Élevage: A gastronomic celebration of County culture
“Directly translating to “raise up”, élevage refers to the ageing process wines go through between fermentation and bottling while in barrel. In Prince Edward County, this typically coincides with the quiet winter months. Élevage: PEC Winter Wine Festival is a celebration of wine in all of its stages, through all seasons”
Prince Edward County Wine Association held their second annual Élevage winter wine festival on Feb. 17th and 18th of Family Day weekend 2024.
Providing exceptional wine and food at several locations across the County, with each winery offering its own cozy and fun vibe. It was family friendly with dancing, DJs, fire pits for roasting marshmallows, and games included!
Day 1
The sun was shining throughout the entire first day of the event. We began our wine tour with Stanners Vineyard. I’m always excited to taste their excellently crafted wines, however, I was really looking forward to the ice crokinole game, made by winemaker Colin Stanners, that fitted perfectly in to the winter wine festival theme. They had five of their award-winning wines open for tasting, vegan tourtiere for warming, as well as snow painting and disc golf.
If there had to be a standout wine for me here it would be their 2021 Cabernet Franc. Whoever said you can’t make a good wine from Prince Edward County Cabernet Franc would be seriously mistaken after tasting this deliciously intriguing expression of the grape.
The second stop of the day landed at The Grange winery who were offering a wide selection of wine choices, chili to eat, and s’mores to roast over their outdoor firepits. The standout wine for me from The Grange was their 2022 County Chardonnay made by winemaker Jonas Newman.
The Grange hosted cidery Stock and Row and the newly launched Stoss Lee Wine. Pouring for the first time their 2022 vintage, Stoss Lee Wine really caught my eye with their County Chardonnay and Niagara WS Cuesta Chardonnay. Even more captivating - they had a still wine called Only the Lonely that consisted of half Pinot Noir and half Chardonnay that was absolutely delicious!
Next stop was the Apres-Ski Disco party at Trail Estate Winery. Stepping in to the winery, it was full of people dressed in their ski attire clearly enjoying the music of DJ Jams. No still feet at this party, even while enjoying the Mexican cousine offered by La Condesa, and sipping on Trail’s funky fresh wine lineup.
Although one of my favourite pairings ever is guacamole and Chardonnay, my most admired sip was the Traditional Method Pinot Noir 2019.
Day 2
Day 2 at Élevage winter wine festival looked slightly different! We woke up to a major winter storm with whiteout snow squalls. Sadly, but thankfully, the main event hosted at Huff Estates at the end of the day had to be cancelled due to the severe weather. However, passport holders would have their tickets honoured by most wineries for tastings upon their next visit.
The first winery we managed to visit in the morning was Closson Chase. They gave us the full Élevage experience with their tasting offering at The Ridge. We were offered barrel samples in the cellar, before bottle samples, and concluding with their back vintage wines. It’s always a pleasure listening to Closson Chase Vineyards’ winemaker Keith Tyers speak about his winemaking process and what Prince Edward County has to offer.
After tasting several vintages of South Clos Pinot Noir throughout my career, I was most interested in the barrel sample for this wine’s latest vintage to experience it at this stage - truly what Élevage is all about!
I have recently labelled myself as not only a wine professional, but a charcuterie eating professional and I can say that Closson always provides the BEST bread and cheese to pair with their incredible wines.
Despite the weather, we managed to squeeze in one more winery of the day, (and so happy we did!) We arrived at the always hospitable Karlo Estates for delicious vegan wines and food, and more importantly, good company!
We were welcomed with gorgeous mimosas curated with Karlo Estates Bubbles by a fireplace to warm up and dry off. Soon after, we time travelled to the Speakeasy to indulge in their vegan friendly brunch of buckwheat pancakes and berry compote.
A private tour of the production facility lead to a memorable cellar tasting of Karlo’s 2018 Pinot Noir, and a personal favourite, the 2017 Chardonnay. Sharing sips with Sherry and Sax and fellow wine writer Beverly Crandon was the perfect way to wrap up the second day of Élevage.
The County really makes me feel at home and it’s so much more than just business on my visits. Vintner Sherry Karlo even offered for us to stay at winery for a PJ party on account of the storm.
We made it to only two wineries that day but didn’t get there without trying to help push someone else’s car out of knee deep snow, and watching others drive off the road and get stuck. (So happy I packed my @manitobahmukluks)
Although it was sad to miss out on visits to my other favourite wineries, I had the absolute best time this day! It was filled with thrilling new wines, excellent back vintages and loads of laughs!
Head to my Instagram page to check out the Élevage highlight reel for more fun clips on the event!
Upcoming wine events in Prince Edward County
Eclipse - Enjoy the path of totality in wine country April 8, 2024
Terroir - A toast to the exceptional wines of Prince Edward County May 4, 2024
TASTE! Community Grown - Honouring the agricultural producers of Prince Edward County Sept.14, 2024
Wassail - Three weekends of activities to celebrate the harvest and the burying of vines Nov & Dec 2024
For tickets, visit Home – PECWine (pecwines.com)