Sap wine flowing off the shelves

FLEUR DE LYS, NL - Newfoundland’s fruit wine industry is about to get a little more sweet.

As one of just six birch wine producers around the world, and one of only two in Canada, Craig Lewis has grand plans for Sap World, this still small operation based in a small fishing community on Newfoundland’s northern shore.

In 2008, Lewis has 400 cases of the specialty wine bottled and ready for store shelves in the province with the expectation of turning out 10,000 gallons this year.

Lady of the Woods is for sale in liquor stores in Newfoundland and Labrador and Lewis is looking to expand both in Canada and overseas.

“We’re working with several companies to get it established in Nova Scotia, Ontario and Alberta where lots of Newfoundlanders are,” he said.

The Japanese and Korean markets are key areas as sap wine has been consumed there for thousands of years and is very popular, Lewis said.

He is also trying to get it listed at www.wineonline.ca to expand the availability of birch wine across Canada.

At full capacity, Lewis said he could produce as many as 80,000 cases of wine from 10,000 trees.

“It’s such a unique product (and) with its health benefits, I hope to transfer that into the wine,” Lewis said.

The wine, called Lady of the Woods, is one of two products produced by the company; the other is Birch Wind, a vodka beverage. Bottled water called Sapalicious is in the works for later this year.

Craig Lewis started his company in 2006 after reading an article about birch wine production and decided to immediately give it a try on trees near his home. The sap for Lady of the Woods now comes from 1,000 trees near Millertown, a small community in central Newfoundland.

It is produced at Rodrigues Winery west of St. John’s, however Lewis said he hopes to have his own facility up and running in two to three years depending on market demand.

So far the demand is looking up. The first batch of birch wine was just 172 cases, but 135 sold out while the rest went to sampling.

The wine is described on the label as providing “a delicate fragrance of soft apple and pear; sits well in the mouth with pleasant acids balancing the evident fruit sugars; persistent flavors of ripe pear, mandarin orange, and delicious apple blend harmoniously and without bitterness. Superb by itself, this wine will pair well with less sweet desserts such as shortbread, vanilla crème brulee, and almond fingers.”