WineAlign - Awards - 2017 NWAC White Single Varietals

Results of the 2017 WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada (The Nationals)

White Single Varietals

Intro by David Lawrason

This is Canada, where we welcome grapes from everywhere. All the French regions of course including the Rhone, Bordeaux, Burgundy, the Loire and Alsace, plus Spain, Austria, even Vancouver Island. Oh wait, that’s us – even if slightly off-shore! What’s most telling is that grapes originating in all these places (including petit milo developed on Vancouver Island) have won medals since being planted in Canada. And that is perhaps as it should be in what is essentially a cool climate wine region with great geographic breadth and diversity

This report includes all the small to mid-size single varietal wine groups. Pinot Blanc, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc and Gewurztraminer were well represented enough to be judged in their own flights. Then there were other mixed flights more rare varieties. Here the judges were told what varieties were in front of them so they could be judged in context.

As John Szabo pointed out in discussing the White Blends a few days ago, British Columbia has dominated the medals in most of the white wine categories. I will discuss them individually, but to my mind the reason is the central and northern Okanagan’s ideal situation with warm days promoting unfailing ripeness and cool nights maintaining acidity. Sometimes however they can get blowsy and hot. Canada’s eastern regions can produce very vibrant whites indeed, but always with a less ripe, narrower profile, that can come across as thin on the judging table. Especially with some of these varieties. The one emerging strength for Ontario, and perhaps declining in B.C., seems to be sauvignon blanc.

Marsanne, Roussane, Gruner Veltliner, Semillon, Petit Milo, Albarino, Muscat Ottonel and Orange Wine

All the varieties above were judged in the potluck Single White Varietal category, and again every variety mentioned won a medal. The Rhone-based marsanne and roussanne whites were very strong, indicating their natural environment of the desert-like southern Okanagan in producing Rhone varieties, but old marsanne vines in Ontario delivered at Kew, did well too. The Spanish Albarino (which is popping up around the world nowadays) also seems to be a great fit in B.C. LaFrenz has a lock on Semillon. And Culmina’s Unicus Gruner Veltliner is one of the most talked about whites in Canada in recent times.

A flight of three “orange wines” were presented this year for the first time and two scored well. I refer you, again, to the prolific Mr. Szabo’s recent article for full explanation of this new category. But it is being taken seriously enough that Ontario VQA has just announced regulations for Skin Fermented Whites, the first in the world!

Culmina 2016 Unicus Grûner Veltliner, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
La Frenz 2016 Semillon Knorr Vineyard, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Terravista 2016 Albarino, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia

Beaufort 2016 Petite Milo, Vancouver Island, British Columbia
Kew 2015 Marsanne, Beamsville Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario
Lake Breeze 2016 Roussanne, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Monte Creek Ranch 2016 Frontenac Gris, British Columbia
Road 13 Vineyards 2016 Chip off the Old Block Chenin Blanc, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Road 13 Vineyards 2016 Marsanne, Similkameen Valley, British Columbia
Southbrook 2016 Small Lot Orange Wine, Ontario
Stag’s Hollow 2016 Albarino Shuttleworth Creek Vineyard, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
SummerGate 2016 Muscat Ottonel, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia