Inniskillin Okanagan       ...and Sandor Mayer

Funky new boutique wineries are springing up all over the place in British Columbia. Some make such small quantities of highly sought-after wines that you have apply to get on a list to be allowed to pay $30 and up for them. In this designerly trendoid wine whirlwind of what’s hot and what’s not, it’s easy to overlook the more affordable wines that are being put out by major wineries under an assortment of different labels and brands.  All of BC’s major wineries make at least one or two exceptional minor wines.

The Association of British Columbia Winegrowers website at www.winegrowers.bc.ca currently lists 43 “Hidden Wineries” some of which are also profiled at www.islandwineries.ca/  And more are coming! -- although finding somewhere to purchase these limited release treasures can sometimes be a challenge. Sure… there’s not much boutique mystique in buying something anyone can buy.  But be careful not to mistake mystique for quality!  Small is cute and tiny is trendy but maximizing quality can also be done at corporate wineries like Inniskillin Okanagan.

Relatively inexpensive new whites like Inniskillin Okanagan Reserve Pinot Grigio (+80044) $14.20 can be undervalued simply because they don’t cost enough.  Despite the relatively affordable price this is a remarkable buy – brightly peach blossom floral and lusciously lemon and melon fruited!

Inniskillin Okanagan Reserve Chardonnay (+558411) $14.49 is a cut above everyone else’s $17 -$20 Chardonnays.  Primarily stainless steel fermented, this bright and sassy Chardonnay has enough of a kiss of French Oak to fill out the honeyed apple underones.  Seriously good quality!

Trained in his native Hungary, Sandor Mayer took the job of viticulturist at a small winery near Oliver, BC called Okanagan Vineyards in 1990.  Initially he was hired to replant the vineyards after the 1988 government-subsidized grape pull-out.  Mayer became Okanagan Vineyards winemaker in 1992.  “The hardest thing to build is a reputation.” Mayer told wine writer John Schreiner, in 1993.  “We have started to build it.” The Cabernet, Merlot and Pinot Noir vines he planted then eventually grew into “Dark Horse Vineyard”.

In 1994 Ontario’s Inniskillin Wines (who had the savvy and capital) entered into partnership with the Osoyoos Indian Band (who had the largest fine winegrape “vinifera” vineyards in BC) and Inniskillin Okanagan was born.  In 1996 Inniskillin Okanagan took over both Okanagan Vineyards and the maturing “Dark Horse Vineyard”.  Sandor Mayer bacame Winemaker, Winery General Manager, and Viticulturist of Inniskillin Okanagan.  "My approach is simple," says Mayer. "I aim for the highest quality from the grapes. Then based on the growing year and the varietal, I try to exploit that quality potential to maximize it in the cellar.” Things at Innsikillin Okanagan have been maximizing merrily in the last few years.  Occasionally Sandor Mayer’s sure touch raises the usually dependable “great” quality to “excellent” and often “stellar”.

“Meritage” is wine-geek-speak for a wine that’s actually blended from a variety of wine grapes, the same wine grapes from which they blend seriously over-priced Bordeaux.  Inniskillin Okanagan Olympic Meritage (+147199) $17.99 is at least $3.00 under the price of any other premium Okanagan red.  Ripe, soft, rich, seductive! You don’t need to know anybody to get your hands on a bottle of two of Inniskillin Okanagan’s finest wines – they are widely available throughout BC.  And you don’t need to know an awful lot about wine to appreciate just how tasty they are.  Everything Mayer makes is worth tasting.

Premium wines made from grapes from “Dark Horse Vineyard”, the vines that Sandor Mayer began to nurture in 1990, are truly exceptional representations of what great heights Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Riesling and Chardonnay can reach in BC.  When you can find them, try Sandor Mayer's  “Dark Horse Vineyard” wines!