SpearHead releases two Pinot Noirs from 2022

Photo: Winemaker Grant Stanley

Pinot Noir is now the second most widely planted grape variety in British Columbia and the fastest-growing red. Arguably, no winemaker has contributed more to the success of the varietal in BC than Grant Stanley. Grant was born in Vancouver in 1967 but started his winemaking career in New Zealand, including six vintages with Ata Rangi, a legendary Pinot Noir producer. He returned to Canada to join Quails’ Gate Estate Winery in the Okanagan in 2003.

“You know I am a Pinot guy,” Grant told me at the time. “I don’t advertise it but with all the different varieties I make, I still spend about 80 percent of my time thinking about Pinot Noir. I think it has a positive spin-off on the other wines. There is a lot you can learn about Pinot that you can apply to other winemaking. It really is the tricky grape to make. If you can learn with it and understand it, you can ask: if that works for Pinot, will it work for Merlot?”

He left Quails’ Gate for several years at 50th Parallel Winery in Lake Country, another Pinot Noir specialist. Since 2017, Grant has been the winemaker and general manager at SpearHead Winery, an East Kelowna producer also with a major focus on Pinot Noir. Like most East Kelowna producers, SpearHead has been struggling with winter damage in recent vintages. Not much wine was produced from the 15-acre estate vineyard in the 2023 vintage and none in 2024. SpearHead got “not a single grape from SpearHead or grower vineyards this year!” Grant writes. Next spring, the winery intends to replant both of its vineyards, Gentlemen Farmer and Saddle Block, with Pinot Noir and Riesling. Happily for SpearHead fans, the winery has inventory from 2022 that it is releasing now.

The lack of BC grapes has not deterred SpearHead from making wine this fall. Indeed, it is expanding the selection of wines in its portfolio. “Vintage 2024 has been excellent with some fabulous grapes from Washington and Oregon arriving by refrigerated truck,” Grant writes. “From Washington, I have Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay and Syrah. From Willamette Valley in Oregon (Amity Eola hills AVA), Pinot Noir has come from the magnificent Cherry hill Vineyard. I am excited and grateful that we were allowed access to amazing grapes from our colleagues in the US.”

Consumers should look forward to SpearHead’s releases from the 2024 vintage. Meanwhile, here are notes on two current releases from 2022.

SpearHead Okanagan Valley Pinot Noir 2022 ($36 for 758 cases). The fruit is from vineyards in East Kelowna and Summerland. This wine was made with clones 115, 777 and 667. They were fermented separately and aged 13 months in French oak (25% new). This is something of a thespian wine, strutting on stage with dramatic aromas of cherry, mocha and spice. These are echoed on the silky textured palate. The upfront fruit gives this wine immediate appeal. 92.

SpearHead Cuvée Pinot Noir 2022 ($46 for 310 cases). This wine, again with fruit from Summerland and East Kelowna, is SpearHead’s age-worthy flagship Pinot Noir. It is made with clones 667, 115, 828 and 777 and was aged 13 months in French oak (40% new). The aromas of dark cherry and spice are mingled with flavours of dark fruits with earthy forest floor notes on the finish. The texture is robust. The wine should be decanted for current consumption. 92.

Haywire Winery counts on inventory to get through 2024 vintage

Photo: Haywire winemaker Matt Dumayne

This summer, the staff at Haywire Winery in Summerland discovered a forgotten pallet of 2018 Syrah at the back of the warehouse. An excellent wine, it was promptly made available to members of Haywire’s wine club. Fortunate discoveries like that are always welcome, but never more so than in a year like 2024 when there is a negligible harvest for most Okanagan vineyards. While many producers have purchased fruit from American vineyards, Haywire has not done that. The winery will rely on selling its bottled inventory to get through this rough patch. Haywire has a good stock of table wines and sparkling wines, as the disc0very of a 2018 red in the warehouse would indicate. (The winery has already begun selling the 2019 Syrah.)

Formerly known as Okanagan Crush Pad Winery, the winery has transitioned to Haywire, along with brands like Garnet Valley and Narrative. The former name was appropriate when a major part of its business was making the wines for other emerging wineries. Matt Dumayne, the veteran New Zealand winemaker who joined Crush Pad in 2014, has his fingerprints on a lot of Okanagan wines. Most of the client wineries are now standing on their own feet, with their own production facilities and winemaking teams.

Even without imported grapes coming through the door, Matt was still able to make some wines this year from the winery’s limited production of 2024 grapes. The 5 ½ acre Switchback Vineyard look full of growth this fall, having lost almost no vines in the January freeze. “The growth was phenomenol,” Matt says. “We have a ton of options for pruning and we have suckers at the bottom [of the vines]. Back in business. I am estimating we will be 75% back next year.”

“Last week [early October], we harvested Switchback Vineyard and found enough grapes to produce roughly 50 cases of wine,” writes Christine Coletta, Haywire’s co-proprietor. “It’s the only harvest we’ll process this year. Friends came to help pick, and we made hasty work of it. The batch was so small that we couldn’t use our regular equipment. After letting the grapes soak overnight, Matt used our basket press and transferred the juice to amphora. The result is a tantalizingly tasty lot that gives us a glimpse of what the 2024 vintage could have been.” She continued: “At least we got to celebrate Matt’s 38th harvest. Like many winemakers, in his younger days, Matt traveled between the northern and southern hemispheres, experiencing multiple vintages in a single calendar year to expand his knowledge of different varieties and techniques. If you think 50 cases might not qualify as a “harvest,” we may have to dub this his ‘gap year’.”

The winery’s major vineyard, about 65 acres in the nearby Garnet Valley, did not come through the winter as well. That is a higher elevation property than the Switchback Vineyard and does not benefit from any lake effect. “A lot of blocks survived,” Matt says. “Gamay and Pinot Noir did well. Riesling and Chardonnay did not fare that great.” Current plans call for replanting about 15 acres next year. “We planted it in 2013, so we have had a decade of knowledge of the site and the microclimates,” Matt says. “When we replant, we will hone in on what is best suited there in terms of clonal selection. This one particular block, about four acres, we will probably plant a field blend of five different Dijon clones.” And the vines will be planted on their own roots so that they can regenerate more readily after a freeze event. Vines grafted onto rootstock are at risk of freezing down to the graft, leaving just the non-fruitful rootstock to grow the following spring.

Haywire has also been buying fruit since 2022 from the King Brothers vineyard on the Naramata Bench. “Their whites fared really well this winter while the Merlot had some damage,” Matt says. “But nothing needs to be ripped out and replanted.”

Here are notes on some of Haywire’s current releases.

Haywire Vintage Bub 2014 ($49.99). This is a traditional method sparkling wine made with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The wine was aged five years on the lees before being disgorged; it was finished dry, without dosage. There is the classic note of brioche in the aroma and on the palate while the fruit flavors remain fresh and crisp. 92.

Narrative XC Sparkling Wine 2022 ($26.99). Narrative is the Haywire brand for wines made with purchased fruit. This is a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Auxerrois. With the objective being a fruit-forward sparkling wine, this did its secondary fermentation in a Charmat tank. A tiny dosage with red wine gives it an appealing pink hue. The wine is in a lightweight bottle with a reusable screw cap. It has aromas and flavours of strawberry and cherry but still finishes dry. 90.

Haywire Switchback Pinot Gris 2020 ($29.99). This is a full-textured wine, the result of fermenting mostly concrete and spending 10 months of its lees. The wine has rich aromas and flavours of pears. 92.

Haywire Chardonnay 2021 ($29.99). Winemaker Matt especially likes making Chardonnay because the varietal is so versatile. The wine was fermented naturally in concrete tanks before malolactic fermentation, aging further on the lees. Once again, the texture is generous, supporting orchard fruit aromas and flavours. 91.

Haywire Pinot Noir 2022 ($29.99). This wine was fermented in a variety of vessels with natural yeast. The fruit aromas and flavours are bright, with notes of cherry and raspberry. 91.

Haywire King Family Vineyard Merlot 2022 ($32.99). Winemaker Matt recalls picking the grapes in the snow in early November. It was a big and very good vintage, typical of 2022. This is an appealing wine with aromas and flavours of blueberry, black currant and dark cherry. 92.

Narrative Non-Fiction 2019 ($24.99). This is a blend of Malbec, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. The wine was fermented and aged 12 months in concrete. There are aromas and flavours of spice, dark cherry and black currant with a hint of sage. 93.

Narrative Malbec 2019 ($29.99). The wine was fermented and aged 11 months in concrete. It begins with the appealing perfumed aromas of this varietal, leading to flavours of blackberry, black currant and pepper. 92.

Narrative Syrah Viognier 2018 ($24.90). Aromas of mature fruit jump from the glass. On the palate, there are savoury flavours of dark cherry with a hint of deli meats and pepper. 93.

Checkmate 2021 Merlots

Photo: Winemaker Philip McGahan

When Australian-born winemaker Phil McGahan was recruited from a job in Sonoma to launch CheckMate Artisanal Winery in 2013, he focussed it on Chardonnay and Merlot. These were among the leading varietals in the South Okanagan vineyards operated by Anthony von Mandl, the owner of CheckMate, Mission Hill and other top Okanagan wineries.

“The choice for a red wine came down to one of the Bordeaux varietals,” Phil told me in a 2018 interview. “We felt that Merlot was the one we can ripen consistently. It also has that unique character here in the valley that you can really make an exceptional wine with it. Cabernet Franc --- you can do great things with it in the valley. And a lot of people are doing great things with Syrah. But Merlot gave us the best options.”

“We accepted that Chardonnay and Merlot are a non-traditional pairing but it is all about the winery and where we are,” he continued. “We are responding to the environment that we have.” CheckMate is currently releasing its 2021 Merlots, one of the latter few vintages made by Phil McGahan before he returned to his native Australia for family reasons. With the help of assistant winemakers on the ground in the Okanagan, Phil managed to keep his hand in at CheckMate through the 2022 vintage. He now manages a winery in the Australia state of Victoria.

CheckMate’s cellar was taken over early in 2023 by Penticton-born Spencer Kelly (pictured). He had trained in California and worked there with several top wineries before returning to the Okanagan. Unfortunately for Spencer, the devastating January 2024 freeze in Okanagan vineyards meant no grapes are available to CheckMate this vintage from it usual sources. This summer, Spencer returned to make wine in the Napa Valley with a boutique producer there.

It is safe to assume that CheckMate will not be making wine this year with imported fruit, given that its wines have always had the imprint of specific South Okanagan vineyards. The winery, which recently capped the membership of its wine club, will rely on its deep inventory of age-worthy wines to get through this time. Here are notes on current releases – if you are lucky enough to get some. The winery’s elegant tasting room has been open all season.

CheckMate Black Rook Merlot 2021 ($100). The fruit for this wine is from the Black Sage Bench. The grapes were fermented with wild yeast and allowed extended skin contact. The wine was aged 20 months in new French oak. The oak is well integrated with the wine, framing concentrated, almost brooding, flavours of dark fruits mingled with chocolate and spice. The structure suggests this is a good wine to cellar. 94.

CheckMate Silent Bishop Merlot 2021 ($100). The fruit is from vineyard benches on the west side of the Okanagan valley (Oliver Benches, Golden Mile Bench, Osoyoos West Bench). Fermented with wild yeast, the wine was aged 20 months in new French oak. Aromas of raspberry and red currant jump from the glass leading to flavours of dark cherry and black currant mingled with chocolate. Long ripe tannins give the wine a persistent finish. 96.

CheckMate End Game Merlot 2021 ($100). The fruit, from vineyards on the Osoyoos and Black Sage Benches, was fermented with wild yeast and allowed extended skin contact. The wine was aged 20 months in new French oak. There are aromas and flavours of dark cherry and blueberry. The rich and well-structured wine lingers on the palate. 96.

CheckMate Opening Gambit Merlot 2021 ($100). The fruit, from Osoyoos East Bench, was fermented with wild yeast and allowed extended skin contact. The wine was aged 20 months in new French oak. The wine begins with aromas of raspberry and cassis. The expressive palate includes flavours of dark cherry mingled with dark chocolate and spice. The finish is very long. 97.

Hillside is among Naramata Bench's climate survivors

Photo: Hillside winemaker Kathy Malone

The Naramata Bench’s vineyards survived the January freeze better that most Okanagan vineyards, due perhaps to the climate moderation from the vast and deep lake bordering the bench. There may not be much fruit on the vines this fall; but most of the vines are alive and should produce fruit next year. Here is a brief report from the front by Kathy Malone, the winemaker at Hillside Winery, one of the oldest producers on the bench and, since Kathy took the cellar in 2008, one of the best.

“All Naramata Bench vineyards have come through the freeze much better than the expectations in late January,” she told me in an email last month. “We had Markus Keller from University of Washington, Prosser, here early August as part of the Triggs lecture series. He visited our Hidden Valley Vineyard, which has Gewurztraminer with full recovery, and Merlot and Syrah that will be retrained from the roots (self-rooted, planted 2000/2001). He was shocked by the apparently health of the vineyard, considering the recorded temperatures, and expects good recovery (depending of course on this winter).”

She continued: “I have a grower to the north, Dickinson, whose Merlot has been featured frequently in our Single Vineyard Series. He has Pinot Gris fruit to pick (!). It was a lovely surprise to be able to taste almost-ripe fruit. It is a tiny block; we’ll be lucky to get a ton, but it will be the first white in the Single Vineyard series. I’m glad I have a good number of sound neutral white barrels.” Another remarkable survivor was the Cabernet Sauvignon in the winery’s Howe Vineyard, one of the most northerly blocks of this varietal in the Okanagan. “Even more astonishing is the fact that this block survived over 57 hours of -25 Celsius cold this January,” Kathy writes. “Yes, we still have a Howe Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon!”

At the time of her email, she was considering buying some Washington State Pinot Gris because some of Hillside’s accounts will need such a wine. But unlike some of her peers, she is by no means all in on making wine with imported fruit. “I am extremely concerned for the future of “Brand BC” especially as I read comments from winemakers importing fruit and juice,” she writes. It is clear from the winery’s current releases that Hillside is standing up magnificently for Brand BC. Here are notes.

Hillside Muscat Ottonel 2023 ($26). This varietal was planted initially in the Hillside vineyard in 1984 and has long been a favourite among the winery’s fans. The wine invariably is a delicate and floral white. That starts with overnight skin contact and a long, cool ferment in stainless steel. The wine is refreshing, with delicate spice in the aroma and flavour. 90.

Hillside Gewürztraminer 2023 ($22). This extraordinary wine is a reminder that Gewürztraminer, which has gradually become a boring wine in the Okanagan, can rise to heights of Alsace. Hillside’s wine is made with grapes from five Naramata vineyards. The wine begins with intense aromas of ginger and lychee, which are echoed on the palate, mingled with notes of stone fruit. The lingering finish is dry. Why are there not more serious Gewürztraminers from Okanagan producers? 93.

Hillside Heritage Pinot Gris 2023 ($35 for 150 cases). Grapes from three vineyards were barrel-fermented after just two hours of skin contact. The result is a wine of considerable complexity. Slightly pink in hue, the wine begins with stone fruit aromas. On the palate, there are flavours of nectarine mingled with grapefruit. The texture is rich and the finish lingers. 91.

Hillside Hidden Valley Vineyard Merlot 2019 ($50 for 180 cases). The winery turbocharged the aromas and flavours by an eight-day cold soak and then with extended maceration. The wine was then aged 12 months in French oak (28% new). This is an intense, concentrated wine, beginning with aromas of dark fruits and leading for flavours of dark cherry, black currant, chocolate and spice. 92.

Hillside Occhi Dolci Vineyard Merlot 2022 ($50 for 170 cases). This wine was aged 16 months in French oak (42% new). This is a pretty Merlot, with bright floral fruit aromas mingled with cassis and blueberry. The flavours are voluptuous – cherry, blueberry, black currant and plum – with a touch of spice on the lingering finish. 93.

Hillside Howe Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 ($N/A for 168 cases). Small tank fermentation with good temperature control allowed for an extended skin maceration of 27 days. The wine was drained and pressed directly to new (28%) and used French oak barrels where it was allowed to mature for 17 months before bottling. This is an elegant wine, beginning with aromas of cassis and dark cherry. On the palate, there are flavours of dark cherry and black currant mingled with chocolate and spice. The tannins are polished and the finish is persistent. 92.

Blue Mountain releases premium wines from 2022

Photo: Winemaker Matt Mavety

During a recent trip to the Okanagan, I drove past the picturesque Blue Mountain vineyard in Okanagan Falls and was pleased to see a full leafy canopy on the vines. That confirmed what I was told recently by Christie Mavety, one of the winery’s owners. “All of our vineyards were impacted [by the January 2024 freeze event], with some bud damage, but fortunately, they are thriving this season,” she wrote in an email. “We expect to harvest a very small crop and will produce less than 4,500 liters this vintage.”

That is an insignificant volume of wine for this historic producer; but it is important that the vines are thriving. Blue Mountain’s vines are up to 35 years old. Well established vines are a key to the quality of the wines, especially so for the reserves and the selected vineyard block wines. Blue Mountain will not need to go back to square one with a large scale replanting program, unlike some of its peers on Black Sage Road or in the Similkameen Valley. The Blue Mountain wines should continue displaying the terroir characteristics of wines from mature vines. Unless there is another devastating freeze this coming winter, those vines should produce grapes in 2025.

The Mavety family has set the bar high for the quality of Blue Mountain wines. That was why they released no wines from the 2021 vintage. The wines had been tainted by smoke from forest fires and the family decided they were not up to Blue Mountain’s standard. Fortunately, the family has the resources to skip a vintage. They are basically skipping the 2024 vintage as well, having chosen not to make wine with imported grapes. Happily for Blue Mountain followers, the 2022 vintage was bounteous and of superb quality. The winery is just releasing its premium Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs from 2022. These are almost certainly winemaker Matt Mavety’s best wines to date. In Burgundy, these special vineyard block wines would be designated as Grand Cru (and would sell for a lot more). Because of soil conditions and exposure, each of these small blocks yield distinctive wines that, especially in a top vintage like 2022, stand out for their individuality.

The winery began making small block Pinot Noir in the 2017 vintage and subsequently has added Chardonnay wines to the program. “You can see the reflection of the estate,” Matt told me when the 2017s were released. “All of these wines were grown here on the bench in Okanagan Falls. They are hopefully all an expression of the land they were grown on, not the winemaking. If our winemaking is too aggressive, the nuances we captured here would be more hidden.” In a way, the reserve wines underline the point. The wines are blends of grapes from various vineyard blocks. They are delicious and balanced wines, amalgams of the estate’s overall terroir. The small block wines are more individual in flavour and style. If you have the chance, buy several wines for comparative tastings and be amazed at the distinctive personality of each wine.

Here are notes on the 2022 release:

Blue Mountain Reserve Cuvée Chardonnay 2022 ($40). The grapes were fermented with wild yeast and the wine was aged 16 months in French oak (new to three years old). The wine begins with a lovely aroma of citrus mingled with vanilla. On the palate, it is full-bodied with flavours of lemon and apple, and with an echo of lees in the long finish. 93.

Blue Mountain Blossom Slope Block 17 Chardonnay 2022 ($50). The vines for this wine are 32 years old and grow on coarse and loamy sand in warm site with a westerly exposure. The wine, which was fermented and aged 18 months in oak, is well-named for the floral notes in the aroma. On the palate, there are flavours of citrus and ripe apple with enough acidity to give the wine a refreshing crispness on the finish. 95.

Blue Mountain Alluvium Reflection Block 32 Chardonnay 2022 ($50). The vines for this wine are 33 years old. They grow in a westerly-facing fan with a surrounding rock mass that retains heat at night. The wine, fermented and aged 18 months in French oak, is rich, almost creamy, with flavours of citrus. A delicate skein of minerality ties this complex wine together. The finish is very long. 97.

Blue Mountain Reserve Cuvée Pinot Noir 2022 ($45). The fruit for this wine is from vines 25 to 35 years old. The grapes are fermented with wild yeast with light pump-overs during the 14 to 18 days of maceration. The wine was aged on fine lees in French oak barrels. The wine begins with aromas of cherry mingled with vanilla. There are layers of fruit on the palate, including cherry and blackberry mingled with spice. The balancedtexture is generous and the finish is very long. 94.

Blue Mountain River Flow Block 23 Pinot Noir 2022 ($55). The grapes are from 30-year-old vines on sandy loam soil. The block has an eastern exposure benefiting from the cool morning sun. The fruit goes into open-top fermenters and has light pump-overs during 14 to 18 days of maceration. Fermentation, as always, is with wild yeast. The wine is aged on fine lees in French oak barrels. There is a bright and fresh character to the wine with aromas and flavours of cherry and raspberry. Fruit lingers on the long finish. 95.

Blue Mountain Wild Terrain Block 9 Pinot Noir 2022 ($55). This is so-named because the 25-year-old vines grow in a complex and varied block in the vineyard: steep wind-driven slopes to warm, flat sandy loam. The fermentation and aging regime is similar to the other wines. The wine begins with aromas of cherry and strawberry, leading to savoury fruit flavours and an appealing note of forest floor on the long finish. 95.

Blue Mountain Gravel Force Block 14 Pinot Noir 2022 ($55). The grapes for this wine are from 35-year-old vines grown on a warm site with soils mixing gravel, loam and clay. The fermentation and aging regime is similar to the other wines. This is an intense wine with aromas of cherry and spice. The palate delivers rich, savoury dark fruits and the finish is persistent. 97.