Saturday was Elizabeth’s birthday, so we celebrated by spending the weekend with friends and family at the cabin on Ocean Pond. Amidst the water skiing, sun bathing, board games, and cocktail drinking, we also managed a short trip to the nearby Rodrigues Winery and Distillery.
Rodrigues Wines
Founded in 1993 by dentist Dr. Hilary Rodrigues, the Rodrigues Winery and Distillery is the oldest winery in Newfoundland. The wines and liqueurs they specialise in are based on old Newfoundland recipes that use the local berries such as blueberries and cloudberries.
Following a short tour of the plant where we learned about the winemaking and distilling processes, we enjoyed a long tasting session in the main building. The tasting room is located in a former cottage hospital, turned courthouse, where Dr. Rodrigues began his winemaking experiments back in the 1980s. They were very generous with the tasting, allowing us to sample each of their wines and a few liqueurs (on request).
Following a short tour of the plant where we learned about the winemaking and distilling processes, we enjoyed a long tasting session in the main building. The tasting room is located in a former cottage hospital, turned courthouse, where Dr. Rodrigues began his winemaking experiments back in the 1980s. They were very generous with the tasting, allowing us to sample each of their wines and a few liqueurs (on request).
Checking out the still at the winery.
We tasted their 7 wines which included Blueberry, Barren’s Blend, Cranberry, Cloudberry, Raspberry, Strawberry and Blackcurrant. We took short breaks between tastings, although it was tough to remember the taste of each drink after a while. But being the troopers that we are, somehow we managed to push through! After the round of wines, a few of us also tried their Plum and Pear Brandies, as well as their Blackcurrant and Cloudberry Liqueurs.
Happy wine-tasters.
Rodrigues Winery and Distillery also produces other products, including a vodka. Out of the items we tried, everyone in the group seemed to have different favourites, but the two of us decided to demonstrate our enjoyment of the Blueberry wine by purchasing a bottle for future consumption. We couldn’t help it. Neither could anyone else.
We then collected ourselves, got our bearings, and made our way back to Ocean Pond with the rest of the group and proceeded to savour all that cabin life has to offer.
We then collected ourselves, got our bearings, and made our way back to Ocean Pond with the rest of the group and proceeded to savour all that cabin life has to offer.
A victorious Catchphrase team in a not at all posed photograph.
A big thank you to everyone for coming out and celebrating Elizabeth’s birthday with us (and floating in inflatables and playing Ticket to Ride 55 times)! Here are some more photos from the winery tour and the rest of our weekend:
Curious what we were doing this time last year? Well, we were entertaining friends for a weekend of tourism and ended up discovering one of our favourite touristy things to do in the city, The Downtown Foodie Tour!
And two years ago? We spent the weekend exploring Bonavista and Trinity, completing a picturesque coastal trail, learning lots about the history of the area as well as how to deal with a power outage during a weekend away.
And two years ago? We spent the weekend exploring Bonavista and Trinity, completing a picturesque coastal trail, learning lots about the history of the area as well as how to deal with a power outage during a weekend away.
