The Demystified Vine

Eau Vivre Winery, out of the Similkameen Valley in British Columbia, is quickly becoming one of my “go to” wineries. By that I mean that if I were to go to a party or be invited to a dinner and needed to bring a bottle of vino, I would likely think of bringing some Eau Vivre.

Recently, I opened up a bottle of their 2013 Riesling. I had it wrapped up, as I was blind tasting my friend on it. My friend doesn’t have a lot of experience blind tasting, but I thought that this would be a good example of Riesling to blind taste him with.

While waiting for him to take his guesses, I was engulfed in the beauty of this Riesling.

In his book, White Wine Guide: A complete introduction to choosing white wines, Jim Ainsworth states, “It may seem surprising, but many people consider Riesling to be the world’s most aristocratic white grape variety. Yes, they even put it above Chardonnay, the grape behind such noble Burgundian wines as Puligny-Montrachet and Corton-Charlemagne” [112].

As such, Riesling is well-known across the globe, and it is a grape that can make a number of different styles ranging from seriously acidic to syrupy sweet to sparkling!

With bountiful citrus notes, the 2013 vintage did not disappoint. This vintage had that mouth-puckering acidity that one loves to find in a Riesling. It deserves respect. The fresh lemon juice and lime zest notes were at the forefront of the bouquet and on the palate.

Karen MacNeil, writer of The Wine Bible, confirms that Riesling’s reputation is built on its acidity. “Great riesling has soaring acidity […] [and its] refined structure is complemented by the mouth-wateringly delicate flavors of fresh ripe peaches, apricots, and melons, sometimes pierced with a vibrant mineral quality, like the taste of water running over stones in a mountain stream” [51].

Obvious but not overpowering petrol notes wafted from the glass, and a dense minerality came out on the long finish. My friend noted the white grapefruit on both the bouquet and palate, and I likened it more to the pith. Regardless, the notes were a great combination.

Initially, the wine was very cold, so as it warmed up in the glass, some stone fruit made its way out of the glass as well. I picked out some fleshy peach, and my friend chimed in with some apricot. We were both delighted.

The wine paired beautifully with the Tequila Lime sausages from Oyama on Granville Island.

Their Rieslings are available at select liquor stores, online, and at the winery. Their website lists the 2012 at $17.00 CAD and the 2014 at $19.00 CAD.

Read more about Eau Vivre’s wines here: https://demystifiedvine.com/2015/05/21/eau-vivres-bright-whites-from-the-similkameen/

Cheers!