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StateWays ■ www.stateways.com ■ September/October 2015
Canadian wines
are surprisingly
diverse.
By Marnie Old
S
ix control states share a
border with a large wine-
producing country that
until recently wasn't recognized
by most American consumers for
much beyond maple syrup and
hockey. But that's changing, as
production increases and exports
are more widely available.
Canadian wine remains well
below the radar. And retailers
who do stock Canadian items
are more likely to offer iconic
icewine than dry wine. Ameri-
cans are often surprised to learn
that Canada makes wine at all —
many unable to reconcile their
mental images of "wine country"
and the "Great White North."
But the trade should pay at-
tention to the success story
quietly playing out in our own
backyard, in wine regions nes-
tled like jewels along our north-
ern border, primarily Ontario's
Niagara Peninsula and British
Columbia's Okanagan Valley.
While the volume of pre-
mium Canadian wine being
sold in the U.S. remains tiny,
there are plenty of reasons to
sit up and take notice. Remark-
able improvements in the qual-
ity of Canada's wines, a steady
stream of American visitors to
Canadian wineries and a recent
change in the exchange rate
have already sparked a surge in
exports to the U.S.
Recently, the Wall Street
Journal's Lettie Teague said that
C A N A D I A N W I N E S
THE UNDISCOVERED
PEARL NEXT DOOR
Vineyards overlooking Vaseaux Lake in British Columbia's
Okanagan Valley, near Okanagan Falls, BC.
PHOTO
BY
WINES
OF
BC
(WINEBC.COM)
