Lakeside Cellars expands Osoyoos winery cluster

Photo: Lakeside Cellars principal Ricky Dhaliwal

As wine tourism revives, consumers should note that there are enough wineries within a mile or so of downtown Osoyoos to fill up a day of visits and tasting.

The latest winery in this six-winery cluster is Lakeside Cellars, which began hosting tastings in 2019 in its wine production building while completing a wineshop on the eastern shore of Osoyoos Lake.

Unless the web site has not been updated, it appears that the tastings have continued this summer in wine cellar. That would make sense, given the requirement to provide social distancing for guests. There is a lot of room in the cellar, and good air circulation. Judging from the four samples I tasted recently, the wines here are solid.

For background on the winery, here is an excerpt from the Okanagan Wine Tour Guide, which arrived in bookstores this summer at $25. The book profiles 240 wineries,

Harbans and Harkesh Dhaliwal and their son, Ricky, were considering building their winery near Oliver until they were able to purchase the Haynes Homestead in Osoyoos. Judge J. C. Haynes, the first customs agent and a major rancher in the South Okanagan, had built an elegant 10-room house here for his family in 1882.

The home, which commanded a view of Osoyoos Lake, was lived in almost until the Dhaliwals bought it along with a 5.6-hectare (14-acre) orchard where Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc vines replaced fruit trees. While the house lacked heritage designation, the original plan was to use it as the Lakeside Cellars tasting room. Closer inspection showed this was not practical. Because of the high water table under the house, a sump pump struggled to keep the basement dry and free of mould. The house was demolished after historical artifacts were transferred to the Osoyoos Museum. Timbers from the home also have been used in the new wine shop.

The Dhaliwals are veteran orchardists and cherry growers in both the Okanagan and Creston, where Ricky was born in 1990. He developed an interest in grapes after the family, in 2009, began converting some of its South Okanagan orchards. After finishing high school, he began taking Okanagan College courses in viticulture and travelling to wine regions in Europe.

When a decision to develop a winery was made in 2015, Ricky turned to consulting winemaker Jason Parkes to make the wines. Jason’s objective with most of his clients is to teach them to become their own winemakers. Lakeside’s first vintage was sold in bulk to help finance the ambitious 9,000-square-foot production building at the far end of the vineyard. Now producing 3,000 to 4,000 cases a year, the winery has capacity to grow as Ricky’s other vineyards mature.

“The end goal is to be growing my own fruit,” says Ricky. In addition of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc, Lakeside now also grows Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, and Malbec. In 2019, Ricky planted just under a hectare (under 2½ acres) of Cinsault in the estate vineyard, having been inspired by the Cinsault rosé wines he tasted during a recent trip to Provence in France.

Here are notes on three whites and a rosé.

Lakeside Cellars Pinot Gris 2019 ($21 for 450 cases). This wine is crisp and refreshing, with aromas and flavours of peaches, pears and apples. 91.

Lakeside Cellars Portage White 2019 ($22 for 499 cases). This is a blend of 71% Chardonnay, 29% Sauvignon Blanc. The wine is a veritable bowl of fruit, with aromas and flavours of peach and nectarine along with notes of lime. 91.

Lakeside Cellars Sauvignon Blanc 2019 ($25 for 352 cases). The fruit for this wine comes from 22-year-old vines. That may account for the polished texture of the wine. It begins with aromas of lime and grapefruit. On the palate, flavours of lime and lemon mingle with subtle herbs and minerals. 90.

Lakeside Cellars Rosé 2019 ($23 for 448 cases). This is 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Cabernet Franc. Limited skin contact has yielded a delicate pink hue. It has aromas of strawberries and cherries which are echoed on the palate. This is a refreshing, juicy rosé. 90.