Westcott Vineyards Chardonnay

Having enjoyed global careers in banking and tech, Grant Westcott and Carolyn Hurst knew they weren't the retiring kind. With Carolyn being a native of the Niagara region (E.L. Crossley High represent!) and a passionate oenophile, and Grant being a former cattle farmer in his younger years and no stranger to working the land, purchasing and running a vineyard seemed like the perfect way for the couple to combine their passions and finally bet on themselves. Initially thinking they would grow grapes and sell them to other wineries, they started with a vision of the type of wine they would love to help to create. After consulting with local experts and winemaking trailblazers and being inspired by the cool climate Chardonnays and Pinots coming out of Moira Vineyard at Malivoire, 13th Street, Flat Rock and the Le Clos Jordan vineyards, they planted twenty-eight acres of grapes and were on their way!

As time went on, however, they realized that they wanted to produce their own wine under their own Westcott Vineyards label. Winemaker Arthur Harder joined them to take their precious grapes and create their first vintage in 2012. In true “garagistes"� style, their first wines were made in their equipment barn while the pair worked their way through the permit process for the main winery building.

They continued their study of cool climate viticulture and were fortunate to have their son, Garett Westcott, join them in the vineyard and Alain Sutre guide their viticulture practices the next year. Construction on the main building (which features a reclaimed 200-year old timber frame and foundation from a barn several kilometers away) began in the fall of 2013. The tasting room was opened in July Vintage_2014 and their daughter, Victoria Westcott, joined the team to lead the customer experience.

Grant and Carolyn are excited about the promise their wines are showing and strive to improve every year, constantly growing and listening - to the earth, the grapes, and their customers. They are at 3180 17th Street, in Jordan Station, waiting for you to join them and share a glass of wine.

Chardonnay,

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The Estate Chardonnay is an exciting symphony of sight, smell and taste. its straw colour hints at the elegance of the flavours possessed inside. Notes of baked apple, spice and an edge of pineapple leaves the palate wonderfully stimulated and it is simultaneously dry and sturdy, yet creamy and rather curvy. The delightful texture and bottom notes hinting of honeycomb and brioche are followed by a sustained finish. Drink now or whenever you want reminding that life is really good.

Nolan - Text from the Spotlight on the White Wines of the America’s Blog

There isn’t much Canadian wine available in the UK, we had a look at Westcott’s Pinot Noir in our Red Wines of the America’s blog so as a recap, here is a little lazy copy and paste:

Westcott Vineyards are based in Niagara, just across the bay from Toronto. This is the most prolific wine producing region in Canada, centred around the Great Lakes of Erie and Ontario. These large bodies of water are essential for quality viticulture, the climate here is continental with red hot summers and freezing winters. The Niagara Escarpment, where Westcott’s Vineyards are located, is a limestone ridge that runs through the area, shelters vineyards from colder influences from the south, and instead the vineyards enjoy a long, sunny growing season.

The Westcott operation was started up by Grant Westcott and Carolyn Hurst. This pair had previously been in banking and tech before making the transition to vineyards. Though this may sound like an odd switch, this is how a lot of North American wineries come about. Carolyn is from Ontario and is a self-described wine fanatic whereas Grants early years were spent working the land as a cattle farmer, so the pair weren’t complete strangers to the world of farming and wine. The original aim of the vineyards was to grow grapes to sell to other wineries which started with a vision of the type of wine they would love to help to create. It was not long until the pair were making their own wines instead with winemaker, Arthur Harder, joining the team and releasing their first vintage in 2012.

Chardonnay is often called "the wine makers grape" as it responds well to various wine making techniques. The grape works well when kept fresh and zippy through treatment in stainless steel but most wine makers choose to take a more classic Burgundian approach. These techniques include barrel fermentation and aging to add both oaky flavours and a slow, controlled oxidation to the wine adding flavours such as vanilla and toast. Battonage is also a popular, this is the process of disturbing and stirring in the dead yeast cells that have settled to the bottom of the aging vessels, be they stainless steel tanks or oak barrels, battonage can add flavours such as a yeastiness/breadiness or a creaminess to the wine. A second fermentation is also often employed in Chardonnay production that is often avoided in crisp wine styles, this is malolactic fermentation. Malolactic fermentation, (MLF or malo for short), is a natural process where bacteria's present in the wine convert the sharp, harsh malic acids present in a wine, (the same acid you will find in fruit such as apples), into the softer lactic acid, (present in milk), to give a softer, creamier mouth feel to the wine. Westcott produce a wonderfully rich style of Chardonnay, it isn't hard to piece together the techniques they have used.

This Chardonnay is a great stylistic bridge between a classic Burgundy the more opulent Californian style. Baked apple on the nose with pineapple, honeycomb all backed up by creamy butter and brioche. Versatile enough for your chicken/turkey roast or something spicy such as jerk chicken or a cheeky Nandos!