Imagine stepping out on to your patio amid a chorus of birdsong, gazing off over the quiet water and sipping a glass of chardonnay made right in your own community.
France is a nation of little villages tucked in among acres of vineyards and wineries. But while Canada has developed its share of highly regarded wine regions, the tiny village, centred around a family-run winery, is a rarity.
Lloyd Jones and Jamie Brauer are starting from scratch to build Ontario's first planned winery village on the shores of Weller's Bay, a little indentation along the north shore of Lake Ontario, 90 minutes east of Toronto. This weekend they will open their doors to invited guests to have a first look at Prince Edward Estates on Young Cove.
For baby boomers, the name will elicit images of Prince Edward County, a rural peninsula that thrusts its limestone cliffs out into the lake and is home to a thriving wine industry. "The County" is also a weekend destination for Toronto-area residents drawn to its beaches, country inns and eateries. Prince Edward Estates will be situated just off one of two entrances to the county.
In a bid to lend prestige, sophistication and style to their project, Jones and Brauer hired American architect Jack Arnold, renowned for his European residential designs, to draw up plans for the 199 detached homes and townhomes that will grace their 223-hectare site in the City of Quinte West.
Townhomes will start in the mid-$200,000 range and while $2-million is spoken of as near the upper end of the price scale, the developers say clients are free to propose their own custom finishes, provided they don't clash with the winery village's classic French country character. The residences will be freehold, with a fee, as yet undetermined, for certain common services such as trail upkeep.
Prince Edward Estates emphasizes its proximity to nature, says Jones. A 200-year-old forest will be left intact for residents to wander through and trails will link the community's neighbourhoods. Standing near the marshland that skirts the bay, Jones watches a flock of ducks land on the mirror-like water and says he imagines the scene didn't look much different 200 years ago. Sandy beaches and dunes are a short canoe or kayak trip away.
But the hub of the village will be its vineyards. Brauer, who already grows grapes nearby in the county, began planting vines on the site last year and says he expects to have a crop ready to experiment with next season.
Once the vines are mature and some of the homes are built, the partners plan an on-site winery. Future plans call for an inn and spa as well as a small commercial area and an interpretation centre where people can learn about the area's history.
The homes will start at 1,200 square feet, up to "about as big as you could want," as Jones puts it. Each will be married to its lot, with the largest situated on three-acre properties. Homes will be situated to take advantage of the views. Suggested finishes will include butler's pantries, slate flooring, tongue-and-groove panelling, workshops and customized wine storage.
And oh, yes, the wine. Planned winery villages elsewhere often offer residents first access to the new vintage, an idea that strikes Jones's fancy. The winery village idea was borrowed from those that have become the rage in California's Sonoma Valley, but Prince Edward Estates will bring a definite Gallic flavour to the concept through its architecture.
The men's first encounter was one of chance and came, literally, at the side of the road a few years ago when Jones was checking out the property. From that first meeting came the idea of doing something special on this special piece of property, says Jones, retired president of Zircatec Precision Industries. Brauer has been in the home-building business for more than 20 years and is president and COO of Canopy Corp.
-- Canwest News Service
