Essex Wine Review

Winemaker’s Notes:Made from hand picked Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and barrel aged for a year, with this wine continues the tradition of excellence which began with the “Vinedressers” of Pelee Island Winery, to shine into the next millennium.

Tasting Note:
When it’s done well in Ontario, Cabernet Sauvignon can really shine, and shine this one does. Look for plenty of spicy fruit, cherry, plum, bramble, cassis, cedar and woodsmoke on the nose. The dry, tangy, medium-full bodied palate has a whack of youthful tannins with good layers of fruit. This is an excellent ’08 and will cellar for 2-4 years. Serve with rosemary-crusted rare steaks. (VINTAGES panel, Oct. 2010)

VINTAGES# 530576

ALCOHOL: 13%
VQA Pelee Island
Price: 750 mL $19.95

Rate and review Pelee Island Cabernet Sauvignon 2008.

Winemaker’s Notes:
Private Selection wine sold only to restaurants.

ALCOHOL: 13.5%
VQA Pelee Island
Price: 750 mL (Varies by restaurant)

Rate and review Pelee Island Private Selection Shiraz 2007.

2008 Pinot Gris Vendange Tardive

Winemaker’s Notes:
Pinot Gris at it’s best produces wines that are soft, perfumed with more color than most other white wines.

Food Recommendations:
With a rich pear flavor and a touch of sweetness this wine makes an ideal aperitif. It is best with old age cheese, blue cheese, nuts (walnuts) and Peking duck.

Grape Composition: 100% Pinot Gris
Alcohol: 13%
Sugar Code: (0)

VQA Pelee Island
Price: 750 mL $15.95

Rate and review Pelee Island Pinot Gris 2008

Winemaker’s Notes:
Ripe smooth and polished, this full-bodied Pinot Noir has elegant black cherry, currant and toasted oak flvours. This wine is best enjoyed with red meats, roast pork and ham.

The harvest for these grapes was in late September when they had reached 22.8 brix. The grapes were crushed but not pressed, then placed in a temperature-controlled rotary fermenter (18-20 degrees Celsius) for 5 to 7 days to draw out the colour from the skins. They were then pressed and the juice was placed in European-style French Oak barrels to finish fermenting. After about two weeks the wine was racked into an aging-barrel.

During maturation, the wine spent about eight to twelve months in European-style French Oak barrels with about 25 to 30% of the wine experiencing a malolactic fermentation.

This wine is best when enjoyed with grilled or roasted red meats, roasted pork, ham and Atlantic Salmon.

GRAPES: 100% Pinot Noir
ALCOHOL: 13.5%
RESIDUAL SUGAR: 2.9 g/L
Sugar Code: (0)

VQA Pelee Island

Price: 750 mL $14.95

Awards: 2009 Ontario Wine Awards BRONZE

Rate and review Pelee Island Pinot Noir Reserve 2007

Winemaker’s Notes:
The Cabernet Sauvignon is the world’s most renowned grape variety for producing fine, long-lived red wines. The combination of tannins, pigments and flavour compounds produce big wines that evolve over the years into wines with a distinct and subtle bouquet.

Our Cabernet Sauvignon is VQA Pelee Island, meaning that it is 100% Pelee Island and certainly does justice to the unique growing conditions on the Island.

Long, hot and dry summers have augmented this small berries’ characteristics, with hand-picked care and 15 months of oak aging in French and Hungarian oak barrels to produce a wine that will only improve over the next decade….and beyond.

These grapes were harvested in mid-October when they had reached 21 degrees brix. Following the harvest they spent 7 days in a rotor fermenter.

This wine has the ability to stand up to red meat in sauce or grilled game and even sausages. Its hearty staying power makes it a great winter warm-up!

GRAPES: 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc
BRIX: 21°
ALCOHOL: 13%
ACID: 5.1 g/L
RESIDUAL SUGAR: 2.8 g/L

VQA Pelee Island
Price: 750 mL $24.95

AWARDS:
Intervin International Wine Awards 2009 – Silver
Canadian Wine Awards 2008 – Bronze
Challenge International Du Vin France 2008 – Bronze
Ontario Wine Awards 2008 – Silver

Rate and review Pelee Island Cabernet Sauvignon 2005.

Winemaker’s Notes:
The Redbud Tree, pictured on the front label, is Ontario’s rarest tree. In fact, Pelee Island is the only verified location in Ontario where this tree occurs naturally.

As unique as the Redbud Tree is to Pelee Island so is our Riesling. It is an ideal balance of cool-climate acidity with a fragrant orchard fresh aroma and a delicate peach bouquet.

Food Recommendations:
A perfect complement to appetizers, seafood, cheeses and light meats.

Grape Composition: 100% Riesling
Alcohol: 12.5 %
Residual Sugar: 36.1 g/L
Sugar Code: (4)

VQA Pelee Island

Price: 750 ML $13.95

Rate and review Pelee Island Late Harvest Riesling 2008.

Winemaker’s Notes:

Pelee Girls Stepped up to the Plate series.

10% of the sales proceeds from this wine will be donated to the Ontario Association of Food Banks to help your neighbours facing hunger.

Every month, over 320,000 Ontarians are served by food banks, and forty percent are children. Buy local, Share local is a campaign in support of our neighbours, our local producers, our environment and our economy.

Alcohol: 12.5%
VQA Pelee Island

Price: 750 ML $12.75

Rate and review Pelee Island Chardonnay 2008 (Stepped up to the Plate)

Winemaker’s Notes:
A classic blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc grapes in the style of the classic wines of Bordeaux. Complex, concentrated wine that combines richness with elegance. Aged for 16 months in French and Hungarian barrique barrels.

A full-bodied wine with lots of character, this wine will continue the tradition of excellence which began with the “Vinedressers” of Pelee Island Winery, to shine into the next millennium.

While strolling through the vineyards taking a look at the progress of our grapes, we decided that it was high time to add another premium brand to our line of Vinedresser Series wines. Seeing as we had enough matured fruit on vines that had been planted for fifteen years or so, we hand selected the grapes and came up with a wonderful blend idea. We would try our hand at a Bordeleaux blend known widely as Meritage. This vintage has excellent aging potential that we expect will continue well beyond 2006.

One sip of this wine and you’ll see why it deserves such a prestigious name. A wine this rich and flavourful would be excellent served at room temperature with tender cut of prime rib or all on its own.

Years ago, in an international contest to name the distinct blend of “Meritage,” the name was chosen as a word that combined “merit” and “heritage” to reflect the spirit of the members of “The Meritage Association.”

GRAPES:
50% Cabernet Franc 2003,
30% Cabernet Sauvignon 2003,
20% Merlot 2003

BRIX: 21.4
ALCOHOL: 13% alc./vol.
ACID: 5.3 g/L
RESIDUAL SUGAR: 2.5 g/L
Sugar Code: (0)

VQA Pelee Island

Price: 750mL bottle – $24.95

Rate and review Pelee Island Meritage 2003

The Vinedressers

Winemaker’s Notes:
Shariz (Syrah) is a relatively new varietal in the vineyards of Pelee Island (2000), and we are extremely pleased to offer you this proof of it’s success. The long and hot growing conditions of the island have produced a dry tannic red wine, while aging for 15 months in classic oak barrels has enhanced the blackcurrant fruit flavour and the long smoky finish. This solid red wine is best served in a large glass at 17 degrees Celsius.

13% alc./vol.
VQA Pelee Island VQA

Price: 750 mL $19.75

CLICK HERE to rate and review Pelee Island Shariz 2005.