I finally made it to the Okanagan, after drinking — and increasingly — loving the wines for the past 15 years. Defined by the Okanagan Lake and Okanagan River, the Okanagan Valley is the famed British Columbia wine region of Western Canada, producing the larger portion of my favorite wines in all of Canada.
Year-by-year, I’ve noticed steady growth and improvement in the quality of B.C. wines, most of them small production wineries I’ve been tasting at restaurants and bars in Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary. I finally visited B.C.’s beloved wine region last summer, including some of the big name Canadian wines that put the Okanagan on the map.
Despite pioneers like Mission Hill Family Estate since 1981, the Okanagan didn’t gain regional designation until 2015, though the first winery in the province dates back to 1918. With roughly 200 wineries in the Okanagan, I wish I could have visited more small and natural wine producers, as I have discovered a number I’ve loved over the years at top restaurants and bars. As one of the northernmost winemaking climes in the world, the Okanagan has diverse microclimates and soils, including its volcanic rock valley.
With the region’s population at just over 360,000, Kelowna is one of its biggest towns and was my home base for a few days. Fruit orchards abound alongside vineyards in this heavy farming region, while boating and other watersports co-exist with skiing and hiking as popular activities.
When I Fell in Love with the Okanagan
Per usual, I sense the spirit of a place and this is a region both laid back and humble as it is full of sweeping vistas and underrated beauty. Certainly I recognize West Coast, California home parallels with the vast range of terrain and landscapes, from snow-covered peaks to deep blue lakes. The people are kind, a mix of small town folk and wealthy retirees and “Napa” of Canadian Wine Country-type crowds. Everything centers around wineries in some ways, lake and mountain activities in others, but the pace is one of appreciating nature and fine architecture and wine, both often carved cinematically into the region’s hillsides.
While I didn’t exactly have the elevated mystic moment I have with some places, the Mission Hill Family Estate winery’s Summer Concert Series under the rising full moon and stars on Okanagan Lake amid the vineyards dancing to Blue Rodeo playing live before us was my supreme moment, the instance where I melded with Canadians, soaking up the night and lake life with gratefulness.
Okanagan Musicians/Songs
While I don’t know amy writers and poets in the Okanagan region, I do appreciate a couple local musicians: the plaintive voice — and songs like “Fire” — of Jon-Rae Fletcher, the dub-step electronic insanity of Excision and Angela Harris’ pure alt-country wail (example, “I Want Them Gone”).
Where to eat, drink and stay in the Okanagan:
Read the rest on Substack: Canada’s Okanagan Valley’s Gifts to the World