Wine grapes have been cultivated in this region since the early days of New France, first on a small scale but with a significant expansion at the end of the nineteenth century, and again in the early 1980s.

Jacques Cartier was the first person to observe and note in his travel diary that grapes were growing wild in the territory he was exploring. In 1535 during his visit to Orleans Island, he found the wild grape Vitis riparia in abundance. He christened the island the Isle of Bacchus. As revealed in another text of the time (Boucher, 1664), it was said that the grapes produced a slightly acrid wine, which improved after a year of aging. Beginning in 1608, Samuel de Champlain planted French varietals, including "Vitis vinifera" which struggles to survive our cold winters."

Despite this setback the idea of growing grapes to make wine will persists with the help of some religious communities, mainly Sulpicians and Jesuits, who continued the development of the vineyards by planting several more grape varietals from Europe. At the same time, the people of New France continued to produce wine and other drinks using the wild grapes and other berries found in Quebec.

The Port of Rochefort seen in 1762 by Joseph Vernet: Loading goods destined for the colonies.

At the time, innkeepers and religious and wealthy people imported many wines from France and Spain. In 1739, for example, New France imported the equivalent of 775,166 bottles of wine for a population of 24,260 adults (over the age of 15), which is equivalent to 32 litres per person annually. By comparison, in 1992, Statistics Canada estimated the average annual consumption of wine in Quebec to be 14 litres per person (Lafrance, 1992).

From the conquest by Great Britain until Confederation in 1867, liquor dominated the consumer market; the English promoted trade in spirits with the other British colonies at the expense of trade with France. The development of viticulture was thus reduced to local knowledge and the importation of French wines was slowed.

In 1864 the Quebec government began encouraging the wine grape culture with grants for experimentation on local grapes varietals and more rustic hybrids from the United States. The development of grapes better suited to our climate and our terrain, as well as a sustainable viticulture, might have been possible at that time. Unfortunately, a combination of pressure from anti-viticulture political-religious groups and decreased support from the state would lead to variable results and a lack of follow-through.

The Canadian Vineyards: Grape harvest. L'opinion publique, Vol 10, no 44, pp. 519 (30 octobre 1879). Gravure

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, there was a gradual resumption of trade with France, a large wine exporter, such that the consumption of foreign wines increased steadily. Accordingly, the development of a viticulture in Quebec is slowed as the lack of local winemaking expertise made it difficult to produce wine at competitive prices. Years of war and prohibition in the United States also led our governments to focus on trade with Europe.

With the arrival of immigrants from wine-producing countries and regions such as Italy, Portugal and Central Europe, for whom wine is an integral part of their daily lives, there was once again a marked interest for viticulture.

However, it was only during the 1970s, after the Quiet Revolution, when young Quebecers began traveling and spending time in France and Europe, that the demand for wines made from French and North American hybrids resumed its growth. During this time these same young people developed a wine expertise adapted to our own northern climates and our terrain, all without the help of the government.

There are currently more than four dozen wineries in Quebec, divided into the areas along and south of the St. Lawrence River. Only a few of the oldest wineries produce more than 90,000 bottles annually, with the average being 10,000 to 20,000 bottles. Today Quebec wines have won more than 300 medals in contests all around the world.

All right reserved, original version from Vignoble Coteau St-Paul.