Omi’s Hause

I spent my night in St. Catharines, Ontario at Omi’s Hause (which means grandmas house). Nestled in the country, among vineyards and farms is the home of Hilda and Rudy Brahm.
The home is more than 100 years old, and as warm and cozy as the hosts. I spent a lot of time getting to know them (they are former Mennonites). They welcomed me in graciously and let me explore and ask a million questions. They were so kind and generous.
I stayed in a little room behind the house called «The Bunkie». It was fashioned to be sort of like a tree house. It was awesome! They also served a wonderful breakfast of homemade crepes with fresh fruits, sautéed peaches and this amazing cream Hilda makes! Heaven. And bacon, nice crispy bacon. Rudy and Hilda shared advice on life and marriage and told us stories about themselves. They are in their 70’s and have been doing this for many years! They are absolutely delightful!
When I returned to Omis Hause after visiting Niagara Falls, we sat and drank a version of iced wine, a wine created in Canada. It’s about $ 55 to $ 100 for a small bottle, so they introduced me to Late Harvest, a cheaper version but tastes the same. Ice wine is made from grapes that are frozen and never go below a certain temperature. They are so pricey because pickers have to pluck the grapes late at night when they are the perfect temperature. This wine is SO so good. Very sweet.
Note: Make sure you spell out THIRD street when putting it into the GPS. If you get lost, just ask for the lawnmower dr. :) Also, this is only 20 minutes from Niagara Falls in a cozy, quiet part of town. Close to vineyards and businesses but just a gem of a place. Very romantic.