Wine Wednesday - Discover What’s in Your Backyard
/Photos courtesy of Cheri-Lynn Buchanan
No matter what the season, it’s always a good time to visit Niagara wineries. Gone are the days of wineries boarding up the windows for the long winter months – now you can enjoy what used to be the “off-season” with wine festivals and seasonal events, wine and food touring passes, special dinners and artistic experiences and even skating on outdoor rinks (while you enjoy wine from outdoor bars). There has never been a better time to discover the amazing wine region that’s in your backyard.
This spring, just in time for the start of harvest 2018, Niagara-on-the-Lake has something special planned to showcase its slice of wine country. “Dig Our Roots” is a celebration of the Niagara-on-the-Lake appellation. (Remember? We covered appellations last week.) From April 6-8, each of the Wineries of Niagara-on-the-Lake member wineries will open their doors and offer one-of-a-kind experiences that showcase the wines, the winemakers and the terroir like never before.
Why should you go? Here are a few good reasons:
1. The Niagara-on-the-Lake appellation is the birthplace of the modern Canadian wine industry and home to some of Canada’s best-known wine families and iconic wines. If you are a history buff, you can learn about our wine heritage while you sip on delicious wines in a bucolic setting of vineyards, lake, river and quaint town in-between. Learning + wine = learning is way more fun.
2. Niagara-on-the-Lake is a world-renowned wine and culinary destination with a long-established food and wine community. Home to many pioneer chefs of the Go Local food movement, the region offers some of the most authentic farm-to-table dining experiences you can find. If you are a foodie, you can reach soaring gastronomic heights at one of the food and wine pairing dinners on offer through Dig Our Roots, or you can visit a winery or local restaurant to cap off your day of wine experiences.
3. Participating wineries will be opening their doors for this weekend and many will be offering events not to be seen again. This is your chance to really get behind the scenes at a winery, taste rare back vintage wines, meet winemakers and even winery founders, tour cellars, taste from barrels and learn in a most enjoyable way about the Niagara-on-the-Lake appellation.
Dig Our Roots has something for all wine lovers – whether you are novice wanting to learn more or an expert on Niagara wine country. It is a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the appellation while you unearth what makes this place and the wines so very special. Don’t miss it. It will be back next April, but you don’t want to wait that long.
Dig our Roots experiences start at $25 and are available April 6, 7 and 8. Learn more about all that’s on offer at: https://wineriesofniagaraonthelake.com/event/digourroots/
Anjana Viswanatha [Sommelier CAPS, CMS] is the founder and principal of Wednesday Night Wine (www.wednesdaynightwine.ca), a wine instructor at George Brown College and is the Marketing Manager for Wineries of Niagara-on-the-Lake (www.winieriesofniagaraonthelake.com, @niagarawine on Twitter and Instagram, @wineriesofniagaraonthelake on Facebook). Get in touch with Anjana: anjana@wednesdaynightwine.ca and follow her on Instagram @wednesdaynightwine.
