By Bryan Calandrelli, Niagara Escarpment Editor While there were many notable wines released this year in the Niagara region, I chose mainly vinifera selections as the regional finalists based on the fact that all these wines are major accomplishments for such young vineyards and wineries. You can’t help but notice that my picks for the best whites of the year are chardonnay heavy. It’s not a coincidence; we are in a cool climate and chardonnay seems to ripen consistently on the Escarpment bench land as well as on the lake shore. The editors have been asked to write a bit…