Our vineyard site has long produced fine bubbly - hearkening back to the Pioneer Vineyard days with the Dulik family, with some of the original clonal selections chosen for their makeup to produce great sparkling wine.
We are immensely proud to carry on this tradition and in doing so help further the evolution of quality, traditional method sparklings from the Okanagan Valley.
Pouring into the glass with a delicate textured mousse, notes of oyster shell, fresh croissant, roasted pear and floral aromas of apple blossom emerge on the nose. The palate is mineral and long with lemon verbena, granny smith apple, and a touch of buttery pie crust to add weight. Crisp, focused and mineral with a light lees character bringing richness to the back palate.
WINEMAKER'S NOTES
Fruit for our sparkling Chardonnay release is sourced from a single block of our 2013 plantings. The grapes were picked early in our 2020 harvest window to allow for low alcohol and elevated acidity. Upon pressing, the pristine juice was fermented in old puncheons with a champagne specific yeast culture. The base wine then spent 7 months on fermentation lees in older barriques before being racked to bottle for secondary fermentation en tirage. After 22 months on lees, the wine was disgorged in March of 2023 with a small amount of dosage wine, built from our still 2020 Chardonnay, to bring out a toasty and creamy addition.
TECHNICAL INFO
100% Chardonnay
Alcohol: 12.2%
Residual Sweetness: 5.46 g/L
pH: 3.16
Total Acidity: 10.69 g/L
ACCOLADES
93 points - Jacky Blisson, MW, National Wine Awards of Canada
"Vivid aromas of green fruits, elderflower, ginger, and wet stone emerge on the nose, priming the palate perfectly for the invigorating style of this elegant blanc de blancs..."
93 points - Michael Godel, National Wine Awards of Canada
“Croccante,” succulent, a scintillant raciness in every respect, satisfying and long. Would really like to see this again after the decade strikes ten."
93 points - Treve Ring, Gismondi One Wine
"Super serious sparkler this, insanely under priced (stock up!), is drinking beautifully now and with time ahead."
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VINTAGE NOTES
The 2020 vintage will be remembered as small but mighty, in a year we will of course never forget. Mirroring the winter of 2019, a cold snap of under -20 C in late February harmed several vines and buds but fortunately damage was not as extensive as the previous year. Above average rainfall in May charged the soil with water and gave the vines everything they needed to hit the ground running after bud break. A period of cool and wet weather in early July coincided with flowering, unfortunately resulting in uneven berry set across the property.
Summer was about as good as the vineyard crew could have hoped for: lots of sunshine, warm temperatures but not too much excessive heat. Vine growth caught up but we eased into harvest a week later than usual, in the second week of September. Luckily, smoky skies on the early days of harvest quickly dissipated so that we enjoyed clear days for the remainder of harvest. Dry conditions and mild temperatures allowed us to pick each block at perfect maturity. Unlike in previous years, the first frost (and snow!) did not arrive until late October, and
we escaped harvesting our last bunches in whiteout conditions by only 12 hours!
