A Canadian Gewurtztraminer

Can Canada do Gewurtztraminer? ...

Inn On The Twenty Restaurant

We haven’t been doing too many Canadian wines. Maybe we should. More than three decades ago the Pennachetti family helped to pioneer noble grape varietal wines in the Niagara Peninsula with Riesling and Chardonnay. The hillside of the Niagara Escarpment overlooking Lake Ontario is known as Beamsville Bench. In this fine location a single bloc of 25-year old vines grew the Gewurztraminer grapes that were fermented in stainless steel. This is a popular tourist area and the winery also offers an inn, a restaurant, and a spa with vinotherapy treatments. What more could you want? Today’s companion wine is a $10 Georgian wine grown from the most popular local grape, the white Rkatsiteli.

OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.

Wine Reviewed
Cave Spring Estate Bottled Gewuerztraminer VQA 2008 14.0% alcohol about $15

Let’s start by quoting the marketing materials. Tasting Note: Medium gold. Intense aromas of lychee, white flowers, candied citrus, and exotic spices. Just off-dry, medium bodied with an emerging lime cordial note on the palate. Very well-made Ontario Gewürz. Pair it with grilled prawns in a moderately spicy sauce, or lemon grass chicken. (VINTAGES panel, Jan. 2010) And now for my review.

At the first sips the wine was slightly sweet and floral with fine acidity. The initial meal started with sesame seed puff pastry stuffed with spinach. The wine was appley and its acidity was mouth cleansing. Then came an omelet with lots of chilies. The wine was elegant and tasted of lemons and honey. When facing the accompanying artichoke and garlic tomato salsa the Gewurtz stepped down a bit but it was quite long. With Greek Kalamata olives I got the image of a fluttering butterfly and there was some nectar. Cantaloupe slices rendered the wine long and lemony. Honeydew made it very long and the wine’s acidity complemented the not quite ripe fruit.

The next meal was chicken baked in soy sauce, agave nectar, and plums. The wine had bright acidity and lime. It was somewhat oily. Something wasn’t quite ripe. The plums made the acidity somewhat harsh. With fresh pineapple the wine tasted of honey and was medicinal.

My final meal was a boxed eggplant parmiagana. The wine was elegant and mouthfilling. The Gewuerztraminer tasted of spicy lemons and was quite long. Dessert was a vanilla ice cream bar coated in high quality chocolate. The wine presented light acidity.

Prior to the traditional two cheeses I paired this white wine with Matjes herring. The wine was long and its pleasant acidity cut the herring’s salt. The first cheese was a usually bland brick but since this one had been around for quite some time it was somewhat strong. The wine was weak, and yet long. The second cheese was a Muenster, the Gewurzt stepped up to the place; it was round and fruity.

Final verdict. This call is fairly borderline. Instead of buying this pretty good but somewhat overpriced wine I may go for another one of the producer’s many, many offerings. There’s a Beamsville Bench Chardonnay that looks promising.

Access the companion wine A Wine Lover's Weekly Review Of $10 Wine - A Classical Georgian White

About the Author

Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on computers and the Internet, but to be honest, he would rather just drink fine Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods. He teaches classes in computers at an Ontario French-language community college. His wine websites include
www.theworldwidewine.com    and    http://www.wineinyourdiet.com

Visit his website devoted to Italian travel www.travelitalytravel.com

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