Finding wines from British Columbia in Ontario is about as easy as finding wine from Ontario in a Portuguese hypermarché. What a pity that our Liquor Control Board of Ontario releases more Portuguese wine than wines from British Columbia! So I had to hop on my private jet and fly 5 hours to Kelowna to pick up some wines from Meyer Family Vineyards and Mayhem Wines in the Okanagan. All that fuel! And the $199.99 a day parking fee ouch! To save money I had to sleep in my plane and eat at the Kelowna COSTCO at 2125Baron Road. As I bought my Lear jet from an Albanian mobster at least I have a gold-plated toilet seat. I charged a fee for local media to see this wonder I call the Tirana Toilet.
So what say this Gewürtz?
Aroma: The best peaches in the world are Turkish and the aroma in this Gewürtz is Turkish peach. There is a rich streak of mango running about like a naked teenager at a college football game. To be clear here the wine is loaded with discrete fruit. West Coast laid back they might say in Toronto.
Palate: Whilst in the Dâo region of Portugal I noted soils are granitic sand with some alluvial deposits. There are massive boulders left behind from glacier retreats and the white Encruzado wine has a certain raspiness to it in the back throat almost as if micro particles of rock are tickling the throat. The soil from the McLean Road Vineyard is comprised of alluvial and glacial deposits making up a mix of gravel and sandy loam and yes the wine has a seductive raspiness to it like Diane Keaton singing jazz in “Annie Hall”. I have yet to experience this raspiness in Alsatian Gewürtz. So let us call this a unique Gewürtz.
Personality: Big mango and peach but laid back with a tai chi calmness with the seriousness of a Buddhist monk. I was made from a mixture of whole cluster presses and destemmed grapes pressed with a 4-week fermentation in stainless steel and seasoned French oak barrels.
Cellarbility: Will sail into 2025 nicely.
Food pairing: As I have a microwave in my jet and a COSTCO nearby this went well with some Dave Barrett Family Thai Curry I purchased at COSTCO! Had I been in a fully equipped kitchen it would have been Moroccan clementine chicken.
Price: $17.48 (CDN). Contact the winery for shipping possibilities and cost.
RKS 2023 Wine Rating: 94/100. I rarely say this but if you love Gewürtz this is case worthy.
Only 450 cases made. I see many a wine writer praising MFV Chardonnay and Pinot Noir as the best thing since sliced bread and I agree with them but this Gewürtz is in that league. Perhaps it is the French Toast of Gewurztraminer.
(Meyer 2022 Gewürztraminer, Okanagan Valley, Okanagan Falls, British Columbia VQA, Meyer Family Vineyards, Okanagan Falls, British Columbia, 750 mL, 13.5%)
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