While most of the world’s wine supply comes from either France or Italy, many regions are proud producers, too. Hungary, California, and even the province of Quebec! The Eastern Townships are filled with vineyards and wineries, so much that the tourist board decided to create a wine route, to help tourists tour the region’s most interesting wine spots. Let’s have a closer look…
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The Eastern Townships might sound like a far away backwater place but it’s actually only an hour away south-east of Montreal, and very easy to get to!
There are for ways to visit the wine route: you can either concentrate on wineries alone, or take your experience further by exploring arts & crafts, sports and/or regional cuisine. Of course, considering how much of a glutton I am, my favorite option will always be the regional cuisine! You can find everything from maple produce, to chutneys, cheeses and chocolate goodness. I recommend you stop at Dunham’s La Rumeur Affamée (3809 rue Principale), where you can find many local products under one roof.
Now, the most important part of this trip: the wine. There are over twenty vineyards open for visit in the area, each with its specialties. I’ve been to most of them and after careful consideration over a glass (or several) of wine, I picked my four favorites:
- Val Caudalies (French only)
- Domaine du Ridge (French only)
- Vignoble de l’Orpailleur (French only)
- Domaine des Côtes d’Ardoise
I picked them because they, first off and most importantly, have amazing wines at great prices. The first one, Val Caudalies, even has some tasty sparkly apple cider that’s well worth a detour. But even if it wasn’t for the wines, the setting itself is simply too stunning to pass. An huge barn on top on a mountain, overlooking the vines and the other mountains of the region… absolutely priceless. The owners, three wine aficionado guys, are super friendly and more than happy to help you find the perfect wine for your taste buds. If you had only one stop to make on your wine route, I suggest you make it at Val Caudalies – you’ll get everything you need there. Good wines, genuine smiles, beautiful scenery.
Albeit a bit small but certainly not lacking in charm, the Domaine du Ridge is another favorite of mine. It left me wondering if I had time-traveled to the UK or if I really was still in Canada! The two others, Orpailleur and Côtes d’Ardoise, are probably the largest wineries in the area and thoroughly explain the process of wine making, which is very interesting for newcomers (like me).
What I really liked about the wine route is meeting with the producers and owners – you get to discuss anything and everything with them, especially their labor of love. Plus, bottles are much cheaper than at the liquor store and discounts are always possible when you buy a bundle… and what better way to end the day than to open a few of them!
As you can see from the photos, I visited the wine route during the fall and I highly recommend you do the same – just in time for the autumn harvest! Plus, you’ll get to kill two birds with one stone and experience the magical fall colors at the same time. Not bad, eh?
Have you ever been on the Eastern Townships wine route? Or any other wine route? Is this something you would consider doing?
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