Graze the Bench (Hidden Bench)

Since we'd finished our first wine and food combination, we picked up our festival glasses and walked down the hill, through the vineyards, around a pond and into our second winery of the day.  You only have to walk ten steps off of Organized Crime's property to be able to see Hidden Bench Vineyards and Winery.  This was where I figured out that the event pricing wasn't quite as good as I'd thought.  The initial passport, which we'd picked up at Organized Crime, cost $25 per person and included admission to the "graze" areas at all 6 wineries, one glass of wine, one food choice, and a wine glass to take with you door to door.  Additional food and wine was to cost $7.  It didn't say "each!"  So we re-jigged our plan, spend another $14, and got one more glass of wine and one more food plate.  (I drank most of the wine and Chris ate most of the food.)

Of the two wine choices available, I picked the 2011 Chardonnay.  The smell to me was smoky, but lightly so, sort of like the smell of birch bark kindling.  Chris smelled bubblegum; Chris always smells bubblegum in chardonnay.  The winery's own notes say perfumed orange blossom and citrus oil so we'll go with that.  The wine has a nice balance between feeling crisp and feeling oily.  There's only a hint of lemon in the taste, and the most concentrated, distinct flavour, that of hazelnut cream, comes at the back and sides of the tongue.  For a chardonnay, it has a very long finish, but that's when the taste of alcohol surfaces.  We argued over the rating for awhile, settling somewhere around 88.  It's price is $32.

The food accompaniment this time was an oak-smoked beef brisket sandwich, which was an incredible pairing for the chardonnay.  The oaks played off of each other, as did the oils, with excellent results.  Unfortunately, we did not enjoy the music as much at this venue, first because it was too loud and second because the lead singer was not all that pleasant to listen to. Nevertheless, we will definitely graze the bench again next year, but this time will remember sunscreen, a hat, and walking shoes!

Graze the Bench (Organized Crime)

Graze the Bench is a very different wine event from those we typically frequent.  First, only the six wineries on the Beamsville Bench participate.  At each winery, you receive a full serving of your choice of two wines, paired with a light lunch.  The entire event is outdoors, and each venue hosts its own live music.  To top it off, the wineries are (mostly) close enough to walk between, and the new Beamsville Bench Vineyard Trail allows you to take the vineyard filled scenic route rather than the road.  Like most events in Ontario's wine country though, the event was poorly promoted.  We only knew about it because we'd seen the flyers during last year's Wine & Herb festival and knew to watch for it this year.

The Organized Crime Winery

As we approached the wine boutique to buy our event tickets, I grew concerned about my winery choice as some neighbourhood cats had clearly been having a turf war over the surrounding bushes.  Fortunately, though, the food and the band were on the other side of the building, where it smelled much nicer.  As Organized Crime doesn't have its own kitchen, it hosted a food truck, El Gastromundo Vagabundo, who served charcoal grilled chicken with guacamole and hot smoked pineapple habanero hot sauce with herb salad.  The food was yummy, but just a little too spicy for either of the wines - or any other wine I can think of for that matter!

So that we could try both wines on offer, Chris ordered the red and I the white.  The red, a 2011 blend called The Pipedown, went surprisingly better with the food, but it tasted more like sangria than it did a "classic Bordeaux style blend."  Its predominant features are its nose of black pepper, clove and vine-ripened tomatoes, and its already mellowing tannins.  We rated it an 82 without knowing the price as the bottle isn't listed on the winery's web page.  Realistically, I probably wouldn't buy this wine at any price, unless I wanted sangria in the first place!

The white, another 2011 blend  of gewürztraminer and viognier called The Mischief, was much more enjoyable.  Since I agree with the winery's tasting notes on this one, I'll copy them here; "Voluptuous, big and rich in both appearance and on the palate.  Very complex beginning with spice, ginger and a floral hint progressing to a bountiful ripe basket of tropical and stone fruits finishing with grapefruit acidity."  In my own notes, I commented that its a nice balance of crisp but full, and that my mouth was watering near the finish.  At a score of 85, I would pay up to $24 for this wine, which also is not listed on the company's web site.  I also remarked that I would rather have this white blend than those we tried at Stratus for Cuvee.  Overall the winery created a great atmosphere for the afternoon, with the help of a Latin inspired band, Los Caballeros del Son.  The music set a relaxed, festive tone but was not so loud as to prohibit conversation.  For that reason, although we did walk the trail and graze elsewhere, we came back to end our day there.