Canada has a bit of a talent for Gamay. Ontario’s Niagara region is making some smart ones, and under completely different conditions, BC’s Okanagan is also doing some good work…
Canada versus New Zealand: two top Pinot Noirs from 2011 compared, and a lesson learned
Three nights ago I opened this pair of Pinots, both from the 2011 vintage. They’re wines that I’d cellared. The first is the Te Muna Road Pinot from Craggy Range,…
Vintage at Norman Hardie (4)
I’m back from Canada, and already in South Africa. But I’m thinking back to those few days I spent at Norman Hardie, and all that I saw, absorbed and learned….
Norman Hardie Niagara Chardonnay 2013
So, I’m back today in the UK from spending time at harvest with Norman Hardie in Canada’s Prince Edward County. My sister and brother-in-law ask me where I’ve been. Do…
Vintage at Norman Hardie (3)
Over the course of four days of vintage, I was exposed to a number of the stages of making wine. I spent the second evening at the sorting table. Pinot…
Vintage at Norm Hardie’s (2): making Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a big focus at Norman Hardie. In yesterdays’ post from vintage here, I described the way the grapes are received at the winery in plastic bins. If the…
Video: making Pinot Noir at Norm Hardie’s
Two short videos illustrating the red winemaking process here at Norm Hardie’s in Prince Edward County, Canada. This is Pinot Noir being processed. The first video shows the punching down…
Harvest at Norm Hardie’s (1)
Norman Hardie is one of Canada’s most celebrated winegrowers. Since his first vintage in 2004, his Chardonnay and Pinot Noir – elegant, light in alcohol and very old world in…
In Nova Scotia, Canada, visiting the remarkable Benjamin Bridge sparkling winery
It was my first time in Nova Scotia. This is on the Atlantic coast of Canada, and it’s the youngest of Canada’s cool climate wine regions. I was here to…