Hey all! Taking a short weekend trip with my wife and some friends on June 2-4, staying at an airBnB in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Looking for some suggestions for breweries in the area that we can hang out at, have a few drinks. Our preliminary research has found The Exchange, Niagara Oast House, and Silversmith Brewing nearby. I'd be very grateful for opinions on these places! Anywhere else I should put on our radar? Would also be interested in any Winery suggestions, as well as food and worthwhile sights to see. We've got some things planned, but definitely interested in hearing from people in the area. Thanks!
Silversmith should have High Roads Bronan on tap. If you can rent a car and can sneak back over the border for a bit there's loads of places in the buffalo area. Bench would be worth a visit id imagine. Shooting you a message.
If you don't have a dedicated designated driver, see if you can do a winery tour where they shuttle you around on a short bus. Or if there's a few of you, rent a limo and make your own tour. For beer, there really are some surprisingly good spots in Buffalo... Coles, Mr Goodbar, Pizza Plant... but I haven't been there in 7 years.
Your research is pretty solid. You missed Niagara Brewing College, although that is technically not in NOTL just bordering on it. Pickings are pretty lean and around that area. The breweries came after the wine industry and mostly to capitalize on the tourist flood IMHO. I would have to give best beers points in that area to The Exchange, their Peppercorn Rye Saison being my favorite brew from them. Their stouts have been decent as well. Other breweries in that area are slim pickings. Oast house and Silver Smith are average at best IMHO and the Niagara Brewing College that occasionally has special beers (check their website) but unfortunately they don't have a tap room. Also, I don't believe that the doors are actually open at Bench Brewing just yet unless I've missed something very recently. It would have been a good option if it was as talking with the owner and the head brewer (Matt and Mark) they have some pretty grand plans for the tasting room. Wine tours are the big attraction in NOTL so when in Rome. Bus and limo tours are great and will let you access a wider range of wineries. I prefer riding a bike when I go there as typically you are treated with more respect and the distances between wineries is not far. As a bonus there are some short cuts between wineries on farm paths through the vineyards that keep you away from the roads and let you see farm action in the works. Of course, if you were to travel across the border to Buffalo the beer selection is quite good. Enjoy your trip!
The Exchange has a pretty solid selection of beers on tap. NOTL is honestly not the best spot for breweries but the wine estates make up for it. Some good winery suggestions are: 1. Wayne gretzky estates 2. Peller estates 3. Mike weir winery There is definitely a very good lot to choose from. Also if you and company like whiskey, the Forty Creek distillery is nearby in Stoney Creek. It's around a 30 minute drive though. As for dinner, unless you feel like taking out a mini mortgage, don't go to Ruths Chris Steakhouse. The prices are ridiculous for the quality. As for activities, i suggest the boat that takes you out to the falls, i think its called the Hornblower, If I'm not mistaken. Pretty fun. The mist feels nice on a hot summer day. I hope that is of some help. Cheers! Matt
All the breweries seemed to be covered here, the tasting flights at The Exchange are your best bet as bottles to go run on the more expensive end. Winery wise I would check out Two Sisters and Pearl Morisette they are probably the best in the region. Call Pearl Morisette in advance though they are tough to find and aren't really set up for tours or tasting rooms like the rest of the wineries in the area but they are worth the trip, exceptional Cab Franc. Two sisters has a great property and a really good restaurant and their Bordeaux blends and single varietal Merlot is among the best in Ontario. Trius and G. Marquees are also worth a visit. Restaurant wise Treadwell and Backhouse are not to be missed.
Threadwell is great. They typically curate a more limited release wine list too. I like hanging on the patio of the Prince of Wales hotel but the beer selection is lacking unfortunately.
Second Pearl Morissette. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/lif...-part-of-a-natural-winetrend/article32980474/
Thanks everyone for the suggestions! We weren't able to get everywhere we wanted, but I was able to spend some time at Exchange and really enjoyed it - the Pale and Belgian Golden were very tasty representations of the styles, and I grabbed a bottle of the Peppercorn Rye Saison and Super Saison. And I agree that the restaurant at Two Sisters was great.
If your ever up in Niagara again try Oast House in Niagara on the Lake ( farmhouse style of beers) Silversmith in Virgil ( known for their Black Lager) Also worth a drive is Kame & Kettle in Fonthill ( super small batch brewer) or it's a nice drive up the parkway but Brimstone in Ridgeway
