Grape Escape Wine Tours — Local services in Niagara-on-the-Lake

What a great experience! This trip (and excursion) was a surprise birthday present from my wife, who had done extensive research on which company to choose. Proof positive! From our initial pickup by our morning driver (who forgot to introduce himself, but he was super knowledgable of the area, and took us on a mini driving tour as we had 10-15 minutes to kill on the way in), to Rich who runs a well organized shop with bikes that are in good condition, to Gwen, our tour guide who is not only very knowledgable in the area, but also passionate about her job and loves what she does. We got lucky because fridays tend to have smaller tours, we were a tour of just 4 people. It was really easy to get into one on one discussions with the various winemakers and guides at each location. Oust House make some great beer, but I would've liked to see more discussion of the beer making process and maybe even a mini tour of the brewery (opportunity missed!). Pondview were friendly, cheerful, and delivered a quality structured tasting (also, 100% accomodating of my lactose intolerance!). I'm aware time was tight, but it would've been neat to see a little more detail about the property and history of the winery at Pondview. From there, we joined up (slightly late) with Phil, who gave us a great tour of the Iniskillin winery and grounds, his passion as well showed in the various activities during the tour and his structured tasting. Food was OK there, but I think they could've done better (shredded chicken sandwich & salad), considering I know their restaurant's capability. The last winery (Reif) was the biggest disappointment, as the staff member running our "wine and chocolate" tasting spoke almost nothing of our wine, and completely of the "dirt" about the winery's owner, and his ex-wife Sabina. No tour, no wine discussion, just gossip. Sad, really. In the final leg, Gwen took the opportunity to take us sightseeing along the riverfront, and teach us some history about the area along the way. On our return, Bob drove us back home (and chatted with me the whole way back, again another staff member showing their love of their work and in depth knowledge about the wineries and the area.)

Well done, Grape Escape team!

OH! I can't forget Junior. Thanks Junior! You're a...

I took my fiance for a tour for his birthday and we had a great time! We had Brian D. as our tour guide driver and he was wonderful. He provided us with insight on the area with some very interesting facts. We did the all day lunch tour which included 4 wineries and a lunch. The wineries we visited were Jackson Triggs, Pilliteri Estates Winery, Reif Estate Winery and Strewn Winery. We had lunch at Oliv. We were guided by Christine at Jackson Triggs and she took us on a full tour of the winery and she provided us with interesting information on the start to finish process of wine making at Jackson Triggs. She was open to allowing us to try a variety of different wines (more than 3) which we were very pleased with. We then visited Pilliteri Estates Winery where we tried a few wines and met Mr. Pilliteri himself where we learned he works everyday at the winery along with his wife. After that we went to Reif Estate Winery and had our wine tasting with Neil who taught us the proper etiquette on drinking wine. We tried 3 types of wine with 3 types of cheese (this was a nice surprise as we didn't expect this and this was the only winery that offered us a pairing with our wine!) and we learned a ton of information that we didn't know such as the proper way to drink wine and the right pairings that go with wine. This was our favourite winery out of all 4 because of the valuable information we learned. We then had lunch at Oliv which was very good. We both had the salad, pasta and brownie for dessert which was all delicious. Our last winery was in the same building as the restaurant which was Strewn Winery. We tried several different wines here which were all great. We bought wine at every winery and had a great experience overall. I definitely recommend Grape Escape for wine tours! Thank you Brian D. for the great experience, you...

We took part in this wine tour with a group of friends (two groups of ten) and had an absolutely fabulous time. We did the afternoon bike tour (no lunch version). I will be recommending this tour to everybody I know visiting Niagara-on-the-Lake.

This company did such a good job addressing all my concerns (right side bike, helmets, road safety, etc.). When you arrive they have different sized bikes for all heights and different sized helmets. They fit everybody for the most comfortable bike and adjust seat height. They talk you through the road safety tips and how intersections will be handled.

On the tour itself our guides (Margie and Graham) were champions, making sure we had the best and safest time possible. They paused at intersection to direct traffic (when necessary) and make sure we got through safely, they checked in to make sure the pace was good for everybody. When one of our group had an issue with their seat, Grape Escapes drove us over a new bike as we had our wine tasting.

At every winery you could tell Grape Escapes has a great rapport with the staff and are very knowledgeable about their wines. Margie helped us change seating areas when needed (example: to a more shaded spot) and was on top of all the practical aspects (plenty of water, ensuring our purchases were labelled and picked up, washroom breaks, etc.).

The views while cycling were fantastic, the wines were delicious and the pace ideal.

For anybody concerned about practical aspects:

You cycle approximately 10-20 minute stints between locations, about 4 stints between locations total You travel on mostly country roads (cars usually pass quite easily) The pace is easy going but with a purpose (ex: as an overweight person I was fine, most of our group chatted the entire way) I would recommend bringing snacks, sunscreen...