Mission Hill's Legacy Series New Releases

Mission Hill Family Estate put on a tasty show on Wednesday, October 7th for wine and restaurant industry personnel at the amazing Shangri-La Hotel in downtown Vancouver. The winery were pouring their full range of brands but the stars of the show were the four new releases that make up the firm's "Legacy Series": the 2007 Perpetua, the 2006 Quatrain, the 2006 Oculus and the latest addition to the line-up the 2006 Compendium.

2007 Perpetua - $32.99

The winery's mission for the Perpetua label is to showcase a stripped-down, single-vineyard Chardonnay with minimal winemaker or oak influence. They have succeeded nicely. The Osoyoos vineyard growing the fruit produces classic Chardonnay flavours of pears, apple, lemon, minerals and aromas of citrus, butter and honey. This wine will benefit from further aging. 90pts

2006 Quatrain - $45
This is the sophomore vintage for the winery's Rhone-valley inspired blend. This year they chose to promote Syrah to the majority varietal in the final blend and its spicy pepper notes show prominently on the very impressive nose. Disappointingly, the intensity of expression dips on the palate and you are left with a slightly bi-polar wine; intensely complex on the nose and suspiciously-subtle on the palate. 87pts

2006 Compendium - $40
The new addition to the Legacy Series portfolio is an excellent Bordeaux-style blend with a good price-point that is very approachable now and will compete admirably with similarly priced BC Meritage blends. Good fruit intensity on the nose and palate with excellent tannin and acid structure. 1-2 years of aging will improve this wine even further. 92pts

2006 Oculus - $70
The latest Oculus release is a return to form after the disappointing 2005 vintage. Layers and layers of complexity and concentrated aromas and flavours make this a compelling wine. 2-3 years of cellaring is needed to make the most of your $70 investment and the excellent tannin and acid structure should allow you to enjoy this wine for a decade. 93pts

For full reviews of these wines please visit our Icon Scores website HERE.