During the excursion we took prior to the Wine Bloggers’ Conference 2013 (WBC13) in Penticton, British Columbia, we tasted wine at three wineries in the Kelowna area. We wrote about those winery visits in prior posts here, here and here. During the tastings, we collected a few wines to take home with us. We did so with the idea of sharing them with the wine tasting group on Thursday nights at Fine Wines of Stockton. George and Gail gave Pete the floor for the tasting last Thursday night. We had a larger than usual crowd with more than twenty people that night.
The history of wine making in the Okanagan Valley is fairly recent. It began with wine making by Catholic priests in 1859 at the Oblate Mission in Kelowna. J.W. Hughes made the first commercial plantings of native table grape varieties in the 1920s. By the 1960 wineries were looking to improve the quality of their wines and moved to planting French hybrids like Maréchal Foch.
The next major step forward came in 1976 with the Becker Project, which introduced European varietals to the Okanagan. Pinot Blanc, Riesling and Gewürztraminer were introduced with the assistance of Helmut Becker, a vine researcher from Germany’s Geisenheim Institute. A period of experimentation with the European varieties began but was not without set-backs. A severe winter freeze in 1978 damaged many of the vinifera plantings.
In 1988 the Canadian government began a project to remove labrusca and French hybrid grapes in the Okanagan. This government project paid growers to remove these vines and replant with Vitis vinifera varieties to improve the quality of Canadian wines. This was in response to the North American Free Trade Agreement meant that higher quality wines from California, Washington and Oregon were available in Canada. So, most “old vines” in the Okanagan Valley date back to the late 1980s.
We purchased wines at Summerhill Pyramid Winery, Tantalus Vineyards and CedarCreek Estate Winery, all located on the Lakeshore Wine Route which is one of five Kelowna Wine Trails. This northern portion of the Okanagan is cooler than the southern end of the valley and concentrates on white wine varietals, though we did purchase both Pinot Noir and Baco Noir. We were also given a Cabernet Franc from Tinhorn Creek Vineyards from the southern end.
Summerhill Pyramid Winery Cipes NV Brut Sparkling Wine $26.95 This blend of 65% Reisling, 25% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Blanc is made with 100% organic grapes. Though not the usual blend for a sparkling wine, the flavors of red apples, some sweetness and a roundness in the mouth make for an easy drinking summer sparkler. Some tasters perceived a little more sweetness than expected from a Brut.
2012 Tantalus Vineyard Riesling $23 A floral nose followed with citrus flavors, a light weight in the mouth and a sweet finish. Some tasters were looking for more acid and a bit more complexity but all thought it was a nice wine.
Tantalus Vineyards has a direct historical connection to grape pioneer J.W. Hughes. The winery site was originally planted by Hughes in 1927 and was known as Pioneer Vineyards.
2012 CedarCreek Estate Winery Ehrenfelser $18.95 Summer flavors of pear and citrus combine with mineral notes. Some tasters perceived flavors they associate with Sauvignon Blanc in this wine as well.
Ehrenfelser, a cross between Riesling and an unknown grape, was developed to produce a more frost resistant alternative to Riesling. According to Robinson, Harding and Voulliamoz in Wine Grapes, Ehrenfelser has good frost resistance with yields similar to Riesling except with higher sugar levels and lower acidity. I find the flavors of Ehrenfelser very interesting and completely unlike Riesling. We also purchased an Ehrenfelser at Summerhill Pyramid Winery which we liked very much.
2010 CedarCreek Estate Winery Platinum Homeblock Pinot Noir $39.95 Dark ruby in the glass with a bit of dark fruit on the nose and sweet dark fruit and vanilla flavors. This wine was aged 16 months in French oak and you do pick that up in the nose and flavor. Some of the tasters said they would have like to see a little less oak while others loved it the way it was.
2010 Summerhill Pyramid Winery Baco Noir $24.95 Dried fruit scents, dark ripe berry fruit and vegetal flavors with a good mouth-feel and silky tannins. Not the usual dark fruit flavors we taste in many red wines. We have only had one other Baco Noir and it was a less ripe style so it was interesting to compare the two.
Baco Noir is another unusual grape variety. A hybrid produced in southwest France in 1902. It is no longer widely planted in France, but has significant plantings in the Hudson River Region and Finger Lakes AVAs in New York State, Ontario and British Columbia. In addition there is a notable planting in southern Oregon. We have only tasted this cold weather red varietal once before, at a tasting with our friend Dave. It also showed a lot of dark fruit flavors and scents. We are still curious about this wine varietal and will continue to look for it.
2010 Tinhorn Creek Cabernet Franc $19.99 A bit lighter ruby in the glass than many Cabernet Francs, flavors of dark, rich, ripe fruit were followed by significant tannins. Some tasters thought the tannins overpowered the fruit in this wine but Pete and I thought it just needed another year or so aging or maybe some food to go along with it. Of course we like a lot of tannins in our reds anyway. We both liked this Cabernet Franc quite a bit and would buy some if it were available locally.
Tinhorn Creek is located in Oliver which is in the southern end of the Okanagan Valley. Temperatures are warmer in this portion of the valley and most of the red grape varieties are grown here. Tinhorn Creek farms 150 acres of grapes in two very different locations in Southern Okanagan’s Golden Mile area. The Tinhorn Creek Vineyard located on the west bench gets morning sun which makes the Gewürztraminer and Muscat very happy. The Diamondback Vineyard, located on the opposite side of the valley, and home to Cabernet Franc and Merlot, enjoys the heat of the afternoon sun.
It was fun collecting and sharing these wines. The group generally enjoyed the wine tasting. Most thought the white wines were tasty, if not the most complex wines they’d ever tasted, but were well made and have great potential. The red wines as well, most felt were well made. Some were not the preferred style of some tasters, a matter of oak and tannins, but most appreciated the opportunity to taste wines from an area new to them.
We are enthusiastic about these wines and are looking forward to another visit to the Okanagan Valley. We don’t know when that will be, but there are many more wineries left to visit. With over 200 wineries in the Okanagan region we will have our work cut out for us. Possibly multiple trips will need to be made. This is a scenic region with friendly people, good wine and good food as well. It really is the perfect place for a vacation.
Cheers!
