The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

w at er lo oc hr on ic le .c a W at er lo o C hr on ic le | T hu rs da y, Ju ne 7, 20 18 | 18 Father of two young children. Avid traveller. Team captain for Walk for the Cure. Plays baseball. Every year, eight roadworkers are killed in construction zones across Ontario. Obey the signs. Don't let your emergency become ours. Christine Dainard knows a little bit about mar- keting and communica- tions, so it's no surprise that she's come up with her own slogan for her new craft beer and wine tour busi- ness - Catch the Buzz. Dainard was in market- ing with a health promo- tions company before get- ting a diploma in public re- lations and working in the communications depart- ment at the City of Kitche- ner when she was bitten by the entrepreneurial bug. She came up with the idea of doing exclusive tours to the south coast of Ontario, in Norfolk County, and ex- posing people to the grow- ing wine region in the area. It also encompasses the craft beer craze, and of course the local food and 100-mile diet movement, by connecting local people to the farmers and producers in an area of the province that is still an undiscovered gem. Best of all, she does all the driving, and she has a way with people that puts them at ease while hitting all the highlights. In other words, sit back relax and let Dainard do the driving while you enjoy the person- al experience. "I've always enjoyed wine and taking wine tours myself, but when I learned that Norfolk County was an up-and-coming region and had 12 different wineries and craft breweries pop- ping up, it was something that I wanted to explore a little further," said Dainard. "When I looked into it, it's a little over an hour away from Waterloo Region. it's a lovely country drive with no major highway. "It's a very much grass- roots farm-to-table experi- ence that you get there. And it was an opportunity, not just from the wine and beer side of things; it was more and opportunity to connect with people and unplug from city life." Part of what make this tour unique is that Dainard will bundle up six or seven of your closest friends in her Catch the Buzz- labelled minivan and drive you to the little stops that will make your tour an experi- ence instead of something you had to do. In addition to the intimacy of the service, there is also a lot of flexibil- ity, and she can stop to take in the unique and wonder- ful, in addition to the tanta- lizing food and great new wines and beers. "Most wine tours, they drop you off at the door, you get your wine sample and you come out," said Dai- nard. "My experiences are a lot different than that. You're going in and talking with the winemakers and building that relationship ... you're really getting that grassroots feel and you feel connected to something, and a lot of people learn that Norfolk is Ontario's garden and a lot of produce comes from there." On one of her most re- cent tours, a group of fe- male friends happened up- on a pasture that ran right next to the vineyard they were visiting. While they took in the pastoral picture of the cows lolling in the field, the bovines got curi- ous and decided to take a closer look. "I said, 'Ladies, I think we need to go talk to the cows,'" said Dainard. "They were so friendly; we were petting the cows, and they kept talking to us. It was hi- larious, so I took a little vid- eo, and the girls talked about it all the way home. "The tour is flexible; it's fun. There is some struc- ture around how the tour is built, but it's also how the group flows." Dainard said that's what the Buzz Tour Company is all about: having people en- joy themselves for the day and put the city behind them. There they can forget the hustle and bustle of city life while reconnecting with nature. "It's a great way to get out of the city," she said. Plus, she's cultivated a good relationship with the winemakers and the farm- ers of Norfolk County who don't want to be a secret and are looking to connect with people in markets like Wa- terloo Region. "When I started to get to know the different winema- kers and winery owners that are out there, I really learned that they needed more exposure," said Dai- nard. "What they're doing is amazing, but not a lot of people know about them. "Niagara has already got their thing going on, and they don't really need the marketing help. I really wanted to take people to a region that was new and up- and-coming - something different - and people really want to do something differ- ent these days." The tour can accommo- date groups of friends, cou- ples and occasions like bridal showers. She also gets approached for team- building events and corpo- rate tours and can use a bus for bigger groups while not losing that personal touch. "I do special requests and custom events, and work with a livery company to offer that service," said Dainard. "That's also a lot of fun because I can just be their guide and get in on the fun with them." For more information, visit buzztourcompany.ca, email info@buzztourcom- pany.ca or call 519-577-0758. Catching the buzz with a local food, wine and beer guru Christine Dainard, founder of Catch the Buzz, has launched a service to provide drink and foodie tours to Norfolk County to give people a taste of local craft beers and wines and the food in that area. She provides the ride and the guide, and people can sit back and enjoy the experience. Bob Vrbanac Photo Entrepreneur Christine Dainard Buzz Tour Company helps to personalize the experience BOB VRBANAC bvrbanac@waterloochronicle.ca BUSINESS Visit waterloochronicle.ca for more coverage