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The pure joy of County-centric wine: The Last House and Rosehall Run in the...
By Rick VanSickle It was supposed to be the first “porch” wine tasting of the year, but the endless stormy, chilly weather this spring forced us inside where a party broke out. Not the kind where you...
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Black Bank Hill’s first estate wines offer glimpse at exciting future
By Rick VanSickle It’s heartening to watch a new(ish) Niagara winery emerge from the ground up with a clear vision that’s just starting to come into focus. Also in this Niagara Wine Report: The recent...
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A field of dreams, a bottle of hope at Niagara’s Stratus Vineyards
By Rick VanSickle There seems to be no end to the innovations that Niagara’s Stratus Vineyards won’t tackle to make its winery — and wines — more sustainable. The benchmark Niagara-on-the-Lake winery...
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Death of a newspaper, a blow to journalism
By Rick VanSickle I’m sorry, but this story has nothing to do with wine. It’s far more important than that. It’s about the death of a newspaper and a story that only I can tell in the only place I can...
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A blast from the past, plus new wines from 2027 Cellars, Divergence, Chateau...
By Rick VanSickle It was a stunning display of some of the finest, perfectly aged wines ever made in Ontario all on one table, and all opened for tasting. Also in this Niagara Wine Report: New wines...
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Vineland Estates unveils Niagara-made sustainable grape growing breakthrough
By Rick VanSickle In the fall of 2021, Niagara grape growers were hit with a devastating blanket of grape-killing mildew that spread quickly and effectively from vineyard to vineyard. Winemakers did...
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Flat Rock Cellars puts on a showy debut for top tier Niagara wines
By Rick VanSickle Most Niagara wineries don’t do enough big, showy wine releases, especially when promoting their top expressions from benchmark estate vineyards. But that’s not the case with Flat Rock...
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Sophomore release of Dobbin Estate wines brings clearer focus on portfolio
By Rick VanSickle The sophomore vintage at Niagara’s Dobbin Estate winery brings the portfolio of luxury wines into clearer focus. With most of the Twenty Mile Bench estate’s vineyards meticulously...
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A grand new home for Niagara’s Le Clos Jordanne opens tomorrow
By Rick VanSickle “I hope, and I think, this is Arterra’s jewel in the crown,” said head winemaker Thomas Bachelder at a media preview of the Domaine Le Clos Jordanne’s new home on the Beamsville Bench...
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Quebec’s PicBois winery making waves, plus B.C.’s River Stone wines, LCBO picks
By Rick VanSickle The goal at Vignoble Du PicBois is to push the boundaries of winemaking in Quebec by using grapes best suited to its extreme grape-growing climate. Also in this Canadian Wine Report:...
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Niagara’s Domaine Queylus cleans up at the Ontario Wine Awards
Niagara winery Domaine Queylus cleaned up at the Ontario Wine Awards, collecting three gold, five silver and two bronze medals and was chosen as the winery of the year for 2024, it was announced today....
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Experts Tasting celebrates storied past and promising future for Ontario VQA...
By Rick VanSickle Over 100 wine professionals gathered last week to celebrate the successes of the past and present of Ontario VQA wines. The evolution of Ontario’s VQA wines took centre stage at the...
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Key changes coming to VQA standards, plus two killer value wines, new Hip wines
By Rick VanSickle Three key changes to VQA rules, that include the creation of a West Niagara regional appellation, amended labelling for Charmat wines, and approval of three new hybrids, is awaiting...
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Ontario wineries, bottle shops ramp up for looming strike at LCBO stores
By Rick VanSickle LCBO workers, who could very well walk off the job on July 5, are forcing many Ontario wineries that depend on the government monopoly for a significant portion of their sales, to up...
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Historic Niagara winery Chateau des Charmes sold to investment group
By Rick VanSickle One of Ontario’s most historic and important wineries — Niagara’s Chateau des Charmes — has been sold to a Canadian investment group, Wines in Niagara has learned. The late Paul Bosc...
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UPDATED: County mourns the sudden death of Lacey Estates founder Kimball Lacey
By Rick VanSickle Prince Edward County and the entire Ontario wine industry is mourning the sudden death of Lacey Estates owner and winemaker Kimball Lacey. Note: Information on a Go Fund Me campaign...
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Hidden Bench building a legacy in Niagara, 19 new wines in review
By Rick VanSickle For a glimpse of what Niagara can be (and will be) in 10, 20, 100 years from now, you need look no further than the beacon of goodness on the Beamsville Bench that is the Hidden Bench...
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Why so few care if the LCBO strikes or not on Friday, plus our Vintages picks
By Rick VanSickle If history is any indication, a threatened LCBO strike in Ontario starting at midnight this Friday will never happen. Also in this Ontario wine report: A release of wines is scheduled...
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Show a little love for these Niagara wines caught in middle of LCBO strike
By Rick VanSickle Well, now that the LCBO union, for the first time in its history, has gone on strike, it’s time for consumers to map out their booze-buying for the foreseeable future. The LCBO has...
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York Vineyards in Niagara takes sparkling wines to a whole new level
By Rick VanSickle It’s been whispered about in Niagara wine circles for years, but now the first sparkling wines from York Vineyards are about to make a very loud debut this August. York Vineyards is...
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