Wine Lovers

As wine lovers have come to appreciate, sweets in a bottle are every bit as glamorous as those in a gilded box. None say 'I love you' as eloquently as the world's elite dessert wines.

Rare, expensive and often tough to find, the best of them generally require some effort to acquire. But the incomparable gustatory experience they offer makes it all worthwhile.

Some experts suggest having them with small fruit tarts or marrons glaces; A preference is to have them as dessert, rather than with it, in small tulip-shaped glasses.

Certainly, Germany's Beerenausleses and Trockenbeerenausleses, along with France's Sauternes are the best known.

However, the small coterie of passionate specialized producers of Icewine in Canada's Niagara Peninsula in Ontario province, is rapidly acquiring international prestige.

The wines of Inniskillin, whose 1989 Vidal Icewine put the genre on the map when it won the Gran Prix d'Honneur in Bordeaux.

Inniskillin's founder Donald Ziraldo, dubbed “the Robert Mondavi of Canada” by several writers, created the producer- sustained quality alliance that sets the standard for the category.

Hillebrand Estates, Vinelands Estates, Henry of Pelham and Chateau des Charmes, among others, are all outstanding producers, along with this week's pick, below.

Pillitteri Estates Winery Vidal Icewine and Riesling Icewine. Icewine or Eiswein, originated in Franconia, Germany, at the end of the 18th century.

Grapes were left on the vine until the first hard frost and the subsequent freeze-thaw cycles concentrated the sugars and fruit essences.

The quality of Canadian Icewine producers is assured by the VQA designation on the label, an affirmation the vintner observes the rules of the Vintners Quality Alliance, which stipulates naturalness in all phases of production. No artificial freezing or refrigeration is permitted.

Not only must the grapes be protected against extreme temperatures, they also must be defended vigorously against birds and other animals foraging for food in winter.
As in all grape harvests, the timing of the exact moment to pick is crucial for the quality of Icewine. The sugar content varies inversely with the temperature at which the grapes are harvested.

At minus 6 degrees Celsius, the grapes have a sugar content of 29 percent, while down at minus 14 Celcius, it soars to 56 percent of the weight of the must (unfermented juice).

Yields are minuscule. Icewine will always be rare and expensive, a special-occasion treat or gift.

Vidal and Riesling are the two grapes favored for this process, and Pillitteri makes award-winning example of both. Flavors combine apricot, mango, peach, honeydew melon and other sweet fruit.

A solid backbone of acid underpins and balances out the sweetness, making for an unforgettable treat for the taste buds.

The trick is to find these rare beauties.