Canada Flashcards
Canadian Wine History
19th Century: Commercial wine since mid-1800s
20th Century: Prohibition (1916-1927), 50-year moratorium on issuing new winery licenses, 1974 the first winery license issued in, Ontario, NAFTA
Today: Wine revolution/renaissance over the last 30 years, Approximately 750 wineries and fast-growing
Mainly in British Colombia and Ontario, some in Nova Scotia and Quebec.
Canada
Climate: Cool to continental to desert, Primary wine growing areas sit within the 30-50 latitude lines - similar to the California and Oregon border
Moderators: Large bodies of water (Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Great Lakes) and large sloping bluffs called escarpments which circulate and warm air
Grapes: Vitis Vinifera, Vitis Labrusca, Vitis Riparia, French and American hybrids (winter hardy)
Styles: Still wine, sparkling wine, ice wine
Ice Wine
90% in Ontario, leading global producer and produced in every wine region
- Must be frozen grapes on the vine (-8oC max)
- Picked in the middle of the night
- Vidal, Riesling, Cabernet Franc
Canadian Wine Law
Canada is unique in that there no national wine law. It is not one unified wine market. Laws are more provincial or based on the province.
Top four wine producing provinces have created their own
independent systems of classification.
VQA (Vintners Quality Alliance)
- 1988 Ontario and BC
- Primary regulatory body for premium wine
VQA British Columbia
VQA BC regulates quality wine production
10 official wine Geographic Indications (GIs) with many subzones
80% of production is in the Okanagan Valley
Okanagan Valley
Location: British Columbia, 200 miles (320k) east of Vancouver
Geography: Narrow valley surrounded and protected by 3 mountain ranges
Climate: 50-degree latitude line, Classic continental climate with very hot summers and very cold winters
Moderator: Lake Okanagan, 144k long, Narrow and very deep, Beautiful vineyards on both sides many atop striking bluffs
North - cool and wet: Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Blanc, Riesling and others
South - warm and dry: big reds such as the Bordeaux grape
varieties and Syrah
Ontario
Location: Canada’s East Coast
Climate: 41°- 44° parallel
Moderators: Great Lakes
Grapes: Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, Gamay, Syrah (60% white wine)
Produces half of all Canadian wine depending on the vintage
Style: Traditional method sparkling wine, Rosé, Ice Wine
Ice Wine: 90% of the Canadian ice wine, 50% of Ontario’s exports is ice wine
Sub-GIs: Niagara Peninsula, Prince Edward County, Lake Erie North Shore
Niagara Peninsula
Ontario’s most important wine region, 85% of production
Climate: Maritime to semi-continental
Moderators: Lake Ontario, Niagara Escarpment
Grapes: Riesling, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc
Gamay, Syrah
