By: Joanna Nemes
Photos By: Joanna Nemes
Taking my first sip from a glass half filled with Tidal Bay wine, I’m struck by the way its taste compares to the weather outside. From the comfort of the cosy tasting room at Lightfoot & Wolfville, I am watching how the cold gusts of wind disturbs the fairy lights hanging over the patio. Beyond it, the L’Acadie Blanc vines stretch downhill, all the way to the shore of the Bay of Fundy, where the tide is coming back fast. Another sip, and the acidity of the wine hits my taste buds the same way the chilly breeze makes my body shiver. Steve Lee, the director of operations of the vineyard brings me a plate of oysters and a clams pizza – their chef’s choice dish to pair the wine with. We are going to chat about Tidal Bay.
“Lightfoot & Wolfville. Lightfoot is the family name and Wolfville is the place, so literally a celebration of people and place which we feel it’s best expressed through the terroir here, on the Minas Basin where we find ourselves.” says Steve.
The tide of the Bay of Fundy is the reason why the 8th generation agricultures Lightfoot family is able to grow vinifera here. The constant breeze cools the vines down in the heat of summer and moderates the temperature in wintertime. The 50 feet tide, which is the highest in the world, is also responsible for watering the vines, which makes this terroir so unique.
It’s Tidal Bay that brought me back to Nova Scotia. Like many other moments from my first journey to The Maritimes, the encounter with Tidal Bay was almost accidental and it may not have happened at all if I wouldn’t have spotted Grand Pré vineyard on my route. You see, I was in a hurry to reach Digby before sunset. But that fateful moment introduced me to Tidal Bay, and it was fascination at first sight.
Tidal Bay is an appellation wine produced by multiple vineyards in the Annapolis Valley under the same name. But no two Tidal Bays are the same because whilst there are strict rules that the blend must adhere to in order to bear the name, the winemakers have quite a bit of creative freedom to play with when it comes to its flavour. In spring every vineyard must submit a blind sample of wine to a panel of judges, and only if it ticks all the checkpoints, are they allowed to use the Tidal Bay name.
Tidal Bay must be made from grapes grown in Nova Scotia, with 51% composed of primary varieties: L’Acadie Blanc, Seyval Blanc, Vidal and Geisenheim 318. Secondary grape varieties are optional, and can be combined to up to 49%. However, there is also a tertiary optional 15% that can be included in the blend, which are mostly aromatic varieties. The maximum alcohol percentage permitted in Tidal Bay is 11%.
“We shot for the vision of the lemon wedge with your fish and chips – that has always been our inspiration with the style. Whenever we’re thinking about Tidal Bay, we’re always thinking about how it’s going to pair with seafood and what kind of role it plays at the dinner table. For us, when we’re thinking about a white wine that comes with seafood, our first go to was the classic two piece fish and chips and a nice lemon wedge just to cut through all that. So we always wanted a dry white that had these kind of more citrus focused properties that would complement really well.” reflects Adam Boyd, sommelier at Benjamin Bridge Vineyard.
Nova Scotia’s largest ambassador came together as a project to promote the Maritime Province beyond its already existing lobster legacy. It’s “Nova Scotia in a glass”, locals say, because of how its refreshing taste and low alcohol reflects the land, climate and culture of Nova Scotia. Tidal Bay is light, crisp, aromatic and fresh.
“Tidal Bay is the best thing that happened to the Nova Scotia wine industry”, Jürg Stutz, the winemaker from Grand Pré vineyard tells me. “I just love the concept of the Tidal Bay and the whole idea behind it. It really brought the industry together as well. And it’s something that we can push together and promote together. I’m sure that for most of the vineyards it is in the top 3 selling products and the same for us, it’s the top selling product for sure.”
L’Acadie Blanc is a relatively unknown grape, Jürg Stutz mentions. It’s a grape with a high acidity developed in Ontario and brought to Nova Scotia because it couldn’t adapt to that climate. Here though, it bloomed under the warm sun of the Annapolis Valley. “We have a lot of varieties that people are not familiar with, like L’Acadie Blanc, Seyval Blanc, New York Muscat, Vidal, and Ortega. A lot of people have never heard of these varieties. It’s a bit challenging promoting and selling them, but on the other hand no doubt it’s a big adventure as well because people do want to try something different, something new.”
No matter which vineyard you go to for a tasting, always start with the individual wines that make Tidal Bay. At Grand Pré, the 2023 L’Acadie is delicate and subtle, whilst still fully dry, with a high citrusy acidity but a refined fruit forward note of peaches and apples. Tidal Bay gets its sweetness from Ortega, which is an old world German variety that thrives in Nova Scotia. It has a little bit of grassiness to it, with stone fruit notes and a higher acidity, with 7.5 grams of residual sugar that takes the wine over the dry line. The main event of every tasting is Tidal Bay, which brings all those individual flavours together, capturing Nova Scotia in a glass. The first sip is sweet, peachy and lightly floral, very well balanced, with the crisp acidity hitting at the end.
Many of the vineyards in the Annapolis Valley remain open over winter, offering sommelier-led tastings in cosy panoramic rooms or warm cellars, strolls through the vines, dining and accommodation on site. In most cases, except for dining and overnight stays, you don’t even need to book in advance, just pop in during the visiting hours. You can also opt for a unique tour that will elevate the wine tasting experience, such as a private vintage car ride or the magic double decker bus which runs all winter long.
