Toronto’s Riverside presents Winefest Mar. 29-Apr. 3

Jennifer Lay —

riverside-fiFrom March 29 to April 3 Riverside restaurants, retailers and tourism ambassadors partner with Ontario wineries to celebrate local food, wine and shops.

From March 29th to April 3rd, get ready to experience an Ontario Wine Tour in your own backyard when award-winning wineries and growers from Prince Edward County, Niagara Wine Region, and Lake Erie North Shore come to Toronto for Riverside’s 2nd Annual WineFEST.

Sponsored by the Riverside Business Improvement Area (BIA), Ralph Thornton Centre, Boxcar Social and the Culinary Adventures Company, Riverside WineFEST will showcase 10 wineries and dozens of wines for 20+ events at venues along Riverside – Queen St East from the DVP to Empire Avenue.

Nearly two dozen participating Riverside restaurants and retailers will host everything from exclusive prix fixe wine pairing dinners to FREE wine tasting extravaganzas. Each event has its own twist based on the venue’s products or services, such as Quince Flowers’ ‘Wine Tasting & Discover Bouquets’ event and Untitled Hair Salon’s ‘Jazz, Wine & Hair’ evening.

The festival’s signature event is the FREE community Riverside Wine Expo hosted at The Ralph Thornton Centre (765 Queen St E, 2nd Fl) on April 2nd from 2-5pm. Highlights include:

  • Wine tasting from award-winning and new wineries: Three Dog Winery, Vineland Estates, Trail Estate Winery, 13th Street Winery, Kabaca Vineyards, and Broken Stone Winery
  • Premiere of “Riverside District”, a fine art photography collection by Robert Young sponsored by The Printing House
  • A cheese tasting and wine pairing talk by expert Fromager Cecilia Smith
  • Live music by Toronto artist Samantha Kate Sheppard
  • Canadian and international cheese platters by award-winning specialty shop Sandy Aleksander

Riverside WineFEST 2016 will be a fabulous celebration of award-winning Ontario wineries, local food and community. The event is special because it‘s a full week in which you can get to know Riverside businesses better while learning about and tasting high end local wines—and many of these events are free!”

Find out what’s in store and pre-register at Riverside Winefest via riverside-to.com.

About Riverside BIA

Just blocks east of Downtown Toronto, on the other side of the Don River valley and the busy parkway which bears its name, lies Riverside – a vibrant neighbourhood with a unique small town in the big city atmosphere that makes it a draw for residents and visitors alike. Best known for heritage buildings, award-winning restaurants, and the street that inspired the internationally renowned Degrassi TV series, Riverside’s attraction also lies in its artisans and community builders.