This is the last in my series of articles looking at the 2007 vintage of one of Ontario’s premier wineries, Le Clos Jordanne. Here are my tasting notes for their complete range of Chardonnay — just like a winery in Burgundy, this is the only white grape they grow.
Le Clos Jordanne 2007 Village Reserve Chardonnay ($25.00 [Ed. note: 2007 no longer available], Vintages #33936)
The Village Reserve is once again an excellent value, especially since the increasing production of the vineyards has led Vincor to lower the price from $30 to $25. It has an intoxicating nose with plenty of blossoms, bruised tropical fruit and musk. The palate is lush and slightly sloppy: baked apple, yellow plum and papaya swirl around the glass. This is a luxurious and complex species of Chardonnay. 90/100
Le Clos Jordanne 2007 Talon Ridge Chardonnay ($37.00 [Ed. note: 2007 no longer available], Vintages #143974)
This is for lovers of fruit-driven Chardonnay: it has a generous hit of citrus and tropical flavours, all wrapped in a moderate layer of characteristic Le Clos oakiness. The nose is gorgeous and buttery, with a pleasing hint of candied ginger. It is a beautifully articulated wine: generous but also outrageously vivacious. 93/100
Le Clos Jordanne 2007 Le Clos Jordanne Vineyard Chardonnay ($40.00, [Ed. note: no longer available])
The grapes in Le Clos Jordanne’s Vineyard have a distinctive taste of fresh citrus. Because of this, this bottle is an excellent choice for those who balk at too much oak. It’s concentrated, intense and remarkably dense. In one to two years, its tightly wound structure will ease into a lovely maturity. 92/100
Le Clos Jordanne 2007 Claystone Terrace Chardonnay ($40.00 [Ed. note: 2007 no longer available], Not Yet Released)
The winemaker Thomas Bachelder told me that this “could be their best wine: a winemakers’ wine that fights you back.” I agree — the Claystone Chardonnay has always been my favourite in Le Clos Jordanne’s range. It challenges the drinker because it juxtaposes a number of strong characteristics that ought to conflict with each other: great acidity, ultra-ripe tropical fruit and striking oak influence. It could be messy or massive, but instead it’s oddly delicate. Slightly perverse and close to perfect. 94/100
Le Clos Jordanne 2007 Le Grand Clos Chardonnay ($65.00 [Ed. note: 2007 no longer available], Vintages #34561)
Thomas Bachelder chuckles that this wine “beckons you from the future,” and he is correct: this is a wine with longevity and a great capacity to evolve over the next three to ten years. The nose gives a good indication of where it is going: already, it is a complex mix of crème brûlée, apples and musk. The warm weather of 2007 has been captured in ample fruit and serious oak. As a result, the palate is dense, spicy and concentrated, with a long and lovely finish. Superb. 94/100
Matthew Sullivan is a civil litigator in Toronto. He blogs weekly entry here on lawandstyle.ca. The Short Cellar column also appears in the print edition of Precedent. Matthew can be reached at matthew@lawandstyle.beta-site.ca. Follow along on Twitter: @shortcellar.