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ntrepreneur and small business owner, Jackie Herbert, has carved out a special place
local stops, and with the ever-expanding craft beverage and food industry, I’m excited to know that our future will be bright,” says Herbert. Growing up on a farm in rural Ontario, Herbert has a strong appreciation for supporting local, especially in the agricultural community. After moving here two years ago, she quickly witnessed the same supportive community. “For example, the collaboration between Myriad View Artisan Distillery in Rollo Bay and the PEI Brewing Company in Charlottetown — two companies that may be seen as
year we will be touring all over the Island. We’ll head east to Bogside Brewing, the new brewery in Montague, and all the way up to Ellerslie to Moth Lane Brewing. Exciting times are ahead for this season.” The tasting tours don’t just showcase Island craft beverages, Hop Sip Swirl stops at several locations that will appease any foodie. On the Wine, Cheese & Mead tour, the guests have a chance to sample sheep’s milk cheese and yoghurt, from Ferme Isle Saint-Jean Farm in Rustico, and several flavours of Gouda artisan cheese at Glasgow Glen Farm in New Glasgow. “What pairs well with wine and mead? Cheese of course. Having these artisanal cheesemakers on PEI, adds to the variety of edibles produced here,” says Herbert.
on Prince Edward Island’s craft beverage market. With Hop Sip Swirl Tasting Tours, the only private tour company of its kind on Prince Edward Island, Herbert was sure the market was ready for this tasting experience. Herbert doesn’t just drive guests around the Island and sample drinks all day, Hop Sip Swirl Tasting Tours specializes in creating one-of-a-kind tasting tours throughout the Island. This includes helping guests to decide on their preferred tour itinerary that includes local wineries, breweries, distilleries, cideries or meaderies, organizing interactive tours at specific locations, and often choosing appropriate beverages that pair well with their guests’ upcoming meal plans. An expansion of daily tours for the 2019 season has allowed for full day and half day tours along with private tours. Now guests can choose a tour based on their available time, and taste. The most popular is the Signature Tour that offers a mix of local wineries, breweries, distilleries, cideries and meaderies. However, they offer tours specific for wine, spirit or the craft beer lovers as well as hard cider and meaderies. The tours offer more than just sampling food and beverage. They take you along the coast, down PEI’s famous red dirt roads, to out of the way places some say they wouldn’t have found. The views of the land and coastline are majestic. “Our tours really do hit all of your senses!” Herbert says. Hop Sip Swirl Tasting Tours offers an exceptional experience with eight fully guided, private tours to choose from daily. “We currently have a total of 17 different
competitors — produced a product that was extremely successful last summer. During the tour when I tell my guests that, they instantly develop support for these two companies. Both have become favourite stops on our tours.” Touring a vineyard, a micro distillery or an orchard on the Island is an exclusive experience. Understanding the Island’s authentic terroir, or a taste of place, gives tour guests a better appreciation for Island producers. “Another unique concept you’ll often find while touring with us, is meeting the owners of the establishments, something you don’t see often in other founding craft beverage regions,” explains Herbert. With the creation of the new Brewcation tour, Hop Sip Swirl now travels to all fully operational breweries Island-wide. “This “I always try to get our guests to push their boundaries and try something new.”
For 2019 they have again incorporated a Wine, Dine and
Shine tour, a real authentic food and beverage journey. Fresh, local seafood
is what’s on the menu at The Wheelhouse in Georgetown. “Paired with samples on our tour from Myriad View Distillery and Rossignol Estate Winery, our guests get to have a real coastal dining experience,” says Herbert. Operating from May through October, Hop Sip Swirl Tasting Tours strives to get their guests closer to Island ingredients with exceptional hospitality. “I always try to get our guests to push their boundaries and try something new,” says Herbert, “tasting something they wouldn’t have otherwise, often taking it home with them. That’s when I know I have succeeded in enriching their time on the Island.”
www.Hopsipswirl.ca
SUMMER 2019 www.pei-living.ca
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