Wines from Nova Scotia - the next big thing?

One of our favourite programmes on TV returns to the screens later this month with the third series of Race Across the World.  If you've never seen it the basic idea is that pairs of ordinary people race each other from one point to another across the world using any form of transport except planes.  They are given an amount of money equivalent to a one-way plane ticket to their destination so, in addition to making navigational decisions, they invariably find themselves having to make crucial spending choices in order to eke out their meagre allowance to get there.  The 2019 series was a race from London to Singapore, in 2020 it was from Mexico City to the tip of Latin America, and this year it's a one country adventure across the vast expanse of Canada from Vancouver on the Pacific Coast to St John's in Newfoundland.   Seeing the trailer for the new series shows what a varied and interesting landscape Canada has and it will be wonderful if the programme makers, presumably supported by the Canadian tourist authorities, have chosen a location in one of the country's two big wine regions as a checkpoint that contestants will be aiming for.  These of course are the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia and the Niagara Peninsula in southern Ontario.

By comparison with wine producing countries in Europe though my knowledge of Canadian wine is pretty limited.  Partly this is due to the fact that the country is about 30th in the list of the world's biggest wine producers meaning that the amount that reaches Britain is going to be relatively small so until fairly recently my experience of Canadian wine was pretty much limited to the deliciously sweet Pillitteri Riesling Icewine from Lidl and the off-dry The Falls Canadian Riesling from Aldi.  Both of these wines come from the Niagara Peninsula, unsurprising really because this is the country's largest area under vine.  But a recent opportunity has allowed me to taste wines from a less well known wine region which is hoping to expand its reach this side of the Atlantic and I am pleased to report some promising findings.  The region in question is the province of Nova Scotia.  Keep going west from Ireland and it's pretty much the first land you come to.  

Interestingly, this is one of the first areas of the country where settlers from Europe planted vines and records suggest that vines were planted here as far back as the early 17th century.  Nevertheless, for a variety of reasons serious wine production didn't really get underway until the 1980s, and even now there are only about 25 licensed farm wineries in the province.  

Of course the natural inclination is to think Canada's climate is simply too cold to produce decent wine and certainly a lot of thought has been put into the kinds of vine that are likely to thrive in Nova Scotia.  Climatically, the province has been likened to the Baltic coast of Northern Europe only wetter and snowier although the wine growing area here is actually at a latitude similar to Bordeaux.  The vineyards are largely focused on the western side of the province along the Annapolis Valley and land facing west onto the Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of Maine with most vineyards never more than 20km from the sea.  The climatic conditions mean there is a long growing season which starts late and extends through a drawn out ripening season deep into the autumn.  The result is wines with high acidity, something which particularly for producing sparkling wines, is a significant advantage.

TIDAL BAY

The advantage for new wine regions is that they are not bound by history and tradition and therefore have free rein to set up their own parameters and regulations for what they produce.  Tidal Bay is a product of this approach and acts as a signature wine for Nova Scotia based on clearly defined charateristics that producers are keen to adhere to. As an expression of local heritage it must be made from a 51% minimum of specified long standing hybrid grape varieties such as L'Acadie Blanc, Serval Blanc, and Vidal Blanc with the remaining 49% of the blend  made up from vitis vinifera varieties including Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, and Riesling. The regulations are sufficiently flexible to allow for producers' individuality and creativity to thrive in a style that can be characterised as fresh, crisp, and with lively acidity.  Unlike the trend in North America to define wines by a single varietal (e.g. Napa Cabernet Sauvignon) Tidal Bay is very much a 'terroir' wine reflecting a sense of the place where it was produced.

I tasted Tidal Bay (2021) wines from 3 different producers - Lightfoot & Wolfville, Planters Ridge, and Luckett Vineyards, each capturing the distinct style although quite different interpretations of the 51%-49% regulations.  The Planters Ridge bottle was particularly attractive not only having the characteristic Tidal Bay minerality and mouth-watering freshness but the addition of muscat in the blend gives it a highly aromatic and flavoursome lift. 

Planters Ridge Tidal Bay 2021

SPARKLING WINES

The other area where producers in Nova Scotia are making a bit of a name for themselves is with traditional method sparkling wine.  Wine Growers Nova Scotia even make comparison with champagne in terms of quality!  A comparison between growing conditions in the Annapolis Valley and the Champagne region of France has an element of truth but it is the long drawn out growing season in Nova Scotia's cool climate that results in the levels of acidity necessary for classy sparkling wine.  The first sparkling wine, L'Arcardie Vineyards (2005), was only released 15 years ago in 2008 but I tasted 2008, 2011, 2017, 2019 vintages from 3 other producers - Blomidon, Lightfoot & Wolfville, and Benjamin Bridge.  All but one were made from 100% Chardonnay although there are also some sparkling wines from the region following the classic champagne blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier.  Benjamin Bridge is perhaps the sparkling wine producer   in Nova Scotia with the highest reputation, not least with the coup in getting their Brut Reserve 2008 on the wine list at Restaurant Gordon Ramsey.  Certainly the Benjamin Bridge Brut 2017 I tasted would be a worthy substitute for a house champagne but I was even more impressed by the Blomidon Blanc de Blancs 2011.  Apparently this was an excellent year with the fruit picked late to allow for maximum acidity. It seemed to have a level of complexity noticeably higher than the other sparkling wines.  

Blomidon Blanc de Blancs 2011

In spite of Nova Scotian wines' growing reputation there is very little that reaches the UK.  The sparkling wines get 'exported' but largely to other provinces and elsewhere in North America.  As far as I am aware only Benjamin Bridge and Lightfoot & Wolfville have representation in the UK, the former imported by Flint Wines and the latter by Propeller Wines.  Unfortunately then for the time being if you want to explore the unique landscape and wines of this corner of Canada it is likely to mean a trip across the Atlantic.  But, who knows?  Try hard and you may be able to search out a bottle from somewhere in time for Series 3 of Race Across the World.  If you're in London, Friarwood (shops in Parsons Green and Wimbledon Village) appear to do some Benjamin Bridge sparklers by the bottle.