If riesling is Niagara's signature varietal, the Beamsville wineries along and adjacent to Mountainview Road set the standard for all others. And, while outstanding rieslings are produced throughout the Niagara region - by Flat Rock Cellars, Cave Spring & 13th Street (Jordan), Vineland Estates, Henry of Pelham, Cattail Creek (NOTL) and Ravine Vineyard (St. David's) to name a few - the very best rieslings come from the Beamsville Bench wineries, particularly those created by 30 Bench Wine Makers and Fielding Estate Winery.
Riesling is Niagara's most popular and adaptable varietal, lending itself to many vinification styles - dry, off-dry, semi-dry, late harvest and icewine.
Perennial winners at the Ontario and Canadian Wine Awards, as well as numerous smaller wine events, Beamsville Bench rieslings are crisp and refreshing, displaying balanced acidity and the unique minerality of the area's limestone soils. So exceptional are these rieslings that several other Niagara Peninsula wineries contract Beamsville Bench growers to provide their riesling grapes.
Dry rieslings go well with most seafoods (lobster, crab, scallops, shrimp, oysters). Off-dry and semi-dry wines are best paired with spicy Chinese, Japanese and Thai dishes, while the late-harvest rieslings complement fruit and desserts. Riesling icewine works well with foie gras, blue cheese or as dessert itself.
The Niagara Grapevine's favourite rieslings include those from: 30 Bench (Steel Post, Wood Post & Triangle Vineyards), Flat Rock Cellar (Nadja's Vineyard), Cave Spring (CSV), 13th Street (Funk Vineyard), Vineland Estate's semi-dry riesling, Fielding Estate's late-harvest riesling, Ravine Vineyard's 2007 riesling "lite" (7 %), 30 Bench, Hillebrand, Peller and Inniskillin 2007 riesling icewines. Fantastic !!!
Best ever Niagara riesling ? 30 Bench 2005 Steel Post, Cave Spring 2003 CSV or, perhaps, a 2007 riesling yet to be enjoyed. As vineyards mature and alternative winemaking methods are explored (e.g. the Foreign Affair Winery's introduction of the appassimento process in which the grapes are dried before vinification), Niagara's rieslings have yet to show their full potential.
Mountainview Road wineries: Angel's Gate, Organized Crime, 30 Bench, Fielding, Rosewood, Hidden Bench and EastDell (where visitors can enjoy lunch at 'The View"). While these wineries do produce other varietals, outstanding rieslings are their "raison d'être".
I told you so !
and will again !