Slightly deeper and more red than the Cab Franc Select Late harvest. Loads of intensity here on the nose, moving into raspberry jam and spicy brambly red fruit. Sweet, full, luscious, round and highly concentrated, with enough acidity to keep the focus. Long finish. A real treat. 94 points.
The red wines coming out of the 2007 vintage are built to impress: deeper, riper fruit, richer colour, bigger flavours. Something else that happened was longer barrel ageing than usual, to smooth out those robust tannins, and bottle ageing, for better integration. While it doesn’t seem very long, this one resided in French and American oak barrels for 7 months, was bottled in August and released in December (2008). The results are a wine with aromas that are pretty simplistic at this time, giving off cherry and floral notes. But this wines really shines on the palate, where it really brings most of its umph! A mix of raspberry, tobacco and smokiness – I also loved the very accessible price of $18 a bottle for a wine that delivers good flavour and value. As for the finish, it lingers with smoke, tobacco and repetitive hits of red fruit (you pick the berry – and it’s in there) – Rating: ****.
SEND IN THE CLONES! NEW CATTAIL RIESLINGS SHOW THEIR PERSONALITY
You just have to love the passion of Niagara winemakers and their quest for the extraordinary, that burning desire to do more.
Colin Ferguson, with only one full vintage under his belt as the new winemaker at Cattail Creek, is making his presence felt with a brand new line of wines called Collaboration.
It will be comprised of the best wines made at the Niagara-on-the-Lake winery with a focus on estate-grown fruit, bringing together the winemaker’s talent in “collaboration” with vineyard manager Warren Dyck.
A small lot production with only 450 cases made. Nose of wild herbs and cherry blossom. Palate is clean showing a touch of greeness with sweet red fruit, rhubarb pie and a touch of creamy custard mid-palate. a touch off-dry with a sweet, candy floss finish. 85 points.
Cattail winemaker Colin Ferguson is carving out a niche with aromatic whites, including experimental rieslings. that stylistic fondness translates to this floral, orangey, lavendar scented chardonnay musqué – to the point where I ask (again) whether chardonnay should be dropped from the label as misleading. It is fairly full, smooth and sweet on the palate, with some lemon-lime acid cut. the finish is rather perfumed; the length is very good.
The first vintage for new winemaker C olin Ferguson (formerly at Flat Rock Cellars), who has blended stainless steel chardonnay musqué and barrel aged chardonnay lots to create a crisp, floral, apple-like and lemon chardonnay. Quite slim, juicy and fresh, with an undertone of oak spice on the finish. Excellent length. 88 points.
From the generally warm(er) Niagara sub-appellation, this has a lean, open, enjoyable smell of candied pineapple and Turkish delight. the palate is mid-weight, soft, round, pleasant. An entry-level, all-purpose sipping wine. 86 points.
This Niagara-on-the-Lake winery has put together an interesting portfolio of Rieslings using the three main clones – Clone 49, 21B and 239 – planted on the property. Cattail bottled four special “clonal” Riesling in 2009 plus a special “clonal” blend, sold as a package for $120 or $30 each. This Riesling is a house blend of all the property’s various lots. The nose is quite nice with quince, lemon-lime, pear and soft minerals. In the mouth, the flavours range from melon and pear to muted citrus and a touch of ginger spice. 88 points.
‘COLLABORATION’ RIESLING CLONAL BLEND 2009
The only wine in the “Clonal Project” that’s sold separately is worth picking up, you don’t get all the subtlety and nuance you get from the individual clonal bottlings, but here you’ll get the best of the Riesling world even though all clones are represented in equal parts: 25% Clone 21 (Old and New), Clone 49 and Clone 239. This one is approachable with a good lengthy finish as well as being mouth-filling with flavour. Apple skin, lemony notes, Bartlett pear and many more layers can be found … the finish lingers longer than most in the series, while the wine itself from nose to palate is layered and lovely. Price: $25.20 – Rating: ****+
‘COLLABORATION’ RIESLING CLONE 21 OLD VINES 2009
Made from vines planted in 1976, the first block of Cattail’s 100 acres. This really is the gem of the Riesling Clonal Project that Cattail launched with this vintage. These 37 year old vines really have depth of character. The nose is subtle yet sophisticated with Mac apple and pear fruit wrapped in a cocoon of mineral stoniness. The palate is layered like an onion, and is something worth peeling your way through, best of all there will be no tears here. That subtle sophistication is held in the glass with a good balance between the acid and the sweetness … it also develops exceptionally well in the glass from open to final sip. With its delicacy in the mouth this wine is a real winner – the medium length finish seems to stick around the right amount of time but never wears out its welcome. Price: $25.20 – Rating; **** 1/2+