It 's a different kind of Independence Day, Eh?

As some of you know, July 1st is Canada Day (formerly Dominion Day), when the territories to our north became known as, well, Canada. While most people think of beer from the land of the frozen caribou, there are some stellar wines coming from Canada. Some of the regions include the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia and the Niagara Peninsula in south-western Ontario. Other great wines and ciders are coming out of Quebec as well.
While mostly a cooler climate, where one would expect Riesling, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (and there are lots of great ones), don't overlook Merlot, Cabernet Francs and the fruit wines coming from this land of plenty. I got to taste some wonderful wines from across the spectrum when I was a judge at the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition earlier this year. The best Ice Wine came from a winery in Quebec (Vignoble Riveiere du Chene), but other wonderful ciders (of all styles no less) came in from several producers, and some really nice wines from across the spectrum included Skimmerhorn and Serendipity from BC, Annapolis Highlands from Nova Scotia, Black Bear Farms from Ontario and Artisans du Terroir from Quebec.
So, Give a Toast to our neighbors to the north as they celebrate their special day, and do it with some truly great Canadian wines!

Cheers,
David

One tip - while not a ton of these wines come in from the north, your best bet would be larger specialty retailers like BevMo and Total Wine & More.