The Grape and Wine Festival is an annual event that takes place in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, each September, with various activities. The festival starts and concludes with parades.
The Grape and Wine Festival is an annual event that takes place in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, each September, with various activities. The festival starts and concludes with parades.
The festival started in 1952. [1] It started as a small event and became larger over time. [2] Traditionally the festival held different events each weekend at Montebello Park, such as the "Mayor's Grape Stomp" during the first week of September. [3] Other activities take place as well, such as live music and wine tasting. There is an area for children called Grapeland. [4]
In 2024, all events were condensed into a single weekend. [3] That year's festival was held in Downtown St. Catharines instead of Montebello Park, with operating costs being considered too expensive when 70% of visitor traffic occurs during the concluding parade. [5] A brunch event also took place in Niagara-on-the-Lake. [6] A "grape king", intended as a representative for the local wine industry, is chosen each year. [7] A prince and princess are also chosen and must be younger than seven years old. [8] The Grape and Wine Festival is the largest event for wine in Canada. [9]
The Grape and Wine Festival also holds a separate icewine event in January. [10] [11]
The festival begins with the Pied Piper Parade. It is less formal than the concluding Grande Parade and the participants involved are mostly children. The 2022 version of the event also included puppies. [12] The event has varying costume themes. [13] The 2023 version of the event raised money for the Ronald McDonald House. [14]
The parade was part of the festival since its beginning in 1952. [15] About 50 to 65 groups perform in the Grande parade and this procession takes approximately an hour to get through its route. This event concludes the Grape and Wine Festival. [16] Volunteers collect food donations at the parade. [17] Historically, the parade had a Welland Labour Council union float. [18] A Caribbean-themed float was introduced in 1992. [19] The Lincoln and Welland Regiment Association Band performs in the parade each year. In 2023, the Canadian military formed a new policy prohibiting volunteer bands, so the band was renamed. [20]
St. Catharines is the most populous city in Canada's Niagara Region, the eighth largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2017, St. Catharines has an area of 96.13 square kilometres (37.12 sq mi) and 140,370 residents. It lies in Southern Ontario, 51 kilometres (32 mi) south of Toronto across Lake Ontario, and is 19 kilometres (12 mi) inland from the international boundary with the United States along the Niagara River. It is the northern entrance of the Welland Canal. Residents of St. Catharines are known as St. Catharinites. St. Catharines carries the official nickname "The Garden City" due to its 1,000 acres (4 km2) of parks, gardens, and trails.
Icewine is a type of dessert wine produced from grapes that have been frozen while still on the vine. The sugars and other dissolved solids do not freeze, but the water does, allowing for a more concentrated grape juice to develop. The grapes' must is then pressed from the frozen grapes, resulting in a smaller amount of more concentrated, very sweet juice. With icewines, the freezing happens before the fermentation, not afterwards. Unlike the grapes from which other dessert wines are made, such as Sauternes, Tokaji, or Trockenbeerenauslese, icewine grapes should not be affected by Botrytis cinerea or noble rot, at least not to any great degree. Only healthy grapes keep in good shape until the opportunity arises for an icewine harvest, which in extreme cases can occur after the New Year, on a northern hemisphere calendar. This gives icewine its characteristic refreshing sweetness balanced by high acidity. When the grapes are free of Botrytis, they are said to come in "clean". This results in a very complex and sweet wine. Much icewine is made from the grapes Riesling, Vidal, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, but there is also icewine made from Shiraz, Merlot, Sangiovese and others.
Welland is a city in the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Southern Ontario, Canada. As of 2021, it had a population of 55,750.
Thorold is a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Niagara Escarpment. It is also the seat of the Regional Municipality of Niagara. The Welland Canal passes through the city, featuring lock 7 and the Twin Flight Locks.
The Niagara Peninsula is an area of land lying between the southwestern shore of Lake Ontario and the northeastern shore of Lake Erie, in Ontario, Canada. Technically an isthmus rather than a peninsula, it stretches from the Niagara River in the east to Hamilton, Ontario, in the west. The peninsula is located in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario, and has a population of roughly 1,000,000 residents. The region directly across the Niagara River and Lake Erie in New York State is known as the Niagara Frontier.
The Regional Municipality of Niagara, also colloquially known as the Niagara Region or Region of Niagara, is a regional municipality comprising twelve municipalities of Southern Ontario, Canada. The regional seat is in Thorold. It is the southern end of the Golden Horseshoe, the largest megalopolis in Canada.
King's Highway 406, commonly referred to as Highway 406, is a 400-series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The primary north–south route through the central portion of the Niagara Peninsula, Highway 406 connects Welland, Thorold and downtown St. Catharines to the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW).
The Garden City Skyway is a major high-level bridge located in St. Catharines and Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada, that allows the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) to cross the Welland Canal without the interruption of a lift bridge. Six lanes of traffic are carried across the bridge, which is 2.2 kilometres (1.4 mi) in length and 40 metres (130 ft) at its tallest point.
The Welland House Hotel was a historic building located on 26-30 Ontario Street in Downtown St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The hotel spa resort was one of many in Upper Canada during the Victorian era. It closed in 1993. As of 2020, the site was in the process of being designated as a heritage site to prevent future demolition. Its last use was as a student residence, and then sat vacant. On July 12, 2021; it was destroyed in an early morning fire.
Downtown St. Catharines is the central business district of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It is defined by the city as the area between Highway 406 on the west and south, Geneva Street on the east until it reaches St. Paul Street then Welland Avenue north until it meets Niagara Street.
Inniskillin is a Canadian winery located in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. Inniskillin, which is mainly noted for its icewine production, has played an important pioneering role in the modern Canadian wine industry. Since 1994, Inniskillin also operates a winery in Okanagan, British Columbia in addition to its original location.
The Niagara College Teaching Winery (NCT), Canada's first commercial teaching winery, is located at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Campus of Niagara College within the Niagara Region of Ontario. Situated in the heart of Niagara wine country, the NCT is the centre for applied wine education for the Canadian wine industry. Officially opened in November 2002, the winery began production in 2001. With three on-site teaching and research vineyards, Winery and Viticulture students are taught the day-to-day responsibilities and inner workings of a winery, from planting grapes to selling wine. Students form teams dedicated to making a specific variety of wine. The Wine Business Management program provides students expertise in the business, retail, marketing and export aspects of the growing wine industry. The facility operates strictly on a non-profit, cost recovery basis with all revenue from sales re-invested into the winery program.
The St. Catharines General Hospital was a general hospital established in 1865 in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, serving the Niagara Region. First established as a general and marine cottage hospital, it moved to Queenston Street in 1870. The hospital closed on March 24, 2013 after the new Niagara Health System St. Catharines site opened on Fourth Avenue.
Montebello Park is a public park in downtown St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. It features a commemorative rose garden and an ornamental fountain. The focal point of the park is a historic band shell and pavilion used for festivals. The park and its pavilion are designated under the Ontario Heritage Act.
Niagara Transit (doing business as Niagara Region Transit) is a regional public transit system operating in the Niagara Region of Ontario. Initial service commenced on September 12, 2011, and consisted of inter-municipal routes. In January 2023, Niagara Region Transit assumed the operations of Welland Transit, Fort Erie Transit, St. Catharines Transit, and Niagara Falls Transit to form a single unified local transit service for the entire Niagara Region. Local fares are $3 for an adult customer.
Donald J.P. Ziraldo is a Canadian winemaker and businessman, and a Member of the Order of Canada. He and his partner Karl Kaiser have often been cited as two of the most important figures in Canadian wine history. He and Kaiser have been credited with starting the first winery in Canada since Prohibition as founders of Inniskillin Winery in Niagara, Canada.
Morningstar Mill is a 2.98-acre (1.21 ha) heritage site located in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The site includes the Morningstar Mill, a sawmill, the home of the Morningstar family, a barn used for blacksmith demonstrations, and the Decew Falls gorge along the Niagara Escarpment. The site is operated by the volunteer group Friends of Morningstar Mill and owned by the City of St. Catharines. The gristmill was restored to working condition in 1992.
Elections were held in the Niagara Region of Ontario on October 24, 2022, in conjunction with municipal elections across the province.
The St. Catharines Armoury is a Recognized Federal Heritage Building in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The building is currently used by the Canadian Armed Forces as a drill hall. The armoury trains the Lincoln and Welland Regiment and serves the 10th Battery of the 56th Field Artillery Regiment, RCA.
The St. Catharines Public Library is a public library system that provides service to residents of St. Catharines, Ontario. The library has four branches. Materials available for loan include books, films, musical instruments, and video games.
