I’ve been looking for a wine bar nearby, and there is nothing in downtown Burlington that I’ve found that does flights. There appears to be an option or two in Hamilton, but I’m spoiled—living within walking distance of so many restaurants—and I want one that I can walk to.

Well, we found one that we can walk to from our boat, which is just about as good. A couple weeks ago we went to a restaurant for the first time since COVID started, and it was wonderful. Lindsay and I enjoyed a proper date, and found a new favourite spot. The Wine Bar has a reasonably-sized patio currently, and has a very interesting wine list. They have a flight of the day, which apparently is chosen by the owner. When we asked about it, we were told that we could pick—from the by-the-glass list—or he could choose for us. A Chardonnay from The Farm had caught my eye, as well as a Barbera, and he suggested a Rosé from Provence to go between them. Lindsay asked to be surprised, and I asked that he include a Greek wine in her flight.

The Food

We went with a charcuterie board, which had some delightful cheeses, nuts olives, cured meat, and—in a stroke of genius—fresh Niagara peaches. The whole thing was great, and the peaches with cheese and walnuts were delightful.

The Wines

The Farm Chardonnay
I’d heard of The Farm, with it’s exclusive once a year release party. The only way to get their wines is at a restaurant, or getting on the mailing list to attend this event. The Chardonnay was exquisite; fresh and balanced, subtle and lively, light and nuanced. It kept unfolding with different flavours on the finish, with a lightly herbaceous note.

Tetramythos Roditis Nature
A fascinating wine from Greece, lots of interesting flavours. Somewhat savory, maybe some white fruit. Nice minerality, and almost a note of cheese. Had trouble defining the flavours in this, but it was unique and delicious.

Tetramythos Black of Kalavryta
Another interesting Greek wine, this one is even more rare. Black of Kalavryta is a rare red grape variety indigenous to the town of Kalavryta, in Peloponesse. Apparently it is used by a few producers in blends, but Tetramythos is the only winery to use it as a single varietal. This was a nice light red, and it’s unique flavours actually reminded me of Teran from Croatia.

The Rosé, Barbera, and a skin-contact Pinot Grigio were all quite nice, but not that memorable.

Update: second visit

We decided to go back again before it got too cold for patio dining. We again had some lovely conversations with Andrew, one of the partners. They had just gotten in their limited-edition, custom-blended Chardonnay from Rioja, so I had to try a glass. According to The Wine Bar; “The Wine Bar team made a trip to Rioja where we tasted through dozens of barrels and tanks spanning 3 vintages of Casa La Rad’s finest Chardonnay. We spent two days blending and tasting to bring you the first 100% Rioja Chardonnay to come to Canada.” This was delicious, a rich and unique wine. There was lots of oak used, but it was well integrated as a secondary note, behind the richness and a bit of fruit. This was very smooth, and not overly buttery. We ended up having another glass with dessert, and took a bottle home with us.

After the initial glass, we each had a flight, approaching it through a process of elimination, ending up with the following wines. The Roditis again; a white from Douro, Portugal, a red Rioja; a red from Douro; The Farm Pinot Noir, and a Chianti.

The wines, part 2

Almeida Eremitas, Douro
Made from the Rabigato grape, this had savory and saline notes, with a nice brightness on the front of the palate. There was some white fruit, and lovely mineral notes. Drinkable, and interesting.

The Farm Pinot Noir
Lindsay right away recognized kinship to their Chardonnay, that subtle, almost herbaceous note. This was very light, with mild acidity, mild tannins, so many interesting flavours. This was great young, but would also love to taste it in a few years.

Almeida Trans Douro Express, Douro
A red blend from the region most famous for Port. This was dark, and almost tasted black, or inky. There were notes of black currants, and a bit of savouriness. Very interesting, I’d like to try some more

The Molino di Grace Chianti Classico and Vina Olabarri Rioja Reserve were delicious wines, absolutely delightful, just not especially distinctive. Would definitely drink again.

Highly recommended

The Wine Bar is a welcome addition to Bronte Village, we would highly recommend paying them a visit. We’ll certainly be back multiple times in the future. If you are interesting in trying interesting wines, and learning more, this is a great place to do it. Alternatively, if you just want something delicious to drink, you will find it here as well.