WTN: Flat Rock Cellars Chardonnay 2006

Twenty Mile Bench.
Ontario

Light yellow in the glass.

Oak with a hint of sulphur on the nose, caramel and citrus fruits.

Very tangy and mouthwatering, lemon, tart green apples, rich oak, very clean, crisp and refreshing.

A mouthwatering, lemony finish.

An okay wine but it tasted much more like an oaked Sauvignon Blanc than it did a Chardonnay. I preferred the 2004 vintage to this. A little disappointing.

Screwcap closure.

Purchased at $16.95 (Canadian).

"a little disappointing" is my overall impression of the 2006 vintage in niagara, the 2006 coyote's run unoaked chard and the 2006 henry of pelham off dry riesling reserve excepted, and other favourites, like the fielding unoaked chardonnay, included.

You know, Bruce and David, 2006 in Niagara has shaped up to be an alright vintage for whites in my experience, but a weak vintage for reds. In fact, I have only had one red that was surprisingly good and ripe given the conditions (and even the winery): Pelee Island's Gamay/Zweigelt blend. A friend brought this over one day and it was very properly Zweigelty on the nose with lots of peppery spice and good balance too, though I think I sensed a few degrees of r.s. in the wine.

I haven't tried any Ontario hybrid reds yet besides a Harbour Estates Baco which was deeply pigmented but a bit grassy/riparian, so I can't assess how well they performed in '06, but I can say from experience that Marechal Foch especially, from poor vintages like '96, often came through amazingly well.

Yeah, '06 is not one of the better years for the area. However, wait about 6 months until the '07s start appearing. Hmmm.... 6 months .... just about the time for NiagaraCOOL, and we'll be doing the Niagara Peninsula this year.

Will have to remember to take a pass on 2006 Ontario wines.

i wouldn't necessarily give up on them. several i tasted were quite good - including a couple from creekside. the regular pinot grigio was nice; but the mike weir was really wonderful. i also like creeksides sauvignon blanc. i found several good '06's at 13th street - esp. June's Riesling, CF rose and Etc. i tasted flat rock's 'unplugged' chard - the unoaked one and really like it. it may not have been a vintage that lent itself to oaky whites. 2006 should have been a pretty decent vintage for whites there - in fact they should be more regionally typical than '07 - where low acids may well have been a problem. reds should be wonderful of course in '07; but whites may well be alcoholic and 'heavy' as well as low acid.

Visited Flat Rock earlier this year and was most impressed by the Pinot Noirs; there was a very severe Riesling and a Chard which left no impression at all. A nice place with some serious intent, so let's see what a nice growing season like 2007 brings.

BTW, the Reserve Chardonnay at Malivoire (probably not an '06, but I can't recall) was a smashing wine by any standards, and I'm not a big fan of that grape.

BTW, the Reserve Chardonnay at Malivoire (probably not an '06, but I can't recall) was a smashing wine by any standards, and I'm not a big fan of that grape.

Thanks for the comments Joe. Have never bought the Flat Rock Pinot Noir, but have tried it a few times at wine shows and agree with you that it is pretty good.

I have tried the regular bottling of the Malivoire Chardonnay and was quite impressed with it.

"a little disappointing" is my overall impression of the 2006 vintage in niagara, the 2006 coyote's run unoaked chard and the 2006 henry of pelham off dry riesling reserve excepted, and other favourites, like the fielding unoaked chardonnay, included.

Thanks David/everyone for this `06 update. Will be on the look out for the H of P riesling reserve.

oh, sure it was 'alright'. the whites i tasted are quite decent, but some wines underperformed.

i have yet to find a satisfying red - thanks for the heads up on the zweigelt. and for adding 'riparian' to my tasting glossary.

Don't overlook Niagara whites in 2006. Vineland Estates un-oaked Chardonnay was one of the gold medal winning wines ar AWS/07 competition. Perhaps one of the best chards I have tasted in my 20 yrs drinking Ontario.

Dave, great to see you here after a long hiatus! As always, it is good to see you in person at NiagaraCool, but I'm glad you've joined us online again as well.

I agree, and for me '06 is definitely a white wine year in Ontario. I did have that surprisingly good Gamay/Zweigelt blend from Pelee Island, but I certainly won't be stocking up on any of the usual red vinifera suspects from '06 in Niagara.