Niagara-on-the-Lake might’ve spent last weekend digging its way out of the snowstorm that hit the region on Thursday, but come Friday and Saturday, hundreds were out on Queen Street deciding to embrace the joys that winter can bring — in this case, its liquid gold.
The Niagara Icewine Festival opened its village in downtown Niagara-on-the-Lake last weekend, bringing together wineries and food vendors for guests to sample locally made icewine and food pairings in one place.
Joanna Merletti travelled from Grand Island, N.Y., to Niagara-on-the-Lake for the Icewine Festival Village, calling it a welcome outing after the holidays as visitors sampled icewine along Queen Street on Jan. 17.
“It’s a great time of year because there’s nothing else to do,” said Merletti. “The holidays are over, and this is so festive and so nice.”
For Niagara Falls residents Tim and Joanne Caron, the village offered a quick way to sample the region without driving from winery to winery.
“It’s nice that it’s so localized, and you get a little taste of everything,” said Tim Caron.
Leeanne Spelier, Grape and Wine Festival board member and winery representative from Peller, said clear weather after a heavy snowstorm earlier in the week was favourable for the festival as more than 200 people entered within the first hour. Later in the afternoon, volunteer Sylvia Kaptein said her entrance alone processed 500 people in just one hour.
Spelier said the festival is also trying to broaden how people think about icewine, with cocktails and other formats that soften its sweetness.
“Icewine is a sweeter drink, and some palates aren’t as friendly to that, so by diversifying with it, I think it really helps,” said Spelier.
Inside the village were several new additions meant to make the festival memorable between tastings, including a new Icewine Imaginarium, four themed booths for photos with brochures inside teaching people some background on icewine flavourings, including sweet, citrus, honey and berry.
Spelier said the festival wanted to expand on how icewine can be enjoyed by highlighting some new features, like table wine and a Niagara College beer made with icewine.
Matt Finn, event manager for the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival and unofficial icewine aficionado, said the options helped address a common perception that icewine is meant to be sipped on its own after dinner.
“We’re the number one producer of icewine in the world these days, and not everybody wants to sip ice wine on its own,” said Finn.
Festival business development manager Tina Myers emphasized Niagara as a major global hub for the icewine industry, and that while she sees this as an opportunity for people to buy local and support Canadian businesses, they also welcome all visitors.
“Our campaign is more about ‘glasses up,'” said Myers. “We want to enjoy with our American partners. We want them to come and enjoy.”
Representatives from the new Foodland on Garrison Village Road were also at the festival, giving out free hot chocolate and letting the community know about their upcoming grand opening on Jan. 29. Bakery manager Carrie Corfield said people from Garrison Village are very excited about the opportunity to have a walkable grocery store in their neighbourhood.
The festival continues next weekend, running Jan. 24 and 25.
