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8 - The Canaden Champion, Tuesday, September 14, 1999 *Canwwon vFrui*ts of their labour are turned into wine By IRENE GENTLE The Champion It is a good thing that the pleasure-seeking goda of Roman mythology didn't discover Andrews' Scenic Acres. 15 may have caused an exodus from their temples. One good glance is enough to see that the place has virtually everything a sybaritic spirit could wish for. For example, miles of sky, acres of land and a seemingly endlesa supply of summer fruit and crisp autumn vegetables. And a store stocked with maple syrup, jam and honey ought to convince even the soureat deity to hold fire on the thunderboîts, or plagues, or whatever. Event the old milk and honey bit has been upgraded. Instead, Andrews' offers up a more toothsome nectar - wine. And not juat any wine, either. Instead there are vats of vividly coloured wines made fromn the fermeiited juices of apples. raspbemres, blueberries, durrents, peaches, straw- bernies, cherries and pears. Assorted flavours Since early August, the 100-acre pick your own fruit, vegetable and flower farm has boasted an on-premises Scotch Block country winery. And forget about that old grape stuff. Ideally, only 20 per cent of the stock will contain that fruit. The rest will be flavoured from fresh goodies picked night on the farm. Perbapa surprisingly, the wines are not of the super-sweet dessert variety. Nor do they burst forth with the juicy tang of blueberry or apple. Unstead, they are dinner wines that range in dryneas from zero to five. And the base fruit is little more than an intima- tion, said Kurt Andrews. "When you taste grape wine, you don't taste the grape, you taste the wine," hie explained. 'The taste difference is more like an aftertaste. Ut follows with a bit of a hint." Kurt is the son of Laurie and Bers Andrews, who bought the farmn in 1980. Farming background At that time the property contained a corn field, but Bert had a yen to transform it into a pick-your-own bluebenry farm. That tumned out to be easier dreamed than done, since blueberries require a rare acidic, sandy soul to prosper. In fact, only 10 of the Andrews' acres are suit- able for growing blueberries. But Bert was raised on a farm in Peterborough and hie graduated with a degree in plant science Photo by GRAHAM PAINE Father and son team Kurtis left) and Bert Andrews milse a glass ta the succees of their new winery, located on sielleat Andrews Scenlc Acres. The wlnery offers table wlnes made tram strawberrles, bluebenlies, pears and more. from the University of Guelph. the miàx. So hie figured out early that to make ends meet, That worked well enough that the Andrews' strawberries and raspbemres must be added to seem to be adding something new aIl the time. 'Film a boost'says ma.yor, Hunter has *'re.oservaticrns 5v IRENE GENTLIE The Champion Canadian film company CG Films Une. is forking over $1 1,000 to shoo part of a televi- sion onovie i Milton, a special counicil tacet- ing hecard receostly, The company will alan lay down an estimat- ed $15,000 for municipal staff and other costs incurred during the filming of the snovie Common Gtarund. For the money, the film company bas secured viotual dawn to dusk. accea to Town Hall, Hugli Poster Hall, Victoria Park and part of Main Street until September 23. Parties that had previeeusly booked Hugh Poster Hall have been contacted to have their reservations either canceled, rfunded or relo- caterd, witlsthe exception of two wedditgs. But the lives of Milton residents should not be disnupted by movie crews, said Coxoncillor Wally Hunter. * see LNNAU on page 9 Currently, everything from asparagus to black- bernies, rhubarb, sweet and Indian corn, pump- kins, squash and gooseberries spring from the carefully cultivated soil. So do an assortment of flowers. The most eye- catching are the sunflowers that spray the hori- zon with color in virtually every direction. For children, there are also a playground, a petting zoo, and wagon rides. While somte people travel to the farmi to stock up on seasonal treats, others just want to take in the sky and acres of land. And sometimes il is ail about nustalgia. "We have a lot of people who have grown up on farms and want to show their grandchildren," said Bert. Traditionally, strawberries and pumpkins attract the biggest crowds. .Peak time soon And though last year' s dry season created a leas than bumper crop in the strawberry field, an far the pumpkin yield is looking good. That's fine with Kurt, who figures the winery will be in tip-top shape by the time the masses arrive in October. "We were able to start off slow and learn a thing or two," hie said. "We'd like to have the wninkles out." The winery got its name from the Scottish pio- neers who settled the parcel of land on which it sits. The Andrews' own Scottish hentage will soon be displayed on their wine labels, which will sport the famiùly creot. Old family photographs along the wall add to the personal touch. So doea the presence of vintner Brian Moreau, who can often be found selling his wares at the winery counter. But wines that come in shades of shocking redo and electric yellows really have to be tried. Taste is the test And sampling, said Kurt, usually changes everything. 'Ut is important to have a sampling bar because it answers ail the questions," hie said. "AIl people really want to know is if they like the wine." So for 50 cents a hit, or three for a dollar, visi- tors can sample the stock. And they can feel good about it, since the pro- ceeds go to Milton and Georgetown hospitals. So far, the response has been good. "They are surprised at how dry it can be," said Kurt. "Mhen they always seemn to, buy it." The winery opens 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 s.m. to 7 p.m. Saturdays and 10 s.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays. Andrews Scenic Acres, located on 10 Side Road, is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. Acton 12 Mais Street Northr, Actes, ON 17J lV9 519-853-1270, or 853-4700 Taklng your cabi e f u r t h e r) Cableworks 14 Programming Schedule - September 14 -20, 1999 5:306:30, 7:3Ope PtugeIn! 5306:,3Opsr PIged In! 5:30, 6:30, 730pm luggedlIn 5:30, 6:30, 730pm Pluggedlsn! 6:OOpm DOss To Eartti 6 OUpe tends Up Puppeteers 6 00m Thre Issue Is tOO0pa Cabie in the Classroom 7:Oiper Oie Issue Is 7:OUpm ON Gaden Tour 7 OUpa Internet 101 7:0Upm Internet 101 lOUper Hakte His Cosneil I8:OUper Bett Fox & Thre Terry I8:OUper Haltor Hils Csuoc i Feo odaise Feature of th. week: Betty Fox & The Terry Fox Foundation -Wednesday, 8pm e f u r t h e r ) T a k 1 n g y 0 u r c a b 1