Robert's Report
Treasure in the Fraser Valley
Vineyards at Mt Lehman Winery
There is nothing finer than driving through the beautiful countryside between Metro Vancouver and Abbotsford in the Fraser Valley. In the valley are a number of gems; outstanding wines (wineries) you must try, on September 16th our destination was Mt Lehman Winery and Blackwood Lane. Despite one wrong turn (going south of Mt Lehman Rd rather than north) we arrived at the very impressive Mt Lehman winery and were warmly greeted by owner winemaker Vern Siemens and his son Bob.
Vern began grape-growing trials in 1989 on his farm just outside Abbotsford. After testing perhaps 50 varieties he narrowed his selection down to a handful, dominated by pinot noir and pinot gris. Today the winery has 15 acres of vines with plans to expand at a reasonable pace each year. The vineyard provides pinot noir, pinot grigio, chardonnay and merlot among others. Grapes are also sourced from the Okanagan.
Winemaker Vern Siemens and his son Bob
Mt Lehman is a family winery dedicated to sustained growing methods and minimal intervention in the wine making process. I have always stated that a winery will be successful if they have good wines and outstanding hospitality, we definitely found both here.
By winning the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Excellence in British Columbia for their 2010 Viognier Reserve they have proven the value and quality of Fraser Valley wines
The tasting room is located 4 KM north of Hwy 1 (airport exit #83) 5094 Mt Lehman Road
The Wines of Mt Lehman
In the last two years the winery has won over 40 awards for their wines, a passion for winemaking is the key.
2009 Pinot Gris - Dry style wine full of fruit flavours. Light, good for summer sipping, a five star wine
2010 Pinot Grigio - Try this on on the patio on a warm summer day the bottle will soon be empty! A fresh fruity wine with excellent flavours. My wife who prefers Reds say this one will make her a white wine drinker.2010 Chardonnay Unoaked - Slightly off dry one of Canada's better Chardonnay's with its rich bouquet
2009 Viognier/Marsanne - An award winning wine the touch of Marsanne provides that little something which makes this wine so good. Great aroma good flavours.
2008 Cab Merlot - A truly fine wine of distinct character than can grow, the blend is done to perfection.
2009 Cab-Foch - After giving other wines in the Mt Lehman collection five stars I had to give this six. It is a must try wine. Its a smooth - smooth tantalizing wine
2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Platinum - this wine spent 13 months in both new and used French and American oak barrels which provided the wonderful complexity. The nose is amazing and the flavours even better. This is a wine you will want to buy and keep for just YOU and maybe a loved one.. Six stars
Mt Lehman has an amazing line of quality wines that impressed us on first our first visit to try their wines.
We thank Vern Siemens and his son Bob for a wonderful visit and for putting the Fraser Valley on Canada's wine map. We will return
Blackwood Lane Winery manager Kim Collins
You cannot journey through the Fraser Valley, Langley Township area without stopping at Blackwood Lane. The friendly charming hospitality of owner Carlos Lee and tasting room manager Kim Collins along with outstanding wines make it an absolute must. Today was our third visit to the winery, Carlos was away participating in the "Eat Fraser Valley" affair being held in Abbotsford but Kim and her sunny personality was holding down the fort. Barbara was delighted to find there were a couple of jars of Kim's wonderful wine jellies available they are now in our cupboard. Read about our first visit
When you reach the winery you drive up a single lane lined with cherry trees to the tasting room. As you travel up this lane you can view the beautiful acreage which will soon be planted with grape vines The winery was busy when we arrived so we explored the patio where you can purchase wine by the glass and enjoy cheese platters along with the view.
The winery has an outstanding collection of wines all with scores ranging from 92 to a very impressive
96 for its 2006 The Referènce2006 The Referènce(Cuvee Bordeaux Blend) - $89.00
The finest cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, malbec, and petit verdot grapes were selected and cool fermented separately to create this balanced and age worthy Bordeaux-style blend. New French barriques with extra tight grain were used for the first year and the wine spent its final year in Allier, Nevers, Jupille, and Troncais forest puncheons that allowed reduction of the wine while maintaining its fragrant fruit and complex spice character. Over 80% free run juice gives the Referènce fine-grained natural tannins that result in extraordinary length of finish. Look for dark cherry, boysenberry, cassis, chocolate, cigar box and cedar aromas with high notes of eucalyptus, pencil shavings and violets. Approachable now but has the acidity and structure to enjoy for the next two decades.
We scored this wine a 97.. A wine my wife purchased a bottle for my birthday last year it was so good... The 2007 Reference is just as good!
If your looking for a lesser priced wine but amazing flavour go with the 2009 Riesling. Honeysuckle and pineapple flavours to delight your taste buds. The winery's red's all have that wow factor We walked away with a bottle of merlot (a surprise for my wife) the wine - rich on the palate, most appealing aromas and flavours of black cherry, vanilla, fig and chocolate, with a lingering finish and a bottle of reisling for me.
There are not many wineries whose entire cellar are all outstanding wines. We managed to find two wineries in one day in British Columia's Fraser Valley.
Please see Township 7 and Domaine De Chaberton
1. Labels 2. Proper Labeling 3. Cawston, BC 4. Paying for Etiquette 5. Nova Scotia 6. Walnut Wine . 7Christmas Wines 8.Tilman Hainle 9.Canada's Wine History 10. Wine Tasting Manners 11. Hospitality 12. Fraser Valley 13. Wine Language 14. Top Wineries in BC 15. Summerhill's Cipes Gabriel Brut 16. Quaility 17. Lulu Island 18. Prince Edward County
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