Winter Events

Sunday, Jan 20th, 2013

We can now announce some details regarding a couple of exciting winter events we have in the works.

Firstly, I am floored by the response to our Treadwell’s Winemaker Dinner on January 26.  Based on the turnout to previous dinners, James and I had anticipated the usual 25-30 loyal Five Rows fans who had joined us in the past.  However, within a week of the dinner announcement this year it became apparent that we were going to need a bigger boat.  The enthusiastic request for seats meant the entire restaurant would have to be closed down to accommodate our ever-expanding group of friends.

What a great night it should be!  I’ve had a chance to preview the proposed menu and can report that Stephen and James have outdone themselves yet again.  The wines we have chosen to showcase are:  2011 Pinot Gris, 2011 Sauvignon Blanc, 2009 Pinot Noir, 2008 Shiraz and 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Icewine.  Most of these wines have been sold out for a while, so we had to source them from Wilma’s personal library (it took some convincing).  I also plan to bring along a surprise barrel sample, as this was very well received last year.  Any requests?

The 25th Anniversary Cuvée Celebration will take place March 1-3rd.  In an effort to reflect the nostalgic theme this year, we’ve decided to dip into our library for the Cuvée En Route tasting sessions.  Anyone wishing to visit us over that weekend is invited to participate in the first ever Five Rows Pinot Noir vertical tasting, featuring wines from 2007, 2008 and 2009.  I hope to collect some useful feedback to better advise those who’ve resisted temptation and continue to age these wines in their cellar.  Please email or call if you plan to stop in over the weekend so we can determine how many bottles might be required.

2009 Pinot Noir Review – Spotlight Toronto

Saturday, Sep 29th, 2012

Five Rows would like to sincerely thank Mike Di Caro and Suresh Doss of Spotlight Toronto for visiting our winery last week and relating our story to their readers.  Mike’s article appeared in the popular “30 Days on Wine” feature that we look forward to every year.  You can read it here.

Kind words during the grueling harvest are always welcome – Thanks guys!

Mother Nature or Winemaker’s Nurture?

Wednesday, Sep 19th, 2012

The last couple of weeks saw a flurry of action at our family vineyard.  The “perfect” summer of 2012 ended with a stretch of wet weather that spawned nervous moments and tough decisions.  Looking back, I probably worried more than I should have (what’s new) because the fruit hung on wonderfully through the intense downpours and resultant humidity.  In a nine day span we were able to harvest all of our Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling.  It’s rare that all four of these varietals mature within such a short window.  Perhaps that is what we will remember most when we enjoy the wines of 2012, just how early and quickly everything ripened.  Even the later varietals taste like they are not too far off – a very exciting prospect!

As I fall into my daily ritual of fermentation checks (specific gravity, temperature and taste), I ponder whether this may be my favourite time to be a winemaker.  I enjoy the solemnity of this stage,  the wines are mine and mine alone.  It won’t be long until I share them with my friends, but for now they are mine to protect and nurture.  Each day there are surprises and letdowns, comebacks and revelations, but most of all there is respect for a process that I did not invent, nor will I ever perfect.  I will only get so many chances to do this in my lifetime.

I used to feel pressure at this stage to repeat past successes, but now I know that it is a foolish pursuit.  The wines will be what they were destined to be the moment the grapes were clipped from the mother vine.  The job of the farmer is what crafts these wines.  Sure, I control the fermentation with choice of yeast, temperature and nutrition, but I can no longer impact the natural elements of the harvested grape.  It is those natural elements, supplied by the Terroir, that make a wine special.

I hold out high hopes for these young wines as they bubble their way through fermentation.  The Pinot Noir is particularly intriguing this year.  The aromatics are so intense!  There are few things I enjoy more than punching down a bin of actively fermenting Pinot.  It is a grunt at times, but also very therapeutic and mesmerizing (according to Wilma).  Your entire year’s work reduced down to a single vessel of beautiful aromas and colours.  As I said, a good time to be a winemaker.

The Wine That Almost Wasn’t

Sunday, Aug 26th, 2012

We are in the midst of a summer for the ages – and that’s all I’m willing to say at the moment.  I will spare the superlatives in an effort not to tempt fate.   So much can (and probably will) go wrong between now and the end of harvest.  Suffice it to say we are mere days away from taking in the first of our fruit.  That’s silly early!

While experiencing these ideal conditions I like to reminisce about years when we weren’t so fortunate.  I remember well the late, cool and wet summer of 2009.  Conditions were optimal for the early varieties, but proved a serious challenge for ripening Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon.  We thinned down to ridiculous levels (a few bunches per vine) but the acid levels in the grapes remained very high in both varieties.  I clearly remember making the sad decision not to harvest any of this fruit for our Five Rows wines.  It was decided to sell the Shiraz to another winery and hang the Cab Sauv for Icewine.  Before the Icewine nets went up, my ever optimistic Mother made the suggestion to go through our Cab Sauv blocks and select only the ripest of bunches in an effort to salvage a couple barrels worth of fruit.  Every ounce of winemaker in me screamed no, but how could I say no to Wilma?  The next day we set out to do our tedious selective picking.

So begins the tale of our 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon or as I like to call it “The wine that almost wasn’t”.  This elegant wine is now for sale in our barn, which is a minor miracle based on how many times it was written off.

It was intensely aromatic from the get go, but took 30 months in some magical old barrels to achieve it’s current mouthfeel, structure and flavour profile.  During those 30 months in my beloved (but soon to be retired) 2002 Gillet barrels, this wine was always an afterthought.  In fact, I even looked into selling it as bulk a couple of times just to get it out of the barn.  Fortunately, there were no takers.  Sometime around the two year mark spent in barrel, things began to change and those two black sheep began to get my attention.  I found myself tasting them at least once a week, just to make sure I wasn’t going nuts.  I began to feel that this 2009 Cab could actually one day don a Five Rows label.  My first thought was to use it as a silent partner with our 2010 Cab, but the blending trials flopped.  I proceeded to try a Shiraz/Cab Sauv blend, but that idea was also eventually nixed.

The resilient 2009 Five Rows Cabernet Sauvignon had managed to dodge every bullet I could muster.  There was no other option than to let it rightfully stand on its own.  I now consider this wine to be a secret bonus for those open-minded oenophiles who don’t practice vintage discrimination.  There are people who will never try this wine simply because it was made in 2009.  That just leaves more for the rest of us.  This Cab is texturally gorgeous and delivers classic Lowrey Cab Sauv aromatics (blackberry, cherry, cassis) and wonderful balance that literally appeared out of nowhere.  50 cases were bottled on April 6th, 2012.  It will be fun to compare and contrast this wine with the big bombers on the horizon (2010 and 2012).

2009 Pinot Noir

Friday, May 25th, 2012

 

Starting this weekend, our 2009 Five Rows Pinot Noir will embark on the final leg of it’s three year journey from vine to barrel to bottle to you.  I debated letting the wine age a bit longer in bottle prior to release, but a tasting session last week made me realize that the time has come to finally let go.  Parting is such sweet sorrow.

2009 Five Rows Pinot Noir:

Sometimes the best of wines and the worst of seasons magically collide to create an unexpected moment of glory.  The growing season of 2009 was one of those odd times.  A late budbreak set the tone for what would be a cool, wet summer.  We usually harvest Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris in early September, but nothing was close to being ripe in the late summer of 2009.  Cue the blessing in disguise.

The moderate September days and cool fall nights helped move the Pinot ripening window to a time when Botrytis concerns were at a minimum.   This was uncharted territory for Niagara Pinot growers.  You must understand that there is one and only one certainty when growing Pinot Noir – they WILL rot at some point.  When the inevitable did not happen in 2009, we were afforded the luxury of harvesting at the exact point when tannins, flavours, sugars and acids were aligned to my liking.

We chose to harvest Rows 1 and 2 on October 6, the latest Pinot pick we’ve had in 25 years.  The remainder of the fruit was taken in on October 17.  Average harvest parameters were 22.9°Brix, 8.4 g/L TA and pH 3.15.  Fruit was destemmed and crushed into one tonne fermentation bins and allowed a cold soak at 10°C for five days.  All bins were warmed to 14°C and inocualted with RC212 yeast at 250 ppm. Ferments averaged about 7 days, with a peak temperature of 29°C.  Each bin was allowed to macerate post-fermentation until tannins showed signs of softening.

The wine was pressed and settled before clean-racking into seven French oak barrels (average age 2.5 years).  Malolactic fermentation was carried out in oak.  Barrels were racked and returned every 6 months.  Total time in wood was 24 months before final blending in November 2011.  182 cases were bottled on April 2nd, 2012.

In my early tasting notes for this wine I have written, “something dark, alluring and mysterious about this Pinot.  Reminiscent of a rainy day on our honeymoon spent tasting great Burgundies in the dank cellars of Beaune.”

Aromas: cherry, violet, cassis, smoke, earth

Palate: dried cranberry, Bing cherry, soft tannin, haunting length

Cellaring:  2013-2023

Price: $50/bottle

A Dinner With Friends

Wednesday, Feb 01st, 2012

 

A winemaker prepares for a “Winemaker’s Dinner” with the hope that his or her wines will show their best and contribute positively to the evening’s festivities and fare.  My pre-dinner jitters were immediately settled when I walked into Treadwell’s on Saturday and was greeted by so many familiar faces.  It was like walking into the warm atmosphere of a family dinner.

As we drove to Port Dalhousie, I’d managed to convince myself that by now people must be sick of hearing me rattle on about leaf-removal techniques in Pinot Gris or the benefits of whole-bunch pressing in Riesling, but surprisingly that was not the case!  People expressed genuine interest in hearing the behind the scenes viticultural and enological practices that we employ at Five Rows.  I found this very encouraging and flattering.  But let’s not kid ourselves, the people came to hear Howie and Wilma tell their stories – and those two never disappoint!

As one might anticipate, the true star on this night was the food.  James, Jason and staff completely outdid themselves, coming up with a stunning menu that left everyone raving.  The liveliest debate was reserved for deciding which course and pairing was our favourite.  I was partial to the Pinot and Tuna.

It’s always amazing to me that our wines just seem to smell and taste more intense when served at Treadwell’s.  Perhaps it’s the heightened anticipation of the senses or maybe its the proper serving temperature and stemware.   Whatever it is, I was relieved that each wine seemed to go over well.

I decided to use this group as guinea pigs (they seemed rather willing) to demo a blending trial of our yet to be released 2009 Pinot Noir.  The 2009 vintage was a dream for Niagara Pinot growers, who were treated to perfect ripening conditions for a change.  I put together a blend of 85%  2009  Pinot and  5% from each of three different barrels of 2010 Pinot.  The blend composition was determined based on some areas where I felt the wine could use a lift.  One of the 2010 barrels was Clone 777 (first crop), which added an interesting fresh raspberry dimension to the aromatics.  It plays well off the typical burgundian notes always present in the  Clone 115 Old Vine Lowrey Pinot.

We decided to pit this 2009 blend against our 2007 Pinot Noir to see how it stacked up.  I felt that the 2007 had gained some aromatic complexity since I last tried it, but it’s lively tannins tell me that this wine could still benefit from a bit more time in the cellar.  It was agreed that the 2009 blend really showed promise, and some people even preferred it over the 2007!  We will bottle the 2009 (maybe this exact blend) in April, with a release anticipated for early in the summer.

Thanks to all who attended for making this such a memorable experience!

 

Winemaker’s Dinner

Thursday, Jan 12th, 2012

We are currently finalizing plans for our second annual Winemaker’s Dinner to be held once again at Treadwell Farm to Table Cuisine in Port Dalhousie.  For those interested in attending, it will take place on Saturday, January 28.  I’m told that most of the seats are spoken for by returnees from last year, but there may be a few spots still up for grabs.  Best to contact James ASAP (905-934-9797).

The menu and wine pairings are still being conceptualized.  You’d be amazed at the amount of thought and debate involved in this process!  I don’t want to give too much away, but I may have convinced my mother to part with our final few bottles of 2010 Sauvignon Blanc, 2010 Pinot Gris and 2007 Pinot Noir to pour for the occasion.  I can’t think of a better curtain call for these wines.

Over the next couple of weekends (Jan. 14-15th and the 22nd) our barn will be open for tastings from 11-5.  We welcome anyone planning to attend the Icewine Festival to stop in for a complimentary sample of our 2009 Single Press Cabernet Sauvignon Icewine.

I’m proud to say that my little sister will be getting married on January 21, so we’ve elected to close Five Rows for the day and use the barn for pictures and festivities.  Congratulations Catherine and Steve!

2011 Vintage Update

Sunday, Sep 11th, 2011

Call me Chicken Little.

At the first sign of rotten berries and fruit flies in our Pinot Noir I run to my father and proclaim, “the sky is falling”.  I rattle off all the jobs that need to be done IMMEDIATELY: gotta get the bins ready for harvest, gotta cut the rot out, gotta check the sugar and acid levels, gotta thin out green bunches, gotta take the nets down…

He takes in all the “gotta’s” and I manage to catch my breath while swatting away invisible fruit flies.   My anxiety stems from sheer amount of time I’ve put into that damn vineyard, and coming to grips with the concept that no amount of time and care can trump mother nature.  Water is always the great equalizer.   These overly tight Pinot clusters just can’t resist taking in excess water.  They are starting to rot from the inside out, as mid-cluster berries begin to split.  This condition is worse than a simple bird peck or hail strike which often times dries up on the cluster exterior.  The only cure for this malady is the strategic removal of rotten berries, not a fun prospect.

Howie takes it all in stride.  The calm look on his face reminds me that we go through this same excruciating Pinot dance every year.  He knows that we will cut the rot out and the resulting fruit will ripen-up enough to make good wine.  If not, then at least we can rest assured that we gave it our best shot.  Why can’t I be this wise and even-keeled?  I guess that is where we differ.

He goes on to recall the words of a sage vineyard manager we both know who under similar circumstances proclaimed, “They are just grapes and we’re just making booze.”  I shudder and remind him that this fellow no longer manages vineyards.

2008 Five Rows Pinot Noir Vinification Notes

Sunday, Jun 19th, 2011

2008 Five Rows Pinot Noir:

Now that we’ve been at this venture for a few years, it’s interesting to look back at my old blog entries upon the release of a new wine.  This entry from October 6, 2008 aptly tells the story of our 2008 Pinot Noir:

“Vintage ‘08 is upon us and to this point things have been…well…in a word …WET!!  Enough rain already.  I mean just when I thought we were in the clear we got doused by the remnants of a hurricane, and for the record: I don’t like Ike. Thankfully, the last couple of weeks have more than made up for the rain, with plenty of sunshine and perfect ripening conditions for the early varietals.

As per usual, the “Heartbreak Grape”, Pinot Noir, lived up to its moniker and provided lots of nervous moments and second guessing.  In fact, one day in the vineyard while pondering a harvest timing decision, I found myself singing aloud to the Clash hit “Should I Stay or Should I Go”.  The Pinot were clean but slightly underripe, with threatening weather on the horizon (“If I go there will be trouble / And if I stay it will be double”).  Ultimately, we decided not to pick and wait out what suddenly became Hurricane Ike.  All the water led to some berries actually splitting and roused us into action.  Led by a Pinot-loving mother hell-bent on saving her crop, the three of us spent two mind-numbing days cutting out individually split berries and underripe clusters.  On September 16th and 17th we finally hand-picked our first two tonnes of fruit.  In the end, what came in was ripe, clean (thus receiving the Wilma stamp of approval) and fermented into some really intriguing stuff.  I experimented with a new yeast strain this season called W15, which after pressing today, is the early favourite to put into our 2 new Sirugue barrels.”

Fast-forward to 2011 and that Pinot-loving mother can be proud of the wine she helped save.  The 2008 is reminiscent of many past wines featuring Lowrey Pinot.  A classic blend of bright cherry fruit, some floral notes and spice dominate the nose.  Flavours of black raspberry and vanilla bean resolve into a pleasingly soft mouthfeel.  Tannins are much more approachable than the 2007 Five Rows Pinot Noir at the same stage.

Technical Data: 12.6% alcohol,  5.4 g/L residual sugar,  pH 3.45

Price:  $50/bottle

Barrels: 5

Production: 106 cases

Harvest 2010

Sunday, Sep 12th, 2010

 

Three down, three to go.  In one fell swoop, we now have all of our 2010 Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Sauvignon Blanc off the vines and in the tanks.  All were harvested earlier and riper than in any previous vintage, including the much heralded 2007 crop.

It was a hectic start to harvest this year as all three early-ripening varieties were deemed ready to pick much quicker than anticipated due to rapidly decreasing acid levels.  What a difference a year makes!  I would like to sincerely thank the skilled crew who helped us painstakingly hand-pick our Pinot Noir.  It’s always a challenge to harvest Pinot because every rotten or under-ripe berry must be carefully removed from each cluster before I deem it acceptable.  The harvested fruit is then sorted both in the vineyard and at the crusher.  This ensures that our Pinot gets off to a good start, with no “off” aromas or flavours in the must.  Excess rot can also play havoc with fermentation and eventually filtration.

Just prior to harvest we were able to schedule a bottling run of our 2009 whites, including the much anticipated (at least by my mom) 33 case debut of our Five Rows Riesling.  I intend to release these wines sometime soon, so keep an eye on the blog and website.  All three of these wines showcase exciting aromatic intensity.  I can’t wait for you to try them.