Press
Sandbanks Cabernet Franc "The nose has a pretty floral cherry note that lures you in by the nose hairs; the palate continues what the nose detects with sweet fruitiness of cherry that's easy on the palate."
Michael Pinkus (The County Grapevine 2010)
Our most ‘Canadian’ wine is Baco Noir. It captures the rustic, outback feeling of the Canadian landscape. Toss in wild, unrefined and big-hearted and you have the wine equivalent of Gordon Lightfoot songs or Tom Thomson paintings. Hardly any other place grows Baco, so it’s an exclusive. Sandbanks 07 Baco has the rustic-meets-charming quality of Neil Young’s voice. BEST TIMES: The bitter edge in Baco is great at stimulating the appetite, and keeping it so. Hearty, rustic food – burgers, sausages, etc.
Billy Munnelly from ‘Billy's Best Bottles Wines for 2010’ www.billysbestbottles.com
The 2007 Baco Noir Reserve has become a bit of an icon red for Sandbanks, a wine with deep colour, very good density and length. Very generous toasty, tarry oak nicely tones the wild, tart plummy fruit of the baco grape. Lots of gamey, leathery character as well. It’s medium-full bodied, tart and zesty. If you are fan of rustic Italian reds give this a go. Baco has nothing to do with Italy but this is very much the style. Try it with pasta, Italian sausage.
David Lawrason www.winerytohome.com
Riesling 2008: Terrific price. Delightful, expressive Riesling with notes of green apples, limes and lemon.
Natalie MacLean, www.nataliemaclean.com
Sandbank’s 2008 Baco Noir: soft tannins, fresh acidity and plump blackberry and stewed blueberry flavours give this wine a deliciously laid-back attitude.
LCBO Food & Drink, (Autumn 2009)
When I took a sip of Sandbanks Estate Winery 2006 Cabernet Franc I said wow. It started off rather simple: smooth with raspberries and red currants; ten minutes later I got some sweet vanillin flavours; another ten passed and more red fruit with silky-smooth tannins. 30 minutes later juicy blackberries emerged and the word outstanding appeared in my notes. How Catherine Langlois does it, I’m not sure – but let’s keep it a mystery and just enjoy this one.
Michael Pinkus www.ontariowinereview.com
You can't miss the brightly coloured flags. Next door to Chadsey's Cairns, this small, kitchen-door operation is worth checking out. Quebecois Catherine Langlois is producing very good Vidal, Riesling, Cab Franc and Baco. The 07 whites are wonderfully refreshing – check out the delicious Muscat-style Dunes Vidal. The reds have an appealing rustic, bistro quality. I like the 07 Baco and 07 Cab Franc. Harvesting parties are a lot of fun her – get on the email list. The colourful abstracted image on the labels are painted by Catherine's mother, Rita, and if you're lucky, entertainment at the tasting bar is sometimes provided by spirited daughter Elise.
Billy Munnelly from ‘Billy's Best Bottles Wines for 2009’ www.billysbestbottles.com
Close to By Chadsey’s Cairns is Sandbanks Winery, whose owner, Catherine Langlois, has a lineage that goes as deep as any in Canada’s wine history. In 1535, the French explorer Samuel Champlain came upon an island in the St Lawrence River, and discovered wild grapes growing on it. He named the island Île de Bacchus, after the Roman god of wine, but later changed it to Île d’Orléans, in honour of his patron, the Duke of Orléans.
Catherine Langlois was born on the Île d’Orléans, and her journey upstream, from Champlain’s island of grapes to her vineyard in Prince Edward County, took her first to Montréal and then Burgundy. She started her career in hotel management in Montréal, but in 1994 won a bursary to study and work in the wine industry in Burgundy. When she returned to Canada she imagined getting a job working in the cellar of a winery in Niagara. When she was offered a sales position in Ottawa for a large Ontario winery, however, she took it, partly because Ottawa is bilingual.
As Langlois learned more about Ontario wines and heard about the vines being planted in Prince Edward County, less than three hours’ drive from Ottawa, she began to look for a suitable location for a vineyard. In 1999, she bought land near the shore just west of Wellington, and she and her family moved to the County the next year. They built a house and planted 2.5 hectares (6 acres) of vines: mostly Vidal, Baco Noir, Riesling and Cabernet Franc, as well as some Geisenheim, Pinot Noir, and Maréchal Foch.
Sandbanks Winery’s vines are planted on a south-facing within sight of Lake Ontario, which moderates the temperature during the year. They are rooted in soil made up of well-drained clay and limestone rock. Catherine Langlois says she has worked hard with her land, and is very happy with it so far. She buries her vinifera vines only, and says the key is getting them out in spring as early as possible. Being so close to the lake, her vines are at minimal risk of late frosts.
She made her first vintage in 2003, using only Sandbanks’s own grapes. In principle, she wants to make wine exclusively from her own fruit, although she did buy a little Chardonnay in 2004. That year, Sandbanks produced nearly 300 cases, and in 2005 it produced nearly 500. As for how much she plans to make, Langlois says it depends on the weather and the yield each year. Since she started, the climate has been erratic and, she says very reasonably, "We’re not sure how a real crop looks like in Prince Edward County."
Langlois sold her first vintages only to restaurants, especially in Ottawa, but in 2006 she obtained a retail licence. It’s not that she has had any trouble selling her wine: it has readily sold out. In fact, she says, "We were looking at the Cabernet Franc the other day, and I said, ‘I don’t want to sell any more. I want to be able to drink some of it all winter long’." Rod Phillips Wine Columnist, Ottawa Citizen www.rodphillipsonwine.com
Travelling east on the Loyalist Parkway, and tucked neatly beside By Chadsey's Cairns Winery, a six-acre vineyard is coming to maturity. With a spectacular view of Lake Ontario, the rows ramp gently southward, overlooked by a stately and bright residence, which not only houses grower-winemaker Catherine Langlois and her family, but actually conceals a tiny boutique winery below! Sandbanks Estate Winery itself is no guarded secret: its VQA offerings are already available in various restaurants throughout the region. Two wines from the 2004 vintage, a Baco Noir and an Unfiltered Cabernet Franc, have impressed the wine-savvy Opimian Society enough to have garnered a 'gold standing' in each of their respective categories, red hybrid and cabernet.
Some may know Langlois as the eastern Ontario face of Pelee Island wines, but becoming rooted in the County has been her goal all along. "I moved to the County to achieve balance in my life," she says, as we taste her lively, juicy wines. Looking over the vineyard as the setting sun paints the sky overhead, her objective seems realized.
Unlike Norman Hardie and Rosehall Run, (whose focus is the reputedly fickle Pinot Noir and its affinity to a cooler season), Sandbanks focuses on wines that best reflect Prince Edward County's hot and dry summers and rich limestone soils. Cabernet Franc, Vidal, a zesty dry Riesling and early ripening Baco Noir represent the Estate bottlings. A beautifully balanced Niagara Chardonnay rounds out the package. All are value priced at under fifteen dollars, with the exception of the Cab Franc at nineteen ninety-five.
Just between us wineaux, there might be a late harvest bottling in the future - the site is a perfect proximity moisture-wise for a yummy spot of noble rot! Cellar space may become a premium here however. 'The current case production is only three hundred fifty cases, but the goal is fifteen hundred. Langlois may have to extend her staircase-long commute to another winery structure ... but for now, we should feel perfectly welcome in her home, cooling off with a quaff in the beautiful terra-cotta tasting area, feeling the fresh breeze off the lake.
Reprinted from The Harvest Table, Spring 2006 Astrid Young www.bonvinavendre.com
Michael Pinkus (The County Grapevine 2010)
Our most ‘Canadian’ wine is Baco Noir. It captures the rustic, outback feeling of the Canadian landscape. Toss in wild, unrefined and big-hearted and you have the wine equivalent of Gordon Lightfoot songs or Tom Thomson paintings. Hardly any other place grows Baco, so it’s an exclusive. Sandbanks 07 Baco has the rustic-meets-charming quality of Neil Young’s voice. BEST TIMES: The bitter edge in Baco is great at stimulating the appetite, and keeping it so. Hearty, rustic food – burgers, sausages, etc.
Billy Munnelly from ‘Billy's Best Bottles Wines for 2010’ www.billysbestbottles.com
The 2007 Baco Noir Reserve has become a bit of an icon red for Sandbanks, a wine with deep colour, very good density and length. Very generous toasty, tarry oak nicely tones the wild, tart plummy fruit of the baco grape. Lots of gamey, leathery character as well. It’s medium-full bodied, tart and zesty. If you are fan of rustic Italian reds give this a go. Baco has nothing to do with Italy but this is very much the style. Try it with pasta, Italian sausage.
David Lawrason www.winerytohome.com
Riesling 2008: Terrific price. Delightful, expressive Riesling with notes of green apples, limes and lemon.
Natalie MacLean, www.nataliemaclean.com
Sandbank’s 2008 Baco Noir: soft tannins, fresh acidity and plump blackberry and stewed blueberry flavours give this wine a deliciously laid-back attitude.
LCBO Food & Drink, (Autumn 2009)
When I took a sip of Sandbanks Estate Winery 2006 Cabernet Franc I said wow. It started off rather simple: smooth with raspberries and red currants; ten minutes later I got some sweet vanillin flavours; another ten passed and more red fruit with silky-smooth tannins. 30 minutes later juicy blackberries emerged and the word outstanding appeared in my notes. How Catherine Langlois does it, I’m not sure – but let’s keep it a mystery and just enjoy this one.
Michael Pinkus www.ontariowinereview.com
You can't miss the brightly coloured flags. Next door to Chadsey's Cairns, this small, kitchen-door operation is worth checking out. Quebecois Catherine Langlois is producing very good Vidal, Riesling, Cab Franc and Baco. The 07 whites are wonderfully refreshing – check out the delicious Muscat-style Dunes Vidal. The reds have an appealing rustic, bistro quality. I like the 07 Baco and 07 Cab Franc. Harvesting parties are a lot of fun her – get on the email list. The colourful abstracted image on the labels are painted by Catherine's mother, Rita, and if you're lucky, entertainment at the tasting bar is sometimes provided by spirited daughter Elise.
Billy Munnelly from ‘Billy's Best Bottles Wines for 2009’ www.billysbestbottles.com
Close to By Chadsey’s Cairns is Sandbanks Winery, whose owner, Catherine Langlois, has a lineage that goes as deep as any in Canada’s wine history. In 1535, the French explorer Samuel Champlain came upon an island in the St Lawrence River, and discovered wild grapes growing on it. He named the island Île de Bacchus, after the Roman god of wine, but later changed it to Île d’Orléans, in honour of his patron, the Duke of Orléans.
Catherine Langlois was born on the Île d’Orléans, and her journey upstream, from Champlain’s island of grapes to her vineyard in Prince Edward County, took her first to Montréal and then Burgundy. She started her career in hotel management in Montréal, but in 1994 won a bursary to study and work in the wine industry in Burgundy. When she returned to Canada she imagined getting a job working in the cellar of a winery in Niagara. When she was offered a sales position in Ottawa for a large Ontario winery, however, she took it, partly because Ottawa is bilingual.
As Langlois learned more about Ontario wines and heard about the vines being planted in Prince Edward County, less than three hours’ drive from Ottawa, she began to look for a suitable location for a vineyard. In 1999, she bought land near the shore just west of Wellington, and she and her family moved to the County the next year. They built a house and planted 2.5 hectares (6 acres) of vines: mostly Vidal, Baco Noir, Riesling and Cabernet Franc, as well as some Geisenheim, Pinot Noir, and Maréchal Foch.
Sandbanks Winery’s vines are planted on a south-facing within sight of Lake Ontario, which moderates the temperature during the year. They are rooted in soil made up of well-drained clay and limestone rock. Catherine Langlois says she has worked hard with her land, and is very happy with it so far. She buries her vinifera vines only, and says the key is getting them out in spring as early as possible. Being so close to the lake, her vines are at minimal risk of late frosts.
She made her first vintage in 2003, using only Sandbanks’s own grapes. In principle, she wants to make wine exclusively from her own fruit, although she did buy a little Chardonnay in 2004. That year, Sandbanks produced nearly 300 cases, and in 2005 it produced nearly 500. As for how much she plans to make, Langlois says it depends on the weather and the yield each year. Since she started, the climate has been erratic and, she says very reasonably, "We’re not sure how a real crop looks like in Prince Edward County."
Langlois sold her first vintages only to restaurants, especially in Ottawa, but in 2006 she obtained a retail licence. It’s not that she has had any trouble selling her wine: it has readily sold out. In fact, she says, "We were looking at the Cabernet Franc the other day, and I said, ‘I don’t want to sell any more. I want to be able to drink some of it all winter long’." Rod Phillips Wine Columnist, Ottawa Citizen www.rodphillipsonwine.com
Travelling east on the Loyalist Parkway, and tucked neatly beside By Chadsey's Cairns Winery, a six-acre vineyard is coming to maturity. With a spectacular view of Lake Ontario, the rows ramp gently southward, overlooked by a stately and bright residence, which not only houses grower-winemaker Catherine Langlois and her family, but actually conceals a tiny boutique winery below! Sandbanks Estate Winery itself is no guarded secret: its VQA offerings are already available in various restaurants throughout the region. Two wines from the 2004 vintage, a Baco Noir and an Unfiltered Cabernet Franc, have impressed the wine-savvy Opimian Society enough to have garnered a 'gold standing' in each of their respective categories, red hybrid and cabernet.
Some may know Langlois as the eastern Ontario face of Pelee Island wines, but becoming rooted in the County has been her goal all along. "I moved to the County to achieve balance in my life," she says, as we taste her lively, juicy wines. Looking over the vineyard as the setting sun paints the sky overhead, her objective seems realized.
Unlike Norman Hardie and Rosehall Run, (whose focus is the reputedly fickle Pinot Noir and its affinity to a cooler season), Sandbanks focuses on wines that best reflect Prince Edward County's hot and dry summers and rich limestone soils. Cabernet Franc, Vidal, a zesty dry Riesling and early ripening Baco Noir represent the Estate bottlings. A beautifully balanced Niagara Chardonnay rounds out the package. All are value priced at under fifteen dollars, with the exception of the Cab Franc at nineteen ninety-five.
Just between us wineaux, there might be a late harvest bottling in the future - the site is a perfect proximity moisture-wise for a yummy spot of noble rot! Cellar space may become a premium here however. 'The current case production is only three hundred fifty cases, but the goal is fifteen hundred. Langlois may have to extend her staircase-long commute to another winery structure ... but for now, we should feel perfectly welcome in her home, cooling off with a quaff in the beautiful terra-cotta tasting area, feeling the fresh breeze off the lake.
Reprinted from The Harvest Table, Spring 2006 Astrid Young www.bonvinavendre.com