160 products
- White Wine
- Chardonnay
- Sustainable, Vegan-Friendly
- Dry
- Medium Bodied
- 750ml
- 13% alc./vol
About the Winery
Leaning Post

A leaning post is what you find at the beginning of a row of grapes, anchoring the wires that are the frame-work for growing grapevines. It is the beginning of an obsession to translate a time and place into liquid. Leaning Post wines take you to that beginning by finding small, unique plots of land in Niagara and putting them in bottle. Because after stripping away all the fancy buildings and high-tech equipment you are left with a place on this earth that grows wine unlike any other. When you taste that in a glass you just know it. Nadia and Ilya have had to rely on the support of family, friends and financial institutions to make the dream of owning a winery a reality. Leaning Post began as a virtual winery and is so proud to now have the quaint tasting room at 1491 Hwy 8 on their home property in Winona, Ontario.
Ilya and Nadia are the brains and passion behind Leaning Post Wines. It started with a dream to take unique, interesting single vineyard blocks in Niagara and turn them into distinctive, terroir driven wines. Nadia and Ilya first met in their hometown of Winnipeg, MB where their passion for wine and each other was born.
Ilya has been a winemaker in the Niagara Region for the last 17 vintages working at Daniel Lenko Estate Winery, Foreign Affair and now at Leaning Post Wines. Ilya is also a consulting winemaker at the Good Earth Winery. Ilya’s true passion in life is to make world renowned wines from Niagara that really showcase the distinct terroir that Niagara offers.
Press Reviews
Wines in Niagara
93 points - Rick VanSickle
This single-vineyard Chardonnay from the Frontier Block in the Grimsby Hillside Vineyard is sourced from two blocks with different Chardonnay clones: clone 76 and clone 96. The clones were kept separate throughout pressing and oak aging. The fruit was whole cluster pressed and allowed to settle for a couple of days before being put into barrel for spontaneous fermentation. The wine remained in French oak barriques on its lees for 15 months. This is much more subtle and elegant than the estate Chardonnay and shows overt minerality qualities such as seashells, flint and saline, then fresh pear, bergamot, lemon zest and savoury spices notes kick in as you swirl the wine in your glass. It shows pure elegance on the palate with lovely savoury (touch of reduction?) minerality, quince, lemon, subtle white peach and a big flinty, lifted and long finish. Can cellar through 2030.
- White Wine
- Sauvignon Blanc
- Sustainable
- Dry
- Residual Sugar: 2.00 g/l
- Medium Bodied
- 750ml
- 13.00% alc./vol
About the Winery
Claude Riffault

Stéphane Riffault, son of Claude Riffault, has become one of the most sought-after producers in the region. He took over the management of the domaine at a young age and his top Sancerre wines quickly became the envy of some of the region's most established vintners.
Stéphane's Sancerre bottlings come from 33 different parcels in 8 different lieu-dits spread across 4 villages on limestone soils. Having studied and worked in Burgundy, and then trained with some of best – Olivier Leflaive (Burgundy), Château Angélus (Bordeaux), and his very own father, Claude Riffault – it’s easy to see the Burgundian influence and the master of minerality in Stéphane’s wines.
When his father retired, Stéphane took over the winery and embarked upon a journey of viticultural transformation. Today, all 13.5 hectares are certified organic (ECOCERT, 2016) and biodynamic (BIODYVIN, 2021). The entire harvest is carried out by hand and an extensive sorting takes place before the grapes are crushed –– a testament to his craftsmanship and an unwavering commitment to sustainability.
Press Reviews
Wine Advocate
92 Points - Yohan Castaing
Vintage 2022: Matured in barrel for 10 months, the 2022 Sancerre Les Boucauds reveals a delicate, pure bouquet of pear, peach, spring flowers, spices and menthol, followed by a moderately weighted, textured and layered palate with bright acids, a lively, fleshy core of fruit and a long, ethereal, mineral-laced finish enhanced by a saline aftertaste. This is a gorgeous rendition of the eponymous parcel composed of clay, limestone and marls.
- White Wine
- Chardonnay
- Sustainable
- Dry
- Residual Sugar: 2.00 g/l
- Medium Bodied
- 750ml
- 13.50% alc./vol
About the Winery
Groupe Bellene

Led by Nicolas Potel in Beaune, Groupe Bellene is composed of the négociant arm Maison Roche de Bellene, the winery arm Domaine de Bellene, and a special back-vintage series under the Collection Bellenum label.
- Maison Roche de Bellene offers a complete range of wines, with an emphasis on individual terroirs from old vines of more than 40 years. All of the growers that Nicolas works with are either organic certified or sustainably farmed.
- Domaine de Bellene represents the wines that are produced and bottled from Nicolas Potel's private vineyard holdings.
- Collection Bellenum is a back vintage series that Nicolas Potel sourced from his friends in the region, offering a magnificent selection of bottled history. The wines have moved only twice in their lives, from the original cellar to Potel's and now to yours!
Nicolas Potel grew up at Volnay's Domaine Pousse d'Or, where his father worked. He trained abroad and returned home in 1996 to build a négociant business and started Maison Nicolas Potel, where he sourced grapes from good parcels, often working with the growers to improve the quality. By 2002, he was making 120 wines from 50 different appellations, and the rest is history!
Press Reviews
Burghound
90-93 Points - Allen Meadows
(Barrel Sample)
Here too firm reduction overshadows the fruit though the wood treatment can be discerned. By contrast, there is a lovely sense of verve to the bigger bodied and more mineral driven flavors that exhibit solid power on the very dry, balanced and youthfully austere finale. This is also going to require at least moderate patience as it does need better depth as well.