So much wine, so little time.
New-release, 2022-vintage whites, roses and sparklings from the Okanagan are coming out at such a clip that it's hard to keep up.
But, my wife, Kerry, and I are here to help.
We've been sampling as much, and as often, as we can, to compile lists of this spring and summer's must-drink wines.
The 2022 grape-growing season got off to a slow start, but the summer-and-fall weather came through to yield fruit with gorgeous acidity and concentrated aromas and flavours.
Talented winemakers used those grapes to make white, rose and sparkling wines with the same pleasing acidity and fruit-forward profiles quintessential of the grape varietals.
So here we go with the latest list of 13 worthy new releases.
- Wild Goose Gewurztraminer ($18) from Okanagan Falls, heady, fuzzy peach
- Wild Goose Autumn Gold ($20), aromatic, tropical and flowery
- Wild Goose Pinot Gris ($20), zesty, pear and citrus
- Sandhill Pinot Gris ($20) from Kelowna, apricot and melon
- Joie A Noble Blend ($25) from the Naramata Bench, an aromatic, everything-but-the-kitchen-sink white blend in the Alsatian tradition
- Joie Rose ($26), dark pink, dry and fruit-forward
- Moraine Gewurztraminer ($24) from the Naramata Bench, grapefruit and ginger
- Moraine Pinot Gris ($24), passionfruit with minerality
- Gray Monk Pinot Gris ($20) from Lake Country, slightly pink in hue with pink grapefruit aromas and flavours to match
- Maverick Sauvignon Blanc ($24) from Oliver, pineapple and lemon
- Maverick Pinot Gris ($24), classic pear and lime
- Tinhorn Creek Gewurztraminer ($22) from Oliver, lychee, honey and spice
Colossal British Car Show
Yes, cars from Jolly Old and Okanagan wines go together.
Summerhill Pyramid Winery in Kelowna is hosting the Colossal British Car Show tomorrow, 11 am to 4 pm, in the parking lot in front of its eponymous pyramid.
Many of the cars on display will be for sale and are supplied by several British car clubs in BC and August Luxury Motorcars of Kelowna.
Some of the exotics include a 1949 Bentley, a brand-new McLaren 765LT that's worth $900,000 and a Bentley Continental Super Sport Convertible.
The car show is free to attend and food and wine will be for sale.
The winery is also using the car show to launch its new al fresco food program at its Summerhill Organic Bistro.
Perfect Chardonnay
Canadian wine expert John Schreiner has awarded a perfect, 100-point score to the Blue Mountain 2020 Alluvium Reflection Block 32 Chardonnay ($50) from Okanagan Falls.
Schreiner described the wine as flawless with a "creamy palate that delivers flavours of stone fruits. There is something cerebral to the personality of this sophisticated wine. There is a certain richness and finesse about it."
The only other wine Schreiner has awarded 100 points is four vintages of CheckMate Little Pawn Chardonnay from Oliver, which retails for over $100 a bottle.
Blue Mountain winemaker Matt Mavety points out that Blue Mountain's perfect Chardonnay is affordable by comparison.
Steve MacNaull is a NowMedia Group reporter, Okanagan wine lover and Canadian Wine Scholar. His wine column appears every Friday afternoon in this space.
