Niagara Wine Route
Niagara Wine Route – Grimsby & Beamsville
A day trip that my wife and I take a few times each year is a tour of the Niagara Wine Route. The Niagara region of Ontario produces some of the best wines from Canada and I am lucky enough to be only minutes from these vineyards.
The Niagara Wine Route is made of three different sections:
Grimsby & Beamsville
Jordan & Vineland
Niagara-on-the-Lake
Grimsby is the northern most part of the region and the start of the Niagara Wine Route.
The two most popular wineries, because of marketing, in this area are Kittling Ridge and Magnotta, who also produce Festa Brew from their brewery. I’m not really a fan of either of these wineries. They seem to mass produce wine just to get it on the shelves and in front of customers faces rather then concern themselves with quality.
Peninsula Ridge Estates on the other hand is a fantastic winery producing vintages a little more expensive then the other two mentioned, but produce some excellent Cabernet Francs and Cabernet Sauvignon. The restaurant on the property is an old Victorian home over 100 years old that was recently restored and is the branding image for all their wines.
A little further along HWY 81 (King St.) you will come to Thirty Bench Wines. This is a nice little winery for someone just starting to drink wine. In general you will find the wines here are sweet and relatively cheap. It is also a good place to ask questions. Thirty bench is a casual place where nobody will feel out of place.
Moving into Beamsville you will come across De Sousa Wine Cellars. This is a Portugese family run winery that sells port and other red wines common to the region. The wine wasn’t the greatest, but the lady behind the tasting bar was a true salesman and very entertaining. She sold us on some clay bowls to drink a Marechal Foch. We were told the unfinished clay would absorb the tannins in the wine producing a different taste and prevent headaches. It did produce a different taste and we bought the bowls.
Finally at the end of this region you will come to Thomas & Vaughan. I enjoy the wines here and always make a point to stop in. They often have season ending sales where you can pick up a $12 bottle for $6. They also have a very nice patio out front with a fountain so that you can enjoy lunch with a bottle of their wine outdoors.
In the next article I will discuss some of the wineries in the Jordan & Vineland area of the Niagara Wine Route.
mmmhh i love the Niagaras Falls!.. :))
See yuo!
I really wish I had known this last fall! I took a trip to Boston and hit up Niagara on the way back. It was B-E-A-Utiful! I’m sure I would have enjoyed Canada a little more had I 1: spent a little more time, and 2: not been afraid of getting lost!
Way to long since I’ve paid you a visit - sorry!
Your trip sounds great - what a combination of the most beautiful waterfall and good wine - I envy you! I mean, we have a lot of waterfalls in Norway, but not a winery.
Wine is something that interest me as it is an important ingredients combined with food and culture, so I’m looking forward to your next post about it - please keep me posted!
Btw: Wishing you A Happy New Year
That sounds really nice. Thanks for the post.
I tagged you with the Roar award:
http://silken-didyouknow.blogspot.com/2008/01/did-you-know-i-received-roar-award.html
Great post and great idea for a getaway. There are some beautiful B&B’s and hotels in this area that I love to visit.
Thanks for the reminder to pick up some Ontario wine on my way home from work tonight!
Julia Rosien
Editor, http://www.gogirlfriend.com
Thanks for this information. It sounds like the perfect vacation. You have the sight-seeing, but you also have the tranquil atmosphere of wine tasting. The perfect combination.
Thanks for putting this together! Im such a huge wine fan and will be going to niagara this summer!
Love Niagara on The Lake! Beautiful.
What would be your pick for best winery to have lunch (take into account, view, food, service, selection, price etc).
Thanks
I’ve only eaten at two wineries. Ridge Point and Willow Heights (now Wayne Gretzky’s). Ridge Point has a patio in the vineyard and a small indoor restaruant. The food was very good and the people very friendly. I would say they probably don’t have the best wines in the region, but they suit their meals very well and have pairing suggestions. Wany Gretzky’s has a nice patio out front of the retail store and I’ve only had some appetizers which were good, but that was a long time ago.