Quebec wine is wine made in the province of Quebec. The grape varieties grown in Quebec, both white and red, all have common qualities needed by the harshness of the winter season, including resistance to winter temperatures, resistance to spring freezes and being early ripening. Some 40 varieties are grown in Quebec, with the most commonly planted being Maréchal Foch, Frontenac, De Chaunac, Vidal and Seyval blanc.
When French explorer Jacques Cartier sailed the St. Lawrence River, he noted the presence of wild grapes (Vitis riparia) on Île d'Orléans and for this reason named it Île de Bacchus, in honour of the Roman God of wine and drunkenness.[4] In 1608, when Samuel de Champlain settled the site where Quebec City would later flourish, he planted French vines (Vitis vinifera) and discovered that they did not resist the winter very well. Small productions were nonetheless tried here and there over the years and in the 18th century, the inhabitants of the French colony were in the habit of making wine out of the wild grapes and other fruits. While the production remained small, the import of wine bottles from France was quite important (775,166 bottles in 1739 for an above-15 population of only 24 260 persons).[4]
Following the conquest of French Canada by the British army in 1760, imports of French wine depleted quickly, as Great Britain's colonial policy favoured trade within the British Empire. Spirits (whisky, gin, rum, etc.) thus became the dominant type of alcohol being consumed by Quebecers and remained so until the late 19th century when trade relations between Canada and France were revived as a result of the British adoption of laissez faire.[4]
In 1864, the Quebec government tried to encourage wine production in the province through subsidies. Wild grapes were again tried as well as hybrid varieties from the United States. The emerging industry went through important difficulties, not the least of which was the temperance movement trying to reduce the consumption of alcohol altogether and by the 1920s succeeding at prohibiting alcohol in the United States and all provinces of Canada. Despite the will of Quebecers, who voted at 81.1% against prohibition in the September 29, 1898 Canadian-wide referendum on the subject, the Parliament of Quebec enacted a law of total prohibition, which became effective on May 1, 1919. Shortly after, a Quebec-wide referendum was held in which Quebecers voted the exclusion of beer, wine, and cider from the prohibition list. Quebec remained the sole region of North America to escape total prohibition.[5]
20th century to modern day
In 1921, an Alcoholic Beverages Act was passed and the Commission des liqueurs du Québec was established to conduct the trade of beer, wine and cider, and eventually spirits too. This state-owned corporation would then on exercise a legal monopoly on all distribution of alcohol in Quebec, which it still enjoys today (though the corporation now bears the name of Société des alcools du Québec).[5]
With the diversification of Quebecers' alcohol consumption habits ultimately came a demand for local products. In the 1970s, some farmers began experimenting with hybrid varieties, both white and red. Early successes at developing quality products, prompted many others to follow and the 1980s and 1990s saw the burgeoning of numerous vineyards all over southern Quebec.
In 1987, the first few Quebec wine growers formed an association. The successes of some of its members ultimately caught the attention of the French and in 1995, the Association des Vignerons du Québec and the Syndicat viticole des Graves et Graves supérieures of the Bordeaux region united in a professional partnership.[6]
Climate and geography
The St. Lawrence river valley, south of the province, is a fertile region where wild grapes and other fruits grow naturally and abundantly. However, the four-month-long winter of this humid continental climate zone freezes the land deep enough that most varieties of European vines do not survive. In the 1980s, Quebec wine growers started planting varieties known for their resistance to below-zero temperatures and in certain cases made use of modern techniques to heat up the soil during the coldest days of winter.[7] Quebec wine makers have 6 months to accomplish what in warmer wine regions takes 11 to 12 months to do.
Grape varieties
The vine varieties that seem to grow the best in Quebec are those of the Northern France, Germany, and North-Eastern United States. Some 40 varieties are grown in Quebec, with the most commonly planted being, for red wine, Sainte-Croix, Maréchal Foch, Frontenac, Sabrevois and De Chaunac, and for white wine, Vidal, Seyval blanc, L'Acadie blanc, Vandal-Cliche and Geisenheim. In 2008, vines used in red wine made up 60% of the total planted area.[1]
^ abcAVQ. "", in the site Association des Vignerons du Québec, retrieved September 25, 2008
^QWA. "Grape varietals in Québec October 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine", in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association, retrieved September 25, 2008
^QWA. "Wineries and vineyards October 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine", in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ abcQWA. "Quebec's wine history October 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine", in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association, retrieved September 25, 2008
^ abSAQ. "80 Years... With Pleasure!", on the site SAQ.com, retrieved September 25, 2008
^QWA. "About the Association October 16, 2008, at the Wayback Machine", in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association, retrieved October 18, 2008
^L'Orpailleur. "Growing, Soil & Climat", in the site L'Orpailleur, retrieved September 25, 2008
Further reading
In French
Aloir-Roy, Andrée-Nathalie (2004). Rendement du Seyval blanc dans un vignoble du Québec suite à l'essai de protections hivernales de neige artificielle, de neige naturelle et de feuilles, Sherbrooke: Département de géographie et télédétection (U de S), 143 p.
SAQ (2002). Terroirs d'ici, Montréal: Société des alcools du Québec, 203 p.
Aloir-Roy, Andrée-Nathalie et al. (2001). Variabilité des sols et stratégie d'échantillonnage dans les vignobles : cas du vignoble Sous les charmilles à Rock Forest, Québec, Sherbrooke: Département de géographie et télédétection (U de S), 85 p.
Le Cours, Rudy (1998). À la découverte des vins et des boissons artisanales du Québec : vins, cidres, hydromels, boissons de petits fruits et de sève d'érable, Montréal: Éditions de l'Homme, 187 p. (ISBN2-7619-1424-4)
Dubois, Jean-Marie and Laurent Deshaies (1997). Guide des vignobles du Québec : sur la route des vins , Sainte-Foy: PUL IG, 297 p. (ISBN2-7637-7512-8)
Béraud, Huguette and Thierry Debeur (1995). La route des vignobles du Québec, Brossard: T. Debeur, 96 p. (ISBN2921377152)
External links
Web site of the Quebec Winegrowers Association (QWA)
"SAQ at a glance 80 Years... With Pleasure!", in the site of the Société des alcools du Québec
August 23, 2023
quebec, wine, wine, made, province, quebec, grape, varieties, grown, quebec, both, white, have, common, qualities, needed, harshness, winter, season, including, resistance, winter, temperatures, resistance, spring, freezes, being, early, ripening, some, variet. Quebec wine is wine made in the province of Quebec The grape varieties grown in Quebec both white and red all have common qualities needed by the harshness of the winter season including resistance to winter temperatures resistance to spring freezes and being early ripening Some 40 varieties are grown in Quebec with the most commonly planted being Marechal Foch Frontenac De Chaunac Vidal and Seyval blanc QuebecWine regionOfficial nameQuebecTypeCanadian provinceYear established1867Years of wine industry1970s grapes grown since 1608 CountryCanadaSub regionsBasses Laurentides Lanaudiere Quebec Monteregie Eastern Townships Centre du QuebecTotal area1 542 056 km Size of planted vineyards249 3 ha 1 Varietals producedwhite Adalmiina Cayuga Chardonnay Delisle Eona Geisenheim Hibernal Kay Gray Muscat New York Muscat Prairie Star Riesling Saint Pepin Seyval blanc Vandal Cliche Vidal Red Baco noir Cabernet Franc Cabernet Sauvignon Severnyi Chambaudiere Chambourcin Chancellor De Chaunac Frontenac Gamay Landal noir Landot noir Leon Millot Lucie Kuhlmann Marechal Foch Merlot Mitchurinetz Pinot noir Pionnier Radisson Sabrevois Sainte Croix Seyval noir 2 No of wineries49 3 Wine produced234 1 Quebec wine makers have developed a large array of products including dry semi dry and fortified wines including Vin doux naturel styles Additionally the region produces ice wines late harvest wines sparkling wines and fruit wines Quebec counts six regions where vines are cultivated They are the Eastern Townships Monteregie Quebec Basses Laurentides Lanaudiere and Centre du Quebec Contents 1 History 1 1 20th century to modern day 2 Climate and geography 3 Grape varieties 4 See also 5 References 6 Further reading 7 External linksHistory EditWhen French explorer Jacques Cartier sailed the St Lawrence River he noted the presence of wild grapes Vitis riparia on Ile d Orleans and for this reason named it Ile de Bacchus in honour of the Roman God of wine and drunkenness 4 In 1608 when Samuel de Champlain settled the site where Quebec City would later flourish he planted French vines Vitis vinifera and discovered that they did not resist the winter very well Small productions were nonetheless tried here and there over the years and in the 18th century the inhabitants of the French colony were in the habit of making wine out of the wild grapes and other fruits While the production remained small the import of wine bottles from France was quite important 775 166 bottles in 1739 for an above 15 population of only 24 260 persons 4 Following the conquest of French Canada by the British army in 1760 imports of French wine depleted quickly as Great Britain s colonial policy favoured trade within the British Empire Spirits whisky gin rum etc thus became the dominant type of alcohol being consumed by Quebecers and remained so until the late 19th century when trade relations between Canada and France were revived as a result of the British adoption of laissez faire 4 In 1864 the Quebec government tried to encourage wine production in the province through subsidies Wild grapes were again tried as well as hybrid varieties from the United States The emerging industry went through important difficulties not the least of which was the temperance movement trying to reduce the consumption of alcohol altogether and by the 1920s succeeding at prohibiting alcohol in the United States and all provinces of Canada Despite the will of Quebecers who voted at 81 1 against prohibition in the September 29 1898 Canadian wide referendum on the subject the Parliament of Quebec enacted a law of total prohibition which became effective on May 1 1919 Shortly after a Quebec wide referendum was held in which Quebecers voted the exclusion of beer wine and cider from the prohibition list Quebec remained the sole region of North America to escape total prohibition 5 20th century to modern day Edit In 1921 an Alcoholic Beverages Act was passed and the Commission des liqueurs du Quebec was established to conduct the trade of beer wine and cider and eventually spirits too This state owned corporation would then on exercise a legal monopoly on all distribution of alcohol in Quebec which it still enjoys today though the corporation now bears the name of Societe des alcools du Quebec 5 With the diversification of Quebecers alcohol consumption habits ultimately came a demand for local products In the 1970s some farmers began experimenting with hybrid varieties both white and red Early successes at developing quality products prompted many others to follow and the 1980s and 1990s saw the burgeoning of numerous vineyards all over southern Quebec In 1987 the first few Quebec wine growers formed an association The successes of some of its members ultimately caught the attention of the French and in 1995 the Association des Vignerons du Quebec and the Syndicat viticole des Graves et Graves superieures of the Bordeaux region united in a professional partnership 6 Climate and geography EditThe St Lawrence river valley south of the province is a fertile region where wild grapes and other fruits grow naturally and abundantly However the four month long winter of this humid continental climate zone freezes the land deep enough that most varieties of European vines do not survive In the 1980s Quebec wine growers started planting varieties known for their resistance to below zero temperatures and in certain cases made use of modern techniques to heat up the soil during the coldest days of winter 7 Quebec wine makers have 6 months to accomplish what in warmer wine regions takes 11 to 12 months to do Grape varieties EditThe vine varieties that seem to grow the best in Quebec are those of the Northern France Germany and North Eastern United States Some 40 varieties are grown in Quebec with the most commonly planted being for red wine Sainte Croix Marechal Foch Frontenac Sabrevois and De Chaunac and for white wine Vidal Seyval blanc L Acadie blanc Vandal Cliche and Geisenheim In 2008 vines used in red wine made up 60 of the total planted area 1 See also EditBeer in Quebec Quebec cider British Columbia wine Ontario wine Nova Scotia wine Cuisine of QuebecReferences Edit a b c AVQ Statistiques vini viticoles in the site Association des Vignerons du Quebec retrieved September 25 2008 QWA Grape varietals in Quebec Archived October 16 2008 at the Wayback Machine in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association retrieved September 25 2008 QWA Wineries and vineyards Archived October 16 2008 at the Wayback Machine in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association retrieved September 25 2008 a b c QWA Quebec s wine history Archived October 16 2008 at the Wayback Machine in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association retrieved September 25 2008 a b SAQ 80 Years With Pleasure on the site SAQ com retrieved September 25 2008 QWA About the Association Archived October 16 2008 at the Wayback Machine in the site Quebec Winegrowers Association retrieved October 18 2008 L Orpailleur Growing Soil amp Climat in the site L Orpailleur retrieved September 25 2008Further reading EditIn French Aloir Roy Andree Nathalie 2004 Rendement du Seyval blanc dans un vignoble du Quebec suite a l essai de protections hivernales de neige artificielle de neige naturelle et de feuilles Sherbrooke Departement de geographie et teledetection U de S 143 p SAQ 2002 Terroirs d ici Montreal Societe des alcools du Quebec 203 p Aloir Roy Andree Nathalie et al 2001 Variabilite des sols et strategie d echantillonnage dans les vignobles cas du vignoble Sous les charmilles a Rock Forest Quebec Sherbrooke Departement de geographie et teledetection U de S 85 p Le Cours Rudy 1998 A la decouverte des vins et des boissons artisanales du Quebec vins cidres hydromels boissons de petits fruits et de seve d erable Montreal Editions de l Homme 187 p ISBN 2 7619 1424 4 Dubois Jean Marie and Laurent Deshaies 1997 Guide des vignobles du Quebec sur la route des vins Sainte Foy PUL IG 297 p ISBN 2 7637 7512 8 Beraud Huguette and Thierry Debeur 1995 La route des vignobles du Quebec Brossard T Debeur 96 p ISBN 2921377152 External links EditWeb site of the Quebec Winegrowers Association QWA SAQ at a glance 80 Years With Pleasure in the site of the Societe des alcools du Quebec Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Quebec wine amp oldid 1061135989, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
