Lailey Vineyard Chardonnay Niagara River Vqa 2007

William Lailey was a pioneer of Canadian viticulture. In the early 1950's he planted and propagated some of Niagara's first French hybrid varieties. In 1970, Donna and David Lailey purchased the land from William and Nora Lailey, David's parents. In addition to French hybrid grapes, the land was cultivated in pears, sweet cherries and peaches. Donna and David began a transformation of the 20 acre farm into a vineyard. In consultation with industry leaders, they planted vitis vinifera and French hybrids for the production of quality wine at local wineries. In 1991, Donna Lailey was crowned the first-ever Grape Queen of the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival. The crown is awarded to the best vineyard of the season. The crown is normally given to a King and the title is and was the "Grape King" until Donna insisted that she be called a Queen. Donna Lailey was also the only female founding member of the Vintner's Quality Alliance (VQA). In the spring of 2003, Lailey Vineyard acquired an additional three acres of land on the Niagara Parkway. The land has since been planted mostly in Pinot Noir; A clones from Burgundy. We planted small amounts of Petit Verdot, Semillon and Malbec out of curiosity and for blending purposes. We are excited about the new site for Pinot Noir as the soil in this vineyard is both heavy and well-drained. We expect to harvest the first crop for wine production in the fall of 2006. The vineyard is 3 acres and the soil is a heavy red clay. This small plot is close to the river and gains some length of season and winter protection as a result. Fans were installed at Lailey Vineyard in August 2004. Fans are used to lengthen the growing season by preventing frost damage. They are also used to take advantage of inversions that may be present during severely cold weather, thereby protecting the vines against winter damage. Read less