“In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.”
Works of Alfred Lord Tennyson
For those of us with our feet planted more firmly on the ground our thoughts just may be turning to wine, specifically the wines of the latest Spring Releases. In this series of features, I will endeavour to update you on the new spring releases from some of my favourite British Columbia wineries.
We couldn’t wait to taste these wines from Upper Bench. Even though it was a casual Friday night the wines made it into the perfect evening. You are going to enjoy these new Spring Releases.
Here is what we enjoyed:
Riesling 2021
It’s finally here: the second follow up vintage of Riesling that won “Wine of the Year” at the Lt. Governor’s Awards.
This Riesling is beautifully clean, crisp and dry and is as versatile as they come – enjoy it as a patio sipper or pair with seafood, grilled meats or charcuterie. Riesling is also a surprisingly great pairing with our King Cole blue cheese.
Nose: lime, honeysuckle, grapefruit, spring meadow, gooseberry
Palate: nectarine, white peach, lime cordial, fuzzy peach candy, lychee
A very pleasant expression of Riesling with good body and nice acidity.
Aromas of straw and melon, apricot and allspice, just a hint of cinnamon. A bit of cut grass opening up to stone fruits, with a delicate peach scent.
Rich with depth and straight out delicious. Wonderfully lingering on the palate. Although I wouldn’t totally suggest the wine is dry but it would satisfy those looking for dry as well as those who prefer an Alsace.
Complex, so many fruit flavours, pink grapefruit and mandarin oranges.
I tried this wine on its own and then paired with a miso, pork dumpling soup. The soup wasn’t overly spicy but some dumpling bites added a touch of heat.
This is a Riesling I could drink again, either on its own or paired with a Camembert or creamy Brie.
It would be interesting to pair this with one of Upper Bench’s own cheeses.
I took the wine out of the fridge for 15/20 minutes before drinking. Probably could have drunk it direct from a wine fridge.
2018 Merlot
This Merlot is smooth and easy drinking, but is full of flavour. It is one of our most popular reds here at Upper Bench.
Nose: blackberry, cassis, cigar box, cedar, lingonberry
Palate: black cherry, red currant, leather, mocha, fine tannins, brooding intensity
Scents of cherries, dusting powder and red licorice followed by stewed Italian plum, pound cake and asparagus.
This wine has medium body and medium tannins with an excellent ruby red colour. Flavours of marshmallows and Maraschino cherries.
After a long decant it is mellow, rich and velvety smooth on the palate.
Minimalist Winemaking
Award-winning wine is grown in the vineyard. Upper Bench’s hand-tended vines are meticulously farmed without the use of synthetic herbicides, fungicides, and pesticides. Known for producing big, bold reds and crisp dry whites that reflect the vintage and soil from the vineyard, Upper Bench’s grapes are sourced from 9.5-acres of Estate Vineyard and select growers situated within the Naramata Bench sub-geographical indicator.
Hand-tended. Meticulously made. Award-winning. Minimalist Wines.
Wine notes (in italics) courtesy of the winery. My notes (in bold italics) Images: MyVanCity. I received complimentary wine to facilitate this feature.
The dumpling soup that was paired with the Riesling has been featured on #ThisWineThatDish and you can see the recipe and wine pairing here.
