Our 30 Days of Local Wine campaign takes place throughout the entire month of December. Each day we’ll be featuring a different local wine from several of the Essex Pelee Island Coast wineries along with recipes for food, cocktails (yes, wine cocktails), desserts, party tips and more. Click here for the complete list of 30 wines.
Also, we want to see how you enjoy your local wine. We encourage you to use the #30DLW hashtag on Instagram to win prizes like a day for 2 on a tandem bicycle on our award winning Wine Trail Ride Cycling Tours. Click here for more details on the 30 Days of Local Wine Contest.
This wine is a show stopper.
The 2010 Meritage is Colchester Ridge Estate Winery‘s best-selling red wine. The Meritage is a smooth blend and features the complementing artwork by Brent Lynch. The Meritage is a Bordeaux-Style blend of 50% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc.
2010 was a wonderful year for grape maturation, providing CREW with high temperatures, abundant sunshine and low precipitation. Harvest began early, and the smooth transition from summer to autumn allowed for textbook ripening and excellent wine potential. And the 2010 Meritage best seller came to be.
This wine has been tried by many critics, and according to critic Michael Pinkus the Meritage is “oaky and smoky” with a palette that is “all about dark fruit with nice, balanced structure.” He also found it silky with touches of cinnamon and spice.
Critic Robert Stephen commented, “My goodness! Has Lake Erie North Shore gone Napa?” With comments like that, it’s an easy choice for a holiday gift. The Meritage pairs well with your typical date night meal; roast beef, lamb chops, rich spaghetti bolognese. It will also go well in the sauce, although most prefer it drank. It is available at CREW for $20 as well as most Windsor-Essex LCBOs.
To top it all off, the Meritage was awarded a Silver medal at the 2014 Finger Lakes International Wine Competition.
Being that the Meritage is a blend of Cab Sauv, Cab Franc and Merlot one would assume it being a very big drinking wine. And although it has a high alcohol content, it still drinks lighter than you would guess. This is why chef Ted Dimoglou of Tiki Sushi says it can be used in a delicate raw fish application.
Meritage Soaked Salmon Crudo
Ingredients
- Crew Meritage
- 4 oz of fresh salmon
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 lemon
- 1 small red onion
- 1 cucumber
- Fresh parsley sprigs
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Method
- Submerge and soak salmon in wine for 24 hrs.
- Zest garlic and lemon and combine with finely minced red onion.
- Add juice from lemon, splash of wine and salt and pepper to taste.
- Let sit for 24 hrs.
- Grate cucumber for simple bed for salmon.
- Thinly slice salmon and place on rah bed of cucumber.
- Apply a small amount of olive oil and pinch of salt.
- Add onion mixture (mignonette) and garnish with parsley sprig.
- Serve and enjoy.
