Wine Enthusiast Magazine / October 2009 / Canada

Canada

The Canadian wine industry divides neatly in half. In eastern Canada, the Niagara Peninsula north of Lake Ontario produces the vast majority of the region’s wines. The government-funded switch to vinifera vines in the early 1990s revolutionized the region, which produces roughly four-fifths of Canada’s wine grapes. Though a wide range of varietal white and red wines are made, it is the region’s ice wines, marketed in super-tall, slim, 375 ml bottles that have brought it global acclaim. Meanwhile, British Columbia has been quietly building a substantial wine industry of its own, especially on the bluffs surrounding Lake Okanagan, where a compelling blend of wine and recreational tourism draws visitors year-round. Everything from Germanic rieslings to Burgundian pinots to Bordeaux-style red wines and even syrah can be ripened here. More than one hundred wineries call British Columbia home, with more opening every month.