2022 Chardonnay Cuvée de la Côte

Emulating the greatness of the Tête de Cuvée model: “In wine, particularly Champagne and old-school Burgundy, Tête de Cuvée (French for “head of the blend”) refers to the highest quality and most prestigious wine produced by a specific house or grower. It represents the best of the best, a selection of the finest grapes and meticulous winemaking techniques.”

Based on the Champagne/Burgundian idea of Tête de Cuvée, this is a selection of four barrels from the Niagara Peninsula. One barrel comes from the top of the escarpment, two from the middle of the escarpment, and one at the bottom of the escarpment down by the lakeshore. The diversity of soils/altitudes/growing conditions have each contributed to the creation of a very special Chardonnay. This is the first Cuvée De La Côte and represents the best of the Niagara escarpment. Whole cluster pressed, fermented using indigenous yeasts from the field in large 500L French oak barrels for 18 months (two winters). 25% new oak, 25% second fill, 25% third fill and 25% very old barrel. Racked clean with the fine lees added back to the stainless steel tank, and aged on the fine lees for a further six months. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.

Richer and more full bodied than our County Chardonnays, however it has all the wonderful freshness, vibrancy and minerality associated with our house style. A touch of reduction on the nose and a very dry, mineral-driven mid-pallet. The wine lingers for ages and truly represents the greatness that the grapes from the Niagara escarpment can produce. Delicious now but will age beautifully over the next eight years.

VQA Niagara Peninsula