KENTVILLE, N.S. — Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, officially opened a research winery at the Kentville Research and Development Centre in Nova Scotia last week. The facility will help the region’s grape growers and vintners hone their production techniques to take full advantage of the province’s unique soils and growing conditions.
“Nova Scotia is one of Canada’s great emerging wine regions. This new research winery will use science to help grape growers and vintners explore the full potential of wine making in the province and further solidify Canada’s reputation for quality wines in the global marketplace,” says MacAulay. “By investing in agriculture here in Nova Scotia and across Canada, the Government will continue to grow the economy and create jobs for our middle class.”
The $1.8 million winery is part of a wine-research program that includes eight scientists, a vineyard and an on-going research project to map the grape varieties, growing techniques and conditions of every vineyard in Nova Scotia. The lab will complement the leading-edge wine research program at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Summerland Research and Development Centre in B.C.
At the Kentville facility, researchers will also study winemaking techniques, working with commercial wineries to evaluate the impact of fermentation and temperatures on the quality of wine. This will include the identification and use of natural yeasts found in Nova Scotia that could contribute to unique characteristics in the province’s wine profiles.
In 2018, the province’s 23 licensed wineries produced 1.5-million litres of wine valued at over $23 million.
