CENTRAL ONTARIO VINICULTURE ASSOCIATION
Under the tour guidance of nurseryman Alain Breault the second annual COVA trip to visit vineyards will be held between Tuesday September 2nd and Thursday September 4th. This is a vineyardists tour of Quebec wineries and vineyards growing hardy grape varieties. It is open to non-COVA members, but will be limited to a maximum of 40 people. Last year approximately 30 people had a great 2-day trip to Southwestern Ontario.
The tour will start Tuesday at the Auberge Harris in St. Jean sur Richelieu, south and slightly east of Montreal Directions to the Auberge Harris (click on location). We hope to attract some people from other areas (New York, New England, East Coast) and the best idea was for all to meet at the central hotel see description of the hotel. Each person is responsible for getting to the hotel at their own cost.
TUE SEP 2, 3 p.m. We will take our vehicles from the hotel, the center of our expedition, to Vignoble Le Royer St.-Pierre. At this friendly and rustic winery, we will tour vineyards, listen to grampa grape Robert LeRoyer (guarded by his keeper, Lucie St-Pierre) talk about wine, and have a great meal (catered by a great local restaurant, superb food). We can then sit around drinking wine, discussing wine politics with local insiders, all in all a great chance to meet growers and winemakers from Quebec and elsewhere. We will drive back to the hotel by about 10 p.m. and should be able to grab 8 hours of sleep or so.
WED SEP 3, 9 a.m. We will wake up and have breakfast at the hotel (included in the tour package), and be ready to hit the road at 9 a.m. Our first stop of the day will be at Vignoble des Pins, the winery run by Gilles and Laurie Benoit near Sabrevois. Gilles has been experimenting with hardy varieties and winter protection for less hardy varieties for some time, and this is an excellent chance to see the results of some of these techniques. Also, a chance to taste some very unique wines made by a fussy terroirist with strong beliefs in doing things his way.
WED SEP 3, 12 noon After leaving Vignoble des Pins we will travel to Brigham where we will get a chance to see the nursery operation of Alain Breault and Mariette Lageux. This is sure to be of interest to those of us who have been purchasing vines from A & M over the years. Bryan Pell, Jim McKenzie and Larry Paterson went on a pre-trip to scout out this trip, and seeing the greenhouses packed full of hardy vines was a real treat (they won't be there in September!)
WED SEP 3, 1:30 p.m. We will go to Vignoble la Bauge, where we will have a chance to taste the unique wines of Simon Naud, see a wide variety of exotic animals, have a very interesting lunch and see hardy varieties in the field. This is an opportunity to see many of the newest varieties, almost ready to harvest. I think that I notice a strong resemblance between COVA's own Dr. Bryan Pell and the Peruvian Yak(ker) on their website...
WED SEP 3, 4:00 p.m. We will go to Vignoble Les artisans du terroir, where we will have a chance to see more hardy varieties, along with meticulously maintained vineyards and some excellent wines. This is where we will have our evening meal, and a further chance to sit around and talk with the locals, exchanging our experiences of the day. We will leave for the hotel by 9 p.m., leaving lots of time to recover overnight...
THUR SEP 4, 9 a.m. We will check out of the motel in the morning, and head for Chapelle St. Agnes / Vin de Glace, a winery that will both take you back hundreds of years into the past, and show you modern winter protection techniques and vineyard and winery management. We will have a chance to taste some of the extremely limited first vintage of icewine from this location, and to see a wonderful winery (nearing completion) and a vineyard with an incredible view. A marvellous place to see! We will return to the hotel by 2:30, and head our separate ways.
| Type of Occupancy | basic trip cost bus, food, misc |
room per person two nights |
total cost PER PERSON |
| Quadruple Occupancy: 4 people, 2 beds |
$140 | $90 | $230 |
| Triple Occupancy: 3 people, 2 beds |
$140 | $106 | $246 |
| Double Occupancy: 2 people, 2 beds |
$140 | $126 | $266 |
| Single Occupancy: private room |
$140 | $180 | $320 |
The costs above are based on having between 30 and 40 people on the tour (we have certainly received great prices from the influence of our friends at the wineries in Quebec). We need to know who will be staying in which arrangement above with whom, and whether it is a smoking or non-smoking room (so that the hotel can make the bookings properly). We need this information by August 15th. Full payment for the trip must be received by this date, and there will be no refunds after August 15th.
The only way to reserve a spot on this tour is to pay in advance. The trip is limited to 30 people, and payment must be received by August 20th. Cheques must be made out to "COVA" in the appropriate amount and mailed to:
COVA Treasurer Dr. Liang Liu, 133 Parkdale Ave, Peterborough, Ontario, K9L 1K5.
Wine Growers
www.littlefatwino.com