Cave Springs - Blanc de Blancs CSV - Beamsville Bench, Niagara (2017)

Baked pear, lemon meringue, walnuts, kumquat and cinnamon; nuances of wet stone, sea breeze, oatmeal and brown sugar. Bone dry with a pearly mousse, lemon pith, grapefruit and quince, all framed by taut, chiselled edges and brioche.

Whole cluster fruit was press fractioned, with the hearts fermented bone dry, 85% in tank and 15% in neutral 225L and 500L oak barrels, using selected yeast; all lots aged sur lie 11 months pre-tirage; bottle aged 65 months prior to disgorging; zero-sugar dosage; minimal sulphur additions.

This wine originates from estate vineyards on the Beamsville Bench from the finest micro-parcels of mature Chardonnay vines. Stony clay till composed primarily of limestone and dolostone mixed with sandstone, shale and traces of granite and gneiss; soils overlie moraine and sandstone/shale bedrock; depth ranges from 4 to 8 m.