Riesling Archives | Norman Hardie WinesNorman Hardie Winery and Vineyard

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Our first-ever Riesling that is produced exclusively from Prince Edward County fruit. Coming from old vines (1999 planting). Riesling, like Chardonnay, showcases the soil it comes from exceptionally well. The palette is all the County minerality one expects from our limestone-rich soils. The nose is showing classic Riesling notes – lemon-lime with a hint of the desired petrol. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.

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The greatest kept secret of Ontario: killer, world-class Riesling. This Riesling was sourced from a number of sites from the Niagara Escarpment and Prince Edward County; each site adding layers of complex fruit, mineral and acidity, capturing the best of both appelations: from the County exhilarating acid and a bright ethereal palate; the Niagara fruit anchoring the wine with an array of ripe fruit aromas, flavours and a weight on the palate to perfectly balance the livery acid. Whole cluster press of individual vineyard sites. Each block is fermented separately at cool temperatures in stainless steel. Aged 4 months in stainless, no malolactic fermentation.

Riesling at its best! Exhilarating acidity perfectly balanced by an array of ripe fruit aromas and intoxicating florals. Bosc pear, gooseberry and Granny Smith apple give way to orchard blossom and honeysuckle. Loads of chalky minerality add to complexity and appeal.

Available at at LCBO

Reviews

Michael Vaughan , Vintage Assessments

93

"...Slightly off dry, medium bodied and beautifully structured, it’s surprisingly complex and intense with lots of ripe apple-lemon fruit flavours with a lingering, crisp, meringue-tinged finish... The 2017 is best Riesling yet and believe that it will get better every year over the next decade...” -93/100

This single vineyard Riesling was grown in the beautiful red clay soils of the Redfoot vineyard located on the Niagara Escarpment. It was fermented in stainless steel at cool temperatures, with an extra 8 months on fine lees that added greatly to the complexity of the wine. No malolactic fermentation. The name “Paradoxe” was derived from its early picking date. Riesling is normally harvested mid to late October, after Chardonnay. Due to the low yield, these Riesling grapes were “paradoxally” ripe well before Chardonnay.

This wonderfully balanced Riesling shows a rich mouth-feel complimented by beautiful citrus and freshness. A low alcohol of 9.5% makes this an ideal afternoon sipper.

Reviews

Michael Godel , WineAlign

92

As if Norm Hardie’s wines were not already paradoxes enough he just had to go there. In a time where there’s a remarkably great deal of homogeneity some wines are so over the top they could only be from that place. That place is the Niagara Peninsula, a three-hour drive west from Hardie's Prince Edward County camp. Cuvée Paradoxe delivers a low-alcohol Germanesque experience but with more Peninsula leanness and yet the juicy-driven nature is shot injected into both arms by a limestone syringe. It’s really a paradox because despite the 20 g/L of residual sugar the 9.5 per cent alcohol doesn’t quite seem to be plausible with the amount of dry extract, incurvate fruit and grape tannin involved. Apparently it’s not a thing of impossibility, which comes as little surprise in cases involving Hardie's risks. Is there perhaps an ode here to Champagne by the satirist Didier Gimmonet, if only because this is richer and sweeter, more immediate and fruit-focused than the typical Hardie white? I don't know, go ask Norm. Drink 2018-2022. Tasted April 2018.

Chris Waters , Waters and Wine

This is an expressive and delicious off-dry Riesling that was aged on fine lees for eight months to impart more texture and complexity. The Paradoxe implied in the name is that the Riesling vineyard was ready to pick much earlier than anticipated, which set the ball rolling for Hardie and his inspired team to adopt a different approach. Instead of the traditional racy and minerally style championed by Hardie, this boasts purity of fresh fruit and a long stony finish. It’s drinking beautifully now, but promises to develop more complexity and character with time in bottle. Drink now to 2023. Highly Recommended.

This Riesling is a wonderful blend of Niagara and County grown fruit. It exhibits beautiful harmony between vibrant fruit notes, mouth watering minerality and a wonderfully textured mouthfeel. A low alcohol of 9.8% makes this a wine right for any occasion.

Reviews

Carolyn Hammond , The Toronto Star

92

This vintage is just hitting shelves now and is a shining example of why Mr. Hardie has rock star status in Ontario. This sterling wonder starts with pretty honeysuckle aromas before racing across the palate with a saturating lick of salted lime sherbet. Great purity of fruit, concentration and balance — read: it’s a wine everyone will love. At just 9.8-per-cent alcohol, the pouring possibilities seem endless but I’d start with a plate of steamed pork dumplings.

This Riesling is a wonderful balance of Niagara and County grown fruit. The Niagara portion brings richness and mouth-feel elements complimented by wonderful citrus and mineral elements from the County . A low alcohol of 10.5% makes this an ideal afternoon sipper.

This Riesling is a wonderful balance of Niagara and County grown fruit. The Niagara portion (60 %) brings richness and mouth-feel elements complimented by wonderful citrus and mineral elements from the County . A low alcohol of 10.1% makes this an ideal afternoon sipper.

This Riesling is a blend of 70% Niagara fruit (Twenty Mile Bench) and 30% County fruit. The grapes went through a slow, gentle press to avoid bitter tannin extraction. The two regions were fermented separatly in stainless steel tanks, and aged on lees for 3 months. No malolactic fermentation.

Stone fruit on the nose, and a white fruit palate. Crisp, citrus finish with great acid and a bit of sweetness. Suggested Drinkability Window: Now through 2016.

Our Riesling is a blend of two regions, combining the tart, crisp acidity of the County with the lush, ripe fruit of Niagara. Our 2011 Riesling was crafted with 35% of the fruit coming from Prince Edward County and the balance coming from a stunning sight right below the escarpment in the heart of the Niagara bench. The County component brings wonderful minerality and great lemon/lime notes while the rich fruit component comes from the Niagara fruit. The wines were fermented with lots of lees to help express the Terroir. Fermentations were stopped prior to all the components going dry. The residual natural sugar (12 grams/litre) is counterbalanced by almost equal amounts of acidity. This "just dry" Riesling comes in with a wonderfully low alcohol of 10.4 % alcohol.

This beautiful Riesling is the perfect blend between the more aromatic citrus, lime-driven Niagara fruit and a more mineral inspired County Riesling. Beautiful citrus lime aromatics followed by a fresh mineral driven mid palate with delightful length. Suggested Drinkability Window: Now through 2016.

Reviews

ichael Pinkus , Ontario Wine Review

4/5

Norm has always hedged his bets when it comes to Riesling getting half his fruit from Niagara and taking the other half from the County (this year due to an abnormal harvest 65% came from Niagara) – but he always manages to bring it all together in a lovely collaboration of East meets West (the middle would be more apropos). Starting with the great acidity which you can’t get away from – then there’s peach, pear and a hint of limeade with a great long finish that seemingly leaves you sucking on a peach pit.