Canadian Sommelier, On-Air (TV, radio) Wine & Spirits Somm, Valpolicella Wine Specialist
Ottawa, ON October 2018 Matt's review: Featherstone's Four Feathers blends four cool climate white grapes: Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and a splash of Gewürztraminer, in one fragrant, creamy, and refreshing wine that's both super versatile and super value priced. Pale straw in colour, it's loaded with sweet orchard and tropical fruits, fragrant floral blossom, and... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON September, 2018 Matt's review: Icellars is excelling in the production of high quality red wines, which is earning them a reputation as one of the top fine wine producing wineries in Ontario. Their low production Syrah (145 cases) has a deceiving light ruby red appearance which bursts with expressive strawberry, smoky plum, black... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON October 2018 Matt's review: Icellars Wiyana Wanda is a blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc, all from their Icel estate vineyards in Niagara on the Lake. Deeply coloured, the nose shows rich dark fruit, dark plum, cassis, black cherry, sweet spices, cedar, and graphite. The palate offers fleshy ripe... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON April 2018 Matt's review: 2016 was the warmest vintage ever recorded in Niagara, which resulted in the grapes at Icellars' Icel Vineyard being able to hang on the vines until November 17 and be picked at 26.2 brix with full phenolic and flavour ripeness and great acidic structure. Icellars Cabernet Sauvignon is a... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON April 2018 Matt's review: Boom, this expressive red blend from Icellars Estate Winery in Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario, consists of 50% Merlot, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Franc, and a splash of Malbec to produce a beautiful balanced and well structured wine. Fragrant sweet spices, plum, black cherry, mocha, black tea, and pipe tobacco... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON February 2018 Matt's review: An impressive crowd pleasing Ontario Cabernet! The Konzelmann Estate Lakefront Series 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon shows layers of black fruit, dried cherry, vanilla, clove, perfume, and dried herbs. Super pleasant on the nose and palate, it's soft and refreshing with impressive body making it a wine that can stand-up to... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON June 2017 Matt's review: Iconic Canadian winery, Inniskillin, is world renowned for their luxurious Icewines, and their sparkling Cabernet Franc Icewine is totally next level! By combining a few of my favourite elements of the Ontario wine industry, namely Cabernet Franc, Icewine, and bubbly, Inniskillin has achieved a profoundly expressive, richly textured,... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON April 2017 Matt's review: Burgundy, take note...Ontario is quickly becoming known as the cool-kid on the block! With wines such as Icellars Chardonnay, Ontario is showing the world just how great its wines can be. Icellars 2014 Chardonnay is a remarkably delicious, complex, and beautifully balanced cool-climate Chard, in fact, this is one of... Continue Reading →
Ottawa, ON March 2017 Matt's review: Award winning winery, and Canadian winemaking pioneers, Chateau des Charmes, have created a truly unique, one-of-a-kind expression of Gamay Noir, in fact it's formally known as Gamay Noir 'Droit'. Sourced from the Niagara region's warmest and one of the most prestigious sub-appellations, St. David's Bench, this otherwise typically lighter... Continue Reading →
January 2017 Ottawa, ON Matt's review: Gamay Noir is becoming increasingly popular with wine lovers for its food friendly and refreshing characteristics. Furthermore, it just happens that Ontario is one of the top producers of world-class Gamay (second only to the French wine region Beaujolais where they produce exclusively Gamay), so we’ve got some... Continue Reading →
Quercus Vino 