Veronica Leonard  – Travel Writer and Wine Tourist

When I retired, I knew nothing about wine except that it came in red, pink and white. it was time to educate myself. In our travels abroad, we chanced upon Harvey’s bodega in Jerez, Spain, New Beginnings Winery at Nelson’s Creek in Stellenbosch, South Africa.  Brunello and Vino Nobile in Montalcino and Montepulciano in Italy. We came close to bathing in rosé in Provence.

These days, I am passionate about wine touring. I love meeting the vintners, the winemakers and the viticulturists who make it all happen. I love the green rows of ripening grapes and the cool tranquility of the barrel cellar where wood and wine languidly embrace. Most of all, I love the wine tasting, selecting wines that appeal to my tastes and bringing them home to cellar and pair with the right time, food and company. They are memories in a glass of special people and places.

To my surprise, my home province of Nova Scotia had an emerging wine industry, that was producing wonderful whites and sparkling wines largely from hybrids grown nowhere else. A move to Ontario brought the wines of Prince Edward County to my attention. I’ve since been discovering the longer established regions of Niagara and British Columbia with a focus on the smaller family-owned wineries. Craft breweries, cideries and distilleries have also been part of our journeys.

I’m a wine tourist, just like you, learning as I go, this site is my virtual wine cellar.

Because there is much more to travel than just wine, I have included a new section to this website called Unwind for travel stories about festivals, cruises, getaway weekends, hidden treasures, life events and seniors’ travel.

Cheers! 👍

Veronica Leonard (The Wine and Unwind Tourist)