Broken Stone Winery

About Broken Stone Winery

Broken Stone Winery is a small family-owned winery in Prince Edward County, Ontario. The winery is 115 m above sea level at 44.0011° N. An island at the east end of Lake Ontario, Prince Edward County’s unique geography, creates a microclimate that is ideally suited to growing world class chardonnay and pinot noir.
The soil of our vineyard is ancient glacial till called Hillier Clay Loam. The name Broken Stone refers to the limestone fragments that are strewn throughout our vineyards. Our hot summer days and cool nights, combined with the limestone soils allow us to grow elegant, mineral-driven Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Although our latitude is further south than Burgundy, our winters are more severe, and in the Fall we tie our vines down to a low wire and bury the entire vineyard underground – ensuring the survival of the cold-sensitive vines for the next vintage. Because of this difficulty and expense, our region attracts only the most passionate and stalwart winegrowers dedicated to the perfection of the grape and the wine.
We are Tim and Micheline Kuepfer, the proprietors of Broken Stone Winery. We founded our vineyards and winery on pure grit and determination to craft world class wines.

Representative Biography

Tim Kuepfer, Proprietor & Winemaker

Raised in a small farming community, Tim pursued a business degree from the Ivey Business School at the University of Western Ontario and spent two decades in Toronto selling financial software and databases. During those years, Micheline and Tim raised a family and worked corporate careers while dreaming about living on a vineyard in the country.
But it could be said that Tim worked city jobs for twenty years waiting for the chance to live his true life amidst the vines at his small farm in Prince Edward County. To Tim’s chagrin, his wife Micheline often says, “you can take the boy out of the country, but you can never take the country out of the boy.”

Tim’s viticultural training began in 2009 when he and Micheline purchased 34 acres in Prince Edward County with one acre of just-planted Pinot Noir vines. Tim learned viticulture by getting his hands dirty in that little vineyard, doing every task himself for the first years. The local crop extension and other grape growers were his mentors. He planted another acre of Pinot Noir and three acres of Chardonnay were planted in 2010. He learned the science of winemaking by completing the UC Davis Certificate in Winemaking and learned the craft from new friends in the Prince Edward County Winegrower’s Association. But his main source of expertise was gained by just going out and making wine. Broken Stone Winery has grown from that first acre in 2009 to growing 21 acres of cool climate grapes today, with Tim managing every detail of grape growing and winemaking and Micheline providing insights into marketing and creating great products.

“When the grapes shine like gold in the morning sun and taste like honey, we know it’s time for harvest. So do the birds.”
“The vineyard is the foundation of our winery. It’s where the important work is done. If we’ve done a world class job in the vineyard during the growing season, the fruit is sound and it’s almost like the wine makes itself. “ Tim Kuepfer

Why We're Cool

Broken Stone Winery Chardonnay Vineyard
115 m above sea level
44.0011° N
Slightly North sloping.
Soil type Hillier Clay loam
Soil depth 6 inches to 5 feet, averaging 2 feet
Dry Farmed
Clone 76 on 3309

By Chadsey’s Cairns – King Eddie Vineyard and Applehouse Vineyard
90 m above sea level
43.9518° N
South sloping
Soil type Brighton Gravelly Sand, Hillier Clay Loam
Soil depth 10 feet +
Dry Farmed
Unknown clones on S04

Time Honoured Methods
Our County Grown Chardonnay is harvested 100% from grapes grown in Prince Edward County at two distinct sites.

We harvest Chardonnay from our own 3-acre vineyard and from another 2 acres that we lease at By Chadsey’s Cairns. Both sites offer different microclimates. Broken Stone Winery’s vineyard is moderately vigorous and was planted on shallow rock and clay in 2010. At Broken Stone the summers are hot and droughty. In contrast, By Chadsey’s Cairns vineyards were planted twenty years ago on a vigorous rootstock in deep sandy soils. It is only 500 meters from Lake Ontario, so the summer temperatures are moderated by cool breezes and the occasional shower off the lake.

We use the vertical shoot positioning system with 9 x 4 foot spacing and tie up 4 canes per plant. This may seem like a lot of buds in the trellis, but the extra shoots provide a sink for vigour, and several are buds lost or damaged when we bury the vines under soil in the winter. A key component of our nutrition and spray program is a compost tea, which has repellent effects on leaf hoppers and fungal disease as well as providing nourishment. Before Veraison, we strip the leaf zone to expose the Chardonnay grapes to the sun and wind, preventing disease and enhancing ripeness. The leaf-pulling is done manually both by humans and by our small flock of hungry Babydoll sheep. The fruit turns golden and the brix approaches 21.5 around October 1. We carefully hand harvest into 15 kg lugs, crush, press, and ferment the wine. Part of our ferment is in 1–3-year-old oak barrels and a portion is in stainless steel. After 8 months ageing, we blend a portion of the steel fermented wine with the wood fermented wine to produce our premium County Grown Chardonnay. The remainder goes into our popular unoaked Chardonnay Sans Chêne.

We believe great wine is made in the vineyard, so we spare no effort in caring for our vines.
Our winemaking delivers bright, pristine, mineral-driven Chardonnay with just a nod to oak and malolactic fermentation.