Prince Edward County has the potential to be a producer of spectacular wines. South of Belleville, The County is an isthmus that reaches 40 kilometres into Lake Ontario and possesses the key ingredients to ripen cool climate vitis vinifera varieties - 160 frost free days, a moderate growing climate and, in many pockets, well-drained clay-loam limestone laced soils hauntingly similar to those of Burgundy.

In last summer's edition of Wine Access, David Lawrason wrote about its thickly gravelled soils rivaling the best of Burgundy. These Burgundy comparisons are bold statements to be making at such an early stage, but the belief is that the marginal climate and promising soils are going to deliver terroir-based wines. The industry believes so much in terroir that it has launched an appellation system. There is only one key ingredient missing for the predictions to come true - time. This is a wait and see game, so come and see what is happening here and now and as time progresses, taste for yourself to see if the wines live up to the hype!

As an added bonus and since we are heading east, we don't want to miss an opportunity to check out another southeastern Ontario winery, so we're also visiting Willow Springs Winery in Stouffville.

Willow Springs Winery is a family run business striving to make a difference in the wine industry. Willow Springs is the only estate winery in York Region, located near the town of Stouffville. Their 11-acre on-site vineyard includes 8 different varieties of grape vines.

Winemaker - Michael Traynor. Michael Traynor is amongst the youngest winemakers in Ontario. He is a graduate of the Wine Technology program at Loyalist College in Belleville, Ontario and has been the winemaker at Willow Springs since November 2000. Michael is also the vineyard manager for Huff Estates in Prince Edward County.

The vineyards and winery are nestled among the apple orchards and blueberry patches in Waupoos, a hamlet on the south shores of Prince Edward County. Waupoos is a native Indian name for rabbit. In 1993, a small vineyard was planted and proved that the terroir was ideal for producing quality wine grapes. Subsequent plantings, carefully analyzed for optimum soil, grade and microclimates, exceeded expectations. Soon, plans were made to establish the winery. The initial groundbreaking took place in 2000 and the winery was opened in 2001, offering a variety of well-balanced, aromatic wines. The winery is built from natural limestone and has become an important landmark in the area.

In July 2002, Waupoos Estates Winery opened its restaurant. With its open kitchen concept and fine dining on the terrace or inside for cool evenings, it is in an incredibly beautiful setting overlooking the lawns and vineyards sweeping down to Prince Edward Bay with Waupoos and Timber Islands framing the horizon.

Winemaker - Jason MacDonald. Jason MacDonald's background is in the food services industry and he is a self-taught winemaker who has picked up many of his skills from working with Klaus Reif at Reif Estate Winery.

The County Cider Company is a Canadian estate winery specializing in hard ciders. In North America, hard cider is fresh sweet cider that has been fermented. The winery produces high quality sparkling ciders as well as wines, both made primarily from apples grown on the farm in Waupoos. This year they will be releasing 100% County wines that have the privilege of being among the first wines to use local designated viticultural area names, that is, the local township names.

Cider making is a year-round operation that begins in the orchards every spring with the apple blossoms and continues throughout the growing and picking seasons. Grant Howes, the "Cider Master", believes that 95 percent of the quality of his ciders is the result of the care taken in growing his apples. After pressing the late-harvest apples and carefully blending the juices, a slow fermentation period begins. The ciders are "authentic" in that they adhere to the Bavarian Purity Laws: only high quality juice, no concentrates, no artificial flavours and the cider is not heated.

The family farm consists of several buildings including the cidery and tasting room. There are two apple orchards, one on-site and one located about 15 kilometres away. The large open fields at the farm are sometimes used for special events, such as weddings. There is also an old pig barn, which may be renovated one day into a restaurant. The family home is an historic stone building built in 1835 by United Empire Loyalists. It sits high atop a ridge that overlooks Lake Ontario and the surrounding orchards and countryside.

Winemaker Jenifer Dean. Jenifer Dean was born in England where she had her first tastes of non-alcoholic cider as a child. An appreciation for wines carried Jenifer into the Hospitality and Tourism Program at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in 1980. While there, she studied under renowned wine taster Hrayr Berberoglu. A research paper in her fourth year of study was on the Ontario wine industry and its prospects for the future. This research painted a picture of an unrefined business with a lot to improve and a long way to go. Now, having completed the third year of the Wine Technology program at Belleville's Loyalist College, she has been fortunate to work with winemakers Norman Hardie, Tatjana Cuk and Deborah Paskus. She is now the Manager of the County Cider Company, helping to tend two vineyards and put the County's first wines on the shelves.

Peddlesden Wines was officially formed in the fall of 1999 with the purchase of 43 acres of prime viticultural land in the Hillier region of Prince Edward County. Located just 2 kilometres north and east of Lake Ontario, the Peddlesden vineyard enjoys the moderating effects of the lake and an extended growing season for their premium grapes. Today Peddlesden's vineyards cover more than 30 acres of some of the finest growing acreage in the province.

Winemaker - Norm Hardy. Norm Hardy holds a B.A. in economics from the University of Western Ontario and has taken the sommelier course in Dijon, France. From a stint as sommelier for Truffles restaurant in Toronto, Norm's winemaking career started at Evesham Wood in Oregon. From there, he has gone on to help with winemaking in Burgundy, France at Domaine de La Vougeraie and Domaine de la Pousse D'or, in South Africa at Bouchard Finlayson, in California at Au Bon Climat and Qupe and in New Zealand at Central Otaga Wine Company.

08:15am   Depart Toronto - Board bus at the Jolly Miller, Yonge & York Mills

• Coffee, muffins, etc.

09:00am   Arrive Willow Springs Winery

• Tour and tasting led by Mike Traynor, winemaker

  2002 Geisenheim	2001 Lucy Kuhlman
  2001 Riesling	2001 Cinque Bianco
  2001 Baco Noir Reserve

• Photo ops and visit winery boutique

10:00am   Depart Willow Springs

• Imbibe bus wine, or read a good book on wine, to while away the time until we arrive in "The County"

12:30pm    Arrive Waupoos Estates Winery

• Tour and tasting led by Ed Neuser, owner

  2001 Riesling	2001 De Chaunac
  2002 Vidal

• Lunch in the vineyard
  • Spring Peas Soup with crème fraiche & pea sprouts
  • Salmon fillet poached in court bouillon served with lemon chive butter, scented Jasmine rice & spring vegetables
  • A glass of either the 2002 Chardonnay or 2002 Baco Noir
  • Coffee/Tea

2:30pm    Depart Waupoos

2:35pm    Arrive County Cider Company

• Tasting led by Grant Howes, owner

  2002 Geisenheim

  2002 Gamay Noir

• Even more photo ops and visit winery boutique

3:35pm    Depart County Cider

4:00pm    Arrive Peddlesden Wines

• Tasting led by Mike Peddlesden, owner

  2002 Riesling

  2002 Pinot Gris

• Photo ops and visit winery boutique

5:00pm    Depart Peddlesden

• Snack on bus to tie us over until dinner

7:30pm    Arrive Toronto - Disembark from bus at the Jolly Miller. Whew! Another hard day's work done.

Register using the form provided below. Cancellations will be accepted until June 9, 2003 by calling the wine line at 416-921-9798.

Send this form and your cheque, payable to the Ontario Wine Society, to Ken Burford, 43 Cuthbert Crescent, Toronto, Ontario, M4S 2G9.