This past long weekend, I visited Southbrook Vineyards, a winery in Niagara on the lake. As I walked in, I commented on how it looked like an “institute”, like a mental institute? my partner asked, laughing. And yes, there was a tone of the psychological in the building, but also a feel of clinical (not sterile though).
As we walked by the bar towards the patio, a wine bottle with the word Poetica caught my eye. With my english lit background, and poetry my fav class, I was surely going to try that wine out.
Throughout the meal, I was amazed to learn about the lengths and measures Southbrook goes to, to be eco-friendly, organic, and bio-dynamic. What does that mean? They use sheep to trim the grass, chamomile as pesticide, and my favourite – abide by the lunar cycle! What integrity!
After our meal (which was amazing. The owner of they vineyard also created a pizza crust with the left-over grape peel, which would normally be wasted. He won with this idea on Dragon’s Den), we went inside to try Poetica. The wine itself was incredible, but the labels were my favourite. They actually use poets to write poems on the labels. I was blown away!
This kindred spirit didn’t just create an alcoholic beverage. They honoured and harvested a symbol with deep historical roots and significance using the inherent laws of nature to create, and the art of literature to express.
The “clinical” feel I was getting was a reflection of the purity, precision, passion, and faith that went in to creating this alchemical brilliance.
