Wine Profile

Winemaking Notes:  :  The 2010 vintage combines the five Bordeaux varietals: 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot,  18% Malbec, 6% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot to create a multi-layered complex wine.  This is the first vintage of Portfolio that has a larger percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon than Merlot, thus leaning towards a more Left Bank style and is reflective of the best of the varietals in 2010.

Double sorting tables first by clusters and then by berries allows us to put meticulous attention on using only the best grapes in our wines.  Our oak program continues to be fine-tuned and this vintage includes the use of Puncheons, a barrel format twice as big as regular barrels, to explore different oak transfer rates.  After 15 months of aging, barrels are individually tasted and selected to create balance in flavours, tannins and acidity in the final blend for Portfolio. This selected blend is then put back in barrel for an additional 4 months of aging.

The resulting wine has a nose of dark berries, tobacco and a hint of clove. On the palate, black cherry compote with toasted nuts and will pair well with roasted meats.  Full-bodied the extra Cab Sauv creates a strong backbone that bodes well for aging. More classic Bordeaux than new world.

Vintage Notes:  The 2010 growing season was one of the coolest we’ve experienced. A late wet spring resulted in a slow start with delayed bud-break. Warm summer temperatures got things going with better than average fruit set but ripening came to a grinding halt in September with low temperatures and uncharacteristic rainfall.  Cautious fruit thinning helped adjust crop load and fortunately a heat wave in October put the harvest on track. Reds were harvested a couple weeks late, but at full ripeness and physiological maturity with abundant fresh acidity.

Awards & Ratings

GOLD Medal, Canadian Wine Awards 2012

92 Points, John Schreiner

90 Points, Ben MacPhee-Sigurson, Winnipeg Free Press

89 Points, Anthony Gismondi, Vancouver Sun