Similkameen, Similkameen

How long has it really been?

To taste your grapes and drink your wine

Is getting to be quite divine.

Bad poetry, great wine. I’m not a poet and I’m quite sure that everyone knows it. At least now they do.

What I’d like to know is how many people have tried wine from the Similkameen Valley lately? If you haven’t yet, you are truly missing out. There are some solidly built wines coming from the Similkameen these days. Considering that even 5 years ago there were almost no wines from this valley making it to store shelves, this is probably one of the fastest growing wine regions in BC.

There are lots of vineyards and orchards in “the Sim”. It is a very rural valley with lots of farms of all kinds. There is a noticeable lack of civilization there – no big urban areas, no strip malls, no large parking lots and no traffic lights until Princeton, possibly, although I’m not even sure Princeton has one either.

It from here that Robin Ridge’s Chardonnay comes. For as relaxed a pace as the Similkameen offers, this wine delivers and intensity that almost belies it’s provenance.

I will go on record here to say that I like Chardonnay and always have. It never went out of fashion for me. I like them both oaked and unoaked and love that it can be a lot of different things. Yes, for a while there was a fashion that made some chards into a big bottle of buttered popcorn and that got out of hand but thankfully, we’ve come away from that here in BC at least.

The Robin Ridge Chardonnay still points in that direction with a subtle oak treatment which only intensifies its complexity. It is everything that I look for in a chardonnay.

But wait, there’s more.

It has something different that many BC chardonnay’s don’t have. If you taste it at just the right temperature, it has a mineral note that hides until the finish and writes a little name in scribbled handwriting, as if the Similkameen were adding its signature to the wine’s flavour profile. It’s a signature that’s written on a lot of wines coming out of the Similkameen and it makes wines there distinct, even in these early days of BC wine.

It isn’t only Chardonnay that Robin Ridge makes well. The Robin Ridge Gamay accompanied the turkey-based entrée created by Chris VanHooydonk, executive chef at the Sonora Room at Burrowing Owl, as he won top spot at the Similkameen Barbecue Championship in July 2011. Pinot Noir and Merlot are other wines to try from this winery as well, if you can find them!

Cheers from wine country!

~Luke

I recently returned from the Wine and Jazz Festival at the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, as the guests of the fabulous management team. It was a blast! Three days of events centered around the wines of the U.S. (well, mostly California & Oregon).

When I think about the California and Oregon wine industries, I can’t help but think in terms of large, corporate entities, like Gallo or Mondavi. It is so great to get the opportunity to see some of the smaller production wineries up close and personal. Of course, it is Vegas, so during the consumer tasting, you have to talk to the winery reps through a “model”, which can be both frustrating and entertaining at the same time.

On the first night, we enjoyed some excellent live jazz and tasted the sparkling wine lineup from Domaine Carneros by Tattinger, among others.  The 2007 Domaine Carneros was crisp and dry with fine bubbles and refreshing flavours of green apples and citrus and a comforting yeasty note on the finish.  Their rose bubbly (a blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes) was a tad lush, with berry notes and fine tannins on the finish.

On the second night, I felt like a kid in a candy store.  It was consumer tasting time in the Grand Ballroom.  Wines from Caymus and Seghesio Family Vineyards tickled my palate, to name a few.  The Caymus Conundrum will always be a favorite of mine, with it’s juicy, rich, round palate and it’s silky, honeyed finish.  The Select Cabernet Sauvignon from Caymus was delightful as well with it’s ripe berries, spice and hints of tobacco.

On Sunday morning, I got up early (11am is early for Vegas!) to enjoy the Champagne and Jazz Brunch.  The food was an amazing cross cultural array, but the music was even better.  Everything ground to an absolute halt though when the vocalist on stage began his rendition of What a Wonderful World.  He sounded precisely like Louis Armstrong and it was mind blowing!  It was worthy of the standing ovation that it garnered.

The highlight of the weekend was the poolside wine tasting known as the “Winedown with the Winemakers”.  The sun was shining, and the water was warm, which made the wine taste even better.  I have never spent a wine tasting supine, but it turned out to be the way that things ought to be.  Five hours and a slight sunburn later, I had tasted my way through several lovely California Sauvignon Blancs and was much the better for the experience.

If you’re interested in trying something new next year, check out the link below:

http://www.goldennugget.com/LasVegas/springwinefest.asp

I highly recommend it.  In order to appreciate what we have to offer the world here in our little corner of it, it’s important to step outside our boundaries once in a while.  Now if I can just find a way to head farther south and taste a bunch of really great tequilas!