The Crush on King

Dedicated followers of the Ontario wine industry will remember Stoney Ridge Estate Winery in Vineland, where Winemaker Jim Warren worked his magic. Today, the facility is a winemakers’ collective where vintners can make or finish their wines without the expense of building a winery.

If you’re ever visiting Oakville in the Napa Valley, there’s a similar enterprise called the Napa Wine Company which was undoubtedly the model for The Crush on King, Niagara Custom Crush Studio.

In Crush’s bright, contemporary tasting room, you can taste, buy a glass or buy a bottle of 20+ of the resident winemakers’ products.

The current resident winemakers are: Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 1029: Ballgame, Theatre and an Estate Dinner

Bill Redelmeier welcomes his guests (see Saturday)

Monday, July 20th: Visited my dentist. Great guy but I hate dental visits. This time to mend a broken front tooth. He discovered a small cavity in another tooth, which means another visit on Wednesday. Dinner: beef stir fry noodles with a bottle of Big Crush Cabernet Sauvignon 2024 from Australia.

Tuesday, July 21st: Dinner at Wellington Court with Bill Redelmeier and John Nadeau. Ordered Lake Erie perch (which I read this morning in the Standard is in short supply). John ordered a bottle of Bill’s Southbrook Triomphe Cabernet Sauvignon 2021. Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 1028: Juice and Back to School

Angela Aiello

Tuesday, July 14th: A tasting of The Juice Wine Company portfolio at the Crush on King with co-owner Angela Aiello.

Juice Wine Company Chardonnay 2024 ($33)
Straw colour, fresh bouquet of Granny Smith apple; medium-bodied, dry, Chablis style, with a peachy, apple flavour. (89)

Juice Wine Company Cabernet Franc Rose 2025 ($33)
Pink with a bluish tint; strawberry nose with watermelon; medium-bodied, dry, strawberry and pomegranate flavour. (90) Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 1027: Township 7, Honky Tonk Heroes and Shades of Syrah

Township 7 wines

Monday, July 6th: Tasted the following wines from Township 7 (Naramata Bench in the Okanagan Valley):

Township 7 Seven Stars Aurora 2022 (Blanc de Noirs – 100% Pinot Noir)
Pale straw in colour; active mousse of tiny bubbles; toasty, leesy nose of red apples; medium-bodied, dry, beautifully balanced apple and red berry flavours. Lovely mouth feel, great length. (92)

Township 7 Seven Stars Rigel 2022 (Riesling; Fool’s Gold Vineyard)
Pale straw; persistent mousse of tiny bubbles: toasty, leesy nose of apple and lemon zest; medium-bodied, elegant, green apple flavour with a long, lemony finish. (91) Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 1026: Street Legal in London Now!

Monday, June 30th: My British passport arrived – after weeks of agonising back-and-forth over documents with His Majesty’s Passport Office.

Other arrivals today: our friend Zoltan from Bucharest and his travelling companion Dr. Enno Lippold, whom I knew from his days as a winemaker with Deinhard. They arrived from the Finger Lakes, where they had been attending a Riesling conference. They took an Uber from the New York border direct to Dobbin Estate in Niagara, where Ann Sperling and Peter Gamble had set up a tasting. Continue reading

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