This has long been one of our favorite wineries, but this visit was so odd; not because of anything that happened there, but it was our first visit since the untimely passing of our friend, Alex Russo. Alex was their wine club concierge and did everything for us while we were club members, and even after we had left their clubs. He was one of the good ones, and I know he is missed every day.
We get to taste in their Barrell Room, as we have done before, and it’s a lovely experience as always. They have a new staff member who is wonderful; I’m embarrassed to say I’ve forgotten her name. As with many of the wineries we are visiting this trip, they lost a large part of their crop in 2024, and they have had to source some of their grapes from Washington State.
One of the interesting side effects of the loss of their crops is the opportunity to try some new things; winemaker Severine Pinte is a big fan of the Languedoc region of France and has sourced some Cinsault from Washington to make the 2024 rosé, and it was such a success that they’ve decided to plant some of their own Cinsault! It will be very interesting to see how that varietal does in the Okanagan.
Let’s start the reviews with that rosé!
As always, a wonderful experience!
Next up: Down the road to their sister winery, La Stella!
Confessions of a Huge Wine-R 