Road 13 winemaker Barclay Robinson is a busy (and talented) boy.
He's crafted wines for three new labels at the Oliver winery.
The Honest John's portfolio of entry-level, approachable and affordable wines has redesigned labels that continue to depict Road 13's farming-tractor motif and new names for the wines.
They are the 2022 Crisp White ($21), with aromas and flavours of pineapple, lemon, pear and lychee fruit), 2021 Bold Red ($24), strawberry and black pepper, and 2022 Bright Rose ($21), cherry and watermelon.
Robinson, who moved from Ontario to join the winery in the spring of 2020, designed the Honest John's wines to be "uncomplicated, but deeply satisfying."
By the way, Honest John is the nickname of John Oliver (1856-1927), the pioneer farmer and politician who the town of Oliver is named after and who went on to be premier of British Columbia.
He also lends his name to the John Oliver Collection of Road 13 high-end red wines, priced from $65 to $80 a bottle.
The labels of the John Oliver Collection also feature tractor illustrations.
The middle tier of Road 13 wines is a new label called Select Harvest, featuring wines made from grapes hand-harvested from vineyards on Oliver's Golden Mile and Black Sage Bench.
There are four wines in the Select Harvest line, which, of course, also display tractor imagery on the label.
They are the 2020 Syrah ($40), 2020 GSM ($40) (Grenache-Syrah-Mourvedre), 2022 Rose ($28) and 2022 Chenin Blanc ($28).
In keeping with its farming-first mantra and location on Road 13 in Oliver, the winery declares: "On our road there are no shortcuts. We work hard. We rely on each other. We respect the land."
And that ties in perfectly with Robinson's mantra of making approachable, easy-drinking wines.
Drink Prosecco Day
Drink Prosecco Day snuck up on me this year.
Don't let it sneak up on you.
This year, Drink Prosecco Day is Sunday, which still gives you ample time to hit the liquor store and pick up a bottle (or two, or three) of the Italian sparkling wine.
Since Prosecco was born in Italy, the best place to start is with Bottega, the world's most popular Prosecco from the northeast of the country.
Prosecco is not just the name for Italian sparkling wine, it is a region in Veneto (near Venice) and it is the name of the grape.
You'll probably recognize the Bottega Gold ($35) because it's in a bougie, gold mirrored bottle.
It's traditional Prosecco made of the Prosecco grape that is pale yellow in colour with a pear-and-pastry profile and fresh, abundant bubbles created from a second fermentation in big stainless-steel tanks.
(Champagne from France and any other Champagne-style sparkling wine is made with a second fermentation in the bottle).
While it's still labeled Prosecco, the Bottega Rose Gold ($35) (in a rose gold mirrored bottle, of course) is actually made of Pinot Noir grapes to get its gorgeous pink hue.
For this Drink Prosecco Day, Bottega is also touting the Limoncello Spritz as the ideal August patio cocktail with Italian flair.
Make it in big wine glass with two ounces of Limoncello (the delicious Italian lemon liqueur), three ounces of Bottega Gold Prosecco, an ounce of soda water and lots of ice and garnish with a slice of lemon and some mint leaves.
Another brand of Italian Prosecco is Mionetto, which makes a beautiful Treviso Brut ($19.50) with a lively and effervescent pear and honey profile.
If you want to drink an Okanagan bubbly done in the Prosecco-style then reach for Hester Creek 2022 Ti Amo ($22) from Oliver.
It's fresh and light with a apricot, lychee fruit and toasted bread profile.
Steve MacNaull is a NowMedia Group reporter, Okanagan wine lover and Canadian Wine Scholar. Reach him at [email protected]. His wine column appears in this space every Friday afternoon.
