Winter and Red Wine Vinted in the Kawarthas are the Perfect Pairing
Date: 01/17/2014
Kawartha Country Wines, a family-owned winery, processes local fruits and berries to produce wines on site. When owners John Rufa and Trish Dougherty opened the doors to their winery in July of 2004, they began with an offering of apricot, cherry, and rhubarb wine. Today, they produce 35 wines, ranging from dry and semi-dry wines to dessert and ice wines. Although they’ve expanded wine production to 20,000 litres a year, the vintners haven’t compromised quality. In fact, John comes from a long tradition of family winemaking. Years of practical experience and the study of enology have prepared him to be a winemaker. He continuously tinkers with his winemaking process and tries new, innovative techniques and blends to produce wines.
Among their fruit wines, favourites include blackberry, strawberry, raspberry, and elderberry. They also produce traditional red and white wines. John, Trish, and their friendly and knowledgeable staff are always willing to make recommendations and to explain to visitors how they make their wine.
Guests can also quaff complimentary samples at the sampling bar. We loved tasting their elderberry dessert wine, a gold medal winner at the All Canadian Wine Championships. The All Canadian Wine Championships, Canada’s oldest and largest wine competition, feature entries from across the country, including the Niagaras, British Columbia, and Prince Edward County.
There’s also a gift shop where you can pick up balsamic vinegars, jams, wine jellies, chutneys, tapenades, spreads, hot sauces and barbecue sauces, mustards, and spice rubs. Their fridge is always stocked with a selection of hand-crafted, naturally aged cheeses from local independent cheese factories. They also offer Empire Cheese's wine-infused and wine-soaked cheddars, which are made with their own wines. The gift shop also has pottery crafted by Ontario artisans, wine accessories, and wood carvings.
The winery, tasting room, and gift shop are a destination in their own right; they’re housed in a log cabin, complete with original square-hewn logs and pine floors, built in 1866, and a board-and-batten house constructed in 1889. The two buildings were moved to their present location and carefully restored.
Kawartha Country Wines, the only winery in the Kawarthas, is a favourite place for cottagers to take their weekend guests. It makes for an interesting excursion on a winter weekend at the cottage. With 22 scenic acres, the land is planted with apple, pear, and stately maple trees along with several varieties of raspberries, rhubarb, and grapes.
Oh, and, by the way, Kawartha Country Wines is recognized as the top attraction in Buckhorn on tripadvisor.ca, the world’s largest travel site. And the winery has garnered nothing but excellent reviews on tripadvisor.ca. It’s doubtful you’ll leave empty-handed. We promise it will be much more fun and informative than a trip to your local LCBO.
Kawartha Country Wines is located at 2275 County Road 36, just four kilometres north of the lights in Buckhorn, Ontario. Please call (705) 657-9916 or email kawarthawinery -at- sympatico.ca The winery is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., including holiday Mondays, during the winter and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the summer.
