When a friend phoned me yesterday to see if I wanted to take a drive toward Niagara to have lunch at a winery, my first reaction was: SURE! Of course, I knew he expected me to figure out where we’d go. My mind went into overdrive, thinking about which wineries between Toronto and Niagara-on-the-Lake have […]
Author: Ingrid Sapona
Your Chance to Recognize Folks in the Canadian Wine Industry
Occasionally I’m asked to spread the word about something related to the Canadian wine industry. Along that line, I got an email the other day from Wine Growers Canada (WGC) about the nomination process for their 2021 Canadian Wine Industry Awards. (If you’re like me, you may not have realized that the Canadian Vintners Association […]
Enjoying a picnic at Creekside Estate Winery
Three girlfriends and I rendezvoused yesterday at Creekside Estate Winery in Jordan. I knew they have a good-size deck (patio) and that the Creekside Kitchen & Grocery was featuring box picnic lunches that you can enjoy on the patio along with a glass of wine (or a flight, as we did). It was hot, but […]
A Visit to Queenston Mile Vineyard
Queenston Mile Vineyard is one of the newest wineries in Niagara-on-the-Lake. It opened in November 2018. I had read that Rob Power is the winemaker at Queenston Mile and I wondered if that meant he’s moved on from Creekside Estate Winery, where he’s been winemaker for years. Indeed, that was one of my first questions […]
An EPIC Detour
I was in Cincinnati last weekend for a family event and on Victoria Day, I drove back to Toronto via Detroit/Windsor. I decided on that route because I figured it’d be an opportunity to have lunch in the EPIC (Erie, Pelee Island, Coast) winery region. It proved a delightful detour. I wasn’t sure what my […]
Requirements for being organic
The last couple Vintages bi-weekly catalogues have had some interesting copy. (Not sure if I’d call it articles – especially since no by-line is given – shame on Vintages.) In the catalogue for items available April 13, 2019 they’re featuring organic wines. So, interspersed in the catalogue is interesting snippets of info about what it takes […]
Prince Edward County’s Craft Distillery: Kinsip House of Fine Spirits
On a recent visit to Prince Edward County friends and I stopped in at Kinsip House of Fine Spirits. It’s at 66 Gilead Road in Bloomfield. If that address rings a bell, that’s because it used to house Gilead Distillery. The distillery was re-named Kinsip when it was sold a couple years ago. I had […]
Sugarbush Vineyards’ Experience with Geotextiles
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about Oxley Estate’s current experiment with geotextiles. Murray and Ann Wilson of Oxley had mentioned that in researching the idea they met with – and learned from – a winery in Prince Edward County that has been using them. That winery was Sugarbush Vineyards. Last week when I […]
EPIC’s Thriving Winery Restaurant Scene
Keeping up with what’s new in the Niagara-on-the-Lake and Niagara Escarpment regions each year usually means checking out new wineries. Keeping up with what’s new in the Erie, Pelee Island, Coast (EPIC) wine region means visiting old favourites that are kicking it up a notch and becoming destination wineries. I’ve just returned from the region […]
New strategies for coping with extreme cold?
As pretty much the whole province has experienced spurts of on-again/off-again arctic cold, it’s only natural to wonder (even worry) about what these extreme temperatures must be doing to the vines. After the last polar vortex winter a few years ago, I couldn’t help notice how many wineries have purchased wind machines. And who can […]