Extra Stop: Riverview Cellars Winery

During our sauvingon blanc tour, Chris and I stopped in at Riverview Cellars Winery as it was on the way.  Unfortunately, this was not one of our better wine route experiences.

The Wine

The 2009 Bianco is a 50/50 blend of riesling and gewurztraminer, which is exactly what it smells and tastes like.  Part lemon and apple, part passion fruit and mango, the two wines just didn't marry in the blend.  To be fair, it retails for only $13.95, and with a sugar rating of 2, definitely qualifies as boat wine.  On a side note, I'm annoyed by the winery's labelling.  The Bianco bottle features a picture of a cat, with a story about the cat on the back.  Wanting to know more about the two component wines, I went into the boutique, looking for the riesling and gewurz bottles.  While the riesling bottle was reasonably descriptive, the gewurz featured a picture of a robin's nest with, you guessed it, a story about said robin's nest.

The Food

The winery's assigned spice was cilantro, something I can never get enough of.  It was prepared in a sour cream blend used to top a taco flavoured soup.  The soup was yummy, and brought out the spicy gewurz features of the wine.  I frequently get a chicken tortilla soup from Supperworks, and will definitely match it to a light gewurz next time.

The Staff

Again, we were not impressed.  Upon entering, we were greeted by someone behind the tasting bar with food in her mouth.  Then, after waiting a few minutes at the serving area set up on the porch for the festival, the server walked through and served a group of four in front of us.

The Setting

Not surprisingly, Riverview sits across from and offers a view of the Niagara River.  The exterior offers quaint country charm and the interior, at first, is suitably elegant.  Through the tasting bar, though, the gift shop hints at desperation.  In all the wineries we've toured, never once have I wished I could buy cheesies before leaving.  To each their own, I suppose.