At Kitsch Wines, small is beautiful

Photo: Winemaker Ruth King (courtesy of Kitsch Winery)

Trent and Ria Kitsch, who opened this Kelowna winery in 2016, have refocussed in the past year to produce wines only from grapes grown in the East Kelowna Slopes sub-appellation. The winery’s two vineyards are in the East Kelowna Slopes and are planted primarily to Riesling, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir, varietals well-suited to this cool climate terroir. Ria explains: “After a couple of low-yield years in the vineyard, along with some adventure/family prioritizing for Trent and me, we decided in 2022 to reduce production and focus only on fruit from our vineyard.”

Graham Pierce, who had previously been the winemaker at Black Hills and Time Winery before coming to Kitsch as general manager, moved last summer to take over the cellar at Ruby Blues Winery on the Naramata Bench.

The 2022 vintage at Kitsch was made by Ruth King, a Boston-born and California-trained winemaker now resident (with her husband and three children) in East Kelowna. “For the last 13 years, she has been in the wine industry in one capacity or another,” Ria writes. Ruth has a winemaker’s certificate from the University of California at Davis as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in horticulture from the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. In the Okanagan, she has been a harvest winemaker for Sandhill Wines; student co-ordinator for Vinica Education Society and a wine researcher and consultant with Terroir Consulting. Currently, she splits her time between making Kitsch wine and managing the Sustainable Winegrowing BC program.

“We are overjoyed to have such a talented woman at the helm of these delicious wines,” Ria writes. Here are notes on current releases.

Kitsch Pinot Noir Rosé 2022 ($28 for 375 cases). This wine is made with the fruit of an 11-acre 2020 Pinot Noir planting on East Kelowna Road. Five different clones were planted. This wine begins with a delicate light pink hue and delicate aromas and flavours of raspberry and cherry. With seven grams of acidity and almost no residual sugar, the wine has a dry and well-defined finish. 90.

Kitsch Pinot Gris 2022 ($25 for 233 cases). Refreshing and crisp, this wine begins with aromas of pear and citrus. On the palate, the wine delivers flavours of tree fruits with a hint of lime around a backbone of minerality. 90.

Kitsch Riesling 2022 ($29 for 227 cases). This wine will be released in August. This wine begins with aromas of lemon and grapefruit, which is echoed on the palate. The wine is dry with bright acidity mingled with a spine of minerality. This is Riesling should be cellared a few years to bring out all of its complexity. 92

Kitsch 7 Barrel Chardonnay 2020 ($35 for 151 cases). To put it simply, this is a terrific wine. It was fermented with indigenous yeast and was aged six months in French oak. It presents in the glass with a lovely light golden hue. Aromas of butter, vanilla, orange and apple jump from the glass. The palate is richly textured, with flavours of nectarine and orange. The finish will not quit. 94.