Financial Times

Now that Canada is producing world-class wines, it is surely high time the industry educated Canadians properly about their own products, says JANCIS ROBINSON. She knows of no nation more defensive about its wines than Canada. In tasting 70 wines, of which 17 she pronounces as 'world class', Robinson meets a woman whose job it is to brief Canadian diplomats on the 'glories of their own country's wines'. She singles out Daniel Lenko's 2002 Syrah from the Niagara Peninsula as 'truly outstanding' and also mentions two joint ventures, Clos Jordanne and Osoyoos Larose. The majority of the wines she tasted were from Niagara and, if they had a fault, it was lack of concentration. Canada is also plagued by ladybirds, which taint the wines by imparting a raw horseradish or peanut shell aroma.