Sampling Wineries in the Eastern Townships of Quebec-Part 2

By Keith and Heather Nicol  

      Sunday June 16 dawned sunny but the forecast was for rain to roll in by noon. We started the day

Heather cycling along one of Bromont's many trails

with an amazing 4 course breakfast at Auberge Spa Le Madrigal.  Only in Quebec  would you have a chocolate crepe for a breakfast dessert! Very tasty. Next we headed for UBAC bike rentals (www.ubac.ca ) where we had reserved 2 bikes to try the extensive bike trails in Bromont. We shortened our planned bike trip since we wanted to check out the Chocolate Museum and get to our first winery before the weather deteriorated. The trail started right next the UBAC bike shop and we got the feeling that biking is popular in Bromont since the trail was getting lots of use from families with young kids to riders in racing tights. The Chocolate Museum turned out to be a popular restaurant as well as gift store and museum. We bought some dark chocolate for the road and then headed east toward

The Chocolate Museum is well worth a visit

Magog. We arrived at the Vignoble Le Cap D’Argent (http://cepdargent.com/)  just as the clouds began to darken. There we met Jean Emond who gave a short tour outside before the rain began in earnest. “Lets go and taste some wine” he told us with a grin as we headed back indoors. They have 15 acres under vine and Jean told us that they have been producing wine since 1988 making them one of the oldest wineries in the region. “We make 12 different wines and our most popular is Fleur de Lys which is a white wine with a touch of black current. I don’t know anyone else that is producing this type of wine so we are very proud of it” he told us. 

Jean Emond showed us some of the old wine making equipment

      The rain was now pelting down as we headed to La Halte des Pelerines (http://www.halte-pelerine.com/) which is located near Sherbrooke. There we met Genevieve Chabot who told us about their winery which began in 2008. They have 15 acres planted with vines and they produce 9 wines. She told us their semi sweet white wine is very popular in the Quebec liquor stores and that they produce a red ice wine which is unusual in Quebec. “We also want to be family friendly so we have a playground and activities for children” she told us. We enjoyed local cheeses and meats while we sipped their various white, red and ice wines. This is certainly a great way to appreciate locally produced food and wine. 

The Halte des Pelerins offers a variety of wine tasting options

    That night we stayed in the luxurious Sherbrooke Delta Hotel (https://www.deltahotels.com/Hotels/Delta-Sherbrooke-Hotel-Conference-Centre) and enjoyed a fine meal of salmon and veal at their restaurant. A real treat was their maple fudge for dessert which seemed to melt in your mouth. We noticed that in Quebec local food is very important and their chefs enjoy making the most of it. We really enjoyed our visit to the Eastern Townships and can’t wait to return. For more information see: http://www.easterntownships.org/. 

We enjoyed our stay at the conveniently located Delta Hotel in Sherbrooke

     

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