MITPTC #12 - Rosehall Run JCR Pinot Noir 2021

Oooh Canada. The land of polar bears, maple syrup, beaver tails, and hockey. While we Canucks are known for a fair bit of things, wine is usually not one of them. And yet...

I guess this is partly because wine production is a rather novel industry in the Great White North. For instance, its earliest traces go back +-200 years, which is basically baby years when you compare with the 2000+ years history of some European vineyards. We are therefore very new at this game indeed.

Still, it is undeniable we are getting better and better. While Canadian wines were kind of a novelty item and/or laughing stock in the 1990s, some like Clos Jordanne, Osoyoos Larose and Pinard & Filles have since gathered international attention and even a bit of a cult following. This is good news for our industry, but perhaps a rather sombre one for the Earth: while our great country was originally considered to be too cold for European varietals to grow and mature properly, the sad reality of global warming has now changed this quite a bit. The result is better wines from traditionally colder climates, but at the immense price we now know too well.

Still, let's focus on the bright side since this is Friday after all. Today, we get to taste a zippy little Pinot Noir from the *gorgeous* Prince Edward Country region in Southern Ontario. Located on the Great Lakes somewhere between Toronto and Montreal, it is slowly growing to become one of the most visited regions of Canada due to its beaches and bustling wine and food culture. I'm almost ashamed to say I've yet to visit myself despite being only +-500km away, but this is a wrong I plan to right *very* soon.

Source: Globe & Mail

While also engaging in some patriotic reviewing, there's also another first I'd like to highlight for this edition of #MIPTC: this is the first twist-cap bottle to get a review on here! While it will definitely be harder to please what isn't found here, I'll still do my best to come to this with an open mind (and not get it *too* twisted). Let's get started now shall we?

The Skinny

• From: Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada

• Varietals: Pinot Noir 100%

• Price: $39 CAD

• Feature: None

Tasting Notes

On the nose, this has a tart cherry character that really permeates through the whole experience. This may be a good or a bad thing. While I do think dominant lingering fruit character is usually good, it depends if you like the fruit. For me, I like my cherries a bit more plump than tart, and this is just a bit too much of a zinger for me. There's some other stuff too, however: fresh cranberries, a bit of white peppper, and just an inkling of fresh earth.

On the palate, this is not a "big" wine by any means, and the tart character we got on the nose definitely carries through. Still smooth and light to medium bodied, with just a touch of tightly-wound small tannins. The acidity might be your thing or it may not, but it is very present either way. Some would call it "fresh and bright" while others (myself included) might see it as a bit tart. This is typical of cold climate Pinot though, so I can't note it as a real issue. Finish shows an interesting peppery spice note that gets almost savoury. Very balanced alcohol.

Cutting To The Chase: Does It Please The Cork?

I mean, yes, this is a fun wine and a great introduction to PEC, but like I did for the Béru wine I reviewed last week, I just think it is too much money at 39$. Dollar for dollar, the Chilean Clos des Fous we had a few weeks ago just blows it out the water, so it is kind of hard to keep price completely out of the equation here. Of course, I do understand wine is a lot more expensive to make in Southern Ontario than it is in Chile, but this is still a consumption item, so the comparison still taints the experience.

Still, this is a good introduction to Canadian Pinot and a very honest representation of what (very) cold climate can do on this varietal. There's also no denying this is well made and carefully crafted. All in all, I just don't think it is that competitive in a global market, but I'd still love to spend time at the winery!

Cork Score: 3/5*

***

*Here's the lowdown on the scores, by the way. Essentially, I don't believe in 100-point scales for things as subjective as wine. Simply put, I just don't think one can credibly justify a 1% or even a 10% increment between two wines. I therefore choose to go a bit more basic. Here's how I break it down:

• 1/5: Seriously faulty, terrible, undrinkable;

• 2/5: Flawed and/or of bad quality. This is the type of stuff you should probably cook with and not drink;

• 3/5: Decent. This is where most entries will end up. These wines are clean and well-balanced, but not particularly memorable and/or exceptional. They are recommendable, but not an experience per se;

• 4/5: Exceptional. I sadly drink few wines that get this rating, but my purpose is to drink more. This denotes a memorable bottle that brought up some kind of emotion in me. This left a mark, and odds are I am now busy recommending it to everybody I know;

• 5/5: Perfect. I think I have probably tasted less than 5 bottles that would have qualified for a 5/5 in my entire life. This denotes an absolutely incredible wine that will imprint a definite memory for years to come - a true experience in itself.