2005 Okanagan Valley Harvest Underway

Some very early varietals were picked as early as late August, but the majority of grapes were picked in the last two weeks, and although most feel this year's harvest will be slightly less than last year's 16,672 tons, winery owners and winemakers who make Vintners Quality Alliance (VQA) wine are excited about the quality.

"We're certainly seeing average-size crops this year compared to the plus-size crops we had in past years. However, it's one of the most fantastic crops we've seen in terms of quality," says Roland Kruger at Wild Goose Estate Winery near Okanagan Falls. "The fruit is small, with great concentration; we're extremely pleased with how things are progressing. We've picked the gewürztraminer, pinot gris, and pinot blanc, and we're starting to bring in the reds right now. The last to come in is always riesling."

Wineries and grapegrowers will turn in their final harvest totals to the British Columbia Wine Institute in late November. Cathy Robertson, sales and marketing manager at Cherry Point Vineyards on Vancouver Island, agrees that quantity is down slightly, but quality is strong. "Overall, it's a great harvest. We won't get as much gewürztraminer this year as last year, which is a little disappointing because it won last year at the All-Canadian Wine Championships, but we'll still be making a 2005 vintage," says Robertson. "We've brought in siegerrebe, ortega, and pinot gris, while all the reds are still on the vine. We're happy with the quality; the sugar is good, the acid is good. Our winemakers are very positive about the crush."

Winemaker and general manager Marcus Ansems at Therapy Vineyards on the Naramata Bench echoes that sentiment. "We've brought in the pinot noir and the pinot gris, and both are fantastic. The chardonnay and gewürztraminer are coming out in the next few days and they are also looking good. We're seeing less rot than usual, so overall we're expecting to see an even better vintage than last year."

Harvest began on September 27 at Quails' Gate Estate Winery near Kelowna. Winemaker Grant Stanley says the 2005 growing season has been a gentle reminder of BC's status as a cool-climate region; average daily temperatures were lower than usual.  "As expected, the crop is smaller due to lower than average bunch weights, but this will give great concentration of flavours to all varieties, and while there won't be an abundance of wine from 2005, it will be an excellent vintage," says Stanley. "Marechal foch was the first to come in at 28 brix, followed closely by pinot noir and sauvignon blanc. Both of those varietals have done well in the cooler season, exhibiting good ripe flavours and excellent numbers in respect to brix, PH and acidity."

"The berries and the cluster weights are smaller because of this season's cooler weather, but smaller fruit is providing more highly concentrated flavours," says chief winemaker John Simes of Mission Hill Family Estate near Kelowna.  "It's too early to know for sure whether we'll bring in the same amount of fruit as we did last year, but we're very pleased with the quality of the fruit we've brought in so far, and we anticipate a very good vintage."

Steve Heiss at Gray Monk Estate Winery north of Kelowna said he thinks this year's tonnage is a little higher than last year's.  "It's all looking very good, and the quality is exceptional. We've brought in a little bit of everything. It seems this year that all the varietals are nearly ready at the same time. Generally we get our reds from the vineyards in the south Okanagan, and they're ready to come in," says Heiss. "We've got very good readings on the sugar and acid, and the flavours are intense. The big three components are sugar, acid and flavour, and they are right where we want them to be."