The grapes for the Vidal Icewine were harvested in the depths of the Canadian winter from January 6th-9th 2004 (surely this should make it a 2004 vintage ? Not according to the label), and pressed at an average temperature of -10 C. The resulting dessert wine is beautiful, a fabulous gold colour in the glass, a rich and aromatic mix of exotic fruits on the nose, tasting of mango, apricot and sugared oranges, magical. It is a shame that you get so little of it for your money, we got this in the big Thresher's/Wine Rack binge (see previous post for 40% off coupon), it would have been ?17 a bottle, that's a 25cl bottle, so with discount ?10.20, still quite a lot of money but you only pass this way once, and big companies don't make such grand gestures / terrible miscalcultions, all that often. We tried the wine cooled with a selection of cheeses, Mimolette, Brie, Wyfe of Bath and a not too strong Cheddar. The makers also recommend trying it with foie gras, rich pates or fresh fruit. I often enjoy chocolate with dessert wines but in this case I think chocolate would destroy the delicate flavours present in the vidal. I think that's the first time I've tried the Vidal grape, and only about the second time I've had a Canadian wine, with global warming they'll be the new Burgundy.
 - 12/11/2006