Cheese & Wine Tweet-Up Natalie MacLean

Here are my tasting notes of the 4 VQA wines tasted last night during the #CdnCheese tweet-up with Natalie MacLean with actually trended to the #1 spot. Also included are my impressions of the 6 Canadian cheeses that were paired with each of the wines.

INNISKILLIN WINEMAKER'S SERIES TWO VINEYARDS RIESLING 2010 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#105387) (D) - $17.95
This wine was one of my picks from the April 14th VINTAGES release. Screw cap. Fresh mineral, lemon, pear aromas, along with hints of honey and petrol. Tangy with grapefruit and lemon-lime zesty acidity, mineral, leads to an off-dry, bumpy finish that bounces between honey and slate notes.

The Île-aux-Grues 1-year-old cheddar and the Avonlea cheddar both paired really well with this Riesling, while the Alfred Le Fermier brought out some interesting orange notes in the wine; the Upper Canada Niagara Gold cheese also went well with this off-dry wine.

JACKSON-TRIGGS SILVER SERIES CHARDONNAY 2010 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#252072) (XD) - $17.95
Screw cap. Delicious peach, apple and vanilla aromas lead to more of the same on the palate, joined by hints of butter and honey notes. Full-bodied for a white with very creamy mouthfeel with some herbal characters on the finish. Take the little edginess off the spicy finish and this becomes an excellent wine!

Once again, the Île-aux-Grues and Avonlea cheddar both balance the flavours and acidity of this wine, with neither the cheese or wine dominating the palate.

OPEN WINES RIESLING-GEWÜRZTRAMINER 2011 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#134965) (D) - $11.95
Screw cap. Tropical fruits and pear aromas from the glass. A simple, light and fruity easy drinking wine with tropical fruit and peach on the palate. Off-dry.

The Albert's Leap brie darkens the flavours and makes the wine more interesting; the Niagara Gold and the Avonlea Clothbound Cheddar both really balance well with this wine; both the Alfred Le Fermier and the Maple Smoked are much too strong for this pairing.

JACKSON-TRIGGS BLACK SERIES MERITAGE 2010 - VQA Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#526228) (XD) - $13.45
Screw cap. Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. Black pepper, cassis, raspberry and dark fruit aromas. Medium-bodied with more raspberry, pepper and herbal notes on the palate. There's also a touch of smokiness. Balanced, structured tannins with plenty of acidity. Pretty good for the price!

Not a bad pairing of this wine and the Albert's Leap brie - brings out the smokiness in the wine; both the Niagara Gold and the Alfred Le Fermier really balance the wine well the, while the Île-aux-Grues cheddar really cuts through the acidity in this Meritage.


Join us next week as we host a Live Video Google+ Hangout Wine and Cheese tasting on Wednesday, July 25 beginning at 8 p.m. EST.