Skip to content
People
Art
Culture
Education
Environment
Finance
General
Government
Health
Hospitality
Indigenous
Lifestyle
Manufacturing
Natural Resources
Philanthropy
Real Estate
Retail
Sports
Tech + Science
Tourism
Transportation
Industries
Art
Culture
Education
Environment
Finance
General
Government
Health
Hospitality
Indigenous
Lifestyle
Manufacturing
Natural Resources
Philanthropy
Real Estate
Retail
Sports
Tech + Science
Tourism
Transportation
The Lists
30 Under 30
Best Cities for Work
Business of Good Awards
Entrepreneur of the Year
Invest in BC
Most Loved Brands
The Top 100
Women of the Year
Launches & Closures
Leadership
Ideas
Newsletter
People
Culture
Education
Environment
Finance
General
Government
Health
Hospitality
Indigenous
Lifestyle
Manufacturing
Natural Resources
Philanthropy
Real Estate
Retail
Sports
Tech + Science
Tourism
Transportation
Industries
Culture
Education
Environment
Finance
General
Government
Health
Hospitality
Indigenous
Lifestyle
Manufacturing
Natural Resources
Philanthropy
Real Estate
Retail
Sports
Tech + Science
Tourism
Transportation
The Lists
30 Under 30
Best Cities for Work
Business of Good Awards
Entrepreneur of the Year
Invest in BC
Most Loved Brands
The Top 100
Women of the Year
Launches & Closures
Leadership
Ideas
Newsletter
Subscribe
The Lists
Leadership
Ideas
Newsletter
BCBusiness
Instagram
LinkedIn
Facebook
Subscribe
Subscribe
Search for:
industries
Sponsored Content
Raising a Glass to Kelowna’s Wine Industry
By
Candice Ui
/
August 17, 2015
Kelowna’s terroir is one of the biggest reasons for the city’s flourishing wine industry
Generally considered the birthplace of the B.C. wine industry, Kelowna is home to the oldest and most established wineries. Today, the city boasts 28 wineries and that number will likely continue to rise.
Kelowna also has the distinction of being home to an internationally award-winning Pinot Noir—Mission Hill Family Estate’s 2011 Martin’s Lane Pinot Noir
won a 2013 Decanter World Wine Award for Best International Pinot Noir.
For those involved in this region’s wine industry, the win is no surprise.
“With Kelowna’s easy access to water, moderate temperature with a slightly cooler climate than further south, and long growing days, we are the perfect location for growing varietals such as the Pinot Noir, Riesling and Chardonnay,” says Andy Gebert, co-owner of St. Hubertus Estate Winery.
Because of glacier deposits and soil type, Kelowna is truly “Mother Nature’s gift” to Pinot Noir. Historically, the reason this area’s soils are so perfect for Pinot is because the lake used to be a much larger body of water 10,000 years ago (during the Pleistocene Era). Therefore, the soils are lake-bottom, mineral rich soils; and when irrigation was introduced, this made the terroir idyllic for growing fruit of all types, including grapes.
In addition, the cool nights preserve natural acidity and encourage plenty of colour in the Pinot Noir, while contributing richness to the Chardonnay.
“For those reasons, wineries here are able to produce perfectly balanced
Pinot Noirs, Rieslings and Chardonnays,” adds Gebert.
The phenomenal growth of the Kelowna wine industry over the past several years is also a product of the innovative techniques that winemakers are incorporating into their processes.
One of the key components to this, according to Quails’ Gate winemaker Nikki Calloway, is the “melting pot of nationalities bringing with them great ideas.”
“We are New World wineries, with many of the winemakers coming from countries such as France, Australia, New Zealand and Germany,” says Calloway, who completed a Diplôme National d’Oenologue at the prestigious University of Bordeaux. “With that comes different technologies from across the world. Then, we take those [ideas] and we figure out what works best here.”
The fundamental process of fermentation, which is centuries old, remains. However, new equipment and processes continually evolve. Calloway says it’s about matching techniques and products—such as irrigation systems and automated temperature controls—to Kelowna’s weather, soil and topography that creates award-winning wines.
“The old school way of temperature control was time consuming,” she adds. “We had to manually look up the temperature on every tank. The Pinot Noir is very sensitive to temperature changes and had to be moved six to seven times a day.”
Now, with the new automated thermal regulated temperature control, Calloway can simply go to her computer and read the temperature on every tank on her screen. She can then change the temperatures if need be from her home computer.
“We just installed the new software
a month ago and it is extremely bene
ficial, not only for Pinot Noir, but for
white wines that need to be fermented at lower temperatures.”
Having said that, sometimes what is old is new again. Recently, there has been the emergence of egg fermenters. Crafted from concrete and breathe-like barrels, they don’t expose oak flavours to the wine. They are easier to stir around the sediment of the wine; adding complexity and weight to the wines.
As for the future of the wine industry in Kelowna, Calloway and Gebert see one filled with promise where many more of its wines will become internationally acclaimed.
Recommended for You
5 big takeaways from the 2025 Everything Electric Vancouver
Inside Kelowna’s $3.4M penthouse sale: 3 bedrooms, 3.5 baths and a rooftop cabana
How Vancouver denim brand Decade Studio cracked the TikTok code
Beyond the stopgap: How Vancouver’s rentals are being built for long-term living
How Big White’s CFO tackles the resort’s tough challenges with CPA confidence
Silhouettes, not sizes: Meet Daylilie, the Vancouver startup designing bras for athletic bodies
BCBusiness
Day
Month
Year
Submit
Subscribe to Our Newsletter(s)
Get the latest headlines delivered to your inbox 3 times a week.
First Name
Last Name
Email Address (Required)
(Required)
Yes, sign me up for newsletters from:
BCBusiness
BCBusiness Special Offers
BCLiving
Vancouver Magazine
Western Living
alive magazine