Hernder Estate Wines is a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 winery

Winery

A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, bottling lines, laboratories, and large expanses of...

 located in Niagara Peninsula

Niagara Peninsula

The Niagara Peninsula is the portion of Southern Ontario, Canada lying between the south shore of Lake Ontario and the north shore of Lake Erie. It stretches from the Niagara River in the east to Hamilton, Ontario in the west. The population of the peninsula is roughly 1,000,000 people...

, Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

.

History

The Hernder family is in its third generation of viticulture

Viticulture

Viticulture is the science, production and study of grapes which deals with the series of events that occur in the vineyard. When the grapes are used for winemaking, it is also known as viniculture...

 and is one of the largest family estate winery operations in Canada. Gottfried Hernder emigrated from Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 to Western Canada

Western Canada

Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces and commonly as the West, is a region of Canada that includes the four provinces west of the province of Ontario.- Provinces :...

. In 1939, the family moved to St. Catharines, Ontario

St. Catharines, Ontario

St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in Ontario, Canada, with 97.11 square kilometres of land...

, to a mixed fruit farm that included acreage of indigenous grapes. After the passing of his father, Fred Hernder purchased the family farm in 1968, and began the acquisition of others. Fred Hernder began selling grapes, juice, and winemaking supplies to the growing home market as well as wineries.

In the late 1980s Fred Hernder replanted his acreage with classic Vitis Vinifera

Vitis vinifera

Vitis vinifera is a species of Vitis, native to the Mediterranean region, central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern Iran....

 and French Hybrid

Hybrid grapes

Hybrid grapes are grape varieties that are the product of a crossing of two or more Vitis species. This is in contrast to crossings between grape varieties of the same species, typically Vitis vinifera, the European grapevine. Hybrid grapes are also referred to as inter-specific crossings...

 varieties. This launched Hernder Estate Wines. The first vintage in 1991 consisted of 7,000 bottles of Vidal. On September 17, 1993, Hernder Estate Wines officially opened to the public.

Current production

Hernder Estate Wines presently produces more than 25 varieties of V.Q.A.

Vintners Quality Alliance

Vintners Quality Alliance, or VQA, is a regulatory and appellation system which guarantees the high quality and authenticity of origin for Canadian wines made under that system in British Columbia and Ontario. It is similar to regulatory systems in France , Italy , and Germany...

 (Vintners Quality Alliance) wines from its 500 acres (2 km²) of land spread between St. Catharines and Beamsville

Beamsville, Ontario

The community of Beamsville is part of the town of Lincoln in the province of Ontario in Canada. It is located along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and lies within the fruit belt of the Niagara Peninsula...

. Current plantings focus on traditional Vitis Vinifera varieties including Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Pinot Gris. Other varieties include varieties suited to cool climate such as Vidal, Baco Noir and Maréchel Foch. Hernder Estate Wines also produces fruit wines and Iced Fruit Wines, utilizing Ontario fruits. All Hernder table wines are produced from 100% Ontario grapes, and all have attained the V.Q.A. status.

Awards

Hernder Estate Wines has won multiple awards from competitions such as Toronto Wine and Cheese Show; Ottawa Wine & Food Show; Chardonnay du Monde; Ontario Wine Awards; All-Canadian Wine Championship; Intervin 2003; and Canadian Wine Awards.
Herdner's riesling is its most decorated variety, although several other varieties have also earned accolades.