Spring Tastings Begin…

Monday, Mar 23rd, 2009

 

Spring is here, and over the last week I’ve had the pleasure to host a couple of fun and lively tasting sessions.  It was a welcome break from pruning to be joined by groups of both wine “lovers” and wine “makers”, respectively, for a tour of our barn and a taste through the Five Rows portfolio.  I have to admit that I still get butterflies when pouring our wines for those who have yet to try them, and I don’t think that will change anytime soon.

I like to use these tastings to gauge the general vibe that people are getting from our winery, and based on our first few sessions the feedback has been tremendous.  It excites me that our new friends really get what we are trying to do and often express a desire to lend a hand in the vineyard sometime next season.  I’m hoping they all realize that I just might have to take them up on that offer!

I’m finding that each tasting takes on its own dynamic, which keeps me on my toes and very engaged.  Often times I like to slip in a new barrel blend that I’ve been working on, as this is a great way to get valuable opinions directly from the people that matter…the wine buyers.  Despite subjecting my guests to this “guinea pig” treatment, I’ve yet to receive any complaints.

For example, I’m always trying to fine-tune our 2007 Pinot Noir by experimenting with different amounts of 2008 Pinot as part of the blend.  As a rule, we are allowed to blend up to 15% of different vintages into a single varietal wine.  The potential marriage of these two vintages is very intriguing.  The 2007 Pinot abounds with tannin, colour, and bold “new world” flavours, while the 2008 is more reminiscent of a classic Lowrey Pinot; subtle, elegant and classically Burgundian.  To date I’ve experimented with 5-10% of the 2008 in the blend, and results have been mixed.  Some loved it, some wanted more 2008, and some felt that it is simply too early to evaluate the potential of the 2007 alone.  I tend to fall into the latter category, so perhaps I’ll stop bugging the Pinot and let it do it’s thing for a little while longer.

To our friends in Niagara-On-The-Lake:  we are pleased to announce that you can now enjoy our 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon at the historic Charles Inn.

Harvest 2008 – Part One

Monday, Oct 06th, 2008

 

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.

The whites, Pinot Gris and Sauvignon Blanc, are happily fermenting in the cold room of our barn as I write this.  I decided to add a single barrel ferment to the Pinot Gris regime this year, in an attempt to add a bit more complexity and refined mouthfeel to the final blend.  The majority will still be fermented in stainless steel because it worked so well last season.   From “the never do that again” file, we actually bottled our 2007 Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris between the days we picked the 2008 crops of each varietal.  Any winery employee will profess that harvesting and bottling are not meant to intermingle, but sometimes you just have to make room for the new stuff.  The ’07 whites will be a part of our initial release slated for the beginning of November.

The Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon are still hanging strong and starting to pick up sugar and enhanced flavours on a daily basis.  I’ll keep you posted as the rest of Vintage ‘08 unfolds.  Better yet, stop by for a chat and taste a few berries yourself!

My Legacy

Tuesday, Aug 12th, 2008

 

Over the coming weeks and months I hope to provide you with a raw, uncensored look at the travails and joys associated with opening a small, craft winery.  Am I crazy?  Perhaps. In fact, some have suggested just that. I would argue, however, that it may be the only way to satisfy my burning desire to make small quantities of great wine from our storied family vineyard.

Our farm dates back five generations to the days of David Jackson Lowrey, who planted Niagara’s first commercial vineyard in the late 1800s.   Fast forward four generations to today and you’ll find my two personal heroes still farming this land.  The vines have changed and the “tractors” don’t have legs anymore, but I’m sure my parents Howie and Wilma still worry about their crops the same way David Jackson did back in his day.  Each generation has had to adapt and evolve with the times, and I see this small winery as my opportunity to do the same.

My parents bought the farm, so to speak, from my grandparents back in the 1970s when it was planted mainly with old Labrusca and Hybrid grapevines, which were common in Niagara at the time.  My father and grandfather, the two Howards, worked as a formidable tandem to manage the farm, as my first vivid childhood memories can attest.

A sweeping grapevine pull-out program, prompted by the pending Free Trade agreement of the mid-80s, forced my parents to make many difficult and thankfully “wine-friendly” decisions.  Amid the worries of a future without vineyards, it was Karl Kaiser of Inniskillin Wines who suggested that our site would be perfectly suited for the hard to grow, vinifera grape varieties that were beginning to show promise in the Niagara Region.  So it was with skepticism and crossed fingers that we decided to plant five trial rows of Pinot Noir in 1987.  The rest, as they say, is history.  I can only hope that our new winery ensures that the farm is sustainable for generations to come.