Canadian Oak Project

The Cuvee awards are known as the "Oscars" of the Ontario Wine Industry. On February 19, 2010 the awards were revealed to deserving wineries from all over Ontario. Niagara College Teaching Winery was honored to receive Gold in the category for "Limited Edition Red" for our 2007 Dean's List Pinot Noir (Canadian Oak Project.)

The goal of the Canadian Oak Project is to"define the distinct characteristics of Canadian Oak, and its use, including flavour profiles and terrior inherent in this unique barrel style." We have recently released two wines that are a part of the Canadian Oak Project including the award winning 2007 Dean's List Pinot Noir, as well as our 2007 Dean's List Meritage.

2007 Dean's List Pinot Noir Canadian Oak Project:

This complex wine is deep ruby in colour with a nose of strawberries and black cherry. Mocha and vanilla bean dominate the palate, offering a pleasant mouthfeel, and concluding with a smooth lingering finish.

2007 Dean's List Meritage Canadian Oak Project:

This Meritage is deep ruby in colour offering aromas of cedar and black currants. With a strong tannic structure and full mouthfeel, the palate consists of black and red fruit characteristics. The blend for this Meritage consists of 42% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot, and 3% Malbec.

About Canadian Oak :

Since the Ontario Wine industry is quite young, the usage of Canadian Oak for aging wine is a new undertaking. The first commercial usage of Canadian Oak was in 2002 and since then, various Ontario Wineries have experimented with Canadian Oak. It has been found that Canadian Oak is distinctly different from, yet an intermediate between French and American Oak barrels.

This is a truly exciting advance in the Canadian wine industry offering a true representation of Canadian terrior, offering both locally grown grapes, as well as wine that has been aged in Oak deriving from the same Canadian soils.

Recipe:

For this blog I have chosen a fantastic recipe that pairs extremely well with our 2007 Dean's List Pinot Noir Canadian Oak Project.

Seared Duck Breast with a Blueberry/Blackberry Gastrique

Serves 4

Blueberry/Blackberry Gastrique

3 cups Blackberries

2 cups Blueberries

2 cups Sugar

1 cup Rice wine vinegar

In a small sauce pan, combine the berries, sugar and vinegar. Bring the liquid up to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook the mixture for about 25-30 minutes or until the mixture becomes thick and syrupy.

Seared Duck Breast

4 Duck Breasts

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees faranheit.

Score the fat on the duck breasts diagonallyin a criss-cross pattern. Then season with salt and pepper. Panfry breasts fat side down to render the fat for 2-3 minutes, and continue to roast in the oven until the meat is medium rare.

Spoon the gastrique over the duck breast and enjoy with the 2007 Dean's List Pinot Noir Canadian Oak Project.

For more information regarding the deserving winners from the Cuvee awards, visit http://www.cuvee.ca/event.html

Cheers.