Tasting Note This is a southern Rhone–inspired blend of viognier, marsanne and roussanne, varieties rare in Niagara. So, this is quite an accomplishment from a surprising source. (However, nearby Kew Vineyard has been producing very good marsanne for years.) This wine shows tea aromas and classic viognier star fruit and melon, with nutmeg spice from the oak. It is medium-full bodied with some sweetness, gloss and warmth underpinned by classic Niagara acid and minerality. The length is excellent. By happenstance I was able to taste it next to a famous white Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the resemblance was impressive, with the Niagara version from young vines not having quite the same weight or depth (which makes the price a bit ambitious). Tasted March 2026.

Backgrounder Taylor Emerson purchased this property in Lincoln Lakeshore just below the Beamsville Bench in 2017 and began planting the usual Niagara varieties — cab franc, chardonnay, riesling — but tossed in Rhone varieties like syrah and viognier that have done very well. Black Bank Hill’s rise has been dramatic post-COVID, perhaps due to the arrival of Taylor’s winemaking cousin Jonathan McLean, who was lured from the Okanagan Valley. The Spring 2026 release of six wines presents an impressive winemaking grasp and precision. This is a blend of 50% viognier, 25% marsanne and 25% roussanne, grown and hand-harvested in October. All varieties achieved 22 Brix sugar levels or better, which is where these Mediterranean varieties do best. This was wild-fermented in neutral French oak barrels then aged 20 months on lees in same French oak. The wine was bottled unfined in July 2025.