With its architecturally stunning chateau, panoramic terrace, jaw-dropping views and award-winning VQA wines, this Caledon winery is a true hidden gem.
Happy Thursday, all! I hope you’re enjoying the last few weeks of summer… hard to believe that September will be here before we know it!
I started this blog in 2022, and ever since, I’ve been writing about fun and unique places to visit throughout the GTA and Southern Ontario. Before I started blogging, I was (and still am!) sharing my favourite local finds on my Instagram page. And even pre-Instagram and pre-blog, I’ve always had a love for exploring… it just went mostly undocumented! All this to say: over the years, I’ve visited hundreds – if not thousands – local restaurants, cafés, parks, museums, farms, wineries… you name it. Naturally, I’ve seen some pretty amazing places along the way: our beautiful province has so much to offer, and I’m continually impressed by just how much there is to experience right in our own “backyard”! And, as many fabulous places as I’ve visited… every once in a while, I stumble across a true hidden gem: something truly unique and special that stands out among all the rest. Such is the case with the subject of today’s post: Windrush Estate Winery.
Located in Caledon in the up-and-coming wine region of Hockley Hills, Windrush Estate Winery has it all: a gorgeous space, jaw-dropping views, award-winning VQA wines, and top-notch hospitality. The 68-acre property is home to beautiful vineyards, a state-of-the-art winemaking facility, and an architecturally stunning chateau where lucky visitors can enjoy wine tastings, charcuterie and live music experiences.
Windrush Estate bills themselves as “your local world-class winery” – and that about sums it up! The winery was established by husband-and-wife team J.C. Pennie and Marilyn Field in 2017. J.C., an accomplished entrepreneur, and Marilyn, a philanthropic visionary and arts education leader, both come from impressive career backgrounds. It was an honour getting to meet and chat with them both! They were inspired to found Windrush Estate, right on their own property, after seeing the success of their friends’ nearby winery Adamo Estate. Within just a couple of years, the winery was already a success. Windrush wines were making it onto the wine lists of many top-notch local eateries, from Headwaters at the Millcroft Inn to one of my all-time favourite restaurants, Mrs. Mitchell’s. Windrush has won several awards for their wines over the years, even beating out international frontrunners!
Windrush Estate Winery welcomes visitors for facility tours, wine tastings, and special events – including their renowned “Salon Sundays” concert series. Recently, Tania and I were fortunate enough to enjoy a beautiful afternoon exploring Windrush, and I can’t wait to share this special spot with you all!
Windrush hosts small group tours in the fermenting cellar on Saturdays and Sundays. Tours are offered every hour on the hour between 12-3 (last tour starts at 3) and cost $20 per person. Co-owner J.C. (John) leads the tour himself, offering an insightful, behind-the-scenes window into the wine-making process, all the way from harvest to bottling. Tania and I have both been on a lot of wine tours, and we both agreed this was by far one of the most comprehensive and educational we’ve experienced. We appreciated that John didn’t use a lot of fancy lingo or overly technical terms – he explained the process in a way everyone could understand. Windrush limits their tours to small groups – there were perhaps about ten of us – so everyone had the opportunity to ask questions. We learned a lot! One of the most interesting things I learned is that even though Windrush Estate has their own vineyard, they don’t actually use their own grapes for winemaking – at least for the time being. The reason? Under Ontario law, if you want to sell wine directly from your winery, you need at least five acres of vineyards. But – since grapes from older vines make the best wine – Windrush imports their grapes from mature vineyards in the Beamsville and St. David’s benches. The more you know!
The cellar tours last approximately one hour and include a tasting of 5-6 award-winning VQA wines, including their Pinot Grigio, Jim Warren Classic Chardonnay, Dry Riesling and Jonathan Boyle Classic Cabernet Franc. In addition, we got to sample another Chardonnay and a Pinot Noir directly from the wine barrels! I love an oaky Chardonnay, so the straight-from-the-barrel Chard was my absolute favourite, closely followed by the Riesling. I know Riesling is a controversial wine; personally I’m a huge fan, as long as I find one that’s not overly sweet. Windrush Estate’s Dry Riesling is one of the driest I’ve ever tried, with only 2 grams of sugar per litre – that’s almost unheard of for Rieslings! In fact, all Windrush wines have a relatively low sugar content, to let the flavour and quality of the grapes shine through. My third favourite was, believe it or not, the Pinot Noir. I’m normally not a red wine fan – call me uncultured, but they so often just taste acidic or even metallic to me – but this one was so light yet flavourful; it tasted like fresh berries!
After the tour wrapped, we were invited up to John and Marilyn’s chateau to enjoy some more wine on the terrace. As we drove up the winding path and the views got more and more spectacular, I knew we were in for something truly special – but nothing could have prepared me for it. “Chateau Windrush” is an architectural stunner, sitting on a thousand-foot-tall ridge – and yes, the view is just as incredible as you’d expect. John and Marilyn live in the chateau (I’m just a little jealous!) but they generously open up their home to guests for wine tastings, concerts and events. As Marilyn said to me, they feel very blessed to live there, but what good is it if they can’t share that blessing with others? Amen to that!
The chateau’s stone terrace features panoramic views of the rolling hills, a sparkling blue swimming pool, and cozy seating areas where visitors can sit and enjoy a glass of wine. As soon as we arrived, we were warmly greeted by Marilyn, who provided us with Yeti tumblers filled with ice cold water (an essential on a hot summer day!)
While we waited for our wine, we couldn’t resist wandering around the terrace and taking some photos. With a backdrop like that, who could resist?
Marilyn brought us a bottle of the 2022 Artful Chardonnay to enjoy. (Visitors are welcome to enjoy the terrace with the purchase of a bottle of wine – if you don’t finish it onsite, they’ll cork up the bottle for you to take home.) The Artful Chardonnay is made from grapes of the Lake Erie North Shore – which has a similar climate to French wine regions – and is crisp, balanced and refreshing, with notes of melon and stone fruit. The ‘Artful’ name was inspired by an original artwork, and honours local artist and medical frontline worker Tracey Ann Halkyard.
You can also choose to add a charcuterie platter to your experience (and seriously, why wouldn’t you!?) We were hungry and polished off the entire plate – it was so good! There were various cheeses (including a particularly yummy blue cheese) along with cured meats, grapes, dates, olives, crackers, and the cutest mini-jar of marmalade from my favourite local jam-maker, Greaves.
By the way… I sent some of the above photos to my best friend while we were there, and she texts back “…are you in Napa??” I can’t blame her for thinking so, because honestly, Windrush truly does give you that “Toto, we’re not in Ontario anymore…” feeling. As soon as we arrived, I was immediately transported back to our trip to Italy last year, when we did a wine tour in the Tuscan countryside. The views at Windrush are next-level… you seriously feel like you’re on top of the world!
Before heading out, Marilyn generously gave us a tour of the chateau. I kept asking her if it was okay to see certain rooms or take pictures – after all, it’s their home! – and she just kept saying, “of course!” She couldn’t have been kinder or more welcoming; both her and John’s warmth and hospitality really made the experience for us.
The chateau was built in 2003 and measures nearly 11,000 square feet. Floor-to-ceiling windows let in tons of natural light and take proper advantage of those incredible views.
John and Marilyn are art collectors (Marilyn, an arts education leader herself, definitely knows a thing or two about the subject!) and their home is filled with some truly stunning works. Marilyn even showed us the dandelion painting that graces the label of the Artful Chardonnay we’d just enjoyed – how cool is that!?
With its gambrel roof and exposed wood beam ceiling, one can’t help but want to look up! This room on the upper floor is where Windrush Estate hosts their Salon Sundays concert series. I can just imagine how incredible the acoustics are in here!
We had such a lovely afternoon at Windrush Estate, and I’d highly recommend it to anyone – you can check out my Instagram reel with highlights from our day here. The tour was fun and informative, the wine and food were delicious, and the setting was spectacular. Like I said earlier, I’ve visited my fair share of Ontario wineries, but there’s something truly remarkable and unique about Windrush. Part of that is the jaw-dropping scenery, for sure… but a huge part of it is the owners, and the world-class experience they provide their guests. On the drive home, Tania and I were mulling over what made this winery feel so different and “above the rest” over any other we’ve visited, and we realized: when we were sitting on the Windrush terrace enjoying our wine and charcuterie, it didn’t feel like we were at a winery – it felt like we were visiting a friend’s home for dinner. (Though to my knowledge, none of our friends own 11,000-square-foot estates… perhaps we’ll have to find some!) All kidding aside, I truly believe that the uniquely intimate setting and the owners’ warm hospitality is what makes Windrush Estate the gem that it is. John and Marilyn treated us like we were family, and welcomed us into their home with open arms.
To book your own tour and tasting at Windrush, phone 905-729-0060 or email Marilyn directly at [email protected]. You can also reserve your tasting online here. Note that wine bottles can be purchased onsite (either at the wine shop or chateau) but charcuterie boards must be pre-ordered in advance. In keeping with John and Marilyn’s passion for philanthropy, every bottle of wine purchased helps support The Windrush Foundation, dedicated to empowering kids through arts education. Talk about a win-win! You can also buy wine directly from their website: they offer free shipping Ontario-wide on full cases.
I can’t wait to return to Windrush Estate sometime soon… perhaps for one of their Salon Sundays, which look absolutely incredible. Keep an eye on their events calendar to stay up-to-date on upcoming concerts and other exciting events.
Do you have a favourite “hidden gem” winery in Ontario? Let me know in the comments or send me an email… I’d love to hear your recommendations!
Our experience at Windrush Estate Winery was generously hosted by the owners. As always, all opinions and thoughts are entirely my own.