Page 68 - Grapevine NovDec 2020

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using different types of oak barrels, and he is resulting wine is a combination of stone fruit, min-
experimenting with co-fermenting honey with eral and flint with a creamy texture and complex
wine and apple cider. The results are a huge hit. aroma.
The skin contact white, Pure Imagination, sold out
three weeks after being released. Rosewood’s 2019 The Freak Pinot Noir is an entirely sulfite-free
Pet Nat, Nebulous, sold out in 15 minutes and has wine using 100% whole clusters. The grapes are
inspired Corrigan to create a white Pet Nat using hand-picked, hand-sorted and hand-punched down
Muscat grapes. Their 2019 Flora Rosé was also twice a day for three and a half weeks. The wine
hugely successful. is then transferred to barrel, where it undergoes
spontaneous malolactic fermentation and stays
The time and care Corrigan puts into creating for 10 months before a single racking and bottling
his wine has definitely paid off. The winery has a without fining or filtration. The Freak has distinct
huge following awaiting his newest releases. One earthy notes combined with dark red fruit and a
of these releases will be a sparkling wine that uses lengthy finish. These bottles are only two from
the solera method on the base wine to add a differ- Senchuk’s experimental series that draw wine
ent layer of texture and body as well as oxidative “geeks” to the tasting room each day. Not available
notes reminiscent of sherry. Corrigan is also playing in the liquor store, guests come from far and wide
around with oxidative effects in red wines. He is to visit the retail location to get their hands on
trying to uncover the true potential of the grapes. these bottles.

As a very young and emerging wine region, Wine lovers and connoisseurs are jumping on
Corrigan believes Ontario has an opportunity to these funky new releases and encouraging the
become world-class, offering never before seen fla- Ontario wine industry to continue to develop in
vors. By manipulating the grapes using a multitude this way. Palates are changing, and flavors like
of methods, he intends to discover everything that pencil shavings, tar and mushroom are becoming
Ontario grapes are capable of and how to represent welcomed additions to a bottle. Many consumers
that best. are moving toward more natural styles of wine that
use fewer sulfites and less human intervention.
Unique Ontario’s newest winemakers are taking advantage
of this changing market and taking the opportunity
Another winemaker creating unique representa- to explore the possibilities of winemaking within
tions of Niagara grapes is Ilya Senchuk of Leaning the region. Without anything holding them back,
Post Winery in Stoney Creek, Ontario. The long- winemakers like Senchuk, Corrigan and the Lipinskis
time winemaker and his wife, Nadia, bought their can make decisions in their wineries that would
property in 2011 and has since been creating wine be considered by some to be unorthodox. But, by
with the goal of expressing the unique terroir of the experimenting with new varietals, techniques and
region. He uses minimal intervention techniques combinations, these winemakers produce exam-
and traditional methods of winemaking to allow ples of wine that have never been seen before.
this terroir to shine. While many winemaking regions continue to play
it safe and pump out big, juicy reds and light, crisp
Senchuk has taken this concept one step further whites, expect to see the unexpected coming out of
with his line of wines aptly titled Freaks & Geeks. Ontario.
This series is as odd as it is unexpected. For The
Geek Riesling, Senchuk uses the solera method on
Riesling grapes to create a robust expression of the
typically delicate grape. Currently in its fourth vin-
tage, 2017’s The Geek rested for 22 months on the
lees from all three previous vintages before being
racked and bottled unfined and unfiltered. The

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