork from either the barbeque or oven. It is also great to enjoy on its own on the patio. Lightly Oaked strikes a great balance between citrus flavours and toasted oak flavours from the barrels in which they are aged. Fully oaked will have a stong nose and aroma of smoke, vanilla and spice from the barrels. LIghtly and Fully Oaked Chardonnay is a great match for Poultry of any sort, creamy pasta dishes or on it's own. Chardonnay is one grape that is great every year. Stock up on these wines for fall to pair with roast chicken or enjoy the final few patio days with the unoaked variety. Pilliteri Canadian Gothic Chardonnay - LCBO TBD - $12.95 - Unoaked, Fantastic Label. Vintage Ink Rite of Passage Chardonnay - LCBO 245712 - $16.95 - Lightly Oaked Rosehall Run Cuvée County Chardonnay - Vintages 132928 - $21.95 - Light to Medium Oaked Sparkling wine makes it's way into the release. It's bright, light, crisp with palate cleansing acidity and bubbles. Sparkling will literally pair with anything foodwise ... or enjoy it on it's own. At twenty five dollars you don't need to wait for a special occasion to open this wine. Handsome Brut - LCBO TBD - $24.95 The best thing about the reds in this release is that they are all very well priced and drinking fantastic now. If you love Ontario Red you can spend upwards of thirty or forty dollars to get killer wines that you can enjoy for years to come. Red wines can have firm tannin and need time to settle down either by opening for sometimes two or three hours before serving... or letting them age in a wine cellar or on a wine rack for a few years. These wines will have flavours of raspberry, black currant, leather and smoke on the finish. These are your red meat wines ... pair with lamb or beef. 2012 Featherstone Cabernet Franc - Vintages 64618 - $17.95 2012 13th Street Cabernet Merlot - Vintages 56598 - $19.95 2012 The Foreign Affair the Conspiracy - Vintages 149237 - $19.95 - this wine is drinking great now, but will age for at least another three years. Pinot Noir is referred to as the heartbreak grape because it is difficult to turn into fantastic wine. All three wineries listed below have a fantastic record in turning Pinot into beautiful wines even in vintages that many winemakers would refer to as challenging. Pinot is lighter than Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and will be loaded with Cherry flavours and sometimes earth on the finish. The price point on these wines are a little higher than anything else in the "Taste Local" campaign. That being said the Tawse Pinot Noir is fantastic value even north of twenty dollars. The Hidden Bench and Norman Hardie wines are worth picking up for your special occasions in the fall or if you feel like being selfish to treat yourself. 2010 Tawse Grower's Blend Pinot Noir - Vintages 130989 - $24.95 - (Fantastic Value) 2011 Hidden Bench Pinot Noir - Vintages 274753 - $32.95 2012 Norman Hardie County Pinot Noir - Vintages 125310 - $39.00