Tightrope has 7 acres of their own grapes planted, including: Riesling, Viognier, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir and Merlot with small plantings of both Cabernet Franc and Barbera. Prior to 2012 the grapes were sold to various BC wineries and may have been included in wines from Joie, Road 13, Ruby Blues Winery, Domaine de Chaberton and Mission Hill.
I had the chance for a brief email exchange with Lyndsay when she brought to my attention the fact that the wine awards shown of this website did not include non-BCWI wineries. So please check out the extensive list of awards on the Tightrope web site, including platinum for their 2012 Riesling at the 2015 BC Wine Awards.
The tasting notes below were provided by John Schreiner’s blog.
Tightrope Riesling 2012. This award winning wine is almost sold out so be quick to pick up a bottle. The grapes were whole-cluster pressed and stainless steel fermented with minimal intervention. The fermentation was at a low temperature between 11 – 13 ⁰C and took 17 days to complete and was stopped to leave a small amount of residual sugar to balance out the acid in this wine. It has developed into a classic dry Riesling with “petrol” on the nose and a bit on the palate. Perhaps a better descriptor is marmalade, especially on the palate. The acidity is balanced with a bit of residual sugar and the wine finish dry. 91.
Tightrope Viognier 2013 Half of the wine was fermented in barrel in 2013, up from 20% in 2012 (one new barrel, one second fill barrel and two neutral). The wine also benefitted from more lees stirring. That is perceptible in a rich palate weight. More complex than the 2012 wine, this wine begins with aromas of orange blossom and pineapple. On the palate, there are flavours of apricot and pineapple around a spine of minerality. 91.
For a later article which includes the red white tasting notes please visit this post.