In the past, Fielding Estate Winery was always one of my ‘go to’ wineries for Chardonnay Musque and unoaked Chardonnay. Unfortunately, they no longer produce Chardonnay Musque and produce one mass produced unoaked Chardonnay. However, I did not come away empty-handed as I did find a wine that was totally unexpected – Rock Pile Winemaker’s Red, which is a Meritage blend consisting of 40% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc and 20% Malbec. Being a long time fan of Bordeaux style wines, I could not resist picking up a couple of bottles for my cellar.

Anytime I am in Niagara I always stop by Chateau des Charmes with the hope of picking up a couple of bottles of their Bordeaux style red wine, Equuleus. Not seeing any on the wine shop shelves, I enquired as to whether they had any. Disappointingly, I was advised that the last edition of Equuleus was produced in 2016, appearing on the store shelf a few years ago, and soon sold out. I was reminded that Equuleus was only produced during years having a great harvest with optimum growing conditions and 2016 was the last of those.

On a more optimistic note, it is believed that the 2025 growing season produced grapes suitable to create the next edition of Equuleus, but it won’t be known for certain until the winemaker can sample the wine after some aging. If all goes to plan, the next edition of Equuleus will reach the shop shelf in 2028. Here’s hoping.

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I have visited the Two Sisters Vineyards on previous excursions to Niagara and this time was no different. I treated myself to a couple of bottles of their 2019 Meritage, Eleventh Post which is a combination of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

While there I learned about their new winery, Stone Eagle, which is located just a few kilometres from Two Sisters, on the edge of Niagara-On-The-Lake. The Stone Eagle website describes in great detail the winemaking process as well as provides a description of their vineyards. However, when I visited the winery, I quickly learned that it was not a winery in the traditional sense as there was no wine shop or anywhere to see or purchase any of the wines.

When I enquired at the reception desk, which was situated in a large vestibule of what appeared to be an elaborate event centre, I was told that they do not have any wine for viewing or much information about their wines. I was only presented with a wine list similar to one you would see in a restaurant when selecting a wine to accompany your meal. It is worth noting that the least expensive wine on the list was in the $130 plus dollar range. Again, the list contained no information other than the name and price of each wine.

I left the winery perplexed as to its purpose and why it is even called a winery. It would seem to be better referred to as an event centre where you may have access to their exclusive wine list. To try the wines it seems that you must either have lunch or dinner at the Eagles Nest restaurant or bar, which is located on the Stoner Eagle property. I did find that you can purchase Stone Eagle wines online from their website. By clicking on each individual wine you can find the associated tasting notes.

Two Sisters is also in the process of constructing a hotel in the heart of Niagara-On-The-Lake. It is to be called the Parliament Oak Hotel. Once completed it is said that the architecture will reflect the Old Town’s heritage. It will be a four-story, French chateau-style building rather than a standard, modern hotel block.

Growth and development continue to evolve in the Niagara Wine Region. Whether it is all positive or not seems to vary, depending on who you ask.

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