A few weeks ago I had a chance to do a live tasting with Vadim Chelekhov – the head winemaker at Kacaba. I have known Vadim for a longtime and he was our winemaker at 80x – he made our wonderful rosé and chardonnay. When I was talking to him about what we can do – and how we can connect while being socially distanced – I thought it would be fun to taste through the lineup of Syrahs.
So far I have been super impressed with the 2017s from Niagara. The Chardonnay and Pinot Noir has all been elegant and complex. The Trius red from 2017 is a standout – not an easy task given the challenging summer. But, how did the Syrah fare? Before opening the bottles it was interesting to see that the alcohol on the entire lineup was under 13%. I am thinking about this while sipping on a southern rhone Syrah with a stated 15% alcohol. So how did Kacaba fare in 2017? It turns out very well. The wines are more restrained and elegant than in a hotter vintage – but across the board beautifully ripe and delicious.
2017 Proprieter’s Block – **** – This comes from the youngest block of Syrah front he Kacaba vineyard. I can’t wait to continue to taste future vintages of this wine as the vineyard gains some age. Fruit takes a back seat to some more savoury elements in this wine – smoked meat and spice climb out of the glass with nice concentration. On the palate this offers juicy blackberry and cherry pie filling that is mated perfectly with the smoky aromas. The tannin is soft and well integrated – this is ready to drink now – but I imagine it will evolve over the next five years.
2017 Terraced Vineyard – ****+ – This is usually my favourite of the lineup – there is always a nice balance between smoky, meaty, spicy notes and rich fruit notes. This year is no exception. This is brimming with juicy fruit – raspberry, blackberry, fig, and plum but the fruit flavours work in perfect tandem with smoked meat and cedar notes. Notes of vanilla begin to rise up the deeper into your glass you get. The tannin is very soft but still manages to grab hold with a bit of grip on the finish. You can drink this now, but it will benefit with a few years in a cellar drink 2023-2026.
2017 Silver Bridge Vineyard – ****+ – I made Vadim pick a favourite on our instagram live tasting of this – the silver bridge was my favourite of the three on that night. The fruit takes centre stage and the smoke and spice is more subtle. So you get the same berry and fig notes from the terraced vineyard – but the smoke notes are more subtle and buried. This is ready to drink now but I am genuinely excited to see how this is going to evolve with some time in the cellar. But even though this was my favourite the night of the tasting I don’t think it will stay my favourite. Your best bet would be to pick up the whole lineup. And while these wines may not have as much longevity in a cellar as during a hot vintage. Who cares? This is the joy of Ontario wines – we don’t need to wait 10 years for these to be ready to drink. A few years in a cellar you will end up with beautiful elegant Syrah. So stock up – and drink up.
2017 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay – **** – The chardonnay from Kacaba is a rarity when it gets to the public as I know previous vintages get snapped up pretty quick by wine club members. The 2017 was released in limited quantities at vintages – it’s a welcome departure in style from previous vintages I have tasted. The wine unapologetically screams new world in style with it’s treatment in barrel. There is lots of vanilla and spice – but it’s not over-oaked and it doesn’t overpower the wonderful peach and apple flavours from the vineyard. Part of this wine has spent some time in acacia barrels and this adds a nice floral note to the Chardonnay. You can enjoy this now – or hold it for a few years. Frankly – This is a welcome change in style for Chardonnay from Kacaba and I can’t wait for next year.
