My first visit to County Terroir was a huge success. Brimming with food and wine vendors, the Crystal Palace in Picton was transformed into a celebration of all things local. The enthusiastic vendors were happy to show off the best of the County.

Terroir is an opportunity to enjoy so much of what Prince Edward County has to offer, all in one place. And even though it was very busy, there was none of the claustrophobic feeling you can get at packed-to-the-rafters Toronto shows. Here, the vibe was laid back and fun, even while hundreds filtered through the various indoor and outdoor vendors.

I discovered new favourites from Rosehall Run and Closson Chase, revisited old favourites (hello, Lighthall Progression, I’ve missed you) and got an opportunity to chat with many of my favourite people from the County. 

And the food was plentiful and delicious. We enjoyed grilled cheese from Urban Herb, green pea cream soup from Agrarian and a wine-infused cupcake from Iced Cupcakery. There was so much more to enjoy and I took home a loaf from Humble Bread and bacon for Shawn from Seed to Sausage. 

Tyler explaining wine storage.

Each year, Terroir offers a number of seminars of interest to wine enthusiasts. This year’s line-up included some great sessions, but we only had time for one – Tyler Philp’s very informative session on wine storage. I picked up some fantastic tips that I look forward to trying out on my own growing collection. 

Three Dog Winery’s John Squair with their Doghouse White

This year for the first time, wineries were able to sell bottles directly to customers. This was because of the newly-launched program by the Ontario Government to allow wine sales at farmer’s markets. Because Terroir features even more local food vendors than wineries, they qualify under the new rules. This was a huge step forward and I was pleased to see many people walking out with bottles or cases of local wines. Kudos to the organizers for their hard work in securing this opportunity.

I’ve learned much during my time covering the Terroir Festival for the blog and I’m grateful to have had the chance to interview so many County wineries. I hope you enjoyed the series and that if you didn’t make it out to this year’s festival you’ll be there next year. It’s well worth a trip to the County.