Nova Scotia

Wine Growers Nova Scotia, citing Tony Aspler's Vintage Canada, says that in 1611 Louis Hébert, apothecary at the Habitation at Port Royal, paddled vines brought from France to Bear River and planted a hillside vineyard there, the first reference to European vines in what would become Canada. It records the next vineyard at Petite Rivière in 1633.

In 1963 federal agricultural scientists planted an experimental vineyard at Bear River, and some of those vines survive on today's Bear River Vineyards. Domaine de Grand Pré was the province's first commercial winery. Research continues at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada centre and a teaching vineyard in Kentville and at a wine laboratory at Acadia University in Wolfville. Tidal Bay, the province's first wine appellation, was launched in June 2012.

Wine Growers Nova Scotia says no vineyard lies more than 20 km from the ocean, that the vines grow in the remains of an ancient seabed, and that the world's highest tides, sandstone and slate soils and the surrounding water together create the growing conditions. At Bear River, inland from the Annapolis Basin, the twice-daily flushing of the Bay of Fundy tides is described as a natural heat bank that softens extremes of weather and temperature, and the soils are granite. The growers' regional guide names Wolfville and Grand Pré, the Gaspereau Valley, Bear River and the Malagash Peninsula among the wine areas.

The growers call acidity the signature of Nova Scotia wine and attribute it to the cool climate. They describe a mouth-watering freshness with a hint of salinity "reminiscent of an ocean breeze" across all styles, and say the natural acidity is what makes the province's sparkling wines stand out. Tidal Bay is described as cool, crisp, lively and aromatic, with fresh green fruit, dynamic acidity and minerality, and is presented as a match for local seafood. The name was chosen to evoke the sea and the tides.

Tidal Bay is a white wine made from a list of approved grape varieties, alone or blended, from 100% Nova Scotia-grown grapes, with at most 11% alcohol. Its standards were drawn up by a committee of winemakers, sommeliers and wine experts and are enforced from vineyard to bottle; each wine must be approved every year by an independent blind tasting panel and must show the regional profile while wineries keep their own styles. Outside Tidal Bay, Wine Growers Canada names the Nova Scotia Wine Standards as the province's standard for 100% Canadian wines. The growers also promote traditional-method sparkling wines.