A lot has been written about the rise of food and drink experiences as a current travel trend, but the proof is always in the pudding. When I attended events at Niagara’s Icewine Festival two weekends ago, I saw what being on trend means. Despite a major snowstorm, people came in droves. Wineries were packed and events sold out. There were even “transformative eating spaces”, the latest 2020 trend on offer.

Niagara’s Icewine Festival is held over three weekends in January offering wine lovers, cocktail fans and foodies fabulous winter experiences, but it doesn’t end there. Many of the wineries, open year round to the public, continue on with more events, festivals and experiences every month.

While the Niagara Icewine Festival celebrated its 25th year in 2020, the story of Ontario icewine began over 35 years ago in Niagara-on-the-Lake when icewine pioneer, Karl Kaiser harvested his first crop at Inniskillin winery. Within three years of his first attempt, Inniskillin won gold for their icewine at an international competition and then in 1991 the illustrious Grand Prix d’Honneur at Vinexpo in Bordeaux, putting Canadian icewine permanently on the map. Niagara is now the largest and most awarded icewine producing region in the world. www.wineriesofniagaraonthelake.com

People come from all around to attend the festival and to sample our local icewine. This sweet nectar is particularly popular among Asians who can turn up by the bus load and almost mob a wine shop stocked with the product. However, on the weekend I was there people from a huge diversity of ethnic backgrounds were getting into the winter spirit.

One of the new experiences I enjoyed at this year’s festival was going into Peller Estate’s 10Below Icewine Lounge. It’s the conclusion to what the winery calls “The Greatest Winery Tour” ($35 per person). It’s like stepping into an igloo – the walls are constructed out of a mammoth 13,607 kilos of ice – those who are underdressed can borrow a Peller Estates parka. It’s kept at 10º below zero which happens to be the ideal temperature for harvesting icewine grapes. https://www.mywinecountry.com/on/greatest-winery-tour.html

Another cool experience this year was the skating rink at Wayne Gretzky Estates. At 50x100ft, the rink is almost half the size of an official NHL rink. A loonie provided by Wayne Gretzky is anchored into the concrete floor at center ice. People can rent skates on the spot while those who prefer to watch can hang out at the nearby outdoor whisky bar and sip cocktails. This estate also has a winery, distillery and brewery on site so there are lots of options for every taste. http://www.gretzkyestateswines.com/visit

It only took me a couple of minutes to walk from Gretzky Estates over to Trius Winery where they were cooking up beef hot dogs topped with icewine onion jam and serving them with Trius Vidal Icewine as part of the Discovery Pass experiences available in January. Trius has also recently upgraded and expanded upon their winery tour experience ($39 per person). It starts with a glass of rosé on an elevated hot pink vineyard perch, continues into the depths of Canada’s largest underground sparkling cellar and ends in their sparkling wine room where instagrammable settings such as their bubble tub are perfect for snapping a selfie. https://www.mywinecountry.com/on/the-trius-tour.html

Over at Reif Estates they were carving up a spit roasted pig and serving it with apple icewine sauce (delicious!) and their Vidal Icewine from their oldest vineyard blocks. The winery also offered their terrific icewine and food pairing experience, now in its tenth year and featured during the month of January ($40 pp). Tide and Vine restaurant in Niagara Falls provides the food – in this case salmon pate, lobster profiterole, dark chocolate brownie and blue cheese stuffed date – and Reif pairs each course with one of their special icewines including reserves from vintages such as 2002. https://reifwinery.com/events

My last visit was to Jackson Triggs for their Savour the Sights adventure. It took place in five different locations throughout the winery. At each stop we enjoyed a dish prepared by the estate’s sous chef Kayla Mudford paired with a wine. The theme was gourmet pub food so for example celeriac fries with Dijon remoulade was paired with Jackson Triggs Grand Reserve Sauvignon Blanc in the atrium and in the Barrel Cellar we had Sunday roast of braised short rib with Yorkshire pudding matched with Grand Reserve Merlot 2016. https://www.jacksontriggswinery.com/Vineyards/Niagara-Estate

I stayed the weekend at the historic Prince of Wales in Niagara-on-the-Lake. It’s part of Vintage Hotels and they were offering special icewine weekend getaway packages. Here too the place was packed, their bar was hopping with live music and their restaurant doing a fine business. www.vintage-hotels.com

Over in Niagara Falls, the Snow Globe Soirée Series had launched at the edge of the Falls. This new pop-up is the latest trend – a transformative eating experience under a heated transparent Snow Globe. In the cozy space perched along the promenade overlooking Niagara Falls, people enjoyed a meal paired with Niagara wines. The series continues Thursday – Sundays until February 16. https://niagarawinefestival.com/icewine#iw-sgs

Niagara is right on trend with activities that turn into gold and golden nectar. Next up are Days of Wine and Chocolate in February.