Coolshanagh releases its fifth Chardonnay

Photo: Coolshanagh proprietors Skip and Judy Stothert

With its fifth vintage of Chardonnay, tiny Coolshanagh Vineyard confirms it is one of the premier Chardonnay producers in the Okanagan.

The release of 750 cases of the 2016 vintage is the largest release so far from this Naramata Bench producer. There will never be much because Coolshanagh has just 10 acres of vineyard, almost a quarter of which is more recently planted Pinot Noir. The first vintage of Pinot Noir was 2015 – a miniscule 27 cases. Production of that doubled in 2016.

Coolshanagh is a boutique winery operated by Skip and Judy Stothert. The wines are available on the Coolshanagh website (and in some high-end restaurants). There is no tasting room of wine shop. The vineyard, seven kilometres north of Naramata Village, is at the north end of Naramata Road, just past the Chute Lake turnoff.

The Stotherts bought the 52-acre property in 2003 because they wanted acreage with views of Okanagan Lake and also with privacy. There was no intention to plant vines initially. “We bought the property just to retire,” Skip says. 

Skip is a retired businessman. The company he founded is now called Green Roads Recycling. It is a road paving company with a difference: it renews paving with a moving train of equipment that scoops up the old pavement and melts it and mixes that with the new pavement that is laid down immediately.

“We moved here in 2003,” Skip says. “My sons were taking over the business and I got bored. I researched grape varieties. I knew I wanted to do Chardonnay and I wanted to do Pinot Noir.”

He had grown up in a household with wine on the table. His father, Win Stothert, ran an international engineering company. “My dad was in the Opimian Society, so I grew up drinking Burgundian Chardonnays right from the get-go, when I was about 10 or 11,” Skip says. “And there also was Burgundian Pinot Noir.”

Trees were felled, land was prepared, and the first hectare of Chardonnay was planted in 2004. Since then, the vineyard has been quadrupled with the planting of more Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.  For viticulture advice, Skip has tapped the experience of Okanagan Crush Pad vineyard managers as well as Pedro Parra, the Chilean terroir consultant used extensively by OCP.

Between 2008 and 2011, Coolshanagh Chardonnay grapes were sold to Foxtrot Vineyards. Then in 2012, Skip and Judy decided to launch their own label. The target, when Coolshanagh is at full production, is to release about 1,500 cases of Chardonnay and 300 cases of Pinot Noir annually.

The wines are made for Coolshanagh by OCP’s winemakers, with input from Skip, who has a clear idea of the style he wants for Coolshanagh. He does not want to make a California-style Chardonnay. He wants an age-worthy wine in the style of a white Burgundy.

The 2016 Coolshanagh Chardonnay began by picking on advice from Pedro Parra. “Each block of Chardonnay is hand-picked at a different time, with the first picking taking place in mid-September and the last in early October, 2016,” according to the technical notes for the wine. “Each section was treated differently to optimally express each vineyard location.” The lots were ultimately blended and bottled without fining or filtration.

While OCP ages most of its wines entirely in concrete, about one-third of each Coolshanagh Chardonnay spends about 11 months in oak (mostly neutral). “To me, Burgundian wine has oak in it,” Skip says. “Even Chablis is moving into using some oak.”

The Stotherts are content with OCP and are not planning to build their own winery. “Maybe if one of the granddaughters wants to build it,” Skip says. “I have a wine building down here and it could be done. But that means we could not do all of the travelling we want to do.  That is what it comes down to.”

A note on the winery name. Coolshanagh is a Celtic word that translates as “a meeting place of friends.” For the Stotherts, it had an excellent ring to it for their property. The name has been used by Judy’s family, which has roots in Scotland and Ireland, for several generations to identify their various homes.

A note on the wine.

Coolshanagh Chardonnay 2016 ($36.90). This elegant wine has aromas and flavours of citrus and apple with very subtle oak, bright acidity and a spine of minerality. The flavours are fresh and focused, supported with good texture. 93.

Thornhaven Estate: a tasting

Photo: Thornhaven proprietors Jack and Jan Fraser

Late this summer, Danny Evanishen, the veteran tasting room manager at Thornhaven Estates Winery in Summerland, offered to send a sample a sample of the winery’s platinum award Syrah 2015.

I agreed but I also asked him to include a few other wines. Given the daunting number of wineries in the Okanagan, I had not been able to visit Thornhaven in some time.

That seems like a strange omission. Given what I wrote about the winery in the 2014 edition of John Schreiner’s Okanagan Wine Tour Guide, this is clearly one of my favourite wineries. Here is an excerpt:

With its Santa Fe architecture, the Thornhaven winery is an Okanagan jewel. Tucked away behind Summerland’s Giant’s Head Mountain, the adobe-hued winery is at the top of a slope covered with about 3.2 hectares (8 acres) of vines. The patio affords postcard views, but the best view is from the bottom of the undulating vineyard, preferably when the late afternoon sun paints a golden tint on the winery and the hillside behind it.

The vineyard was planted by Dennis Fraser, a former grain farmer from Dawson Creek who sold his farm, almost 1,000 hectares (2,500 acres), in 1989 and then began converting a Summerland orchard to vines (Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Gewürztraminer, with a bit of Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Meunier). Winemaking began here in 1999, with Fraser planning a modest tasting room in the basement of his home. Then, a farmer’s habit of thinking big took over and he built a picturesque winery.

The winery was purchased in 2005 by Dennis’s cousin, Jack Fraser, who was changing careers after 24 years working in overseas oilfields (mostly in Libya). Thornhaven is now managed by Jack and his wife Jan, a lively tasting room personality. Son Jason, who mentored with consultant Christine Leroux, is the winemaker.

Now making about 5,500 cases a year, Thornhaven has a portfolio of 13 to 15 wines. The Gewürztraminer is a flagship wine. This is one of the few Okanagan wineries with a varietal Pinot Meunier. The winery also offers an unusual Sauvignon Blanc/Chardonnay blend because the varieties are interplanted in the vineyard. The grapes are picked and fermented together, yielding a delicious wine tasting of peaches and citrus. Jack Fraser has a simple explanation for the consistency of the award-winning wines: “The main thing is that the grapes come from nearby vineyards.”

In addition to the estate vineyard, Thornhaven gets grapes from another 10 acres of  winery-owned Summerland area vineyards. The varietals even include Syrah, a grape not often found in the Summerland vineyards. Thornhaven must have a small block. The winery made just 90 cases of the award-winning 2015 wine.

The wines are excellent. I continue to stand by my view that the Gewürztraminer is the flagship wine here.

Here are my notes.

Thornhaven Gewürztraminer 2017 ($18). This delicious wine begins aromas of spice, rose petals and lychee, which are echoed on the palate, along with a touch of lime. A full-bodied wine, it is balanced toward dry with just enough residual sugar to give it a fleshy texture. 93.

Thornhaven Brooklyn’s Blend 2017 ($16). This blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay begins with aromas of melon and apple mingled with lime. On the palate, there are luscious tropical fruit flavours of mango, peach and pear. 90.

Thornhaven Infusion Frizzante 2017 ($N/A). This sparkling wine is a blend of  Chardonnay, Orange Muscat, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Riesling. It presents in the glass with a light blush hue and with a lively mousse. The aromatics are fruity and the flavours recall strawberry and ripe apple. 91.

Thornhaven Rosé 2017 ($16). The winery describes this as a “robust patio wine.” Cherry-hued and rich on the palate, it has aromas and flavours of strawberry, cherry and raspberry. The wine is a blend of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Syrah. 90.

Thornhaven Pinot Noir 2016 ($19). This oak-aged wine begins with aromas of toasty oak mingled with cherry. On the palate, it has flavours of strawberry and cherry. The wine has a silky texture and a medium-bodied palate weight. 90.

Thornhaven Syrah 2015 ($30). This elegant and medium-bodied wine begins with aromas of plum, black cherry and fig. This is a dry wine with a palate of sweet fruit – cherry, blackberry, plum, a hint of licorice and pepper. 92.

Lieutenant Governor 2018 wine awards winners

The 2018 Lieutenant Governor’s Awards for Excellence in Wine followed a new format this year.

After being managed for 15 years by Government House Trust in Victoria, the competition this year was turned over to the Okanagan Wine Festivals Society and was integrated with the fall wine festival competition. The entire competition now is called the British Columbia Lieutenant Governor's Wine Awards.

The change came about because Government House needed its resources for other projects. The LG Awards have matured into a respected competition, perhaps more suitably managed by professional competition managers.

This year, slightly more than 700 wines were entered. The judging panel included a number of veterans of the previous LG Awards.

As in past fall wine festivals, the judges awarded gold, silver and bronze medals. Then the 58 strongest gold medal winners were judged again. This stringent process produced 12 platinum awards and an additional “best of show” award. These awards, which were handed out Thursday evening by Her Honour, Lieutenant Governor Janet Austin, equate to the awards given in previous LG competitions. In those, only 10 to 12 awards were made each year, with no other medals.

Later this fall, the winning wineries will be invited to a dinner at Government House in Victoria.

The winning wines are a cross section of British Columbia has begun to do best.

There is one Pinot Blanc, a varietal which Liquor Distribution Branch wine buyer Barbara Philip advocated as the signature grape for the Okanagan in her Master of Wine thesis.

There is a Pinot Gris, a Chardonnay and a Riesling, other leading white varietals in the Okanagan and Similkameen. There is a sophisticated sparkling wine.

There are two Pinot Noirs, three Syrahs and one Cabernet Franc, all rising stars among the red varietals in BC.

And for consumers looking for something different, there is the remarkable Optima desert wine and the Okanagan’s first red from Touriga Nacional, a Portuguese varietal usually associated with Port.

Here are notes on the winning wines. With the exception of the sparkling wine, the tasting notes are all from the winery web sites.

Sperling Vineyards Sparkling Brut 2011 ($43.49 for 200 six-packs). This is a traditional Champagne method wine made with Pinot Blanc from a 1996 planting. The wine spent five years on the lees before being disgorged. It has classic bready/bisquity aromas and flavours from time on the lees. There are also flavours of citrus and apple. Good acidity gives the wine a crisp, tangy finish. The bubbles are fine and persistent. (My tasting notes.)

Black Hills Estate Winery Syrah 2016 ($39.90). This vintage of Syrah is elegant, offering notes of blackberry, blueberry, and black & white pepper on the nose with hints of cocoa and eucalyptus lingering in the background. Soft, supple tannins dominate the palate with rich black fruit carrying through for a mouth-watering finish. This wine will pair well with wild game and hearty red meat dishes. Enjoy now or cellar for up to eight years.

Hillside Estate Winery Reserve Pinot Gris 2017 ($24). Our classic Pinot Gris—luscious ripe fruit created scents of orange blossoms and vanilla mingled with tropical fruit aromas followed by a rich and supple mid-palate.  

Kismet Estate Winery Syrah Reserve 2016 ($39.99). Syrah is especially suited to the warm dry climate of the South Okanagan, where it reaches full ripeness with deep purple colour and spicy aromas. Aged for 18 months in new French and American oak barrique barrels. Bright cherry red colour with a good depth and bluish hues at the rim. Intense red currant and red berry fruit aromas along with spice and vanilla. A lively, vibrant palate with intense flavours.

Kismet Estate Winery Cabernet Franc Reserve 2016 ($39.99). Smokey toasty, blackberry, black cherry and leather. Sumptuous soft and seamless texture. Focused acidity lifts the fruit of this viscous wine. Structured bold and emery tannins complete the finish. Aged for 18 months in French and American barrique barrels.

 

Lake Breeze Vineyards Pinot Noir 2016 ($25.90 but sold out). Best wine of the show. This wine is a medium bodied elegant red with rich aromas and flavours of strawberries and plum, followed by a touch of warm spice. Well integrated tannins and generous length reflects the terroir of this estate grown Pinot Noir. An excellent structured wine designed for food.

 

Little Engine Winery Silver Pinot Noir 2016 ($35). A beautiful ruby colour wine that beckons with initial notes of savoury herbs, dried brush and red fruit leather.  Fresh and juicy start on the palate with bing cherries and dried hibiscus with a considerably lengthy finish highlighting spicy red fruits, anise and a touch of tarragon. Approachable and silky upon release this wine will develop well through 2023 under ideal cellaring conditions.

 

Moon Curser Vineyards Touriga Nacional 2016 ($39.99). The 2016 Touriga Nacional is a dry, medium-bodied red wine with a nose of spice, red fruits, fennel seed and floral notes. The palate is similar to the nose but with hints of leather, tobacco and cedar. Medium weight, with a silky mouthfeel and approachable tannin and acid structure, the wine delivers an intriguing profile of savoury and fruity characters.

 

Nk’Mip Cellars Qwam Qwmt Chardonnay 2016 ($28.99).  These Chardonnay grapes were whole-bunch pressed to extract the highest quality of juice. Complete malolactic fermentation during 10 months in French oak barrels developed the unique bouquet and mouth-feel. Rich and nutty in flavour, offering lots of caramel, marzipan and pear. Enticing and aromatic with subtle layering of honey and pineapple is followed by a lingering vanilla finish.

Quails’ Gate Estate Winery Totally Botrytis Affected Optima 2017 ($28.99 for 375 ml). For more than 25 years Quails’ Gate has become known for this wonderfully unique dessert wine. Our Optima grapes are grown at the base of the Quails’ Gate Estate vineyards where the proximity to the lake encourages a micro flora known as Botrytis Cinerea or Noble Rot to grow on the ripe grapes, which concentrates the flavours and intensifies the sugars to produce a Sauterne-style wine.

Rust Wine Co. Syrah 2016 ($37). Q Block is situated on the northern edge of the Black Sage Bench in Oliver. Sandy loam soils and a western aspect produce a Syrah with ripe black fruits, cracked pepper and olive notes. Will continue to age well for 5+ years.

Wild Goose Vineyards Mystic River Pinot Blanc 2017 ($16.52) The lovely aromas and flavours of this wine make it one of the unsung heroes of BC wines. This small production wine has a nose that shows melon & minerality, while the palate tastes of pear and white pepper. The buttery mouthfeel is balanced with a lengthy finish that goes on and on and …

Wild Goose Vineyards Riesling 2017 ($16.52).  This fruit forward Riesling comes from estate grown grapes, including the 33-year-old Wild Goose Vineyards and the 11-year-old Secrest Vineyards. Sweet reserve is added to balance the refreshing racy acidity, a “classic” method of winemaking. The nose shows aromas of floral, spice and apricot, while flavours of minerality and citrus follow.

Great Estates opens Penticton tasting room

Photo: Great Estates's Josie Tyabji

The Arterra Canada wineries styled as Great Estates of the Okanagan have just opened a wine experience centre in Penticton that appears to break new ground for the B.C. wine industry.

The centre, located in a 2,500 square foot are on the ground floor of the Penticton  Lakeside Resort’s new wing, effectively is the first offsite tasting room for an associated group of wineries.

Offsite tasting rooms had been proposed by Okanagan wineries during the liquor policy review several years ago by the previous provincial government. Even though there is nothing radical about the idea – these exists in many other wine regions – the proposal was left on the cutting room floor.

How has Great Estates pulled it off? They took over a grandfathered wine store license that once belonged to Harry McWatters. The store in the Wine Experience Centre sells wines produced at the eight or nine Arterra brands in the Okanagan. The license prevents the store from selling non-Arterra wines – but is will not stop the centre from inviting other wineries in to host tastings.

The store presumably pays the bills for a centre that is far more than just a wine store.

“The whole objective is to focus attention on the South Okanagan, in terms of a destination and a region,” says Josie Tyabji, Senior Director Estates and Industry for Arterra.

The centre will host tastings, educational programs and food and wine pairings that will involve numerous South Okanagan wineries, not just the Arterra group.

“Our objective is to bring knowledge to the consumer about some of the differences in the soil types; and differences in the varieties that do well in different areas,” she says.  “We are not limited to the wines from the Great Estates themselves. For instance, if we wanted to have an evening or a day to speak to the Golden Mile, we could bring in some guest wineries and winemakers to help people understand why a certain varietal or wine style is doing well in that area.”

At least some of the credit for this idea belongs to Ms. Tyabji. “How did it come about?” she recounts. “I was driving by this building daily. I looked at it and said, that is an incredible space.” It was, she decided, an ideal place in which to develop a wine presentation centre, a ground floor space with windows looking west toward the beach. Those at the tasting bar get a million dollar view along with their wines.

The Lakeside’s new wing is part of a redevelopment of the hotel after the casino moved out. That has freed up substantial space for conferences in the former casino space. “We have had quite a few inquiries already for conferences,” she says. “It is an opportunity to educate people who are coming here but not necessarily for wine touring.”

The media announcement of the centre included six premium wines that represent some of the Great Estates wines that can be found here. These are my notes.

See Ya Later Ranch Legacy Chardonnay 2016 ($32.99). This wine begins with lovely aromas of citrus and pineapple mingled with buttery vanilla, which are echoed on the palate. The oak is very subtly integrated (the wine aged 10 months in barrel, 25% new). Quite simply, this wine is delicious. 92.

Black Sage Vineyard Meritage 2015 ($60). The blend is roughly equal parts Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, with a splash of Petit Verdot. This wine was a selection of the 10 best barrels. It begins with aromas of cassis, mint, black cherry and chocolate. Rich on the palate, the wine has flavours of blackberry and black currant. The texture is still firm, indicating a wine that will age well. 90.

Inniskillin Discovery Series Zinfandel 2015 ($27.99.) This is one of the best Okanagan Zinfandels I have ever tasted. It begins with jammy red fruit aromas, leading to luscious flavours of blackberry, cherries and spice cake. The finish is vibrant. 92.

Inniskillin Dark Horse Vineyard Pinot Noir 2016 ($35.00). This wine begins with toasty and stewed fruit aromas (cherry, strawberry). The wine had good weight and a silky texture, with flavours of cherry, vanilla and mocha, and with earthy notes on the finish. 90.

Nk’Mip Cellars Qwam Qwmt Syrah 2015 ($32.99). Bold and ripe, the wine begins with aromas of black cherry and deli meats lightly spiced with black pepper. On the palate, there are layers of fig, black cherry and pepper. 91.

SunRock Vineyards Illumina 2013 ($39.90). This is a blend of 64% Zinfandel and 36% Shiraz. Subsequent vintages have slightly more Zinfandel. The Zinfandel accounts for the aromas of blackberry and black cherry. These are echoed on the palate, along with spice and vanilla. 91.

The View champions Pinotage

Photo: The View proprietor Jennifer Molgat

Jennifer Molgat feared that municipal inspectors would block her application for a tasting room license in 2008 for her View Winery & Vineyard in Kelowna. They might not like the look of the old packing house, circa 1922, which houses the winery and a sister producer, Wards Cider. 

This is the oldest winery building in the Okanagan. But no objections were raised and she now has a charming heritage wine shop in a structurally sound building.

The property, in the family for five generations, was an historic apple grower in East Kelowna. Chris Turton, Jennifer’s father, began replacing some apple trees with vines in 1994.

At the same time, he began producing a bulk cider for Alberta’s Big Rock Brewery. For a number of years, he arranged to have the cider made at the Calona Winery until that winery’s other activities squeezed him out and forced him to license the packing house for cider. He got Jennifer, a former teacher, to help arrange the license.

Because there also are 50 acres of grapes on a hillside behind the packing house, Jennifer and her husband, Kent, decided to launch a winery. Supported by the cash flow from the cider, The View can employ two professional winemakers to make 10,000 cases of wine annually. Cider is the engine driving the business here, with about a million litres of cider produced annually.

When the winery was launched, The View’s first winemaker, a German, was offended at having to ferment apples and returned to Germany. Subsequent winemakers have embraced both apples and grapes to develop an impressive portfolio of wine and cider.

The vineyard grows primarily aromatic whites (Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Ehrenfelser). Recently, Pinot Noir, a premium wine grape, has replaced a disease-prone white called Optima.

The vineyard’s flagship red is Pinotage, a South African red grown by just two other Okanagan producers. The View’s eight-acre block is the largest Pinotage planting in the valley.

Because few consumers knew Pinotage, Jennifer for several vintages just put a proprietary name on the labels. The excellent rosé was released as Distraction Rosé. A few years ago, her winemakers – who were already making a red and a rosé from the varietal – made a white Pinotage as well. The wine was a hit in the tasting room. Since then, The View has waved the flag for all of its Pinotage wines.

The Distraction name is now attached to Distraction Frizzante, which has 60% Pinotage in the blend. It is one of several sparkling wines in The View portfolio, which also includes Bling, said to be Canada’s first sparkling wine in a can.

Here are notes on current releases.

The View Single Vineyard Riesling 2017 ($17.95 for 175 cases). Think Mosel: alcohol is a moderate 10.6%. The generous residual sugar of 18.4 grams is balanced with 10.8 grams of acidity. The wine has aromas and flavours of lemon around a spice of minerality. The texture is full but the finish is refreshingly tangy. This wine will age very well. 90.

The View Single Vineyard Ehrenfelser 2017 ($20.95 for 125 cases). This wine begins with floral aromas. The flavours explode on the palate: nectarine, apple and pear with a tangy hint of kiwi on the finish. A touch of residual sugar lifts the texture and the aroma but the finish is dry. 91.

The View Single Vineyard Gewürztraminer 2017 ($19.95 for 300 cases). The wine begins with delicate aromas of rose petals, spice and grapefruit rind. On the palate, there are richly appealing flavours of lychee and grapefruit. The wine is balanced to finish dry. 90.

The View Revolution Gewürztraminer 2017 ($19.95 for 150 cases). This is a dry, barrel-fermented Gewürztraminer. The wine begins with aromas of grapefruit. On the palate, the flavours are rich, with flavours of lychee, vanilla and ginger. The finish is dry. This is a complex wine and quite an interesting change of pace from mainstream Okanagan Gewürztraminers. 91.

The View Single Vineyard Pinot Gris 2017 ($19.95 for 100 cases). This wine begins with aromas of citrus and pear. On the palate, it has flavours of pear, apple, melon and spice. The finish is crisp. 91.

The View Silver Lining Estate White 2017 ($16.95 for 1,500 cases). This is a blend of 55% Gewürztraminer, 25% Ehrenfelser, 17% Riesling and 3% Pinot Gris. The wine (judged best white blend at this spring’s Okanagan wine competition) begins with inviting fruit aromas – peach, guava, and pear. That leads to an absolute fruit bowl of flavours with a spicy finish. 91.

The View Silver Lining Estate Rosé 2017 ($19.95 for 825 cases). This is a blend of 42% Pinotage, 32% Gewürztraminer, 16% Riesling, 5% Ehrenfelser, 3% Baco Noir and 2% Pinot Noir. It presents with an appealing rose petal pink hue and aromas of strawberry and watermelon. On the palate, the flavours are bold – cherry, strawberry – with a juicy texture and a lingering finish. 90.

The View Single Vineyard Pinotage Rosé 2017 ($20.95 for 240 cases). The wine, judged best rosé at the spring competition, presents with a delicate rose hue in the glass. It begins with aromas of wild strawberry and watermelon; these are echoed on the palate, along with flavours of pink grapefruit. The wine has just a slight backbone of tannin that compliments the dry finish. 92.

The View Distraction Frizzante 2017 ($19.95 for 280 cases). This is a blend 0f 60% Pinotage, 20% Pinot Noir, 15% Riesling and 5% Ehrenfelser. The speciation sheet is silent on the matter but this likely is a carbonated bubbly, a perfectly fine technique for a refreshing fun wine. It id fresh and fruity, with notes of strawberry. 90.

The View Pearls Traditional Brut 2016 ($34.69 for 275 cases). This bottle-fermented sparkling wine is 93% Riesling and 7% white Pinotage. It has aromas of citrus mingled with toasty lees. On the palate, there are flavours of citrus and apple. The wine is bone dry. 90.

The View Pinotage Reserve 2015 ($25.95 for 647 cases). The grapes for this wine had 72 hours of skin contact. Close to 20% of the juice was bled off to give the finished wine more concentration. This is a generous wine, beginning with aromas of black cherry, blackberry jam and toasted oak. On the palate, there are flavours of black cherry and blueberry. 90.

Wards Cherry Apple Cider ($11.95 for six pack). This is a blend of cider apples and Montmorency Cherry juice fermented with Champagne yeast. The cider begins with an appealing rosé hue. The aromas and flavours of apple and cherry mingle in a refreshing off-dry cider. 89.

Wards Ginger Apple Cider ($11.95 for six pack). This is made with a blend of cider and dessert apples along with natural ginger. It is fermented with Champagne yeast. The subtle aroma and flavour of ginger is a perfect complement to the fresh apple. The finish is crisp and refreshing. 90.

Wards Pickers Hut Premium Cider ($6.95 for 650 ml). This beverage is made with a blend of cider and dessert apples, fermented with Champagne yeast. It is aromatic and off-dry, beginning with aromas of apple and pear which are echoed in the flavour. It is balanced to finish crisply. 90.

Wards Sangria Cider ($8.95 for 650 ml). The winery calls this a “unique mash-up unlike anything you’ve tried before.” It is a rosé-hued cider made with cider apples and grapes (Pinotage and Gewürztraminer), fermented with Champagne yeast. The cider has persistent bubbles. The aromas and flavours mingle berry and apple. It is a refreshing off-dry cider looking for a hot summer afternoon. 87.

Wards Frostbite Cider ($8.95 for 650 ml). Made with cider apples and hops, this is the first hopped cider from Wards. The plan had been to make this with a late harvest apple. However, an early frost nipped the apples, likely accounting for the golden hue and rich texture. The cider is dry, nicely punctuated with the hops flavour on the finish. 90.

Forest fire survivor Fitzpatrick winery releases its table wines

Photo: Winery president Gordon Fitzpatrick

Fitzpatrick Family Vineyards specializes in very fine sparkling wines but Gordon Fitzpatrick, the president, has been in the wine business long enough to know there is also a solid demand for still wines.

Accordingly, the winery also produces still table wines. It has recently released five white table wines and one red. Consumers who turn off Highway 97 just south of Peachland to visit the winery will also be impressed with the affordable quality of these wines.

They should be pleased to find a winery at all. In July, a ferocious forest fire on nearby Mount Eneas roared down the hillside. The winery was evacuated for three days. But for Highway 97 – and skillful fight fighting – the flames might well have swept through the vineyard toward the winery. Some embers did reach the vineyard but were put out.

The winery, formerly Greata Ranch Vineyards, had been extensively remodelled over two years before re-opening to the public in the spring of 2017. Fortunately, the attractive structure, with a restaurant and an underground Champagne cellar survived.

For Gordon, the experience was déjà vu all over again. “In 2003, and the firestorm at Cedar Creek, we were on the front lines there,” he told Global News. “So I don’t know whether we are unlucky to have had to deal with it twice, or very lucky we came out of it both times in not too bad of shape.”

In 2003, the massive fire swept across Okanagan Mountain Park and ultimately destroyed more than 400 homes in Kelowna. Its progress was contained at the border of the CedarCreek vineyard. However, the thick smoke saturated the grapes to the detriment of their winemaking quality.

Because the 2018 Eneas Mountain fire was earlier in the season, smoke taint is unlikely to be an issue for the Fitzpatrick winery. That will be a relief for those who have come to enjoy the purity and the freshness of the wines here.

Here are notes on the current releases.

Fitzpatrick The Mischief Pinot Blanc 2017 ($18.50 for 516 cases). The wine was aged 55% in neutral oak and 45% in stainless steel in an apparent strategy to augment the texture while retaining the varietal’s crisp fruit. It has aromas of melon and apple that are echoed on the palate, along with a mineral spine. The finish is dry. 90.

Fitzpatrick The Lookout Riesling 2017 ($18.50 for 377 cases). The wine begins with a pleasant note of petrol mingled with citrus. On the palate, there are flavours of lime and green apple. The wine has 20.3 grams of residual sugar which lift the aromas and fleshes out the texture. At the same time, bright acidity balances the palate superbly. The wine has a lively intensity on the finish. The wine is drinking well now but will age into an even more complex wine over the next five years. 93.

Fitzpatrick The Unwinder Ehrenfelser 2017 ($19.50 for 265 cases). The Fitzpatrick family established a cult following for Ehrenfelser at CedarCreek Estate Winery. They continue to champion a wine some call “fruit salad in a glass”. It begins with aromas of ripe pineapple and peach, leading to layers of tropical fruit flavours. There is a touch of residual sugar but the wine is balanced toward a dry, food-friendly finish, with a spine of minerality. 91.

Fitzpatrick Interloper Gewürztraminer 2017 ($18.50 for 512 cases). Made with estate-grown fruit, the wine begins with aromas of ginger and lychee which carry through to the flavours, along with hints of mango and ripe apple. The wine has good weight, finishing on the dry side. 90.

Fitzpatrick The Runabout White 2017 ($16.50 for 803 cases). Made with estate-grown fruit, this is a blend of 43% Chardonnay, 31% Gewürztraminer, 19% Pinot Blanc and 7% Riesling. The long, cool fermentation was in stainless steel. The wine has a moderate 12.2% alcohol, with a crisp dry finish. It has aromas of apple and peach which are echoed on the palate. 90.

Fitzpatrick Sudden Inversion Meritage 2016 ($28.50 for 992 cases). The winery sourced the grapes from Maverick Vineyard in Osoyoos. The blend is 67% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine was aged 14 months in French oak (12% new). The ripe tannins and the subtle use of oak contribute to the generous and drinkable texture. The wine has aromas and flavours of black cherry, blueberry and plum with spicy fruit and chocolate on the finish. 91.

Lariana Cellars - hidden gem in Osoyoos

Photo: Lariana proprietors Dan and Carol Scott

Whenever I recommend Lariana Cellars to someone (which is often), I cannot help but worry these wine lovers will get tangled up with U.S. border agents instead.

The reason is that this small Osoyoos winery is just a stone’s through from the Canada-U.S. border, just east of the U.S. Customs and Immigration buildings. To reach the winery, you drive down Highway 97 as if you were going to cross the border. At the last moment, you exit left from the highway. You drive around the Customs buildings to get to 2^nd Avenue. The winery will be on your left and border will be on the right.

Dan and Carol Scott, who own Lariana, are significantly more pleasant to deal with than most U.S. border guards. Their winery is a gem among small producers, with exceptional and consistent quality.

Here is the winery’s profile, excerpted from my 2017 book: Icon: Flagship Wines from British Columbia’s Best Wineries.

Carol Scott’s interest in wine-growing began when, as a teenager, she spent several summers working in the Shannon/Pacific vineyard on Black Sage Road. Her father, Larry Franklin, was one of the vineyard’s owners. Until the hybrid grapes were pulled out of the Okanagan in 1988, Larry and Carol used some for home winemaking in the family’s Burnaby home. New owners bought the vineyard in the early 1990s and planted Bordeaux varietals.

In the late 1960s, not long after Shannon/Pacific was planted the first time, Larry bought a 4-hectare (10-acre) Osoyoos orchard property that included the Shady Lagoon Campsite on Osoyoos Lake. Carol, a travel agent, and her husband, Dan, a machinist, took over the property in 1989. They still operate the lakeside recreational vehicle camp. Growing cherries and apples became unprofitable and the trees were pulled out in 2006. “It was my dream to plant grapes,” Carol says.

Since 2007, they have planted 1.8 hectares (4.5 acres) of vines. The largest block is Cabernet Sauvignon, followed by Carménère and Viognier. Accordingly, the winery’s red blend is anchored by Cabernet Sauvignon. The Merlot and Syrah fleshing out the debut blend are purchased from nearby growers because Dan and Carol’s vineyard is fully planted. They have no current plans to double production by turning the campground into vineyard.

The modest winery, which was built in 2012, is very well-equipped. Lariana was one of the earliest small wineries in the Okanagan to install a concrete egg for fermenting and aging wine. The 1,800-litre vessel, made in California, is used to ferment Lariana’s exceptional Viognier. The reds are fermented in small stainless-steel tanks and aged in oak barrels.

Lariana’s winemaking consultant is Senka Tennant, the founding winemaker with Black Hills Estate Winery. Currently, Senka is the co-proprietor and winemaker at Terravista Vineyards. Lariana’s decision to launch its red portfolio just with Twelve, a premium red wine named for the vintage, echoes Senka’s strategy at Black Hills. That winery opened in 2001 with a Bordeaux blend called Nota Bene, which quickly became and remains to this day an Okanagan icon.

The winery’s name, Lariana, pays homage to Carol’s parents, Larry and Anna, who nurtured her love of wine in the Shannon/Pacific vineyard.

It has been a few months since I tasted the wines at Lariana. I would not be surprised to learn some are now sold out. I was also allowed to taste several wines not yet released.

The winery’s website lists the liquor stores and restaurants which sell Lariana wines. Here are my notes.

Lariana Viognier 2017 ($26 for 270 cases). This wine begins with aromas of citrus and pineapple. On the rich palate, there are flavours of grapefruit, pineapple, apricot and ripe apple. The finish persists. 93.

Lariana Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 ($50). If there was ever a vintage to ripen this varietal fully, it was 2015. Lariana has produced a powerful wine that begins with aromas of of black cherry, cassis and vanilla, On the rich palate, there are flavours of black cherry, black currant, plum. There is a long finish of sweet berry flavours mingled with chocolate and spice. 93.

Lariana Cabernet Sauvignon 2016 ($50). This is also a bold and ripe wine, with aromas of black cherry, cassis and spice. On the palate, there are layers of dark fruit flavours mingled with vanilla and chocolate. 93.

Lariana Carménère 2016 ($50). The wine begins with aromas of black pepper, black cherry and plum, which are echoed on the palate, along with dark chocolate and fig. The finish is very long. 93.

Lariana Carménère 2015 ($50 for 218 cases). This wine was aged 18 months in French oak (35% new). Once again, the wine begins with aromas of pepper, black cherry and fig which are echoed on the palate along with dark chocolate. The flavours are ripe and rich, reflecting the warm vintage. 92.

Lariana Fifteen 2015 ($45 for 565 cases). The blend is 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Syrah and 17% Carménère. The wine was aged 18 months in French oak (35% new). This is a bold and generous wine. Aromas and flavours of dark fruit mingle with spice, fig, dark chocolate and tobacco. The wine has long, ripe and polished tannins. 94.

Lariana Sixteen 2016 ($45). This wine, which will be released in the fall of 2019, is 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Syrah and 9% Carménère. At this stage, it is a dark, brooding red with aromas of spice cake, dark fruit and vanilla. On the palate, there are flavours of black cherry, black currant and plum. The firm, ripe tannins portend a wine with good ability to age. 94.