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Published: April 29th 2019
We were on the bus promptly at 8:30 to go to a wine tasting in the
Annapolis Valley. Fog covered the trees in the distance, helping us appreciate our escape into the countryside. After a slight detour to the wrong place, we stepped out into a warm breeze wafting over the vineyard of
Pete Luckett. Deservedly, he is a local celebrity. His funny, spirited greeting had us all quickly smiling.
Pete Luckett started as a “barrow boy” in Nottingham, England, i.e., he sold fruits and vegetables from a cart. He moved up to a shop and eventually sold that to work his way around the world. Settling in New Brunswick, he started a fruit and vegetable shop and ended with a chain of high-end grocery stores, named Pete’s. (We have shopped in the one behind the hotel.) He has just sold those to Sobey’s. Three years ago, he bought a run-down farm in Nova Scotia near the
Bay of Fundy, and he has turned it into a successful winery. He portrays the sequence of his life as a big joke, although we could see his serious dedication, just under his cheerful surface.
Five wines were poured for our tasting. The crisp
white was Tidal Bay, an appellation wine for Nova Scotia (strict standards and flavour). Fizz was delicious – fruity with natural sparkle. For me Rosetta (rose) and London Cab (red blend) were not particularly flavourful. The white ice wine was as good as Pete claimed, because as he pointed out, their grapes have a surprising bite of acid below the sweetness. Happily, Tidal Bay was served for the lunch of a warm chicken-breast sandwich and salad made with deeply green lettuce. Our view from the terrace was over the valley, the vineyard and the Bay of Fundy. The warm breeze gives this area the climate necessary for grape vines, in part because of the moderating effect of the twice-daily high tides in the Bay.
After a shopping opportunity in the vineyard’s store, we drove a short way to
Grand-Pré, the National Park in the area where the
Acadians lived, before their expulsion from the then British colony. Our tour started in the information centre where a video made the English members of our group squirm at the re-enactment of the horrible force used to evict Acadian farming families. They were shipped much farther
Dike and sluice from 1680
Grand-Pré settlement lifeinto the American colonies and even into France than I had remembered from my distant school lessons. People did return not only to the Annapolis Valley, but also to New Brunswick and Quebec. These families are why 30% of New Brunswick is French- speaking.
Following the video, a guide with charming enthusiasm for the details of her subject took us through the displays. Most interesting was the dike and sluicing system that enabled the Acadians to extend the arable land of the area, enabling the growing of wheat and raising of livestock. The techniques were brought here by the initial settlers, who came from France. Surprisingly, two original sluice channels (wood with automatic water valves) were found by current farmers and donated to the Museum. Outside, we walked along the fresh green lawns to a clever traditional device for drying hay. It consisted simply of a platform on wheels, about three feet in height. The farmer would take it down to the abundant sea grass beds around the Bay and pile on the wet plants. He left it there while it was wet and heavy until it was light and dry, when he could pull it up to the
fields for the cows.
Nearby was a statue of
Evangeline, the character in the poem by
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Although fictional, she has become the symbol of the social rupture and personal tragedy caused by the expulsion. Behind her was a “fictional” church – not designed properly and never consecrated, but useful when tourism started growing at the site. It is a museum now, with commissioned paintings of the expulsion and plaques with the family names. Oddly, although the houses were set on fire, the parish records survived. Close by was a lawn that has been identified scientifically as the original cemetery.
Back on the bus, we snoozed our way back to Halifax with its cloud and fog.
There was very little rest on this tour, and we were soon back on the bus again, bound for the Harbour. The popular tour company, Murphy’s, operated the harbour cruises. A bit of drizzle discouraged us from the top deck. The inside deck was laid out with tables and chairs similar to a diner. As we pulled away, the wait staff started serving wine (in plastic glasses). After a while came starters, of which one could have any or all of
McNabs Island lighthouse
A beacon on the Harbour's largest island mussels, salad, and chowder. The mussels were intensely flavoured and went well with the salad. Although called a buffet, the whole meal was served to us, perhaps because of the persistent waves. It was a relief to be served a normal portion of salmon, potato and steamed vegetables, followed by little apple crisps. As the meal progressed, the cloudy light faded into a long dusk, letting us exclaim over some of the luxurious and ridiculously large houses on the shore. As darkness descended, the cruise ended, too soon.
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Thanks for taking us along
Dave has traveled to this part of the world and I look forward to when I can get there and explore. This is a beautiful part of the world.