By Rick VanSickle

Whether it’s hi-fi or lo-fi, Trail Estate Winery in Prince Edward County has been racking up the hits for nearly a decade.

Also in this Ontario Wine Report: New Twisted wines from Flat Rock Cellars, Open Local Wine paused north of the border, and NOTL’s Taste the Season tickets on sale now.

Or more precisely, since 2015, when Mackenzie Brisbois, above, took over as Trail Estate’s winemaker, and thus began a pioneering era of low-intervention, orange, natural and pét-nat wines that sit comfortably alongside her more traditional County Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays.

No matter what style you prefer, at Trail “everything we make is a culmination of thoughtful farming practices, organic with a healthy dose of regenerative, utilizing great sites, diverse biomes, wild yeasts and no-B.S. winemaking,” the ethos section of the winery’s website says. “We are known to push boundaries regardless of wine style. We plant dandelions and make compost teas. We adore Pinot Noir AND hybrids. We pioneered orange wines in Canada. Pét-nats or traditional method, equally, are sublime.”

Trail doesn’t use enzymes, herbicides, tannins, acids, colours or reverse osmosis. Sulphurs are zero to low and all wines, regardless of style, remain unfined, unfiltered and whole.

The winery has released several new wines recently, generally on the more eclectic side, with the 2023 estate County Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs coming soon. Three Chards separated by plot as well as four Pinots separated by clone and plot, the first time Brisbois has done this, will be available after a little more time in bottle.

The most recent release of wines features something entirely new from Trail — two fortified wines, one made in the style of an Amaro and the other loosely based on Vermouth. Both these wines, along with new orange, natural and more traditional Cabernet Franc are reviewed below. You can buy them online here. Here’s what I liked:

Trail Estate Botanicals — Amer ($54 for 750 mL, only 240 bottles made) — These two “botanicals” are from the first ever collection of fortifieds at Trail Estate. A red base wine was crafted with premium Riesling and Cabernet Franc grapes, aged in barrel, and fortified with wheat-based alcohol from the Stillus Distillery in Prince Edward County. It’s made in the style of an Amaro, but with less abv at 17.5%. It’s such a unique tipple with a spicy nose of ginger, cloves, fresh garden herbs and all-spice. The palate introduces some berry components with sage, ginger, spices, myriad herbs and a subtle bitter note on the finish.

I decided it would make a perfect Negroni, so I mixed one-third each of Amer, dry gin, Dillon’s sweet Vermouth and Dillon’s orange bitters with a slice of orange as the garnish. It was a beautiful thing. Brisbois also recommends mixing it with your favourite whisky-based cocktail.

Trail Estate Botanicals — Garden Party ($54 for 750 mL, only 240 bottles made) — In the Garden Party botanical, Riesling and Cabernet Franc are aged on a blend of parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme — a festive reflection of all things growing at Trail Estate. It’s aptly named with a nose of — you guessed it — parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme followed by cinnamon and all spice with some bitterness on the finish.

This worked perfectly as a martini. Put two-thirds gin, one-third Garden Party in a shaker with ice cubes, shake and pour the chilled elixir into a martini glass, and you are good to go. Beautiful botanicals, no bitterness and smooth — an elevated martini experience.

Trail Estate Field of Dreams 2023 ($40, 90 points) — This is an estate field blend consisting of 55% Chardonnay, 23% Riesling, 8% Gewurztraminer and 14% Geisenheim (which was hand destemmed and fermented on the skins). The Gewurztraminer was fermented whole cluster under a blanket of carbon dioxide. All varieties were pressed together once the Chardonnay was harvested. It was bottled unfined, unfiltered with no sulphur added. My sample bottle of this Charmat style natural sparkler came with a hand-written message: “Pls open chilled + slowly, some bottles have been fizzy lately, but they are calming down again!” I should have read that note before opening. Isn’t that frothy eruption part of the fun? It has a cloudy, tangerine sky colour in the glass with a ferocious bubble storm that does eventually calm down. The nose shows savoury pear, fresh citrus, dried apricot/mango, some peachy accents and a side of leesy/biscuit notes. It’s tangy and fresh on the palate with a robust bubble in the glass. It’s citrus focused in the mouth with some fresh pear and peach, tropical fruits and a bright, lifted finish.

Trail Estate Orng 2021 ($49, 90 points) — Grapes were hand-harvested, destemmed and fermented naturally with punch downs twice daily. After fermentation, the tanks were sealed and opened again in April the following year. It was pressed after 232 days on the skins and put in neutral barrels to further age for a few months. For 2021, the final blend was comprised of 58% Riesling from the Hughes Vineyard in Niagara and 42% Gewürztraminer from the Glen Elgin Vineyard in Niagara. It shows an electric pumpkin colour in the glass with all sorts of sediment floating around. The eclectic nose shows Mandarin orange, ginger, dried citrus, savoury herbs, lychee and marzipan. The tannins from all that skin contact are evident on the palate and adds some structure to go with tangerine, herbaceous notes, bright and tangy citrus, lychee nuts and juicy acidity holding everything together on a fresh, finessed finish. Pure sunshine in a glass.

Trail Estate Vio/Nay 2023 ($38, 92 points) — This interesting wine is a blend of 80% Viognier from the Grimsby Hillside Vineyard in Niagara and 20% Chardonnay from the Trail estate vineyard. The Chardonnay was hand destemmed and fermented in-field and punched down twice daily for a quick, hot ferment. It was then pressed and aged in glass demijohns for 10 months. The Viognier was whole cluster pressed after one day of maceration and put to neutral barrels on original lees for 10 months. It was wild fermented and bottled unfined and unfiltered. It shows a slightly golden hue in the glass with a nose of fresh-crushed peaches, nectarines, lemon, apple skin, and apricot tart with some savoury/earthy notes. It’s quite bold and sassy on the palate with a slightly oily texture to go with dried apricots, peach preserves, ginger, lemon cream and plenty of juicy acidity keeping it all fresh and lively.

Trail Estate Cabernet Franc 2020 ($55, 93 points) — The destemmed fruit, sourced from the Wismer Foxcroft Vineyard on Niagara’s Twenty Mile Bench, was fermented naturally for 20 days prior to pressing. It was pumped over to start fermentation and later punched down for extraction and put to barrel to age for 19 months. This wine would not complete ferment and in the winter of 2020, so yeast was added to try and finish the last few grams of residual sugar. “Toward the spring of 2022, this wine started to taste like it represented the vineyard and was finally finished making itself (something we let the wine choose), said winemaker Mackenzie Brisbois. It was bottled unfined and unfiltered after 19 months of aging in French oak barrels (15% new oak). It shows a deep, rich purple colour in the glass and an enticing nose of brambly raspberries, dark cherries, minty herbs, anise, some barrel spice notes and a splash of mocha. It benefits from polished and ripe tannins on the palate (thank you, vintage 2020!), supporting the dense red berries, black currants, herbs, dark chocolate, and oak spice notes through a long, lifted and finessed finish. A beauty of a Cab Franc that age a decade through 2034.

Twisted sisters from Flat Rock

As Flat Rock Cellars continues to celebrate 20 years of its Twisted series of wines this year, the hits just keep on coming. Here are three more of these quirky releases Wines in Niagara has tasted recently, including the Red Twisted 2023, now in LCBO stores.

Flat Rock Cellars Sparkling Twisted ($20, 89 points) — This is a charmat style bubbly consisting of 86% Riesling, 13% Chardonnay and a splash of Gewurztraminer. It shows a lively, persistent bead in the glass with a nose of Asian pear, lemon zest, apples, nectarine and saline freshness. The bubbles are amplified on the palate with a melange of citrus, pear, yellow apples and a touch of honey sweetness on a bright, lifted finish. Delightful bubbles at an enticing price.

Flat Rock Cellars Twisted 2022 ($18, 88 points) — The 2022 Twisted white is a blend of 77% Riesling, 15% Gewurztraminer and the rest Chardonnay, primarily from the estate vineyards (with a bit sourced from the Stouck Vineyard. There’s a lot going here on the nose with bright citrus fruits, lychee, apricots, pears and fresh apple notes. The sweet notes on the palate are mitigated somewhat by the juicy acidity, but the range of ripe orchard and stone fruits is impressive. A crowd pleaser.

Flat Rock Cellars Red Twisted 2023 ($20, previously reviewed, Vintages, 89 points) — For the 2023 Red Twisted, the winemakers envisioned a Twenty Mile Bench marriage of single-vineyard Wismer sourced Cabernet Franc (60%) with single-vineyard Merlot (40%) from a parcel 500 meters away from the Flat Rock winery. The components were vinified separately, brought together and aged in a combination of French and American oak. It has a rich and savoury nose of brambly raspberries, dark cherries, black currants, anise, toasty vanilla and spices. With the ripe tannins on the palate adding structure, the melange of savoury red and dark berries shines through in spades, with a lovely splash of herbs of spices on a vibrant finish. Good value red blend chock full of personality.

We’re pausing #openlocalwine
on this side of the border

Well, we gave it shot, but there just isn’t enough interest in #openlocalwine this year, at least on this side of the border.

Wines in Niagara had attempted to rally Ontario consumers, wineries and industry associations to jump on board the popular international celebration of local wine on Nov. 9. But with only a few weeks to go, very few deals, offers or specials by wineries have been submitted to Wines in Niagara. As well, the main industry associations in Ontario showed little interest in the event. So, we have made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s participation.

Co-founded in 2020 by Gina Shay and Lenn Thompson, publisher of the U.S.-based The Cork Report, #openlocalwine was initiated to support and help local wineries during the COVID-19 pandemic when tasting rooms were closed. That first event and the follow-up in 2021, which was also held in Ontario and promoted by Wines in Niagara, were both incredibly successful, with dozens of wineries across the eastern United States and Ontario offering special #openlocalwine wine packs with deals ranging from free shipping to exclusive library wines to steep discounts on popular wines. There were virtual tastings, and in 2021, when restrictions had started to lift, there were at-winery events, restaurant participation and hundreds of offers from wineries, too.

Thousands of local wine lovers in both countries posted pictures of the wines they opened on Facebook and Instagram, and the initiative prompted tens of thousands of social interactions on those platforms.

While Wines in Niagara is no longer promoting #openlocalwine in Ontario, consumers are free to join the celebration that is still planned in eastern U.S. Just grab a bottle of local wine and tag it with #openlocalwine on Nov. 9.

Taste the Season returns to NOTL

Whether you’re a food enthusiast, a wine connoisseur, or simply looking for a unique way to celebrate the season, Taste the Season promises a month of indulgence and festive cheer.

Guests of Niagara-on-the-Lake’s wine country can enjoy the flavours of the season with the Taste the Season tasting pass. This self-guided tour allows consumers to explore Niagara-on-the-Lake wineries while enjoying delicious holiday inspired food and wine pairings.

Event Details:

• Taste the season takes place Friday, Saturdays, and Sundays in November, (including Sunday, Dec. 1)
• Signature Tasting Passport: $66
• Designated Driver Passport: $51 (this rate only includes the food offering)
• Includes 8 winery tasting experiences
• Guests can add more tastings to their order, but only eight winery experiences can be scheduled in one day.
• New this year, guests can enjoy Taste the Season on Sundays from the comfort of their shuttle service.

Get tickets here.

The post Something new from Trail Estate that will lift your spirits, plus #openlocalwine paused appeared first on Wines In Niagara.