The SAS Blog: Stories from Sue-Ann Staff Estate Winery Page 16 - Sue-Ann Staff Estate Winery

The SAS Blog: Stories, Wine Highlights, Events, Recipes, etc.

August 19, 2016

THE SOPHISTICATED WINO

 

Wine from a fourth-generation Fancy Farm Girl

By Shari Darling, The Peterborough Examiner

I just tasted a fun and fabulous off-dry rose produced in Niagara called Sue-Ann Staff Fancy Farm Girl (FFG) 2014 Foxy Pink, (CSPC 469338), $14.95, available at the LCBO Lansdowne West near The Parkway).

I like the name and label of this wine. Catchy. I feel like a fancy farm girl myself!  While not a farmer, I do enjoy renovating homes and wearing steel toed work boots.  I also sell makeup online and am blessed to operate a business in wine and food. 

So, there's some farm and fancy in my lifestyle, as well as in the lives of many of my girlfriends. 

One of my best friends, Cora Whittington, runs Golden Pathways B&B and Leadership Retreat. Cora and husband David operate a farm, all the while hosting fancy events at their retreat. They live a fancy farm life, too!

It's a fitting brand name. On her website Staff says, "Years back, while tending my family farm, I had a revelation. I loved the farm. This is my Paris, my Australia, my South Africa, my freedom. So I dress the part and enjoy life through the rose-coloured glasses of the fancy farm girl. The farm is a metaphor, the attire an approach. The reality? There is a fancy farm girl in all of us."

Under this brand you'll find four wines called Frivolous White, Flamboyant Red, Foxy Rose and Flirty Bubbles.

Staff is a fifth-generation grape grower. In 2002 she won the Ontario Wine Society's Ontario Winemaker of the Year Award. Staff studied winemaking at the University of Adelaide in Southern Australia, and she went on to make wine at the family's 200-year-old estate in Jordan, Ontario. Now with 450 national and international awards under her fancy belt, Staff now operates her own winery at 3210 Staff Avenue in Jordan (Lincoln), Ontario - http://sue-annstaff.com

The label itself is very feminine with shades of pink and lime green, created by artist Francesca Waddell. I'm drawn to the label.

As for the liquid inside the bottle"¦.it's a winning rose.  Interesting, different, and delicious.

FFG is a fun and well balanced rose with quite interesting character. The nose swirls with aromas of fresh orange and peach. The palate offers both orange and berry notes. This is due to the interesting blend of grapes - 90 per cent Riesling (white grape) and 10 per cent Cabernet Franc (red grape).

The blending of these varieties create a delicious, easy drinking rose with good weight, refreshing acidity, lovely flavours, and some sweetness (1 to 2 on the sugar code).  The sweetness is not over-riding because acidity balances it out.

Best of all this wine is low in alcohol (11 per cent), making it an afternoon sipper by the pool or lake. It's also the ideal quaffer for girl's night in!

A whole range of foods will work with this rose, such as fancy hors d'oeuvres celebrating tanginess, saltiness and gentle sweetness. Pair this wine with Radishes Filled with Salmon Roe (salty) and Lemon Cream (tangy) or Canapés with Smoked Salmon and Capers (salty).  

To prepare the most harmonizing cheese tray to pair with FFG, use Parmigiano-Reggiano (salty), Gorgonzola (salty and pungent), and Stilton with Mango and Ginger (sweet). 

Because of the wine's berry character and sweetness, this gem will complement fresh salads of greens sprinkled with blueberries and strawberries. Be sure to use a rice or white balsamic vinaigrette. Wine vinegar is too acidic and will make the wine's acidity taste rancid. 

Its off-dry quality will also work with both subtle sweet and spicy barbecue sauces for grilled chicken and ribs. Examples include St. Louis (tangy); Memphis (sweet and tangy); Kansas City (sweet and tangy); Char Sui (Chinese barbecue sauce that is sweet; Honey and Bourbon; barbecue rum sauce.

Shari Darling's books and other publications are available atunderstandpublishing.com

August 18, 2016

20 Valley FAM Tour-BREAKFAST!

 

https://quik.gopro.com/v/eTgq6R6DXT/

 

Breakfast is at the winery which happens to also be Sue-Ann's home. Her new high-end oven is toast, but she quickly recovers with her old oven to whip up two different fritatas plus home fries, fruit salad, coffee and tasting setup for our gang. It's soon evident that nothing fazes Sue-Ann. The only action faster than her entertaining rapid-fire comments is how quickly she's rung up some 450 national and international wine maker awards.

Sue-Ann's pet Bernese 'Brix' steals the show with a Good Morning! tail wag for each of us while less sociable 'Shiraz' watches from under a chair.

The 104-acre farm which she shares with her brother's family next door is also a venue for weddings and special events. A semi-permanent tent with interlocking brick and stone dance floor (yes!) comes with the stipulation that only Staff wines come with the event. Not all that hard to take.

We move inside for a pinot noir and double sparkling tasting. The white she describes as an "easy, leesy, cheesey wine" which she named Irridescence "for life's changing colours." Fancy Farm Girl is her brand concept catering 'to what's in all of us'. (The other

f- words she reserves for the tractor when it doesn't start.)

Great breakfast morning with Sue-Ann Staff at the winery!
Canadian Chapter members of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) spent 2 days touring the wine and fruit producing region of Jordan under the hashtag banner#wherethehellsjordan. Hint: it's in the Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada.
 
Creative development is taking root in the region. Unlike its well-known sister community of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Jordan is off the lake and slightly northwest. It's intimate, contagiously friendly and growing nicely with pride and care.

August 16, 2016

FOXY PINK Vintages Release

Vintages release Saturday: Sue-Ann Staff
AUGUST 14, 2016 / RICK VANSICKLE

Sue-Ann Staff Fancy Farm Girl Foxy Pink 2014 ($15, LCBO, 88 points) — A different unique blend of 92% Riesling and 8% Cabernet Franc, but it works nicely here under Sue-Ann Staff’s guidance. It has a vibrant, electric nose of raspberry, cherries, grapefruit, apple and brilliant citrus fruit. It’s a touch off-dry on the palate, but well balanced by the racy acidity that highlights a mélange of citrus, apple and red berries. Refreshing and thirst-quenching.

August 16, 2016

FOXY PINK

What a lovely treat landed on my doorstep today! Thanks !

August 09, 2016

End-of-vacation w(h)ining

Friends,

Let us take a moment of silence to mark the end of a glorious two weeks of vacation. It was a brief staycation, cut short by my employer’s requirement that I actually return to work. Total buzzkill. This time off will be sorely missed. But it’s time to get back to saving the world, one translation at a time [translator’s note: this may be a gross exaggeration]. 

Besides being a request for your positive thoughts as I prepare to head back to work, this post seems like an opportune moment to share a few great wines that I’ve had the pleasure of drinking over the past little while.  

Sue-Ann Staff Fancy Farm Girl

Foxy Pink 2014 ($14.95)

Just to balance things out after a red, a white and a beer, obviously a rosé is next!

2013 Fancy Farm Girl       Foxy Pink    GOLD Medal - 2015 Ontario Wine Awards

This is not the type of rosé I usually go for. Unlike my favoured dry rosés, this one is classified as medium on the LCBO sweetness scale, but I didn’t find it cloying at all due to the equally high acidity, making for a well-balanced wine. The riesling is apparent on the nose (90% riesling and 10% cab franc) and it tastes of red delicious apple, pear, lemon, peach, raspberry, cherry, roses and hibiscus. This wine is fun and delectable, and at $14.95, it’s a great way to start an evening with the girls. Also, it pairs really nicely with pan-fried tilapia!

LCBO STORES:    

http://ow.ly/oS6h3034SlQ

July 23, 2016

Collingwood ELVIS FESTIVAL - VQA WINE TRUCK

"Thank ya Thank ya very much"...
Perfect Sue-Ann Staff wine for this weekend's Collingwood Elvis Festival...stop by the VQA Wine Truck for a sample...

July 05, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK

 

Wine of the Weekend

Sue-Ann Staff Fancy Farm Girl Frivolous White 2014
VQA Ontario

Celebrate the Canada Day long-weekend with a Fancy Farm Girl! This Riesling-driven white blend is the perfect wine to serve at a Canada Day picnic or a backyard BBQ. With a modest 11.5% alcohol, it’s easy to enjoy this wine with brunch, lunch or dinner. This is the quintessential summer sipper. It’s friendly, thirst-quenching and will leave you wanting to top up your glass.

Tasting Note: On the nose, this white blend delivers complex aromas of bright lemon, white grapefruit, peach and honey with notes of mineral and spice. The palate is fresh, crisp and full of citrus, Granny Smith apple, peach and mineral flavours. This off-dry wine is perfectly balanced with just the right amount of citrus-like acidity. The finish is mouthwateringly refreshing.

Enjoy With: Fish, seafood, chicken, pork, mild cheese, salads or spicy dishes. It’s also great all by itself.

Style: Aromatic and flavourful off-dry white blend.

Terroir / Region: The Niagara Peninsula is divided into several small sub-appellation wine growing regions, each with its own unique mix of soil, micro-climate and topography called terroir. Fruit for this wine is grown on the Staff family farm located in the 20 Mile Bench appellation near the town of Jordan. Here, rolling hills composed of clay and limestone provide the grapes with excellent growing conditions.

Producer: Farming and grape growing are in winemaker Sue-Ann Staff’s DNA. Her two hundred year old farm has seen five generations of family work and play. As one of Ontario’s leading winemakers, Sue-Ann wanted to make a range of wines that was playful and reflected her personality. Fancy Farm Girl is the result: an approachable and charming selection of wines for everyday enjoyment.

Availability: Sue-Ann Staff Fancy Farm Girl Frivolous White 2014 is available year round in the VQA section at the LCBO.

Remember your reusable shopping bag & please enjoy responsibly.

Posted on June 30, 2016

$14.95 | LCBO#: 394072 | 750 mL | 11.5% alc./vol.
Click here to check LCBO availability.
Follow Us On Instagram
Facebook
Twitter
Print
Email
Website Designed By: Vaughan Web Design Inc. ™© Wine of the Weekend | Privacy Policy | Site Map

 

« Previous 1 14 15 16 17 18 23 Next »