I’m steadily writing up my producer visits from my recent trip to Ontario wine country. The latest report is from the visit to Tawse, where my highest-scoring wine was actually a small-production Syrah.

I love cool climate Syrah, and Niagara can do it pretty well if this bottle is anything to go by. Of course, you’d need to choose your site carefully, and not crop at too high a level. But anywhere that makes ripe, rich Pinot is often a good spot for Syrah, I’ve found – such as New Zealand’s Martinborough region.

The two slightly more mainstream red varieties that do really well in Niagara are Gamay and Cabernet Franc. I’ve tasted beautiful examples of both. It’s a shame that these grapes don’t get the attention they deserve.