Calona Has New Brand of Wine

varietal wines labelled Sandhill. Keep those hands up if you have visited the winery. While the former is highly probable, the latter is impossible. That's because Sandhill is a brand, not a winery. Despite its "virtual" personality, Sandhill does have serious roots planted in Burrowing Owl Vineyard, which places it among the best vineyard land in Canada. As for the wine, Calona winemaker Howard Soon makes it at the company's headquarters in downtown Kelowna. As Sandhill's distributor/agent Scott Fraser explains, "Sandhill is a way for us to showcase winemaker Howard Soon's talent and the grapes of Burrowing Owl Vineyard." (BOV) If you are thinking Burrowing Owl is an estate winery, you are right but it's also a 235-acre vineyard. The BOV estate winery only uses about 50 of those acres, leaving the remaining balance under long-term contract to Calona. Fraser says, "BOV winery and Soon both work together to plan which blocks of which varietals they will work with in the coming years." Vineyard manager Dick Cleave is given specific instruction on how to farm the blocks by each winemaker. Given its premium pricing, Burrowing Owl estate winemaker Bill Dyer works with extremely low yields. In the case of Sandhill, Soon has more than 180 acres to work with although total production is limited to about 25 per cent of the total grapes harvested. Like Dyer, Soon manages his blocks to lower yields and he also tastes through the different lots to select the wines best suited to the Sandhill style. Originally, the Sandhill plan was to release only single vineyard offerings. It still is, but Fraser admits, "it's just that until now the BOV grapes are the only ones that have met the standard of quality Soon is looking for." This fall, however, Sandhill plans to release its first not-from-Burrowing-Owl-Vineyard wine, which will be a syrah from vineyard manager Dick Cleave's nearby property. Fraser believes "several other varietals from other areas, such as Naramata, will join the fold, as vines mature and more growers raise their standards to meet those laid out by Sandhill." In the near future Sandhill will also launch a "small lots" program for premium restaurant buyers. Soon is playing around with limited plantings like the aforementioned syrah, along with barbera, sangiovese and viognier. Quantities fluctuate, but most are in the four-barrel range or about 100 cases of wine. Fraser says, "where the results are interesting we now have a way of putting them into bottle in limited quantity. It's also a chance to get some feedback from the trade and customers, which will in part determine whether we move forward with the varietals in bigger quantities." For the moment, you can choose from six affordable Sandhill labels, five of which are widely available in government stores. Here's what I found: We begin with the barrel-fermented sauvignon blanc sold mostly in restaurants. Look for a ripe (almost sweet) fruit entry, with fresh lemon/lime flavours and a hint of orange blossom. This is a big white at 14 degrees alcohol but there's enough fruit to keep it interesting. It should work well with Asian seafood dishes. The pinot blanc is 100-per-cent barrel-fermented in a mix of French and American oak and contains a small portion of chardonnay. Look for a fresh style and an aroma Soon describes as a mix of "Granny Smith apple and pineapple." I like the buttery lees finish too. Fresh light and fun, it is ready to drink. The 2000 chardonnay sees mostly new French oak while the lees are hand-stirred to increase the wine's texture in the mouth. Look for a fresh, apple/melon fruit and a slightly heavier mid-palate. The finish is round and buttery, a Soon signature consumers are sure to enjoy. With the '99 merlot, winemaker Soon employed only used or older barrels to impart less oak flavouring in the wine and to better amplify the fruit flavours. Look for earth and black cherry flavours with a medium-dry peppery finish. A young red that need another six months to fully round up. Good value. The cabernet-merlot takes a page from the Bordeaux book, blending 50 per cent cabernet sauvignon with 45 per cent merlot and five per cent cabernet franc -- in effect balancing the structure and flavours of the wine. The taste profile is similar to both other reds with earth and pepper overshadowing the black cherry fruit and hints of mocha. A drier, more Euro-style blend, that would be a good bet with grilled meats. According to winemaker Howard Soon the '99 cabernet franc is one of the best he has made. Certainly, it has the typical leafy cassis aromas mixed with pepper, resin and mint. The entry is soft and round with plenty of acidity in the dry herbaceous finish. A good effort that is on track. More fining tuning in the vineyard should help increase the fruit factor in an otherwise good effort. WEEKEND WINE TASTING: Sandhill Okanagan Valley, B.C. Producer: 2000 Sauvignon Blanc Price: $14.95 * Stock No.: 587048 Score: 13.5/20 Comments: Simple, round ripe sauvignon. Producer: 2000 Pinot Blanc Price: $14.95 Stock No.: 541185 Score: 14.5/20 Comments: Fresh fun white. Producer: 2000 Chardonnay Price: $14.95 Stock No.: 541193 Score: 4/20 Comments: Fresh entry, buttery finish. Producer: 1999 Merlot Price: $15.95 Stock No.: 576751 Score: 14/20 Comments: Soft, round, earthy/peppery fruit. Producer: 1999 Cabernet-Merlot Price: $15.95 Stock No.: 54114 Score: 13.5/20 Comments: Okanagan Bordeaux Producer: 1999 Cabernet Franc Price: $15.95 Stock No.: 556035 Score: 14.5/20 Comments: Big leafy/cassis flavoured red. * the wine store at the Granville Island Brewery