by Charlotte | Jul 31, 2017 | Rosehill Wine Cellars News
Award-winning wines are perfect for your custom wine cellar in Toronto.
Wine lovers in the Toronto area can easily access the 20-plus wineries in the Wineries of Niagara-on-the-Lake wine trail. Each of the wineries has its own unique attributes, and they are within minutes of one another. Anyone with a custom wine cellar in Toronto should have plenty of room to make the rounds and buy the award-winning wines that can be discovered on this world-renowned wine trail. Niagara-on-the-Lake itself is an historic town that’s rated #1 on TripAdvisor for Food & Wine Destinations in Canada. The following are two of the wineries on the trail.
Peller Estates Winery
A recent pick for Winery of the Year, Peller Estates features wine creations by Winemaker Katie Dickieson. Her vintages are food-inspired, with the goal of creating a harmonic marriage of food and wine. Wine styles include Sparkling Wine, Red Table Wines, White Table Wines, and Icewine/Dessert Wine. Amenities include: Tasting bar, cyclist friendly, corporate/group events, restaurant, bus groups, and retail store.
Among the best-selling wines from Peller Estates is Ice Cuvée, which is among the estate’s most awarded wines. It is an off-dry sparkling wine with an apricot, yeast, and ripe apple bouquet with hints of honey and the delight of tropical fruits on the palate with a refreshing finish of pink grapefruit. Ice Cuvée won the Gold Medal in the Ontario Wine Awards 2014.
Konzelmann Estate Winery
The various wineries on the Niagara-on-the-Lake wine trail have different mesoclimates. Even subtle variations can tremendously influence the ultimate flavor of the grapes and the wine. Skilled winemakers know how to parlay those variables into popular vintages. An example is the Konzelmann Estate Winery, located on the shore of Lake Ontario. This winery has the distinction of being the only one on Niagara’s lakeshore.
Konzelmann has won numerous awards and earned countless accolades. One award-winning wine is their affordable Pinot Blanc, recognized as an excellent wine for everyday enjoyment and entertaining. The 2015 vintage won a Gold Medal, Ontario Wine Awards. The 2016 vintage won Best Value & Silver, Intervin International Wine Awards.
Custom Wine Cellar Toronto
With these and so many more exceptional wineries within pleasant driving distance, custom wine cellars Toronto make so much sense. Rosehill Wine Cellars appreciates being in the midst of wine country, where hundreds of vintages have been recognized with awards and other notable distinctions. It is our pleasure to provide custom wine cellars that are ideal for wine storage and built with the features most important to clients. Among the options are shelves particularly designed for displaying celebrated vintages.
by Charlotte | May 22, 2017 | Wine Storage Stories
There’s a lot of information available on a wine label. Reading a wine label properly can tell you exactly what you can expect from your wine before you buy it. Therefore, learning how to decipher the clues hidden in your wine label is an important skill for any wine lover. Of course, labels can look very different depending on what country your wine is from. Nevertheless, there are a few basic things that should be available on every wine label. 
The Producer and the Region
Locating the producer of the wine might be difficult. However, it should always be on the label. If it’s not obvious it will likely be in small print near the bottom of the label. Knowing the producer is good because if you like the wine it will be an easy way to collect more of the same, or branch out and try something knew from the same producer.
The region should also be easy to locate. If the region is broad the wine will likely be less expensive. The more specific the region is the higher the quality of the wine is likely to be. For example, the grapes might be sourced from a wide-ranging area or from a specific vineyard which would usually make it more exclusive and carefully crafted. This is a great indicator of quality.
The Grape Varietal
This is clearly key information. Some wines will be single varietal, meaning they are made from one type of grape, while others are blends of several different grape types. For example, one popular blend is Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah. Sometimes labels will not reveal the type of grape used in making the wine. In these cases, the label will have an Appellation. If you search the specific Appellation listed on the label you can usually find the grape that was used to make the wine.
Alcohol Level
Checking the alcohol level of your wine is very important. How high the alcohol level is indicates how ripe the grapes were before they were harvested. Wines with high alcohol levels will tend to have a fuller body and less acid. By contrast, wines with less alcohol will tend to have higher acidity levels. Alcohol can also indicate sweetness. Generally speaking the more alcohol a wine has the dryer it’s going to be. If a wine has low levels of alcohol it’ll be sweeter.
The Vintage
Some vintages (years) are better than others for making wine. Therefore, if you do your research and learn which vintages are best for which regions picking the best wine will be a lot easier. If a wine doesn’t have a vintage it means it’s a blend from several different years. This usually means the wine is lower in value because it’s easier to control the flavour if you have grapes from several different years.
Happy hunting wine lovers!
Make sure to check out Rosehill Wine Cellars for all of your wine storage and wine drinking needs!
