Da Silva's Chenin Blanc and friends

Photo: Twylla and Richard Da Silva (photo credit Luke Whittall)

The 1988 pull-out of vines in the Okanagan was designed primarily to remove hybrid varietals such as Chelois, Maréchal Foch and Okanagan Riesling. But on one occasion, vinifera Chenin Blanc grapes also were pulled out. I wrote about the plight of Chenin Blanc in the Okanagan in my 1998 book, Chardonnay and Friends. The book, now out of print, had essays on 40 varietals being made into wine in the Okanagan. At the time, just four producers were making Chenin Blanc.

I wrote: “An ancient white variety important in the Loire, Chenin Blanc only has a precarious foothold in British Columbia. It got a reputation as a tender variety when a government test plot, based on vines imported from Washington State, was devastated by the deepfreeze winter of 1978-79. Former Oliver grower Terry Wells championed the variety, even after being denied crop insurance. His four- and one-half acres of Chenin Blanc were pulled out during the 1988 eradication of grape varieties, generally hybrids, no longer wanted by wineries. This unfortunate example of a good vinifera being pulled out occurred because no winery was prepared to contract his grapes at that time.”

Here is how the essay began: “Quite unfairly, this variety does not command much respect. ‘Chenin Blanc typically internationally is a cheap grape,’ says Mission Hill’s winemaker John Simes, who gets a small quantity of the grapes from Okanagan vineyards and imports additional tonnages from California and generally puts the variety into proprietary blends. ‘You can make wonderful, wonderful wine with the grape but you can grow ten to twelve ton to the acre in the Central Valley of California or in South Africa.’ As a result, many varietal Chenin Blancs on the market are simple jug wines. ‘Nothing wrong with it. Drink it as a Tuesday-night-with- sausages wine, which is all that it is intended to be. How can you make a $10 or $12 wine when there is that sort of wine sitting there? We’re not planting any Chenin Blanc.’ Now Mission Hill’s retired winemaker, John was speaking at a time when premium wines in British Columbia were selling at astonishing low prices.

Since then, just a handful of producers have embraced Chenin Blanc, if only in modest volume. In the 2022 crop year, some 119 tons of this varietal was produced, a mere quarter of one per cent of the total grape crop that year. The leading producers include Quails’ Gate Estate Winery, Road 13 Vineyards and, more recently, Da Silva Vineyards & Winery. Richard Da Silva has a small block in winery’s Hidden Hollow Vineyard in Penticton – small enough that the grapes for the 2023 Chenin Blanc were hand-harvested by the members of the winery’s wine club. Just 245 cases were made. In the more bounteous 2022 vintage, Da Silva released 344 cases of Chenin Blanc.

It remains to be seen how much damage the January freeze did to his Chenin Blanc. Judging from what other producers are saying, there might be few viable fruiting buds to yield grapes in 2024; but the vines will have survived, giving hope for vintages in 2025 and beyond. Any one attending the Vancouver International Wine Festival at the end of February should stop by the Da Silva table. Richard and his partner, Twylla, will be pouring the 2023 Chenin Blanc, along with the three other wines reviewed here. These are my notes:

Da Silva Chenin Blanc 2023 ($35.99 for 245 cases). The fruit was fermented and matured in stainless steel. The wine was structurally tight on release but opened up with breathing. This is a vibrant wine with aromas and flavours of lemon, lime and green apple. I recommend cellaring this wine for several years. 91.

Da Silva Chardonnay 2022 ($33.99 for 286 cases). This wine was made with fruit from two Penticton-area vineyards. The wine was fermented in stainless steel and aged six weeks on the lees in new French oak. The wine begins with aromas of vanilla and spice. It is crisp, with flavours of apple and pear. 91.

Da Silva Pinot Noir 2021 ($44.99 for 350 cases). The fruit is from two Penticton area vineyards. The wine was fermented in open-top fermenters and aged 24 months in French and Hungarian oak barrels. The wine appeals with aromas and flavours of bright fruit, notably cherry and cranberry. 91.

Da Silva Merlot 2020 ($37.99 for 227 cases). The fruit for this wine is from two Penticton area vineyards. The grapes were fermented in open-top fermenters and the wine was aged 20 months in barrel (50% French, 50% American). It is a medium t0 full-bodied wine, with aromas and flavours of dark cherry, black currant and plum, mingled with hints of spice on the finish. 92.