When I told one of my closest friends that I was writing a food blog, one of his first questions was whether it would include alcohol (he’s European). I had honestly not thought to include alcohol in my blog until after he brought it up. Last summer Boyfriend and I did a lot of wine tasting in Temecula. Since we’ve been to almost all the wineries there, we no longer go anymore. While we were there, we learned a lot about different wines, and were introduced to ice wines (which ended being an expensive discovery).
Ice wines are made mostly in Canada and Germany. Cold temperatures are required because the grapes need to freeze while on the vine. Because pf the difficulty in making ice wines, they are quite expensive. The bottles are small, and usually come in their own separate box, or container or something else to make them stand out.
For instance, the ice wine we got in Temecula from Keyways winery comes in a bottle which has a frosted cap. Keyways is the only winery in Temecula that carries ice wine. They don’t actually make it themselves, as it is too warm in Temecula. They get it from somewhere in Canada.
Ice wines are very sweet. Probably the sweetest on a dessert wine scale. Boyfriend is not a big wine drinker, so he prefers sweet wines that basically mask the wine taste. Ice wines do that very well since they are so sweet. It does have complexity to its taste though. It’s sweet, but you can also taste citrus/acidic tastes as well.
Good ice wines range about $35 and up. Boyfriend and I have tried some cheap ice wines, but they weren’t very good. Probably the most well known ice wine is by Inniskillin. They have a range of different ice wines, the only one I’ve tried is their Vidal. It normally costs about $50.
Costco is a great place to get ice wines. They tend to sell them
cheaper than retail price. They carry the Inniskillin Vidal along
with a couple of other brands. Boyfriend and I have tried a few, and
our favorite is the Inniskillin one.
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Wow, only $5 for the tour? I’ve got to go to Canada!
I recently went to the Inniskillin winery for their wine tour. AMAZING for $5. Proud to see a Canadian wine!
Thanks! I’ll keep these two in mind if I ever get a chance to go. I hope I do. I haven’t been to the Niagara region since I was a kid.
My wife and I did a tour of the Niagara region a few years ago. There were several crappy wineries we visited, but Inniskillin and Jackson-Triggs are really, really great. Most reds are cabernet franc, but there are a couple others, also.
I want to go to Canada just so I can sample the others. I didn’t know they make a red ice wine!
I agree! A bit pricey, but very tasty
Sadly, most of what Inniskillin is nearly impossible to find in the U.S. They make some red ice wines that are absolutely incredible. Crazy expensive (think $100 for a 1/4 sized bottle). But very, very good.
Inniskillin ice wine is wonderful.
Thanks! I took the picture with my new camera. I’m still trying to learn more about it. It’s going to take me a while to figure out how to use it properly.
i like the picture at the real top!