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The Tippling Point1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Itinerary | Home
LANG VINEYARDS, located northeast of Penticton on the Naramata Bench, was one of the first farm gate wineries in British Columbia. Its new winemaker, Bernhard Schirrmeister, arrived from Germany (where he worked in some of that country’s best cellars) in 2005. His first vintage was released to a good reception. Try Grand Pinot, a smooth and rich red blend of pinot noir and meunier. POPLAR GROVE, just down the way, is becoming as well-known for its cheese as for its wine. In 1995, owners Ian and Gitta Sutherland produced their first vintage of merlot and cabernet franc using their garage as a winery. They built a new winery in 2004, as the previous one now houses the substantial cheese-making facility. Try Naramata Bench Blue cheese, accompanied by the Poplar Grove 2006 pinot gris, with its subtle sweetness, rich mouth feel and flavours of apricots and lychee. JOIE, run by Michael Dinn and Heidi Noble, only began producing wine in 2004, but it has had a significant impact on the Naramata Bench. Their cooking school/culinary retreat (closed this year but reopening in 2008) has drawn some of the biggest names in Canadian cuisine and Noble just released a cookbook, Menus From an Orchard Table. They source fruit from around the region and now they’re finishing work on their own plot (after making wine at Pentâge Winery). Try Joie Rosé 2006, a slightly dry but sexy food wine with strawberry, lemon zest and ripe cherry flavours. FAIRVIEW CELLARS is a boutique winery near the town of Oliver with a prime south-facing location and a tasting room that’s little more than a log cabin. (In fact, it used to be the kids’ playhouse.) Tacked above a piano in one corner is a quote from Nellie McClung that could be determined owner Bill Eggert’s motto: “Never retreat; never explain; never apologize. Get the thing done and let them howl.” Try a taste of the rich, concentrated merlot straight from the barrel in the vaulted underground cellar. For this, you’ll have to be, like me, an extraordinarily lucky guy. LE VIEUX PIN, which opened in May, has serious ambitions. “Our goal is to make the best,” says general manager Anthony Burée. They will focus solely on only three or four varietals, a method that’s refreshing in this anything-goes winemaking frontier. As I do a tasting in the courtyard with vineyard manager Harold Gaudy and young winemaker Daniel Bontorin, Burée says, “I’m sick of people saying this is a good wine for B.C. I want them to say that this is a good wine. Period.” Try Vaïla pinot noir rosé (the first batch of 105 cases sold out almost immediately) – elegant and rich, but understated. Watch for reds like Apogée Merlot. |
