New World Pinots

NEW WORLD PINOT NOIR TASTING

Does a New World Pinot Noir taste different from a Burgundian Pinot Noir? According to Jay Youmans, Master of Wine, “Yes” there are differences.  However, there are many New World winemakers who are employing traditional Burgundian winemaking techniques and we present several in our line-up on January 19, 2016.

From the N. Hemisphere we have 4 wines, 3 from the Willamette Valley of Oregon and 1 from Ontario. From the S. Hemisphere, we have 4 wines one each from Australia, New Zealand, S. Africa and Chile. Northern Hemisphere: Coyote's Run, located in Niagara-on-the-Lake produces wine in small batches from 100 percent Niagara-grown grapes, much of which are sourced from its 58-acre St. David's vineyard. Since its first vintage in 1990, Domaine Serene has produced award winning Pinot Noirs from six vineyard estates. In April 2015, the owners purchased a Burgundy wine estate in the Côte d’Or to expand their operation of producing fine Pinots. The Bergström Family uses biodynamic methods, and since 1999 has been a leader in the sustainable farming of wine grapes in Oregon. Argyle Winery, established in 1987, is "Grower First", focusing its attention at the source – continually improving viticulture on over 650 hillside acres sited on the very best vineyard locations in Oregon's Willamette Valley.

Southern Hemisphere: Bodega Chacra, is owned by the grandson of the creator of the famed Sassicaia winery in Italy and he’s now working in the” middle of nowhere” to produce stunning Patagonian Pinot Noir. Chacra doesn’t employ any mechanization in the production of their wines which results in their Pinots expressing the subtle, complex and finely textured tannins characteristic of very old vines. Hamilton Russell Winery is one of the most recognized S. African brands in the U.S. Their Pinot Noir is Burgundian in style, with subtle perfume, stylish texture and long, lingering, gentle flavors. A world search of the perfect conditions for viticulture, Schubert Wines. They use traditional Burgundian winemaking methods with extreme low yields, (3/4 ton per acre), extended macerations and the exclusive use of Burgundian cooperage for their Pinots. Lastly, from Kyoong Winery situated in the cool-climate Mornington Peninsula, 80km south of Melbourne Australia, winemaker Sandro Mosele has crafted a reputation for the very best representation of Australian Pinot and Chardonnay.

specially for Pinot Noir, brought Kai Schubert and Marion Deimling, graduates of the German Viticulture and Oenology to Wairarapa, New Zealand to start

 This will be a wonderful opportunity to sample and compare Pinots throughout the New World and also to compare the wines from the Northern Hemisphere against the Southern. Our evenings start with a reception wine followed by the formal, blind, sit-down tasting. Bread and light appetizers will be served with our wines. Plus we have a special BONUS for our registrants: an exclusive tasting of a Femme Fatale Pinot Noir from Cloud's Nest, a boutique winery in Sonoma, California presented in Canada by Great North Imports.  Great North Imports is also supplying our reception wine.

More information on the wines

Date: Tuesday, January 19th, 2016
Time: 6 PM
Price:  TVC Members: $70; Guests/Non-Members: $90 (includes appetizers & a reception wine)
Venue: Faculty Club, Univ. of Toronto, 41 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1C7  - Map
Deadlines:
Mailed Reservations
         - Tuesday, Jan. 12th, 2016
Online Payments
         - Monday, Jan. 18th, 2016
Register / Buy Tickets (NOTE: all ticket sales are FINAL; no refunds issued unless we are oversold)

An evening with Thomas Bachelder

An eager crowd of almost 50 wine lovers gathered to sample a rare vertical of Le Clos Jordanne pinot noir and to hear winemaker Thomas Bachelder speak about recent vintages and his adventures making these stunning wines.

Bachelder Sanders Vineyard Chardonnay

The evening started off with reception wine samples of two new Chardonnays for Bachelder wines, Thomas’ current wine project.  The 2011 Niagara chardonnay is a full-bodied and rich that the crowd really enjoyed.  But the single vineyard 2012 Saunders Vineyard chardonnay got people really really talking… there were murmurs of the wine tasting like a high end Meursault.  Expect to find these delicious wines in the LCBO soon.

Thomas Bachelder

Before we started tasting the wines, Thomas gave a short introduction to the wines and their respective vintages.  Thomas also offered some insights into his fascinating process of discovering the unique Niagara terroirs.  He explained that the approach with Le Clos Jordanne was to separate grapes into east West and Centre blocks in a year in year out process to find the best parcels and site characteristics.  He offered some fresh insight into the mysterious process of uncovering terroir.


As a vintage overview, Thomas suggested that the 2005 wines would be most concentrated and dark.  2006 was a good year with lighter color.  2008 was a tougher year, so lighter color and perhaps some leafiness.  2009 was expected to be ripe and dark with the most smoky characteristics.

The tasting revealed a great variety of wines as Thomas had suggested.  Some really ripe, dark wines, some a little green and a few with a pronounced smokiness.  All wines had really lively acidity.  It happens quite rarely, but our group scored all of these wines remarkably consistently with our guest speaker with Thomas and the group showing definite preference for the 2005 and 2006 wines.  In fact, the 2005 and 2006 wines were all in the top 4.  It was great to see 10 year old Niagara Pinot Noirs still presenting so well.

At the end of the tasting, Thomas surprised us with a few bottles of his soon to be released 2012 Lowrey Vineyards Pinot Noir.  This fruity, aromatic red will be released through Vintages in May and it was a special treat to get a sneak peak of this fantastic wine.

Raffle winnder David Turgeon (L)

And finally, as part of our 40th Anniversary/Birthday celebrations, we raffled off a bottle of 2006 Grand Clos Chardonnay. Fortunately, the winemaker was on hand to sign the bottle for the occasion. Congratulations to TVC club member David Turgeon for winning this very special bottle of Niagara chardonnay.

And here is how the wines were ranked.


2005 La Petite Vineyard $35: Group 1 / Speaker 5

2008 Talon Ridge Vineyard $40: Group 7 /  Speaker 7

2005 Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard $35:  Group 1 / Speaker 5

2006 Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard $ 40:  Group 3 /  Speaker 1

2009 Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard $ 45:  Group 6  / Speaker 6

2006 Le Grand Clos $70:  Group 3 /  Speaker 3

2008 Le Grand Clos $70: Group 5 / Speaker 4

2009 Le Grand Clos $ 75:  Group 8 / Speaker 8

Hartley-Ostini Hitching Post Winery in March

TVC is very very fortunate to have Gray Hartley, the co-owner and winemaker from Hartley-Ostini Hitching Post Winery located in California, fly to Toronto, Ontario to present an exclusive tasting of its wines to our membership on Tuesday, March 19.  The winery gained some fame and notoriety when its restaurant was featured as a venue in the winepic Sideways (2004) but its fame also derives from its wines which are mainly Pinot Noir but also include several other grapes.  Robert Parker Jr. has given high praise and scores for their Pinots.  We will be tasting the following wines:

2011 Pinks Dry Rosé
2009 Hometown Pinot Noir
2009  Cork Dancer Pinot Noir
2009  St. Rita’s Earth Pinot Noir
2007 Highliner Pinot Noir
2004 Julia’s Vineyard Pinot Noir
2007 Julia’s Vineyard Pinot Noir
2009 Late Harvest Gewürztraminer

A couple of the wines are being brought directly from the winery and you will get to taste others before they are released to the Ontario public. This opportunity to taste Hitching Post wines is exclusive to the Toronto Vintners Club and we hope you will join us for a fun and entertaining evening.  Seating is limited so please register early.

Date: Tuesday, March 19th, 2013
Time: Reception Wine: 6:00 PM, Formal Tasting: 6:20 PM
Where:  41 Willcocks St., Toronto, ON (U of T Faculty Club)
Cost: Members’ Fee: $59; Guests’/Non-Members’ Fee: $75
Register / Buy Tickets (ALL ticket sales are final!)