Our plan this summer had been to sail from Burlington to Niagara, bring our bikes, and visit some wineries. The pandemic has made things like that a bit more complicated, but we still wanted to taste some wine, so we just drove to the Twenty Valley on a Sunday afternoon.

Back 10 Cellars and Malivoire Wine Company were a couple of wineries that had been on our list, but missed, on a previous trip. They both currently offer tasting flights, and didn’t need reservations, so away we went.

Back 10 Cellars

I’d read a bit about Back 10’s interesting story, and we’d had their Riesling during our Riesling tasting, so I was looking forward to the visit. They had a great setup outside, a small check-in area where they collected information for COVID tracking, then out to their large covered pergola area with picnic tables for the tasting.

We shared a flight that consisted of their Smitten Sparkling Riesling, The Big Reach Riesling, Start from Scratch Chardonnay, Everything at Stake Gamay, and The Big Leap Cabernet Franc. Andrew Brooks, one of the owners, came out and was chatting with the guests. He was generous with his time and we had a lovely chat about topics ranging from Niagara Gamay vs Cru Beaujolais, to how their winery has been affected by COVID, to what it is like raising teenagers who are stuck at home.

The Whites

The Sparkling Riesling was nice, but there is something about Charmat-method sparkling (like Prosecco) that I’m not a fan of. I loved the still Riesling; it was on the lighter side, well-balanced acidity, nice fruit notes, and compared favourably to a nice German Riesling we’d recently had. The Chardonnay was very good; a bit of acidity and fruit, interesting notes from the Canadian oak used for aging, a lingering finish that unfolded with notes of brown sugar, caramel, butter, and “Jelly Belly Buttered Popcorn” for Lindsay.

The Reds

The Gamay was the only one of the wines we tasted whose fruit didn’t come from the Back 10 vineyards, as they purchase their Gamay from a nearby grower towards the Lake Ontario. This was a very fruity style, with a light amount of aging in oak that added a bit of complexity. Overall a great summer wine, almost like a deeper, stronger rosé.

For the Cabernet Franc, I’ll admit that I haven’t had one that I’ve especially enjoyed. I’ve found the green pepper notes that are sometimes present in Niagara Cab Franc’s off-putting, but I didn’t mind this one. It had nice fruit notes, and the green pepper was subtle.

We bought a bottle of the Riesling, Chardonnay, and Gamay, as well as a copy of their book – To Build a Vineyard. I really enjoyed the book; if the idea of starting a vineyard from scratch interests you, I’d recommend it.

Malivoire Wine Company

We’d been fans of Malivoire’s Ladybug Rosé for a long time; after coming back from our first trip to Europe and trying to find rosé in the LCBO, it was nicely dry, and full of flavor. We also love their Gamay, and I was really intrigued listening to Martin Malivoire on the Between the Vines podcast, talking about the trip he and his staff took to Beaujolais. It was a fascinating listen, especially hearing him talking about what they learned tasting the Cru Beaujolais compared to their Gamay.

The Wines

At Malivoire we went from dry to sweet; Estate Grown Chardonnay, Moira Rosé, Small Lot Gamay, Che Bello sparkling.

The Moira Rosé was delicious; light, fruity, complex, refreshing. At the time of the tasting it seemed to be maybe the best rosé I’ve had.

The Chardonnay was also a delight; only half of the grapes undergo malolactic fermentation, so it had nice acidity, with a some softness on the finish. Lingering notes of creamy vanilla after fresh fruit on the palate, along with some minerality. Such a nice example of Chardonnay.

The Small Lot Gamay is even nicer than their regular version that you get in the LCBO. More notes of forest floor after the fruit, lots of complexity.

As mentioned for the Smitten from Back 10, prosecco-style sparkling isn’t my cup of tea, but this was nice.

I can’t wait to come back to Malivoire. Would love to do a tasting of all their Gamay’s, and try their Pinot Noir, Gewürztraminer, and Melon (currently sold-out).