Can someone provide advice on what would pair well with an Inniskillin Ice Wine? I received one as a gift, but have never tried before.

Fruity desserts are my choice. Poached pears, berries with a non-chocolate ice cream, stewed fruit with creme anglaise, etc.Which one did you get, Vidal, Riesling, Cab Franc, sparkler?

It's a Vidal. Thanks for the recommendations!

The Vidal is a broader, coarser wine that will go with a wider variety of foods, though I prefer the other varietals. The Vidal you could pair with creamy desserts also, like creme brulee. You could also have it with something like sauteed foie gras, like you might do with a Sauternes. Here's my tasting notes on the 2003 Vidal Icewine tasted at the winery this past Summer:

"berry jam nose, nice acidity and balance, 91"

As Board_O says, the Vidal will pair pretty well with desserts not chocolate of cold.

They make some other "ice wines" that are so syrupy and cloying they wouldn't pair with anything.

Actually, david, I'd have agreed 100% with you until this most recent visit to Inniskillin. They and the other ice wine makers in the area have started making better balanced ice wines. The Vidal;s of the past were very syrupy and coarse. The current ice wines are being vinified with the acidity to balance the sweetness. Cabernet Franc makes an excellent ice wine.

Board_O,

I'll take a look at their website. Are there one or two that you would recommend?

If I were going to buy an ice wine from the US or Canada, theese would be my favorites. My scores and the prices follow each one. They are in the order in which I tasted them:

New York:
Hermann J. Wiemer 2003 Riesling 93 $39
Lamoreaux Landing 2002 Riesling 93 $40

Canada: (Prices in Canadaian dollars)
Stoney Ridge 1999 Barrel Fermented Gewurtztraminer 92 $60
Kacaba 2002 Cabernet Franc 93 $40
Vineland Estates 2003 Vidal 92 $42
Vineland Estates 2000 Riesling 94 $55
Vineland Estates any Cabernet Franc available- consistently Canada's best ice wine
Peller Estates 2004 Signature Series Chardonnay 94 $70
Peller Estates 2004 Signature Series Gewurtztraminer 92 $70
Peller Estates Signature Series 2004 Cabernet Franc 93 $80
Inniskillin 2004 Riesling 94 $70
Inniskillin 2004 Cabernet Franc 93 $90
Jackson Triggs 2001 Riesling 94 $63
Stratus 2001 Riesling (200 ml) 94 $37
Hillebrand Estates 2002 Showcase Barrel Fermented Vidal 93 $70
Hillebrand Estates 2002 Showcase Cabernet Franc 92 $78
Strewn 2002 Riesling 93 $68
Pillitteri 2004 Vidal 92 $35
Peninsula Ridge 2001 Cabernet Franc 92 $55
Cave Springs Cellars 2003 Riesling 93 $60

An interesting combination that I have enjoyed with vidal ice wine is extreamly simple:

Take a good quality vanillia ice cream and put 2 or 3 scoops in a bowl. Open a can of sliced peaches (yes, a can..lol) and place several slices over the ice cream. Lightly drizzel some of the ice wine over the combination. Fill your glass and enjoy the two together! It really works quite well (in fact, the "recipe" came from a Canadian winery's website).

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Good food, good wine, good friends - what else do you need?

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Board_O,

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Vineland Estates any Cabernet Franc

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I need to read a little about the fermintation of this stuff. Do the press the juice out? Does it get any "skin" time?

Several years ago I bought some bottles of a Inniskillin Sparkling IceWine made from Chardonnay grapes. As far as tasting went it was pretty much a mixed bag; some people disliked it while others thought it was the best thing since sliced bread.

Does anyone make a sparkling Eis Wine that you know of?

Inniskillin makes a sparkling Vidal Ice Wine. I scored it 91, but much prefer their Cabernet Franc. I've had a Chardonnay Ice Wine from Peller Estates, and a Pinot Gris Ice Wine from Hernder Estate, and Gewurtztraminer Ice Wines from Stoney Ridge, Jackson-Triggs, and Lakeview Cellars, and a Cabernet Sauvignon Ice Wine from Konzelmann.

Ooops! Forgot. I imagine there is some pressing since the grapes are partially frozen. I'm guessing there is some skin time since the red varietals produce a wine anywhere in color from light pink to a light to medium red.

You're saying they are

Rose' Ice Wines... Very interesting.

Yeah, that's a good description.

Davidn

Pillitteri makes a very nice sparkling icewine.

Is there any one of these Wineries whose quality is heads above all the others?

Which wineries would you rate 1-2-3?

are you asking purely for sweet wine rankings?

Ice wine rankings:

1. Vineland Estates

2. Hillebrand Estates

3. Cave Springs Cellars

4. Jackson-Triggs

5. Stratus Vineyards

6. Inniskillin

7. Strewn

8. Kacaba Vineyards

I'd nix Hillebrand and put Inniskillin a little closer to the top. But the main ingredients are there.