Home / Taste / Food and Drink / TOtimes TASTINGS: Wine, Whisky and Wellbeing – Tawse Winery

TOtimes TASTINGS: Wine, Whisky and Wellbeing – Tawse Winery

Enjoying a glass of sweet, crisp Pinot Grigio, while taking in the intoxicating scent of the surrounding flora beneath the beaming sunshine, as birds sing in harmony with the wind against the trees and the trickle of a fountain. This is the sort of tranquility and beauty that inspires writers and artists alike. In this case, it also inspires the winemakers at Tawse Winery. I am sitting here in the winery’s beautiful garden in Vineland, Ontario taking it all in, reflecting on the amazing time I had just spent with an incredibly kind knowledgeable woman, Vicki Smyth. She is the director of sales and marketing here at Tawse Winery.

Located just an hour and a bit, almost directly south of Toronto, the surrounding grounds at Tawse provide a host of eye-pleasing scenery. Row upon row of vineyard trail off into the distance and you can see the green vines with fruit that will soon become the promised treasure, for the seasoned and the novice alike. The horizon meets the blue waters of Lake Ontario pointing out towards Toronto’s world famous skyline.

I had contacted Vicki on the off chance that she could spend some time to speak with me and share her knowlege on this beautiful winery. It is summer after all, one of busiest times of year for wineries outside of harvest season. Not only did she graciously agree, but I had the pleasure of walking the grounds with her and getting a personal tour of the facility. I even got to meet Donkey, the ‘pet’ donkey. Donkey is the protector of the sheep that live on the grounds. He protects them from the coyotes and any other threat that might be looming in the shadows.

I am inquisitive by nature – I love to know the history and interesting facts about places, so naturally I had a ton of questions for Vicki.

If you allow me to take a moment to talk about some of the great things I learned from her, I am positive you will put Tawse Winery on your “Must Visit” list.

I’m going to be honest with you, I am not an expert on wineries, vineyards or even wine for that matter, but I do enjoy learning about the process of it all. I do enjoy a glass of wine.

A few interesting facts about Tawse Winery, the owner, Moray Tawse, owns two wineries. The sister winery is called Redstone Winery & Restaurant. Its name is inspired by the red clay soil and large rocks on the property. The menu at Redstone consists of both seasonal and regional dishes. All organically grown.

Vicki filled me in on a lot of interesting information and some cool facts about this property, however, a fact that had me standing a little taller, a bit prouder, was the fact that this winery is a female led company. The vintner (wine maker), vineyard manager, and sales director – three of the main roles at a winery – are all women, quite rare in this male-dominated industry.

Tawse is more than a winery

As you may have gathered from the title, Tawse is more than just a great winery. In fact, it was my love of whisky that originally prompted me to contact Vicki. I later found out that Tawse produces many spirits as well, such as whisky, vodka, gin, vermouth and bitters.

The spirits are all hand bottled, and I of course had to taste the Tawse Whisky. In case you are not familiar with how this works, in order to be classified as Canadian Whisky, it must by law, be aged in oak barrels for a minimum of three years. The Tawse Whisky is aged the three years, then it actually undergoes an extra 15-month process, all while, conveniently in Pinot Noir oak barrels.

Tawse introduced Whisky in 2019 and it is only sold in select LCBO outlets, so you will have to come to the winery to get your bottle. While you’re at it, pick up a bottle for your Whisky loving friend.

The Whisky introduces the palate to a light, sweet caramel flavour with a hint of citrus. The Pinot Noir is there, but ever so slightly in my opinion.

What did I think of it? I liked it, even though typically I am a Bourbon drinker. Tasw whisky is smooth and sweet, with character and personality. Drop an ice cube in the glass with a two-finger shot of Tawse whisky, and sip away. It’s a sipping whisky for sure.

There is so much information I want to share with you about this winery, but just in case some of you reading this aren’t as interested in detail as I am, I will give you the quick rundown of why you should add Tawse Winery to your must-visit list.

Final Thoughts

Open seven days a week, Tawse has live acoustic music on weekends. They are eco friendly, and they offer great wine tasting flights. If you are like me and want to learn a bit more about the process, you can book a wine tasting tour or a private tour.

Speaking of private tours, if you really want to impress your friends or clients (or even your date) book a private tour in “The Cage” or the vintage library. If you can, book it with Dan, the Retail Manager. Seriously, great guy and has a lot of fun giving the Vintage Tour.

All the staff here are amazing! Not only are they friendly and offer best in class customer service, but they are also quite knowledgeable.

Ask for Sasha and book a wine tasting with him. He was a great host and seemed like his goal was to give his customers the best experience possible.

What wines did I have while visiting?

I had a taste of the 2017 Heritage Red. I love big bold flavours. This one is dry and 0 sugar, so it was a great choice for me. I also had the Pinot Grigio (white) – my all time go-to.

Bring a friend or a group of friends, or heck, come by yourself and enjoy the grounds and the great wine.

Tawse Winery- a yes in my books!

Tawse Winery

3955 Cherry Ave,

Vineland, ON