I haven’t had the opportunity to try a lot of ice wine, mostly because it tends to be so pricey. But first, a quick lesson in the making of ice wine: True ice wine is made from grapes that are frozen on the vine. The sugar inside the grapes doesn’t freeze, but the water does. When pressed, a super concentrated juice results which is then fermented. It’s made in several countries throughout the world, but the most famous ice wines are made in Canada and Germany (where it’s called Eiswein).

This bottle from Kiona was quite the comparative bargain at only $23 and is made from Chenin Blanc. Instead of a foil top it was covered in wax which presented me with quite the challenge. If anyone has tips on the best way to open a waxed bottle of wine please do share. I finally managed to crack and then break off the top to get at the cork. There has got to be a better way!

As I’ve come to expect from sweet dessert wine, it was golden honey in the glass. It also smelled of honey, carmel and a super sweet peach pie with vanilla ice cream. Tasty. I’ve been smelling a lot of peach pie in my dessert wines lately-- I think my nose is trying to tell me something.

The wine also tasted of peaches (sans crust) and while it was certainly super sweet (the residual sugar is 26.8%) it was also balanced and a bit tart by its acidity. Not a super long finish though. As I drank the rest of my first glass, as well as subsequent glasses (on other nights!), I was really struck by what the wine really tasted like: Welch’s white grape juice. And not in a bad way. I LOVE white grape juice. I used to love drinking it as a kid, never cared much for the purple stuff. White grape juice was both more tart and less likely to leave a stain. This wine is a grown up version of my favorite childhood juice. Wine that tastes like grapes... weird, huh?!

The Score: ★ ★ ★