2016 Featherstone Black Sheep Riesling – Vintages 80234 – $16.95 – ****½ – This is a benchmark wine for Riesling in Niagara. When I’m talking about quality and value this is a flagship for the province and a perfect way to either build or bolster a cellar. The concentration of fruit climbing out of the glass is … satisfying. If you close your eyes when you take your first sniff of the wine in your glass you may be fooled to think you have fresh peaches in front of you. There is a nice citrus note that mingles in perfect harmony with orchard fruit and underneath it all a mineral note that is begging to come out. This is off-dry but with perfectly balanced acidity. This is just so fresh and clean on the palate it makes you long for the warm summer months. Pair this with Fried Chicken, grilled Sausages, or spicy Asian cuisine.
2013 Rockway Vineyards Cabernet/Merlot – Vintages 370346 – $16.95 – **** – How good can a sub-twenty dollar bottle of red wine from Ontario be? It seems Rockway vineyards are on a mission to answer that with this bottle that is punching well above it’s price point. This could be the best priced bottle of Red wine from Ontario on the shelves of your LCBO so far in 2017. It’s medium bodied and elegant with ripe cherry, and strawberry go from nose to finish on this wine. There is a nice licorice note that pokes through on the finish giving this wine a bit of depth. This isn’t a bottle that I would plan on holding for more than 2-3 years, but not every bottle belongs in a cellar. Open this and and serve it with some red meat off the grill.
