A Surprise at Niagara Falls

View from the top of Niagara Falls

Today we had a day trip to Niagara Falls, with a refreshing stop at a winery on our way back to Toronto.  I had learned from my brother that the water dumped on Houston by Hurricane Harvey was the equivalent of 75 Niagara Falls for four straight days. Or maybe it was 57;  I’m vague on the details.  Let’s just say Nature is powerful and impressive.

I was surprised to learn that Man has the capability of turning off Niagara Falls, or at least partially closing the spigot — and does so every night, from midnight to 6:00 am. About half the water is diverted into ponds for producing hydroelectric power for both Canada and the United States. During the day tourists are treated to the full power of the thunderous falls.

On our way back to Toronto we stopped at a winery that specializes in producing one of the rarest of wines —ice wines. The grapes are harvested in January when they are frozen solid. Most regions that grow grapes never get that cold, and most places with cold winters can’t grow grapes. This region of Ontario is perfect for producing ice wine. But each grape yields just a teardrop amount of sweetness, a tenth of what grapes normally produce. We were told that it takes about 300 grapes to make a botttle of ordinary wine; about 3,000 grapes give up their lives to produce ice wine.

It was not a surprise to find out that ice wine is expensive. The best customers for it turn out to be sake drinkers. The rest of us might appreciate it to one extent or another. I’m happy with more ordinary wine.

Tomorrow we have a five-hour train trip to Montreal. We’ll get to see lots of countryside.