Vines and Wines in the Niagara Peninsula

A Look at Ontario's Largest Designated Viticultural Area

Aug 7, 2009

The still relatively young Niagara Peninsula wine region is booming with investors who recognize the huge potential this area has to make world-class wines.

The increasing number of impressive wineries appearing in the Niagara Peninsula, with state-of-the-art winemaking equipment, and architecture to match, is evidence of the millions of dollars that have been invested in the area in recent years. The Niagara Peninsula has blossomed into a wine producing region the country can be proud of. The area, which began as a quality wine region about 35 years ago, is booming, land prices are now astronomical, and some excellent world-class wines are being produced within the appellation.

The Niagara Peninsula is the largest Designated Viticultural Area (DVA) in Ontario and, according to VQA Ontario, the annual production was 998,434 cases of VQA wine in 2008. The wine region is located at a latitude of 43° N which is at the same latitude as Northern California, Chianti Classico, and Rioja. It is more southerly than Burgundy.

Lake Ontario and the Niagara Escarpment Help Moderate Temperatures

There are two main geographical features that help make the Niagara Peninsula an ideal place to grow vitis vinifera vines. Lake Ontario is a huge body of deep water that warms the temperatures in the winter and cools the temperatures in the summer.

The Niagara Escarpment, which rises to 175 m above sea level in places, also has a huge impact on the climate of the area. The Niagara Escarpment is like a spine that runs along the peninsula's length. It slopes up from the Lake Ontario in a series of steps, or benches. It’s actually the shoreline of an ancient lake, known as Lake Iroquois, from which the 5 Great Lakes were formed. The escarpment then rises 30 to 50 m above the highest bench to form a plateau. Quality wine grapes can only be grown north of this plateau on the benches and down to the lake.

In the winter, the winds warmed by the lake blow over the land, bounce off the escarpment, and then head back towards the lake again, creating excellent air circulation which helps prevent the winter air from plunging to dangerously low temperatures, and potentially damaging or even killing the vines. The same circulation occurs in the summer but with cooler air blowing over the land which helps prevent rot and mildew but also lets the grapes ripen slowly, gaining complexity while retaining acidity. In the spring the cool breezes prevent the vines from budding until after the risk of frost has passed. In the autumn the warm breezes can prevent temperatures from dropping, prolonging the growing season, and allowing the grapes to ripen slowly.

Bordeaux and Burgundy in One Region

Vineyard temperatures on the benches, which are further from the lake, are cooler than the temperatures near the lake, which explains why the grapes grown on the benches are typically the cool-loving grapes, such as aromatic whites and Burgundian reds. The warmer vineyards closer to the lake tend to grow the Bordeaux varieties, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot.

The Niagara Peninsula is Divided into Sub-Appellations

In 2005, the Niagara Peninsula was divided into smaller sub-appellations. Some of these sub-appellations are within 2 larger regional appellations; Niagara Escarpment and Niagara-on-the-Lake. VQA Niagara-on-the-Lake refers to wine from grapes grown east of St. Catharines. VQA Niagara Escarpment refers to wine from grapes grown on the benches of the escarpment west of St. Catharines. To use these terms on a label, 85% of the grapes used must come from the stated appellation. Ten, much smaller, specific sub-appellations were also identified. The identified sub-appellations have distinctive terroir (soil, climate, topography, etc.) that can affect the grapes and the style of wine they produce. If one of these sub-appellations is named on the label then 100% of the grapes must come from that area. The 10 appellations are:

The following sub-appellations are located within the regional appellation of Niagara-on-the-Lake:

The following sub-appellations are located within the regional appellation of Niagara Escarpment:

The Niagara Peninsula has Come a Long Way

Prior to the 1970s the region was known for its cheap wine made primarily from grapes native to North America. In the mid-1970s a few pioneering souls planted the first vitis vinifera vines with hopes of making great wine. This started the ball rolling. The Niagara Peninsula has certainly come a long way in the 3 decades or so since winemaking practices were stepped up a notch and quality wines began to be produced. If it has come this far in such a short period of time, just imagine what the next 30 years will bring.

The copyright of the article Vines and Wines in the Niagara Peninsula in Canadian Wine is owned by Sarah Goddard. Permission to republish Vines and Wines in the Niagara Peninsula in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.