Photo: Winemaker Mary McDermott
The recent releases from Township 7 Vineyards & Winery consisted of three wines made with American grapes and one from the splendid 2022 Okanagan vintage. Winemaker Mary McDermott also included an encouraging note about the 2025 vintage after her account of earlier vintages.
“In past years, particularly 2021 and 2023,” she writes, “I noted those vintages were among the most challenging we’d faced. It turns out I spoke too soon. We entered the 2024 season with optimism following a mild fall and winter. Unfortunately, that hope was quickly dashed by a devastating cold snap in mid-January.”
She recounted the vine-killing temperatures of that cold snap. They went from 0◦C on January 10 to -14◦C the next day and then to -23◦C on January 12 before “bottoming out” at -27◦C on January 13. “The result was catastrophic vine death and severe crop loss,” she writes. “Early bud tests revealed no signs of life, and we braced for the worst – preparing to replant everything.”
It turned out not quite so grim in the spring. “To our relief, many vines produced cane growth and leaves,” she writes.Township 7 has an estate vineyard on the Naramata Bench and another near Oliver. Most of the Naramata vines survived, unlike those in Oliver, where the damage was so bad that entire blocks of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon had to be removed. Those were replanted in 2025. “By harvest’s end, the vineyards looked healthy, offering cautious optimism for the future.”
Like many other Okanagan wineries, Township 7 had to source fruit from Washington State in order to make table wines in 2024.
However, there was a surprising rebound in the Okanagan in 2025. “This year marked our second-largest harvest ever, bringing in 232 short tons of fruit,” Mary writes. “We increased our intake of white and sparkling wine grapes to balance the lighter vintages of the past two years. We also welcomed exciting new varieties – Roussanne, Auxerrois and Rotberger – which will enhance future blends and our rosé program.”
While we wait Township 7’s 2025 wines, here are notes on the recent releases.
Township 7 Interlude Select Sauvignon Blanc 2024 ($33.97.) The fruit for this wine was from Bacchus Vineyard in Washington State. The wine was fermented in French oak barrels and aged there for six months, with gentle stirring to accentuate the texture. The wine is crisp, clean and refreshing with aromas and flavours of lemon and lime. 90.
Township 7 Interlude Select Chardonnay 2024 ($36.97). The fruit for this wine was sourced from two vineyards – one in Sonoma’s Russian River and the other in Washington State. The wine was fermented in French oak barrels (12% new). Eighty per cent was fermented with wild yeast. The wine was on the lees about 12 months, with weekly batonnage to build texture. The wine has aromas of apple mingled with vanilla leading to generous flavours of apple and gentle notes of oak. 90.
Township 7 Interlude Series Pinot Noir 2024 ($43.97). The fruit for this wine was sourced in Sonoma’s Russian River Valley. The wine was fermented in stainless-steel and then aged 12 month in 500-litre French oak puncheons. This is a delicious wine, beginning with aromas of cherry and raspberry. There is spicy, bright fruit on the palate and the finish is silky. 91.
Township 7 Provenance Series Cabernet Merlot 2022 ($29.97). This is a blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Merlot, with fruit from vineyards near Osoyoos and on the Naramata Bench. The wine was aged 18 months in American and French oak. Made from a great Okanagan vintage, the wine begins with aromas of dark fruits mingled with cassis and chocolate. The palate is rich with flavours that echo the aromas. Long, ripe tannins give the wine a long finish. 93.
