Our Okanagan wine tour is becoming an annual event—following last year's Kelowna and Lake Country tour, this year we focussed on the Okanagan Falls area. Our Tour Director, member Dr. Larry Burr, organized an excellent long weekend with some very special visits to selected wineries.
Leaving the Penticton Lakeside Resort in our Top Cat bus, we visited Pentâge Winery with Paul Gardiner's magnificent cellar followed by Liquidity Winery where we also enjoyed lunch at their bistro. The afternoon saw us at Blasted Church Vineyards with winemaker Elaine Vickers—the church was removed from the mining town of Fairview to Okanagan Falls—and Kraze Legz and Skaha Winery with Gerry Thygeson, with a sizeable Greek dinner at Theo's Restaurant in Penticton.
Following a brief visit to the market, our Saturday morning included visits to Noble Ridge with owners Jim and Leslie d'Andrea, to Stag's Hollow with owners Larry Gerelus and Linda Pruegger and Wild Goose with Hagen Kruger. Lunch at the Smoke & Oak Bistro was followed by an in-depth tasting of pinot noir at Meyer Family with JAK Meyer and a visit to Synchromesh Winery with owners Alan and John Dickinson. Dinner was at Local in Summerland where we enjoyed an excellent dinner in the company of Okanagan icon, Harry McWatters.
The weekend was not yet over and on Sunday morning we met the three generations of the Mavety family at Blue Mountain Vineyard and enjoyed a tasting and lunch at Painted Rock with proprietor John Skinner.
Our thanks go to Dr. Larry Burr for his attention to details in the organization of another highly successful Okanagan Tour and to Milena Robertson for her photographic skills during the weekend. And next year—where?
Click on photo to enlarge or click HERE to view slideshow
Photos by Milena Robertson
