How have the wineries done this year?

Cab Franc grapes growing at Cooper’s Hawk Vineyards in Harrow, Ont. (Photo by Miranda Monahan.)

By Miranda Monahan

Essex Pelee Island Coast-or EPIC-wineries have become more widely known over the past several years.

They have become a tourist draw for the Windsor and Essex County. Many people visit them each year.

According to a representative from Essex County Wineries and Breweries, there are 18 different wineries right now in Windsor Essex County.

Grapes like a wet spring and a long dry summer.

Earlier this year, winemakers were worried about their crops due to the extreme cold which hit southern Ontario.

“We started with a cold wet spring but recovered with a long, dry, hot summer. A lower yield but much higher quality,” said Veronica Barris, the director of media and marketing at Cooper’s Hawk Vineyards.

This year’s wine crop is expected to bring a better vintage, the year or place where a high quality of wine was produced.

Despite the good growing season in Essex County, not everyone in Ontario was as lucky.

In Niagara, Ont., this year’s crop is expected to be lower than last year’s crop. How much lower exactly is unknown. Last year’s crop was helped out by ideal growing conditions.

The exact revenue the wine crop will bring the area is unknown.