There Once Was A Baby Duck….

CAN WE TALK?

If you thought I was going to talk about all the farms here in Beamsville you weren’t drinking wine in the 70’s.  This iconic Ontario wine was hands down the drink of choice for underage drinkers in the decade of disco. Surprisingly also those of legal drinking age enjoyed this fizzy concoction as well. In fact, Baby Duck which was produced by Andres Wine, was the best selling domestic wine in that decade.  You may be thinking why the hell would Andres try to pass this fizzy fermented grape juice off as wine??   A few reasons….

1) Wine making in Canada was in it’s infancy and Labrusca grapes were still the grape of choice. In other words Concord grapes… as in Welch’s grape jam! 

2) At 7% alcohol, Andres paid a lower tax and could produce inexpensive wine. 

Maybe I shouldn’t be judgy because this could be the inspiration behind the “coolers” of today.

So hopefully we have learned from our mistakes and I believe we most definitely have cuz we have many Ontario wines that can give old world wines a run for their money.  If the last wine you tried from the Niagara Peninsula was Baby Duck then I really think you should stay locked up in that little box you’re in!  The Ontario wine industry has evolved into an award winning region that deserves a new look.

Or, if the last time you had Ontario wine was in the 70’s, then please remove that cork from your ass and realize that these wines have grown up as hopefully you have. There are over 50 wineries in the Niagara Escarpment alone and with a fond farewell to Labrusca wine and the arrival of the vinis vinifera varietals, our wine industry can make us proud!

I want to hear from you.  What were the wines you first remember drinking?

Catherine and The Travelling Vines