Vidal Blanc Ice Wine

Vidal Blanc was developed in the 1930s by French breeder Jean Louis Vidal in Charente-Maritime, France, originally intended for Cognac production. The variety is a cross of Ugni Blanc and Rayon d'Or. Adhemar de Chaunac brought the grape to Canada in the late 1940s, where it found a far more celebrated role than Cognac base material. Commercial ice wine production using Vidal took off in Canada during the 1980s, and the variety is now no longer authorized in France, having found its true home in the cold-climate regions of North America.

• Developed by Jean Louis Vidal in 1930s France for Cognac production
• A hybrid cross of Ugni Blanc and Rayon d'Or
• Introduced to Canada by Adhemar de Chaunac in the late 1940s
• Commercial ice wine production in Canada dates to the 1980s

Vidal Blanc is concentrated in Ontario's Niagara Peninsula, which remains the heartland of Canadian ice wine production. The variety also grows in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley, Quebec, and Nova Scotia, as well as throughout the northeastern United States, including New York's Finger Lakes AVA and Great Lakes-adjacent regions. Canada recorded approximately 777 hectares (1,920 acres) under vine as of 2008. The variety's exceptional cold hardiness, surviving temperatures as low as -28°C, makes it viable in climates where vinifera varieties would perish.

• Largest plantings in Ontario's Niagara Peninsula
• Also grown in Okanagan Valley, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and Finger Lakes AVA
• Approximately 777 hectares (1,920 acres) in Canada as of 2008
• Survives temperatures as low as -28°C

Vidal Blanc's thick skin is central to its success in ice wine production. Unlike thinner-skinned varieties, the grapes resist splitting when temperatures plunge, allowing them to remain on the vine and freeze naturally. Harvest takes place after multiple frosts, with pickers working by hand at subfreezing temperatures of -8°C or lower. At these temperatures, water within the grape freezes, and only the intensely concentrated juice, rich in sugar and acid, is pressed out. The result is a wine with approximately 120 g/L residual sugar and the high acidity needed to keep it from tasting cloying.

• Thick skin prevents splitting during freezing conditions on the vine
• Grapes harvested by hand at -8°C or below after multiple frosts
• Freezing concentrates sugars and acids by excluding water during pressing
• Typical residual sugar around 120 g/L, balanced by high acidity

Vidal Blanc ice wines are intensely aromatic and concentrated. Expect aromas of grapefruit, pineapple, apricot, peach, honey, and citrus, with flavors that extend into marmalade, tropical fruit, caramel, and butterscotch. The variety avoids the 'foxy' character associated with many hybrid grapes, producing wines that are clean and fruit-forward. High acidity provides backbone and prevents the sweetness from becoming heavy. These wines are best enjoyed young and fresh rather than cellared for extended periods, as they lack the significant aging potential of Riesling-based ice wines.

• Aromas of grapefruit, pineapple, apricot, honey, and citrus
• Flavors include marmalade, tropical fruit, caramel, and butterscotch
• Free from the 'foxy' character typical of many hybrid varieties
• Best consumed young; limited aging potential compared to Riesling ice wine

Inniskillin is the world's largest ice wine producer and the name most associated with Vidal ice wine on the international stage. Other major Canadian producers include Peller Estates and Jackson-Triggs, both headquartered in Ontario's Niagara Peninsula. In the United States, producers across the Finger Lakes and Great Lakes regions, including Ferrante Winery, Warner Vineyards, Fulkerson Winery, Glenora Wine Cellars, and Newport Vineyards, have built reputations for Vidal-based ice wines. Stag's Hollow in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley also produces the style.

• Inniskillin is the world's largest ice wine producer
• Peller Estates and Jackson-Triggs are major Niagara Peninsula producers
• Finger Lakes producers include Glenora Wine Cellars and Fulkerson Winery
• Stag's Hollow represents Okanagan Valley production