A giant in the Canadian beverage industry and a pioneer in the Ontario industry has died at the age of 94. Peter Mielzynski died peacefully on April 7 at Joesph Brant Hospital in Burlington.
Mielzynski was born in Kusowo, Poland and lived in the much beloved Uzarzewo Estate with his family near Poznan, Poland.
He immigrated to Canada from Poland in 1946 with only a few hundred dollars to explore the country and through a lot of hard work, which included working sales at Eaton’s and with Encyclopedia Britannica, Mielzynski landed his first job in the wines and spirits industry in sales at McGuinness Distillers in 1957, where he would become president, helping to build McGuinness Distillers and Agencies into one of the largest wines and spirits companies in Canada.
After leaving McGuiness in 1978 he founded PMA (Peter Mielzynski Agencies) in 1979, which, 36 years later, is one of the leading wines and spirits agencies in Canada.
Mielzynski also founded Hillebrand Estates Winery (now more commonly known as Trius Winery and owned by Peller Estates) in 1980 in Niagara-on- the-Lake and helped build the Ontario Wine Industry to where it is today.
Mielzynski spent nearly 60 years in the Canadian wine and spirits industry creating and building companies and brands and employing thousands of people over that time, making an enormous contribution to the industry.
In 2014, Mielzynski received the honour of “Canadian Immigrant of the Year” through RBC.
On a personal note, my path crossed with Mielzynski dozens of times through the years, most notably at the famous portfolio tastings held by PMA at the Toronto Hunt Club in Scarborough. Mielzynski held what were known in the wine industry as the most lavish portfolio tastings in Toronto with amazing tastings of rare and expensive spirits and wines with many of the world’s most famous principals from the top distilleries and wineries.
The PMA portfolio tasting was always a highlight of the year for industry professionals and Mielzynski was always there tasting, talking and engaging with each every person there.
He was a kind and modest man who cared deeply about the Ontario wine industry and always cherished his role in founding the Hillebrand winery.
He wrote the book Hillebrand Estates Winery, a fascinating account of the development and establishment of that award-winning Niagara winery.
The story of how Hillebrand Estates Winery became one of the top producers of world-class wines in Canada is truly amazing. When it was founded in 1980, only four other estate wineries existed in the Niagara region.
Clearly, Hillebrand Estates is one of the pioneers in the art of winemaking in this country. From the beginning, Hillebrand`s goal was to develop high-quality Ontario wines that would rival the European imports appearing on store shelves. Hillebrand`s innovation and expertise has ensured that it is one of the leading producers of top quality wine in the Niagara region.
The winery was the first to develop contracts for Niagara growers, guaranteeing ten years of crop purchases.
Hillebrand was also the first Canadian winery to bring Icewine to market.
Whenever I met with Mielzynski, either at the portfolio tastings or when he would pop into a tasting the PMA offices and join us, he would sign his book and kindly offer it to read. I have at least four signed books by Mielzynski as I just couldn’t refuse his generous offer.
He will be dearly missed by friends, family and anyone who met the man.
Friends may call at the Turner & Porter Yorke Chapel, 2357 Bloor St. W., at Windermere, east of the Jane Subway, on Thursday April 14, 2016 from 6-9 p.m. Prayers at 8 p.m.
A Memorial Mass will be held at St. Casimir’s Catholic Church, 156 Roncesvalles Ave., on Saturday, April 23, 2016 at 11 a.m. For those who wish, memorial donations may be made to the Heart & Stroke Foundation, 1-888-473-4636, or a charity of your choice.
You can also read this obituary by Danny Gallagher of the Toronto Star here.
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