From March 29th to April 3rd, get ready to experience an Ontario Wine Tour in your own backyard when award-winning wineries and growers from Prince Edward County, Niagara Wine Region, and Lake Erie North Shore come to Toronto for Riverside’s 2nd Annual WineFEST.
Sponsored by the Riverside Business Improvement Area (BIA), Ralph Thornton Center, Boxcar Social, and Chef Scott Savoie, Riverside Winefest will showcase 10 wineries, and dozens of wines for 20+ events at venues along Riverside – Queen St East from the DVP to Empire Avenue. Nearly two dozen participating Riverside restaurants and retailers will host everything from exclusive prix fixe wine pairing dinners to FREE wine tasting extravaganzas.
Without further adieu, introducing the Wineries of Riverside Winefest 2016:
13TH STREET WINERY – NIAGARA WINE REGION
Owners, partners and friends Doug and Karen Whitty and John and June Mann share a common love of wine, food and art and a genuine heart for hospitality. Their boutique winery, set amongst 25 acres of family estate vineyards, is just minutes west of St. Catharines. They specialize in hand-crafted sparkling wines, Pinot Noir, Gamay Noir, Chardonnay and Riesling. Their winemaker, Jean Pierre Colas, is one of the most talented French trained winemakers in the business.
Wines Available to ‘Try & Order’ at Riverside Winefest:
- Cuvee Rose (Non-vintage), White Palette 2013, June’s Vineyard Riesling 2013, Burger Blend Gamay Pinot Noir 2014, Gamay Noir 2014
Try their wines by pre-registering at these Riverside Winefest Events:
- Spring Fashion & FREE Wine Tasting at Bergstrom Originals (781 Queen St E) – March 31, 4-6pm
- Jazz, Wine & Hair at Untitled Hair Salon (792 Queen E) – April 1, 6-8pm
- FREE Riverside Wine Expo at The Ralph Thornton Centre (765 Queen E, 2nd Fl) – April 2, 2-5pm
KACABA WINERY – NIAGARA WINE REGION
In 1995, Michael Kacaba launched into the wine industry, preserving a piece of prime vineyard bench land from a developer’s bulldozer. Today Kacaba Vineyard Winery boasts multiple-award-winning wines and environmentally sustainable winemaking practices. Winemaker John Tummon oversees a range of small batch whites and ripe, elegant red wines. Kacaba proudly hosts one of the oldest plantings of Syrah in Canada and totes the first Ontario red wine to be named Red Wine of the Year at the Wine Access Canadian Wine Awards.
Wines Available to ‘Try & Order’ at Riverside Winefest:
- Riesling Reserve 2014, Rebecca Rose 2015 (New Release), Jennifer’s Pinot Gris 2015 (New Release), Pinot Noir 2011, Terraced Vineyard Syrah 2011, Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 (New Release)
Try their wines by pre-registering at these Riverside Winefest Events:
- Riverside Arts Market Uncorked FREE Wine Tasting (790 Queen E) – March 31, 4-6pm
- Wine Down & Celebrate our 16th with FREE Wine Tasting at Dimensions Framing (733 Queen E) – April 1, 4-6pm
- FREE Riverside Wine Expo @ The Ralph Thornton Centre (765 Queen E, 2nd Fl) – April 2, 2-5pm
- FREE WOGA = Wine & Yoga The Chi Junky Studio (70 McGee St) – April 3, 2-5:30pm
BROKEN STONE WINERY – PRINCE EDWARD COUNTY
Tim and Micheline Kuepfer purchased three hayfields on a Prince Edward County backroad in 2009, they threw their first harvest party in 2010 and harvested two tonnes of quality Pinot Noir wine grapes. By 2012 they built a small building, got a license and Broken Stone Winery was born. They adopt minimal winemaking approaches and allow nature to express itself.
Wines Available to ‘Try & Order’ at Riverside Winefest:
- Pinot Noir 2014, Cab Franc 2015, Riesling 2015, Simplicity 2015 (Vidal/Gris Blend)
Try their wines by pre-registering at these Riverside Winefest Events:
- FREE Wine Tasting & Wellness Seminar @ Oma Chiropractic (1 Munro St) – March 29, 7:30-9pm
- Buy, Sell, Trade & FREE Wine Tasting @ Common Sort (804 Queen St E) – March 31, 4-6pm
- FREE Riverside Wine Expo @ The Ralph Thornton Centre (765 Queen E, 2nd Fl) – April 2, 2-5pm
VINELAND ESTATES WINERY– NIAGARA WINE REGION
For over thirty years, Vineland Estates Winery has continually elevated the wine and culinary experience in Niagara. Open all year, they are not only the home of fine wine and cuisine, but an unmatched touring facility and wine country destination. The result is a legacy of great Riesling, exceptional dining, and memorable wine adventure.
Try their wines by pre-registering at this Riverside Winefest Events:
- FREE Riverside Wine Expo @ The Ralph Thornton Centre (765 Queen E, 2nd Fl) – April 2, 2-5pm
THREE DOG WINERY – PRINCE EDWARD COUNTY
John and Sacha Squair started Three Dog Winery in 2000 with 500 vines. Today Three Dog Winery’s estate covers 100 acres in beautiful Prince Edward County. They started off with a focus on Pinot Noir, soon followed by Pinot Gris, and since then have been slowly adding more Pinot clones and some French hybrids, a little Baco, a little Foch, a little Vidal and lots of love. Three Dog Winery was named for their three Golden Retrievers, rescues from their friends at Golden Rescue Canada – needless to say the winery is a very dog-friendly place!
Try their wines by pre-registering at this Riverside Winefest Events:
- FREE Riverside Wine Expo @ The Ralph Thornton Centre (765 Queen E, 2nd Fl) – April 2, 2-5pm
TRAIL ESTATE WINERY – PRINCE EDWARD COUNTY
Situated in the heart of Prince Edward County, where Benway Road meets the Millennium Trail, is Trail Estate Winery. They focus solely on small-batch wines – some as few as only 10 cases at a time – using exceptional hand-picked grapes. This creates superb wines which reflect a particular vintage, with strong varietal character, structure and individuality. As they tend to let the season and terroir speak for themselves, their wines have character and complex flavours that generally finish dry — essentially perfect food-pairing wines!
Wines Available to ‘Try & Order’ at Riverside Winefest:
- 2014 Pinot Noir Rosé (New Release), 2014 Gamay (New Release), 2013 Cabernet, 2014 Riesling, 2014 Unoaked Chardonnay, 2013 Barrel-Aged Chardonnay
Try their wines by pre-registering at these Riverside Winefest Events:
- Vintage Finds and FREE White Wine Tastings @ Guff Furniture (1 Davies Ave) – March 30, 4-6pm
- Trail Estate Wine Pairing Dinner ($85pp) By Reservation @ The Peasant Table (786 Queen E) – April 1, 8pm
- FREE Riverside Wine Expo @ The Ralph Thornton Centre (765 Queen E, 2nd Fl) – April 2, 2-5pm
BLACK BEAR WINERY – LAKE ERIE NORTH SHORE
Located in Essex County on the western edge of Kingsville, Black Bear is a family estate winery which specializes in fruit wines made from their own berries and fruit on the family farm of Jerome and Madeline Rondelez. William Rondelez, the family’s winemaker, has captured the essence of the fruit and has put it in a bottle for all to enjoy year-long. With over 30 varieties of fruit wine, their flavours range from Strawberry and Muskmelon to Purple Raspberry and Black Currant.
Wines Available to ‘Try & Order’ at Riverside Winefest:
- Red Raspberry, Strawberry, Peach, Red Raspberry, Black Current
Try their wines by pre-registering at these Riverside Winefest Events:
- FREE Wine Tasting & Discover Bouquets Sensory Event @ Quince Flowers (660 Queen St E) – March 29, 4-6pm
- FREE Sweets & Dessert Wine Tasting @ Sugar Loaf Bakery & Cafe (729 Queen E) – March 29, 4-6pm
More participating Riverside Winefest wineries and where you can enjoy their wines:
- STRATUS VINEYARDS (NIAGARA WINE REGION) – enjoy Stratus wines with an exquisite dinner at the Stratus Wine Pairing Dinner ($55pp) By Reservation @ Tabule Middle Eastern Cuisine (810 Queen E) – March 30, 7pm
- HENRY OF PELHAM (NIAGARA WINE REGION) – taste their wines at I’ll Be Seeing You drinking wine on a Wednesday @ I’ll be Seeing You Bar (747 Queen E) – March 30, 6pm
- TAWSE WINERY (NIAGARA WINE REGION) – free wine tastings at Wine Trivia Night By Reservation @ The County Riverside (798 Queen E) – March 29, 8pm
- CAVE SPRING CELLARS (NIAGARA WINE REGION) – enjoy their wines with an excellent five-course dinner Ontario Wine with an Italian Flair ($75pp) By Reservation @ il ponte cucina italiana (630 Queen E) – March 31, 6:30pm. Also, check out ‘The Guilty Pair’ Special @ Darkhorse Espresso (630 Queen E) which pairs Cave Spring wine with shortbread (available all week)!
So why not come out and enjoy this Ontario wine tour – in your own backyard!
Just pre-register to let us know your coming!