Small Prince Edward County winery coping during COVID-19 pandemic

From the vine to the shelf, spring means the wine-making process is starting to ramp up. Rob Peck is owner/operator of Sugarbush Vineyards and Winery in Prince Edward County. He says the pandemic isn’t stopping him and others when it comes to the grape growing season.

“The one thing about COVID is that although it’s shutting a lot of industries down, Mother Nature still moves and so we still need to get to all of our vines and in a reasonable amount of time and get everything prepped for the spring,” Peck said.

Peck, whose farm has over 13 acres of vines with over 16,000 plants, says dealing with COVID-19 has been a real experience.

“We’ve been open, we’ve been closed — we’re still open curb side,” Peck said.

“Thankfully we do have a pretty loyal customer base. If people are not stopping in to pick up then we’re shipping.”

1:43 Artists team up with Okanagan winery to raise funds for mental health

The federal budget uncorked some good news for wineries earlier this week. Ottawa will invest $100 million for domestic grape growers and wineries, who are struggling through the pandemic while up against a looming tax. Debbie Zimmerman is the CEO of the Ontario Grape Growers.

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“$101 million that was announced in the federal budget on Monday for the grape and wine industry will help,” said Debbie Zimmerman, CEO of the Ontario Grape Growers.

“It’s only a two-year program but we need long-term support for the domestic industry — we need the Canadian government to ensure that Australia is not going to be taking any more of our market.

“We’re fighting for our backyard. We’re fighting for our homes right now.”

As for Peck, the day-to-day business of running a winery in the county continues, and that’s just fine with him.

“If you can’t produce a product that people like, you’re going to go out of business quite quickly,” Peck said. “So everyone has a little bit of a different style and that’s kind of the beauty of small wineries, especially if you’re travelling around Prince Edward County — you’re going to see a lot of different styles, so we’re trying to produce a style that not only do we like but the consumers like.

Peck says the earliest they’ll be able to pick this years grapes is the end of September.

2:16 As fewer wineries produce ice wine this year, consumers may see an increase in price for the premium product