Sainte-Famille Winery Annual Grape Stomp

This past sunny Saturday, a friend and I rented a car to drive to Falmouth in the Annapolis Valley. We were on our way to visit Sainte-Famille Winery for their 15th(!) Annual Grape Stomp. Owner Suzanne Corkcum remarked that they have done this event on the first Saturday of October for 15 years, and not once did they have a drop of rain. Dionysus must have his eye on this event.


The Grape Stomp featured three sets of stomps for adults, as well as a kiddie stomp in the afternoon. This event is a great way to spend the afternoon with local producers bringing in food to go along with Saint-Famille's products. It's a good laugh to see these grown adults dance around in a kiddie pool full of grapes. It's even better to see the smiles on their rosy cheeks, and know that they're having a blast as well.

This year's winner, appropriately enough, was the Winery Association's Team, coming in with 27 lbs of juice, not bad in my opinion! Here is a video to give you some idea as to the hilarity of the event. Yes, that's my cackle that you're hearing in the background.

Once we had out fill of the grape stomp, we took advantage of the vineyard tour which runs daily at 10 am and 2 pm. Corckum not only went through the wine-making process, but explained the history behind the grape varieties, as well as the origin of their names. She also allowed us to sample the grapes. These are much smaller than the grapes you see at the super market, and way more adorable. The white grapes were both tart and sweet, while the red had a distinctive jammy taste about them, making it almost definitive that they will turn out a lovely wine.

Sainte-Famille has a fairly large portfolio and are a well-loved producer by the locals. Making 18 different types of wines, they have something to appease every palate. As they are a smaller, boutique winery, Sainte-Famille does not sell their products at the NSLC, but simply on-site and at the Halifax Farmer's Market.

I got to try their two best sellers: 2005 Foch Reserve and 2006 L'Acadie Blanc. Perhaps these little guys will make their way into a bottle sometime soon...

Marechal Foch

L'Acadie Blanc

http://www.st-famille.com/