MEATING ITS MATCH
We offer a few wine pairings
The 2018 Wine Align National Wine Awards of Canada, the country’s largest competition of Canadian wines, has begun to release its 2018 results and there is so much to reveal it will take two weeks of daily announcements to work through all the categories and awards. You can follow the results daily at winealign.com.
There is nothing easy about winning at the nationals where, on average, only about 20 out every 100 wines make it to the final round, leaving many very fine wines — or what organizers refer to as low golds and high silvers — without a second chance to go for platinum or a higher gold score.
It wasn’t always the way. A decade ago a final flight contained the top scoring wines in the category but the mix was more silver than gold. Not any more; in fact the story of this year’s nationals is just how crowded and competitive it is at the top.
Like a race horse, Canadian wineries have the bit in their teeth and they are not letting up. It would not surprise me if five different wineries took the top winery of the year prize over the next five years; that’s how much the gap is closing at the top.
To illustrate the competitive nature of this year’s competition take a quick look at the top seven red blends released this week from a category that contained 209 wines and yielded 93 medals.
Unlike many international competitions that attract a small number of wines from a lot of countries in each category, facing the best of the best of your Canadian neighbours and coming out on top is something worth crowing about.
Interestingly, the top seven red blends were all from B.C. All were assessed twice by a total of three panels across 14 to 15 judge’s scorecards. The top 91-point scores were so tightly clustered, the final order was determined using two decimals.
Top ranked is the Mission Hill 2015 Compendium ($85). The growing percentage of Cabernet Franc, now 22 per cent added to the Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot has enhanced its finesse even in what was a super warm year. (The 2015 is not yet released).
Winemaker Tayler Whelan almost had the last word, coming second with his CedarCreek 2014 Platinum The Last Word ($77.99), a red blend that is made by co-fermenting 26/31/19 Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Malbec, picked together and left on skins in concrete for one month before joining 24 per cent Merlot to age 20 months in French oak. It’s impressive.
At $45 the Clos du Soleil 2014 Signature red from the Similkameen Valley screams value and quality. Building on older vines and more winemaking knowledge it is a glimpse into what there is to come from the Similkameen Valley, where the wineries and the region are only getting started.
A surprise for some is ascension of the Revered Series, Blasted Church 2015 Nothing Sacred ($45), another rich 2015 red blend. As big as it is on the palate there is a sense of balance, purity and finesse that helped to propel it toward the finals. It will only get better in the bottle over the next five years.
Next up was winemaker Severine Pinte’s LaStella 2016 Fortissimo ($34.95). This savoury supple mix of mostly Merlot with some Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese and Cabernet Franc is one to watch.
It was especially gratifying to see the Seven Stones 2014 The Legend Estate ($50) break into the upper echelon, it’s another Similkameen red capable of punching well above its weight. Finally, similar kudos for the Pentage 2013 Skaha Bench GSM ($30), demonstrating why Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre needs a bigger piece of the red blend pie in B.C.
In truth there is little to choose from between the top red blends, which is the emerging story of the nationals at the top end. Hold onto your hats, it’s going to be a fun decade for Canadian wine as it attempts to capture the imagination of global wine drinkers.