Showing posts with label Thirty Bench. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Thirty Bench. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 4, 2020
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Thirty Bench 2008 Riesling - $18.00
Suddenly we are in the midst of a warm spell so I thought it quite apropos to bring you a nice Riesling to enjoy this last, and rare, gasp of the warmth of fall, soon that chill we dread will be in the air, so enjoy now while you still can.
The Tasting Notes: The nose is beautiful and loaded with citrus, green apple, lanolin and floral notes; the palate has a little something for everyone: lime rind, crisp green apple, good clean acidity and the sweetness of peach on the finish. Price: $18.00 – Rating: ****
I am thrilled to announce that as of February 24, 2009, each Podcast has its own unique player - so you can listen to whichever Podcast you want to. So without further ado I will leave you with this week's Podcast, or if you decide not to check out the new format you can read the tasting notes below ... I recommend the Podcast, of course.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Thirty Bench Wine Makers 2006 Small Lot Cabernet Franc - $35.00
Today we'll head over to Thirty best to try what might be the best Cabernet Franc made from the 2006 Vintage ... but don't just take my word for it, the winemakers who judged Cuvee 2009 also believed it to be true.
I am thrilled to announce that as of February 24, 2009, each Podcast has its own unique player - so you can listen to whichever Podcast you want to. So without further ado I will leave you with this week's Podcast, or if you decide not to check out the new format you can read the tasting notes below ... I recommend the Podcast, of course.
The Tasting Notes: This wine is loaded with dark fruit and layers of smoky, toasty oak – but the oak doesn’t dominate or overpower. Big tannins dry the palate while lots of black fruit and smokiness fills the mouth. Price: $35.00 – Rating: *****
I am thrilled to announce that as of February 24, 2009, each Podcast has its own unique player - so you can listen to whichever Podcast you want to. So without further ado I will leave you with this week's Podcast, or if you decide not to check out the new format you can read the tasting notes below ... I recommend the Podcast, of course.
The Tasting Notes: This wine is loaded with dark fruit and layers of smoky, toasty oak – but the oak doesn’t dominate or overpower. Big tannins dry the palate while lots of black fruit and smokiness fills the mouth. Price: $35.00 – Rating: *****
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Thirty Bench 2006 Winemaker’s Red - $22.00
This week we take a trip to the Beamsville Bench to see what's new and exciting at Thirty Bench - and I'll tell you a little story about a fight I had at a tasting over this winery ... take a listen to the Podcast to hear the tale of two wine writers, or, if you choose the more boring route, you can just read the tasting notes below (the Podcast is always more fun):
The nose is chocolate, cherry, blueberry and cinnamon, while the palate has tobacco, spices, black fruit with a predominance towards black cherry along with plenty of the other stuff you found on your sniffer … holding time for this one is about 5 year, my advice, drink this one while you wait for the 05 to come around and for the 07 to come out.
The nose is chocolate, cherry, blueberry and cinnamon, while the palate has tobacco, spices, black fruit with a predominance towards black cherry along with plenty of the other stuff you found on your sniffer … holding time for this one is about 5 year, my advice, drink this one while you wait for the 05 to come around and for the 07 to come out.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Thirty Bench Wine Makers 2006 Family of Rieslings ... $18.00 - $32.00
Thirty Bench is at it again. They did this same experiment last year with great success, so again this year they are making four different Rieslings, each with its own specific flavour profile … 3 are single vineyard versions and one is a 3-vineyard blend. ‘Triangle Vineyard’ ($32) has a bright minerality, lemon drop and petrol nose; with wet stone, lemon peel, white peach and minerally in the mouth and a lingering Granny Smith finish. ‘Steel Post’ ($28) limeade and white peach aromas; mineral, peachy, appley tastes culminates in a medium finish. ‘Wood Post’ ($28) a sweeter version with its apple, peach smells, Germanic style, tropical fruit slightly sweet flavours (2) – an easy sipper with a short finish. And finally, the ‘Riesling’ ($18) a blend of all three vineyard’s grapes (those not selected for the top tier single vineyard versions), a little bit of everything from everybody: peach, lemon, lime, minerality and a crisp citrus finish. Depending on your palate and your budget. One of these 4 bottles is for you.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Thirty Bench Winemakers 2005 Small Lot Chardonnay - $30.00
Oh Thirty Bench, what a difference ownership makes – I know I keep saying it but it’s true; from a winery I barely even walked into, to a winery making some really interesting and unique wines, not that Chardonnay is particularly unique, but still… Speaking as a Chardonnay-aphobe, I would have to say opening this bottle filled me with questions I dread the answers to: would it be too oaky? Too buttery? Too something? As many Chardonnays have become. My fears were for not because this 14 month French oaked Chard is terrific; the oaking is done lightly with a deft touch. The nose has a hint of butteryness but mostly its apples, pears and some delicate melon aromas. The palate shows the same kind of finesse with tropical fruits such as papaya and pineapple core, cantaloup also shows up and a tasty vanilla finish lingers pleasantly in the mouth. There’s some good acidity in here that makes for a crisp, zingy and lip-smackingly good finish.
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Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Thirty Bench Wine Makers 2005 Red - $ 22.00
Back when Andrew Peller took over Thirty Bench it was a winery that had fallen on hard winemaking times, a winery you would walk through and walk out of with little in the way of a draw; the wines had simply become generic and non-descript. Flash forward a couple of years and the change is amazing; the outside has remained the same, but the inside has become warm and inviting drawing you in deeper and deeper (if only to get a look at the amazing view out the back windows) but the wines have developed into something special too. ‘Red’ is 30 Bench’s new Meritage blend with 65% Cab Sauv, 15% Cab Franc and 10% Merlot, aged 12 months in French oak; the grapes drawn from the hot ripe 2005 vintage. Black cherry, cassis and cedar are the most prominent smells right now – with more on the way, if you’re willing to put some bottle age on it. The flavours follow from the promise of the nose, with a touch of vanilla, cherry and cinnamon on the finish. Drinking now? Then I would recommend decanting, pre-opening or a really big glass. Holding? 3-5 years easy.
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Thirty Bench Winemakers 2005 Triangle Riesling - $32.00
Looking for one of the best Ontario Rieslings on the market, you’ve found it. Since their purchase by Andrew Peller Wines (formerly Andres) in May of 2005, 30 Bench has been re-inventing themselves as a small boutique, small lot, small batch winery. This Riesling is sourced from the 9-acre Triangle vineyard located north of the winery, next to the creek at the back of the property. The grapes are hand picked and sorted, and when all is said and done they use only about 2 acres worth of the best fruit for this bottling. The limestone soil gives this wine great minerality both on the nose and taste, and shows great complexity with nuances of peach, pineapple, hint of tangerine and other tropical aromas, that seem to constantly change the longer it remains opened. The peach follows through on the palate along with hints of sweet citrus and lychee fruit which courses through the mouth before ending with sweet clementine-like flavours on the finish. Balanced through and through: good acidity, great flavours, and just the right amount of sweetness. This just might be Ontario’s best Riesling and once you’ve tasted it you’ll know why it won’t be around long, either on the shelf or in your glass … thank God for the long finish.
Listen to the Podcast of this review - www.ontariowinereview.libsyn.com
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