Ever notice that all the good Ontario wines seem to be from Beamsville? It's not just your imagination. Located about an hour outside of Toronto sits one of the best wine growing regions in the province – and the world.
One of the wineries behind all this exciting produce is Thirty Bench, located in a pocket of the Niagara region just perfect for growing their famous rieslings – although, it was one of their reds that recently caught the world's attention. Thirty Bench's 2015 Small Lot Cabernet Franc took home the Best in Show medal and a score of 97 points at the Decanter World Wine Awards, which blind tastes over 16,000 wines from more than 60 countries.
The bright purple wine is aged for 20-months in a combination of 90% French and 10% American oak barrels. The fruit-forward, medium to full-bodied Cab Franc has a bouquet of tobacco leaf, vanilla, black pepper and red currant. The finish is extremely dry, with notes of liquorice, spice and black tea making it a perfect pair with red meat, winter stews and aged Canadian cheddar. Summer might not be hanging around forever, but we think we've found the perfect remedy for easing into a new season.
The winery craft premium Small Lot wines, made solely from the grapes grown in their organically farmed vineyards – which means you won't find a bottle at the LCBO. Like many of their wines, their Cabernet Franc vineyards are managed to produce low-yields of fruit that are bursting with flavour. While that makes their wines a bit harder to obtain, it's worth the effort. You can call Thirty Bench to order their wines (1-866-440-4384), Monday to Friday, 9 am to 7 pm. The delivery fee varies depending on how many bottles you order and where you are in Ontario.
Alternatively, make a trip to Thirty Bench for a wine tasting and stock up on some of their award-winning bottles.
$75 (delivery fees apply) at thirtybench.com
