It was only recently that I had my first visit to the wineries at Niagara-on-the-Lake for wine tasting. The drive from Toronto usually takes no more than 2 hours, even in heavy traffic, making NOTL perfect for a day trip.
There are tasting tours unique to each winery and each winery has a tasting bar where you can taste different varieties of wines for a nominal fee per glass. If you have more time, you can have a meal with wine at the onsite restaurants.
If you’re looking for more organized events, the Niagara Wine Festival takes place three times each year: Icewine Festival in January, New Vintage Festival in June, and the upcoming 65th Annual Niagara Wine Festival of Classics from September 10-25, 2016.
We went in June for the Festival’s Discovery Pass Experience, which is an easy way to get introduced to what the wineries have to offer. The passes can be purchased online here for about $40 and includes eight vouchers valued at $10 each, redeemable for wine and snacks at participating wineries. The passes do not include wine tours, but can be shared between guests. As we were there for the day, eight wineries seemed rushed so sharing one pass gave us 4 vouchers each to visit 4 wineries at a more relaxed pace.
Wineries that are part of the Discovery Pass are either within the Niagara-on-the-Lake region or in Twenty Valley. We planned our driving route and chose 4 wineries that were along Niagara Parkway.
Here are the 4 Niagara-on-the-Lake Wineries we visited:
Jackson-Triggs
2145 Niagara Stone Road
At Jackson-Triggs, we redeemed the vouchers for Sichuan roasted pork sandwiches with radish and cucumber paired with 2015 Reserve Sparkling Moscato.
Peller Estates
290 John Street East
At Peller Estates, we had Niagara grilled trout on flatbread with smoked salsa, charred feta and pickled red onions paired with 2015 Reserve Sauvignon Blanc.
Reif Estate Winery
15608 Niagara Parkway
At Reif, we had sesame crusted, seared albacore tuna sliders with wasabi mayo, soy reduction and house-pickled ginger paired with River Road Riesling Gewürztraminer. This one was by far my favourite.
Inniskillin
1499 Line 3 & Niagara Parkway
At Inniskillin, we had triple cream Brie grilled cheese and poached rhubarb paired with Reserve Cabernet Franc Rose.
Safe Travels!
xx Deb
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