How do I drive a tractor? Organize a winery? Navigate the complex Liquor Control Board of Ontario system?

In the Ontario wine industry, Gabe Magnotta was a maverick. As head of Magnotta Winery Corp., he was the guy that took on the giants, such as the Liquor Control Board of Ontario, and won.

Mission Hill Estate winery is already a sight to behold. Its architecture, though less than a decade old, is a stately nod to the slow-paced European lifestyle that Canadian wine connoisseurs flock to.

In the search for the next great grape, a swath of 270 acres in Niagara-on-the-Lake is carrying the torch, so to speak.

The amicable divorce began after the province announced new legislation and policies that favor 100-percent Ontario wine certified as Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) over blended products.

Study of regular wine drinkers shows a majority believe the label terminology is inappropriate

The federal government is spending $1.5 million to improve the grape and wine industry. The money, announced Wednesday at Brock University, will be used to add a viticulturist and oenologist to the team of scientists at Brock's Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI).

Summerhill Pyramid Winery of Kelowna, British Columbia, has achieved a pinnacle as pronounced as the tip of its renowned pyramid. On Nov. 26, 2009, Summerhill was named 'Canadian Wine Producer of the Year' at the International Wine and Spirits Competition in London, England for its portfolio of organic wines.

Attorneys call ban on interprovincial shipments unconstitutional

Elypsis, Inc., of Napa, a leading provider of software solutions for the wine industry, announced today the establishment of a joint venture in Canada to deliver country-specific winery management software solutions.

Niagara-on-the-Lake's Ravine Estates Winery 2007 Merlot. Jordan-based Le Clos Jordanne's 2006 Le Grand Clos Pinot Noir. Beamsville's Hidden Bench 2007 Nuit Blanche. Just to name a few.

For nearly two decades, Donald Ziraldo was the face of Canadian icewine.

While the recent announcement of changes to provincial legislation is good news, MPP Kim Craitor is critical of himself and his government for not acting soon enough to help growers this year.

Critical to the success of the Ontario government's plan for the wine industry are two key factors. One is setting grape prices, and this will be a sticky issue for the government. No matter what it decides, it will leave an entire sector of the industry disgruntled as the Wine Council of Ontario is advocating for direct negotiations with growers.

This is a tough business decision, but one that will help Diageo remain highly competitive ... " stated the company's vice president of bottling in Canada, Mario Leduc.

Sure Canadian vintners bottle foreign-grown grapes. But, hey, isn't that Sicily I taste in the French 'Burgundy'?

What many see as an honest attempt last week to boost Ontario's wine and grape industry others view as an insidious attempt to block foreign competition. "This is going to be one of those x's against Canada of a protectionist measure that we have put in place in the economic times," says Cyndee Todgham Cherniak, a Lang Michener LLP international trade lawyer.

Wineries are being kept in a box that's keeping them from growing, says the chairman of the Wine Council of Ontario.

Ontario and British Columbia address Cellared in Canada designations: Consumers demand transparency

To boost the local grape content of wines made in Ontario, the provincial government issued on Tuesday new regulatory and tax change regulations.