Blue Mountain's impressive white trio

Photo: Blue Mountain winemaker Matt Mavety

The trio of 2025 whites released earlier this month by Blue Mountain Vineyard & Cellars show once again what a fine vintage 2025 is proving to be.

The previous two vintages suffered seriously from winter damage. The Okanagan Valley’s vineyards produced just five per cent of their normal quantity in 2024. At Blue Mountain, the vineyard survived in 2024 but winemaker Matt Maverty did not make any wine because he was nurturing the vineyard carefully so the plants could recover and produce well in 2025 – as they did.

“The growing season was dry, and marked by unsettled weather patterns,” Matt recounts. “A sustained period of heat at the end of August carried through the first three weeks of September, shaping the final stages of ripening. The wines display bright, vivid fruit character with excellent acidity and balance.” Here are notes on his exceptional 2025 white wines.

Blue Mountain Pinot Blanc 2025 ($25). Made with fruit from 40-year-old vies, this is a remarkably complex wine. The grapes were whole-cluster pressed; the juice was settled, decanted into stainless steel (35%), large oak casks (35%) and 500-liter neutral oak barrels. Fermentation was with native yeast. While the tank-fermented wines were decanted off the heavy lees, the barrel-fermented wines were aged on the lees for five months before all were blended and bottled. Aromas of apple and pineapple lead to flavours of stone fruits. The texture is rich and the finish is very long. 93.

Blue Mountain Pinot Gris 2025 ($25). The fruit is from 39-year-old vines. The crushing, fermentation and aging was similar to how the Pinot Blanc was treated. The result is another complex and satisfying white wine. It begins with aromas of citrus leading to flavours of pear and apple. The texture is rich and the finish is persistent. 92.

Blue Mountain Sauvignon Blanc 2025 ($25). Think Sancerre, not New Zealand, when you approach this wine. The fruit is from 18 and 19-year-old vines. The juice was fermented with native yeast in stainless steel (30%) and large oak casks (70%). The latter were aged five months on the lees before being racked and blended. This is a wine with a crisp, disciplined structure, aromas of melon and flavours of lime and apple. 91.