Rosehall Run

One minute down the country road and we're at Rosehall Run, a pair of modern buildings with a tasting room on the second floor of the nearest. Caroline had met owner and winemaker Dan Sullivan at the Ontario Wine Fair the year before, and he made a point of coming out to greet us.

Even better, Dan took us on a private tour of his new facility, which is not quite finished. He has a series of stainless steel fermenting tanks on the ground floor, along with what he described as "the biggest walk-in fridge you've ever seen". Below ground, rows of French oak barrels hold the Chardonnays of the future (he makes unoaked Chards, too). Dan drew tastes of two of his upcoming wines (always a true privilege to sample from the barrel!). It would be unfair to describe a wine before its time - suffice to say that there are some good things coming from Rosehall Run.


I asked Dan how he fines his wines. Fining is a technique in which a winemaker pours in a substance that certain unwanted proteins cling to. The substance falls to the bottom of the tank, where it, and the proteins, can be easily removed. Common fining products include egg whites and and a fish bladder derivative called isinglass - both of which make some wines unsuitable for vegans. There are non-animal alternatives, such as bentonite, a type of clay.

Dan said that he tries not to fine at all, but has been known to use bentonite in some of his Pinot Noirs. He has also used egg whites to clarify his Chardonnays. He said that bentonite and egg whites don't simply replace each other. Some proteins are best removed by the clay, others are better removed by egg white. Dan's a former chemist, so I'll trust his word!

Rosehall Run Unoaked Chardonnay 2006
The Chardonnay is brought in from the Beamsville Bench and blended with some Muscat. It's highly perfumed, with lots of ripe summer fruit. I also caught a hint of butter from the malo-lactic process. The palette is surprisingly crisp, with the summer fruit tempered by grapefruit flavours and a good acidity. The wine has a disappointingly short finish, but I wouldn't mind trying again.

Rosehall Run Pinot Noir 2006
Raspberries, smoke, sour cherries - this lovely, light-bodied Pinot has it all. The aromas come through on the palette, too, and there's a long tart finish. Perfect for our wild mushroom dishes, we bought a case for ZenKitchen diners to enjoy.

I tasted a couple of others, but, immersed in conversation with Dan, I took crappy notes. Sorry!