Celebration for new vineyard, growers association in Bristol

Celebration for new vineyard, growers association in Bristol

A new vineyard was christened on the Sixth Line in Bristol this past Thursday (June 29), with a “cinq à sept” attended by local officials and fellow vine growers.

Cynthia Case, who co-owns “Le Domaine de la Belle & le Gentleman” with her husband Frédéric Gagnon, explained that they currently harvest organic vegetables on their farm, but the vineyard is the next step in their plans for the property. She explained that she and Gagnon had developed their love for wine-making at a small vineyard in France where they spent some time following her university graduation. After a stint in Baie-Comeau on Quebec’s Côte-Nord, they recently settled in the Pontiac with their three children and dove into the world of organic agriculture.

The nearly 3,000 vines that they’re planting this summer will take several years before they’re suitable for wine production, and Case said that they’ve been preparing the soil for more than a year.

The event also served as the inauguration for the Pontiac Vine Growers Association, which will promote the sharing of tools and expertise, as well as pool resources for marketing. They currently have around eight members from different corners of the region, most of whom were in attendance.

Scott Judd, co-owner of the Little Red Wagon Winery in Clarendon, explained that he, his wife Jennifer, along with Case, Gagnon and Trefor Munn-Venn of Leystone Farms in Luskville, were attending VitiNord (an international conference for winemakers in northern climates) in Burlington, Vermont last year when they hatched the plan. He said he sees the association as a support system for the fledgling industry in the Pontiac region, summing up the group’s ethos with the impromptu slogan “no vine left behind”.

The full interview with Case (7m30) is available here.