Frind's red wines show power

Photo: Winery owner Markus Frind

There is a distinctive house style to the red wines from Frind Estate Winery: bold, rich and luscious with mouth-filling fruit and a generous texture. A recent tasting of delicious 2020 reds just being released by this West Kelowna winery was impressive for the consistency of the style, regardless what the varietal is. Even at two years of age, the wines are all drinking well. Given their soft tannins, these are not wines to lay down, as one does with Bordeaux reds. However, the majority of consumers do not have the patience or the budget to cellar wines for a decade or two. The Frind reds are drinkable right now.

The house style begins with the vineyards producing the fruit for the big reds. The major sources of the fruit are two vineyards in the south Okanagan – one near Oliver and one near Osoyoos. As well, Frind has been aggressively purchasing or developing vineyards throughout the Okanagan. There is a second explanation for the house style. Frind arguably has the newest and latest winemaking technology in its cellar. This is a young winery: the cellar is five years old, at the most. And Markus Frind, the owner, is technically savvy; and has the resources to buy the best technology. When the grapes arrive at the winery, they pass through one or more of the winery’s three optical sorters. These enable the winery to eliminate sub-par berries and to sort the rest by size and other quality determinants.

The fruit is pressed in a new Willmes press. The pressing cycles are gentle, assuring that no hard tannins end up in the wines. Fermentation takes place in automated fermentation tanks which are scaled so that Eric von Krosigk, the chief winemaker,(above) can work with small lots for optimal control of quality. As he continues to process the wines, Eric has access to additional technological aides that must make his peers green with envy. There is a video on the Frind web site of Eric being interviewed about the winery’s technology by wine writer Anthony Gismondi. One has the impression that Eric is somewhat awestruck by the tools at his disposal. I don’t doubt he is. When Vernon-born Eric began making wine in 1991 at Summerhill Pyramid Winery, the production facility lacked hot water and had a blue tarpaulin covering an extension of the primitive building that served as a winery. It was equipment more suited to a home winemaker than to a commercial winery. In time, Summerhill found the resources to equip a proper cellar. Eric spent much of his winemaking career there until Markus Frind recruited him three years ago.

Markus’s own biography is even more colourful. Born in Germany in 1978, he was brought to Canada four years later by his immigrant parents. After high school, Markus studies business and computer science before launching into a career in technology. In 2003, he created the Plenty of Fish dating site. After selling it in 2015 for US$575 million, he had more than enough resources to start what is becoming one of British Columbia’s leading wineries. One of his goals is that all of Frind’s wines aspire to reach the 100 point quality level. If they are not there yet, it seems only a matter of time.

If I have any reservation about the house style at Frind, it is that it seems to homogenize varietal character. It was hard to taste the differences among the varietals, even though all were delicious. The exception was Midnight, the wine made with Maréchal Foch. Even though the winemaker wanted to suppress the French hybrid characteristics of what once was the Okanagan’s workhorse red, you still know you are tasting a Foch. And that is as it should be.

Here are notes on the current releases.

Frind Midnight 2020 ($25.99). Aptly named for its deep colour, this wine is made from Maréchal Foch grapes grown immediately in front of the winery. The wine begins with aromas of spice and plum. The sweet fruit on the rich and soft palate delivers flavours of dark cherry, plum and coffee. 88.

Frind Premier Merlot 2020 ($32.99). This is a bold and juicy Merlot with aromas and flavours of blueberry, dark cherry, plum and spice. There are long, ripe tannins. 91.

Frind Premier Cabernet Franc 2020 ($34.99). Dark-hued, the wine begins with the classic brambly aromas of the varietal. Full-bodied, the wine delivers flavours of black cherries, black currants and spice with chocolate and licorice on the long finish. 91.

Frind Premier Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 ($37.99). This is also a dark-hued wine with aromas of black currant and dark cherry. On the rich and juicy palate, the wine delivers flavours of ripe fruit, recalling blueberry jam. The ripe tannins support the richness of the palate. 90

Frind Premier Syrah 2020 ($39.99). This is another dark and rich wine, beginning with aromas of black cherry and plum that are echoed on the palate. There is a slight hint of pepper on the finish. 91.