Burrowing Owl: the house of big reds

Photo: Burrowing Owl founder Jim Wyse

Rosé is hardly the first wine that comes to mind when thinking of Burrowing Owl Estate Winery. This has been the house of big red wines for the last 25 years and, judging from the current releases, it still is.

One of those wines is the 2020 vintage of Meritage. I included earlier vintages in my 2017 book, Icon: Flagship Wines from British Columbia’s Best Wineries. Here is an excerpt: The Burrowing Owl red wines are among the biggest in the South Okanagan because they are grown in a sun-bathed vineyard. Winery founder Jim Wyse, a successful real estate developer, began acquiring this Black Sage Bench acreage in 1993. The hybrid varieties that had flourished here previously were pulled out in 1988, leaving just blocks of mature Pinot Blanc. Under Jim’s direction, the vineyard was revived primarily with classic vinifera vines. When the winery was developed, Burrowing Owl retained Bill Dyer, a consulting winemaker from California. He crafted the winery’s house style of big, ripe reds, taking advantage of the terroir’s ability to ripen flavour-packed grapes. The Meritage program began in 2000 with a production of just 248 cases. “The wine was given wonderful reviews,” Jim wrote later, “so that the 2001 vintage was increased to 500 cases.”

When I was working on the book, Jim and his son, Chris, were reluctant to single just one wine in their portfolio as their icon. After all, their wines were all being made to a rigorous standard. Most of the reds are single varietals, with two notable exceptions. Athene has always been a field blend of Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, good enough to stand alone as an icon. The Meritage, however, is full Bordeaux blend, with four or five varietals and with the input of Alain Sutre, a highly-reputed consultant from Bordeaux. It is a red that can be cellared with confidence.

But don’t miss the 2023 Rosé. Burrowing Owl’s is one of the best from the Okanagan this season. “We first produced a rosé wine under the Calliope Wines brand back in 2010, and partly as a result of the experience gained in making a wine of this style, we introduced the Burrowing Owl Estate Winery Rosé to our family of wines back in 2019 and have produced a vintage of it ever since,” confirms Stephen Neumann, the winery’s brand ambassador.

The Calliope brand was launched after Jim Wyse bought the Calliope label from its founders, Ross and Cherie Mirko, when they moved to New Zealand. No doubt, the label caught his eye because Jim is such a bird lover. “The Calliope is the smallest bird in Canada and they are found in the south Okanagan,” Jim’s daughter, Kerri McNolty, told me in a 2011 interview. “They are beautiful and the telltale sign is this iridescent red underneath their throat in the males. The females are quite nondescript. The Calliope concept is to try new varieties we are not producing at Burrowing Owl.” The first rosé was made with Syrah grapes with a touch of Viognier to tweak the acidity and the freshness. The 2023 rosé is made with Cabernet Franc, a varietal arguably better suited for rosé. Here are notes on the wines.

Burrowing Owl Rosé 2023 ($30). The Cabernet Franc grapes for this wine were harvested from Burrowing Owl’s vineyards near Oliver and Osoyoos. The grapes were destemmed and kept in the press overnight to extract color and flavour. The wine was fermented cool for three weeks in stainless steel and aged another three months in stainless steel. The hue is fashionably pale. There are appealing aromas of wild strawberry, raspberry, watermelon and pink grapefruit, echoed on the mouth-filling palate. The finish is refreshing. 92.

Burrowing Owl Athene 2021 ($41). This is a blend 55% Syrah and 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, which was co-fermented. The wine was aged 18 months in barrel (75% French, 15% American and 10% Hungarian, with just 23% of the barrels being new). The wine declares itself boldly with aromas of dark cherry, black currant, chocolate and licorice mingled with cedar, all of which is echoed on the palate. The finish is long with a note of spice. 92.

Burrowing Owl Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 ($43). This is a big, ripe wine, reflecting a hot vintage notable for small but flavour-packed berries the vines produced that year. The fruit was fermented in stainless steel and aged 18 months in barrel (85% French oak, 10% Hungarian and 5% American; 17% of the oak was new). The wine begins with aromas of cassis, dark cherry, plum and chocolate, reflected in the flavours of this full-bodied wine. 93.

Burrowing Owl Meritage 2020 ($53). The blend is 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Franc, 8.5% Malbec and 8.5% Petit Verdot. The varietals were vinified separately and aged 15 months in barrel before blending. The blend was aged another three months in oak (92% French). This is an elegant wine, with aromas of black currant, dark cherry, chocolate and cedar. On the palate, the wine delivers mouth-filling flavours of dark fruits. The long, ripe tannins make for a persistent finish. 95.