There has been a bit of a buzz about the wine list at Barque smokehouse lately. You may know of Barque for it’s great food but there is a lot going on in the ways of beverages at the Roncesvalles restaurant. They are now pouring wine on tap. This means that it is poured pretty much the same way you would pour a beer. Only you don’t need to worry about a a big head. I have had a chance to taste wine on tap several times before and there is no reason to doubt the quality of the wines coming out of the keg. Much like the screwcap debate we can put a cork in it.
2014 Southbrook Vineyards “Orange Wine” Vidal – This is worth the visit to Barque in itself. When the glass it put on your table you will notice that it has an cloudy look in the glass. There is nothing wrong with your wine, this was done on purpose. What is unique about this wine is that it was made with indigenous yeast and no added sulphite. Simply put, there are no additives to this wine! Winemaker Ann Sperling didn’t even add yeast to the grapes, she basically let them take care of themselves and this is the final product. This wine is bone dry, with bright acidity. Flavours of grapefruit and lemon layers over tea flavours. This makes a perfect match with your meal because of the bright crisp acidity on the finish.
2013 Norman Hardie Zweigelt – Zweigelt isn’t a varietal that you see very often. Norman Hardie is already well known for his Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, but there are a lot of interesting wines from the winery that are working their ways out the cellar door and onto the taps at Barque. This wine is loaded with ripe raspberry and cherry and on the finish you have a nice spicy note that fills your mouth. The colour on this wine might fool you, because it is quite dark in the glass but it is medium bodied with nice acidity on the finish. If you’re drinking this you will definitely want to try it with the beef rib or the brisket.
Shiny Apple Cider – This cider comes from Niagara and is made with a twist. It comes to our glasses courtesy of Small Talk Vineyards. This cider is blended with Pinot Noir so you do end up with a drink that packs a bit of a punch in terms of alcohol (9%)… so you may not want to pack away too many pints of this. The cider does have a bit of sugar, but I would still say this leans towards the dry side. It is refreshing and delicious. It is everything you expect from a good cider with lots of apple and nice acidity with blackberry, raspberry and cranberry mixed in there.
