Message Board - BigPumpkins.com


Select Destination			Site Search

Message Board

General Discussion

Subject: Niagara

General Discussion

Return to Board List

From

Location

Message

Date Posted

Alun J

Liverpool , England

Just had confirmation on my flight for Niagara seminar. Flying in late Thursday so I get to look around for a day.. ...yahoo...can't wait to meet you guys and gals.

2/18/2004 6:32:18 AM

kilrpumpkins

Western Pa.

Believe me Alun, there's a LOT to see and do there!

2/18/2004 9:12:40 AM

PumpkinBrat

Paradise Mountain, New York

Niagara Falls is very beautiful Alun. You can get caught up in just that if you never seen it before.

2/18/2004 9:19:21 AM

JMattW

Omaha, NE (N41-15-42 )

Alun, Niagara Falls is beautiful for 10 minutes. In my humble opinion, it is one of the most overdeveloped, commericialized circuses on the continent. You might want to consider exploring the rest of the Niagara Pennisula. There are about a 100 wineries in Ontario within an hour's drive of Niagara Falls. The area is famous for its icewines but has other good wines to taste as well. If that's your thing, let me know and I'll send you some info on some of my favorite wineries up there. Also, if know about and are a fan of buffalo wings, I have to recommend the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, NY, where they were first made. It is a true Mecca for some of us.

2/18/2004 10:19:07 AM

JMattW

Omaha, NE (N41-15-42 )

Here are some pictures of my Niagara Falls experience for those of you really want to know how I really feel.

http://photos.wickless.com/Photos.html?EventID=290&Link=home

2/18/2004 10:36:47 AM

shtick

niagara falls

JMattW is correct! I live here and it stinks,don't go down to Clifton Hill they will rob you blind!!!The wine tour is nice.

2/18/2004 11:39:33 AM

Big Dave the Hamr

Waquoit Mass

wow you mean there are more than titty bars and a casino in niagra

2/18/2004 12:04:01 PM

Mr. Sprout

Wichita, KS

Matt, I've been looking for a good ice wine that comes from North America. The only one worth mention that I've ever tasted comes from Germany.

Do you have any INEXPENSIVE recommendations? I'd love to serve it to guests at home. That stuff from Germany is costly.

2/18/2004 12:36:15 PM

Andy W

Western NY

There's plenty to do there, and if you can't find something there, Buffalo has plenty to offer. Andrew WK is playing in the falls (american side) that saturday night. not that niagara falls on our side is anything to brag about (sorry roger, but there's a reason S&R has a niagara falls police blotter every monday, lol).

this year was supposedly a great year for ice wine around there. i don't know that much about it, though.

oh, and nice link matt. that pretty much sums up the scenery i've run into there. kind of fun to visit the freak shows every once in a while, though.

anyway, for those going there - i've usually had little time to do any sightseeing since it's been one long conversation on pumpkins for me.

2/18/2004 2:26:05 PM

Cowpie

Ontario

I agree with Matt. It has always been a bit of a circus on the strip. It's funny but it's almost always been that way. Since Victorian times it's been a tourist trap. By all means go see the falls (that's free but they hit you for parking if you don't want to walk).If you want to avoid $2 cans of Coke and $40 breakfasts, then stay away from the strip. There's lots of good little places to eat and free or cheap things to do if you look. We always make a habit of going to the butterfly habitat. Niagara on the Lake is very pretty but also on the expensive side. Hey, that would be a good thread.....good places to eat and things to do in Niagara.

2/18/2004 5:23:43 PM

Tremor

[email protected]

I've just finished a book on Great Lakes Ship Wrecks & Rescues. In it is a chapter that covers the fate of some of the old wooden side wheeled steamers that once cruised the lakes. Quite a few were sent over the falls to increase tourist draw at the end of the 1800's. So it seems there's been an "unusual element" of tourism in the area for at least 200 years. Funny.

Steve

2/18/2004 5:45:27 PM

Vertigo

New Bremen, Ohio

Trade you a 885 Wells for skymiles.

2/18/2004 5:57:17 PM

JMattW

Omaha, NE (N41-15-42 )

First of all, let me say that I am a wine lover, but not an expert by any means (kind of like my giant pumpkin growing). That having been said, we spent a week in 2002 touring vineyards in the Niagara region. The two places that stand out as having the best icewine are Reif Estate, which is in Niagara-On-The-Lake, about 20 minutes north of Niagara Falls, and Vineland Estate, which is about 45 minutes southwest of Niagara Falls. Vineland also had some outstanding reds as well.

The Ontario Wine Council's website is http://www.wineroute.com, and lists many of the wineries up there. One that isn't listed is Daniel Lenko Estate http://www.daniellenko.com. During our trip, we stayed at Inn on the Twenty in Jordan, on the grounds of Cave Spring Cellars. One day we struck up a conversation with some of the wine people at Cave Spring Cellars, and they recommended us visiting Daniel Lenko Estate. I dropped the name at a couple of other wineries and they all said it was a MUST do for the trip and that many of the vintners thought Lenko had the best wines. The winery consists of Daniel Lenko's small red brick house. The tasting room is in his kitchen at a picnic table, and his mother will offer you cookies when you come in. Their tasting hours are fewer due to the small size of their operation, but it is great wine, and he knows his stuff. A wonderfully unqiue, and genuine tasting experience. I just got an email saying that they were releasing their 2002 wines this month and supposedly 2002 was supposed to be one of the best vintages of recent memory. I'm anxious to try some. I will be sneaking out sometime while I'm there to pick up some wine.

Due to govermental restrictions that I can't remember, most wineries in Ontario are prohibited from exporting their product. Vineland somehow has worked out a loophole to get their wines out through a third party because we shipped some home from there, but they were the only ones.

2/18/2004 11:09:02 PM

JMattW

Omaha, NE (N41-15-42 )

Some of the vineyards have good restaurants too. The restaurant at Vineland was outstanding, but pricey. EastDell Estate has a wonderful lunch menu and view of their vines out of large windows in the back. Cave Spring Cellars also had an excellent, but pricey restaurant as well.

Generally speaking the vines in Ontario are quite new compared to the vines in California and Europe, and the vineyards and wineries are much smaller in size. There a few larger wineries, but we mainly stuck to the smaller ones. If you're looking for great ambiance in a winery, add Angels Gate Winery or Hernder Estates to your list. This is by no means a definitive guide. We didn't have time to make it to all of the wineries, and I as mentioned earlier stuck to the smaller ones.

2/18/2004 11:09:23 PM

JMattW

Omaha, NE (N41-15-42 )

And, to answer your question, Mr. Sprout, the 2000 Vidal Icewine from Reif Estate was the best, but that was a couple of years ago, so my recommendations could be out of date. Most of the wines up there averaged $10-$15US per bottle very, very reasonable. And if you're a real icewine fan, Hernder Estates had a Cabernet Franc RED icewine. I had never before known such a creature existed. It was pretty good, although not outstanding, but makes a great conversation piece when drinking with other icewine fans.

2/18/2004 11:15:22 PM

JMattW

Omaha, NE (N41-15-42 )

I'd be interested in what the locals' favorites are. Any one want to chime in?

2/18/2004 11:56:01 PM

kilrpumpkins

Western Pa.

Wild I, Ripple, and Thunderbird!

2/19/2004 8:19:42 AM

moondog

Indiana

Kilr LOL
Steve