Andrea (Drea) Kaiser’s passion for local food and wine was born from being the daughter of winemaker Karl J. Kaiser who is now hailed as the pioneer of modern winemaking in Canada. She was most fortunate to have had a front row seat to the re-birth of a cottage industry and witnessed it grow to become a global competitor. Her roots in Niagara led her to a life-long career in wine, hospitality and tourism as a restauranteur, winery estate manager, educator, marketer, writer and now winemaker, with launch of her own personal wine brand.

Andrea is now credited as a leader in winery tourism and marketing and has grown multiple businesses as well as contributed to the advancement of her industry. She is currently chairperson of the marketing cooperative Wineries of Niagara-on-the-Lake and Ontario’s Sustainable Winemaking Certification program and also serves as an Executive Board Member of Ontario Craft Wineries and is Board Member of Tourism Niagara-on-the-Lake. For ten years, Andrea taught at the Canadian Food and Wine Institute at Niagara College, specifically courses in business management, tourism, consumer behaviour, branding and public relations, all with a focus on the wine industry.

Her own wine studies included sommelier training and travels abroad to wine regions like Napa, Bordeaux, Friuli, the Douro Valley and Okanagan. Andrea continues to learn and expand her horizons at any opportunity and when time permits she loves to write and has published articles about what else, but local food and wine.