WineAlign - Awards - 2017 NWAC White Blends

Results of the 2017 WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada (The Nationals)

White Blends

Intro by John Szabo, MS

White blends are often your introduction to a winery. Unlike the more premium red blend category, white blends remain, for the most part, positioned at the entry price point of a winery’s range. They’re generally branded with proprietary names, unoaked, and made from aromatic varieties, and often with a vague impression of sweetness, aimed at the early, easy-drinking end of the market. There are, of course, exceptions, but what you’re seeking here is value for money rather than sublime experience, as you’ll see nicely represented in this list of well-made, fresh and fun medal winners.

Similar to the red blend category, British Columbia dominates the medals. (Tidal Bay, a Nova Scotia appellation for aromatic white blends, is given its own category.) The principal reason I see for this is the significant acreage still given over in BC to reliable-yielding, heavily aromatic crossings with exotic names like ehrenfelser, ortega, and schönburger, legacy of large-scale planting trials in the Okangan undertaken in the late 1970s by Dr. Helmut Becker of the Geisenheim Institute in Germany where these vinifera varieties were bred for cooler climates. These grapes are tailor-made for just this type of wine. BC’s slightly warmer and drier climate (relative to Ontario), especially in the central-southern Okanagan, make these a sure bet every year.

By contrast, Ontario’s most important hybrid, vidal, is mostly reserved for Icewine, or cheap and cheerful table wines that don’t aspire to medals. Aromatic vinifera grapes like gewürztraminer, viognier, riesling and pinot gris are more expensive to grow and are thus often reserved for varietal bottlings at higher price points. But the few top-end blended examples made from these anywhere in the county are worth seeking out.

La Frenz 2015 Ensemble Reserve, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia

Nk’Mip Cellars 2016 Dreamcatcher, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Terravista 2015 Figaro, British Columbia
Terravista 2016 Fandango, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
Van Westen 2016 Vivacious, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia