Adamo Estate Winery

About Adamo Estate Winery

Hockley Valley may not seem like an obvious location to establish a winery, and that’s what made it an ideal spot for Mario Adamo; Visionary, risk-taker and pioneer. 2013 was our first vintage and in 2015, the team were thrilled and proud to be crushing the Chardonnay, Riesling and Vidal on the very fields Mario had planted by hand. Though Adamo Estate Winery was a dream born out of Mario’s historical fondness, an innate curiosity and a desire to succeed, his vision is innovative and focused on family tradition, something the Adamo family has already proven to be a successful formula.

Adamo Estate Winery is a small-batch boutique winery with 20,000 vines, focusing on organic practices. Starting with fruit from the estate, and from top growers in Ontario, their fruit speaks for itself and their terroir-driven wines.

Located in the beautiful rolling hills of Hockley Valley, just 1 hour north of the GTA, the winery offers a beautiful retail space and tasting bar, as well unique event and meeting spaces overlooking the vines, tanks or the cellar.

We focus on cool climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, making those our principal varietals, followed by: Riesling, Gamay Noir, Cabernet Franc and Vidal. Other varietals we carry include: Chardonnay Musqué, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and l’Acadie Blanc.

Take in the scenic beauty of the region, tour the winery and taste the fruits of their labour! Visit Adamo Estate Winery’s website at adamoestate.com.

Representative Biography

Vanessa McKean, Winemaker

Vanessa McKean grew up on a Black Angus Beef and Belgian Horse farm in the Blue Mountains, her roots are in farming so viticulture was a natural draw. After graduating from Niagara College’s Wine & Viticulture program, Vanessa wanted to pursue growing grapes and making wine in the emerging region of South Georgian Bay where she worked as the Wine & Cider maker for Georgian Hills Vineyards & Ardiel Cider for 10 years. During this time Vanessa also consulted on a number of other winery/vineyard projects in the area assisting people establish vineyards.
Vanessa joined the Adamo Estate Winery team in 2020 as Vineyard Manager and has since taken on roles of Assistant Winemaker & now Winemaker to produce wines with heart and history.

Why We're Cool

AAdamo Estate Winery is a very cool place!

We are located in the Hills of Headwaters in Mono, Ontario. Our latitude/longitude is 44°03′00″N80°04′28″W and our altitude 435 metres. Our vineyard is planted on beautiful rolling hills along the northern part of the Niagara Escarpment. We are located 60kms north-west of Lake Ontario and a km south of Hockley Valley Resort. Lake Ontario does not directly affect our micro climate which allows us to have more extreme temperature variations in the winter and summer.

Due to the location, which is generally an equal distance from 3 large bodies of water, a consistent breeze is often travelling through our vineyard. We cover our vines with geotextiles for the winter, which helps us to prevent winter damage or death to our vines. Chardonnay is definitely a focus for us and since our first Chardonnay vines were planted in 2012 we have seen great success! We have expended our Chardonnay clone and rootstock selection as we have expanded our vineyard; now totalling 5 acres of Chardonnay on our estate.

Adamo Estate Winery believes that great vineyard sites and great growers are the key to having a sense of place and terroir. In addition to our own vineyard, we are working with exceptional vineyards in Niagara & Prince Edward County. The Lore Vineyard which is located in the Four Mile Creek appellation within NOTL, is a mature planting with close proximity to the Niagara River and the soil in the area has a higher percentage of loam. This 25 year old planting has a unique trellis system of Scott-Henry, with plantings of the Chardonnay Musqué clones throughout the block. This vineyard is managed by Huebel Grapes Estates, which specializes in premium viticulture. We also source from the Wismer family who manages premium vineyards, such as the sought after Foxcroft Vineyard in the Twenty Mile Bench. Foxcroft was planted in 1996 on a clay with loam and limestone soil site that slopes towards Lake Ontario. Most Recently we have sourced Chardonnay from Ramirez Vineyard in Prince Edward County. With its limestone rich soils and unique climate The County is growing complex and focused Chardonnay that we are excited to have as part of our portfolio.

Adamo Estate Winery celebrates all great growing regions for Chardonnay in Ontario, and why we choose to work with many vineyards that have very different expressions of the awesome grape, Chardonnay.