colaneri estate winery

Colaneri Estate Winery is one of Niagara's newest wineries having opened its doors to the public at the beginning of this month. The reason I'm so excited to blog about it is because Nuno did all the illustrations for each of the different types of wine Colaneri offers.

I paid a visit Thursday afternoon to Colaneri at their location on Concession 6 and York Road (near Chateau des Charms Winery). As you can see it is still under construction but they are open and offering tasting and sales in their boutique. 

Upon entering, there were many canvases of Nuno's artwork mounted on the walls. It was very beautiful to see a setting where his Leonardo DiVinci sketching style illustrations blended beautifully with the decor. 

The winery is already presenting in a huge and beautiful classic Italian style. It reminds me a lot of some of California's Sonoma County wineries because there is gorgeous wrought iron embellishments, burnt umber hues and, once complete, the building will be stucco. There is some foundation for beautiful stone landscaping in what is shaping up to be a breathtaking view upon arrival. Then there is the fantastic view of their vineyard in a huge open view across the back of the building. Apparently it is proposed to be either a restaurant, but more than likely a banquet facility. There really is no expense spared on this operation.  

Each of the wines are inspired and named after a member of the Colaneri family. The illustrations tell a story of the family's legacy, which is the whole idea behind the winery. Some of the wines you will find in their boutique right now include Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Riesling, Syrah, Guvertsteminer, Cabernet Sauvingon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Pinot Noir - all the usual suspects that Niagara is well known for. They do not offer blended types and all their wines are barrel-aged (which I tend to prefer). I haven't sampled any of their wines yet - I almost don't know where to even begin. Hopefully we will start our tasting tonight when we attend a wine and cheese party and bring along the Riesling.

Nuno's pretty humble about his work, but I'm super proud of him. This illustration job was quite a workload for him, but in the end it helped us in a big way. It helped in replacing our fridge (to a huge silver monolith which is too big to be photographed) re-aligning cabinetry and our soon-to-be-installed wall oven. Essentially, I'd like to thank Colaneri for helping this blog!