VQA Wines of Ontario is bringing a taste of wine country to commuters with a pop-up storefront at Toronto’s Union Station.

Operating until June 10, the pop-up features 42 wineries from across Ontario’s wine regions including the Niagara Escarpment, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Lake Erie North Shore, Prince Edward County and the Emerging Regions.

“This is a unique pop up program that brings VQA wines, wineries and wine makers to unexpected places around Ontario,” says Sylvia Augaitis, executive director at the Wine Marketing Association of Ontario, the organization dedicated to promoting VQA wines of Ontario. The purpose, she says, is to highlight and showcase wine country and wines that are available “right here in our backyard.”

According to Augaitis, the pop-up is about sampling, helping people find their new favorite flavours, as well as education about local wine regions, through an experience designed to create “a sense of adventure and discovery.” This is the first time the Wine Marketing Association of Ontario has activated at Union Station – the pop-up is located within the underground retail concourse, but it is also finalizing details to add an outdoor patio component.

What’s also new for this experiential iteration is the introduction of a life-sized interactive digital display unit where visitors can plan a trip to wine country, access a wine selection tool and receive copies of the latest Wine Country Ontario Travel Guide.

VQA ambassadors will be pouring a selection of eight VQA wines each day and will help guide guests to new go-to VQA wines for summer.

In addition, there will be two featured wineries on-site each day featuring samples of VQA wines available exclusively at the winery.

“There has been a strong trend toward supporting local,” Augaitis says. “We know once people have been out to wine country, it changes their experience of the wine, their view, and their loyalty.”

Throughout the 24-days of what it’s calling “VQA In The City,” VQA Wines of Ontario has a number of giveaways, including a grand prize of a wine country getaway and a Yeti cooler prize package.

“Any time we have run a getaway, we have had incredibly strong results and it’s a very popular prize package,” Augaitis says.

Consumer engagement and experiential shop Go Bee Marketing is providing support on the effort.