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	Tantalus Vineyards Tawse Winery

Vinland, the name supposedly given to Canada by the early expolorers.

It is possible that the reference is to any of the abundant berries in Newfoundland, including gooseberries or blueberries, which are both abundant near L'Anse-aux-Meadows (51°N) and are both suitable for winemaking. Blueberries look very much like small black Corinth grapes, although they grow on bushes very unlike grape vines.

It has been speculated that grapes did in fact grow in Newfoundland (47-51°N) in the past. The first recorded grapes were grown 2002, when a successful vineyard was established in Gambo, Newfoundland, 48°50'N.[3] The time period of the Vinland settlement corresponds with the Medieval Warm Period (from about the 10th century to about the 14th century). Water temperatures in the northern hemisphere during this time were up to 1°C warmer, allowing the planting of vineyards as far north as the coastal zones of the Baltic Sea (ca. 56°N) and southern England (ca. 51°N). There are vineyards at 54°N in Lancashire and Yorkshire, northern England.

It is interesting to note that in 1535, when Jacques Cartier came to map and document the atlantic coast of Canada in his second voyage, the explorer crossed the Strait of Belle-Isle (where L'Anse aux Meadows is found) and entered the Saint Lawrence River where he found plenty of grapevine ("vigne" in french) along the river. He gave also the name of Île de Bacchus to an island (now called Île d'Orléans near Quebec City) because of the abundance of wild grapes growing on it.

Wine Boy is pleased to continue the tradition of grape-growing in Canada by representing one of Niagara's premier winemakers, Tawse Winery.