Fairview Cellars Winery

989 Cellars Road,
Oliver BC, V0H 1T5

 

A boutique winery located on the Reed Creek alluvial Fan at the North end of the Benches of the Golden Mile.  Fairview Cellars is the culmination of a life long quest of Bill Eggert’s to own and operate his own winery.  Bill has been producing wines since 1997.

The vineyard has 2.4 hectares. Fairview Cellars is primarily known for the three bordeaux classics; ..... These are showcased both as single varietal wines and in blends like 'The Bear', 'Bucket of Blood' and 'Two Hoots'. In the best Cabernet Sauvignon years, Bill produces a top single varietal wine called 'Iconoclast'. This wine stays in the best barrels for a period of 36 months before being bottled and held again for at least 6 months. In 2020 the current vintage release of this wine is the 2012. Fairview also has a small planting of Syrah, Sauvignon Blanc and Petit Verdot. 

Bill's other Vineyard south of Vaseaux Lake called the Eagle Bluff Vineyard, is where all of the Pinot Noir for the Crooked Post Pinot Noir is grown as well as a small amount of Gruner Vetliner. 

April 2022 Bill should the winery to Danielle and Dermott Hutton. In 2016 they relocated with their young family to Oliver permanently, to work in the firehall brewery as co-owners and assist in the growth of operations in the “Old Firehall” heritage building on Main Street.

 

Philosophy:

Gehringer Brothers Estate Winery

Road 8, RR1, Site 23, Comp 4
Oliver, BC V0H 1T0

Gehringer Brothers' dream of an estate winery was conceived in the year 1973. After high school, Walter Gehringer went to West Germany. There he acquired their fine wine-making skills. After five years he graduated from the world renowned University of Geisenheim with an engineering degree in viticulture and oceanology. His brother Gordon also spent four years in West Germany acquiring the wine master's art, graduating with a degree from Weinsberg. The present buildings were built in 1985 the same year as their first vintage.

The wineries cellars are built either into or beneath the hillside They produce over 30,00 cases each year. The estate vineyards have 10,5 hectares. They produce mostly white wines such as Riesling, Auxerrios and Ehrenfelser in an off dry german style. In 1996 they bought Dry Rock Vineyards located right next door. This vineyard is planted with Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Cabernet Sauvignon

Their labels include Dry Rock Vineyards and Optimum .

Winemakers: Walter and Gordon Gehringer:
Philosophy: In the fall the grapes are pressed and a portion of the juice is stored fresh and fermented. Before bottling in the spring,we blend the unfermented juice which has retained its rich flavour,back into the dry wine. This results in the varietal fruit flavours components being combined with the developed wine, yielding a complex full-bodied wine.

Hester Creek Estate Winery

13163—326th Avenue(at Road 8)
Oliver, BC V0H 1T0

Hester Creek Estate Winery is situated within some of British Columbia's oldest vineyards in the bountiful Golden Mile region. The 95-acre, Mediterranean-influenced grounds, winery, and guest villas evoke an old-world sense of tranquility that take you back to a more simple, unhurried era: a time when a young girl named Hester pondered life and daydreamed by the edge of the creek that would later take her name. The winery is owned by Curt Garland.

Hester Creek's vineyard is just south of Oliver on a spectacular piece of benchland referred to as the Golden Mile. This benchland is considered to be the best grape-growing area in the Okanagan Valley. The vineyard is planted mainly with Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Trebbiano. Future planting will include Gamay. Hester Creek has 83 acres of agricultural land, of which 75 are under vine. Trebbiano Dry is one of their most noted wines

Although the winery is among the Okanagan's oldest it has a new wine shop and tasting room for visitors to enjoy. There is a relaxing patio and a guest villa. Also a new 23,000 square foot state-of-the-art wine producing facility. The 35,000 case capacity winery for crush 2009 is partially buried in the hill to take advantage of the natural temperature control of the earth and thereby reduce the need for energy. The cellar room is completely underground and the site’s natural vegetation has been restored on the top of the building.

Signature Wines: Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Pinot Blanc, Trebbiano
Unique Offerings: Trebbiano, Late Harvest Pinot Blanc, Double Magnum Cabernet Sauvignon,

The 2013 Syrah-Viognier wins a 2016 Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Excellence in BC Wine

Winemaker: Robert Summers
Winemaking Philosophy: strict attention to detail and quality produces truly superior wines. Only fully mature and healthy fruit arrives at the crushing platform, and the best French and American oak barrels are used in the fermenting and aging processing to bottling is performed meticulously and the utmost care is used in the fermenting of our wines.

Inniskillin Okanagan

Road II, R.R.#1 S24, C5
Oliver, BC V0H 1T0

The winery is a partnership between Inniskillin and the Inkameep Indian Band. The band has 265 acres of premium Vitis vinifera grapes.

Inniskillin Okanagan vinified its first vintage in 1994 producing 3,300 cases of VQA Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc and Icewine. Current production is about 20,000 cases of VQA wines annually. Winemaker and general manager Sandor Mayer has worked with Inniskillin since 1990. Winemaking

Dark Horse Estate: Inniskillin's 23 acre 'Dark Horse' Estate Vineyard is located on the western slope of the valley. north of the Osoyoos Lake.

Bull Pine Vineyard: Along picturesque mountain slopes that stretch up to 200 feet above Osoyoos Lake in the southern-most tip of the Okanagan Valley, BC, thousands of new vines are starting to grow. The first single vineyard has been named the Bull Pine Estate Vineyard. The Osoyoos Lake area enjoys high heat during the day balanced by the nighttime cooling effect of the lake, providing optimum conditions for vine growth and grape ripening.

The winery is a heritage property that has been completely updated . The original owners tunneled 11 horizontal wine tanks into the hillside. which (we believe) makes them the only winery to still use horizontal tanks.

A Salmon-Safe Winery

Winemaker: head winemaker Derek Kontkanen, Dave Carlson
Philosophy:s to make the best wine possible, combing the latest technology and traditional methods while respecting the varietal characteristics of the fruit he is given to work with.

Road 13 Vineyards

799 Ponderosa Road
Road 13 RR#1 S28A C4
Oliver BC, V0H 1T0

 

Dec 2018 the winery was sold to  von Mandl Family collection of wineries that includes Mission Hill Family Estate, CedarCreek Estate Winery, Martin’s Lane Winery and CheckMate Artisanal Winery. 

A small farm winery operated by the Luckhurst family (Pam and Mick) who purchased the winery in 2003. The property came with a vineyard, a winery and a name: Golden Mile Cellars. Since then, the Luckhursts and their winemaking team have come to understand the significance and value that the term "Golden Mile" has to the wineries located in the area along Highway 97, between Fairview and Road 18. As a renewed commitment to their land and to return the name "Golden Mile" to the region, Golden Mile Cellars has proudly become Road 13 Vineyards - a name chosen to evoke a sense of place. Signature wines: Chardonnay and Pinot Noir,

The winery now focus on Blends Stemwinder (a white blend) and Rockpile (a red blend) Fifth Element (red), Honest John’s White and Honest John’s Red. Their motto, "it's all about the dirt" reflects their belief that great wines start in the vineyard.

Platinum winner 2017 Nationals Road 13 Vineyards 2014 Similkameen Collective GSM, Similkameen Valley

Winemaker: Jeff Del Nin
Philosophy: "Winemaking is about creating a final bottle that, when opened, conveys a sense of place. "This is a special patch of dirt. I want our wines to reflect that."

Rust Wine Co

4444 Golden Mile Rd
Oliver, BC

 

Opened in 2017 located on the famed Golden Mile Bench They also have vineyards in Osoyoos, Okanagan Falls, Similkameen.

The home vineyard 'South Rock' was originally purchased from the Crown in 1963 by John Tokios. In 1968 it was planted to Okanagan Riesling, Bacchus, Chancellor and other hybrid varietals that have since been replaced. This makes it one of the earliest established sites in British Columbia.

The Rust Wine Co. home vineyard is a 12-acre block that is the most Southern vineyard on the Golden Mile Bench.  Rocky soils and a gentle East facing slope produce balanced mineral-laden reds and a rich Gewurztraminer

In the early 70’s the first vinifera was planted – Gewürztraminer, which was recommended through the Becker Project, often considered the second stage of BC wines evolution. The vineyard continued to be upgraded with more suitable varieties and now grows Gewürztraminer, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and some of BC’s only Zinfandel.

Why Rust : the evolution of Rust is unscripted. Its colour emerge from nature and blend in unpredictable forms. Rust therefore serves as a perfect metaphor for wine.

Vancouver businessman Sonny Haung purchased this vineyard in 2015. Same owner as Mt Boucherie.

Philosophy:

Tinhorn Creek Vineyards

537 Tinhorn Creek Road
Oliver, BC V0H 1T0

Nestled on the hillside of a former gold mining creek, Tinhorn Creek Vineyards sits unrivaled on top of the "Golden Mile" in Oliver, "the Wine Capital of Canada", and offers a truly unique wine experience. Tinhorn Creek is rapidly establishing themselves as one of the premiere wineries in BC. Originally Winemaker Sandra Oldfield CEO and Kenn Oldfield (chairman) created a winery worthy visiting. In 2017 the winery sold to Andrew Peller Ltd. Visitors will find a lush vineyard with views of the grape crush pad, and impressive interior galleries overlooking the stainless steel tanks, oak barrels and cellar.

Tinhorn Creek the first carbon neutral winery in Canada as well as the first winery in British Columbia to receive a certificate of recognition for its vigorous health and safety program. A Salmon-Safe Winery

Wines available in USA in 2014

The first carbon neutral certified winery in B.C. The winery team recently received an Occupational Safety Standard of Excellence certification, the first small business in B.C.’s food manufacturing industry to do so.



Philosophy:To produce only premium vinifera-based red and white table wines by focusing on tightly controlled, low cropping,viticultural practices.

Willow Hills Wines

Oliver, BC V0H 1T0

A small winery that exclusively produces icewines, owned by Lanny Swanky and Patricia Venables They have taken the challenge of producing Merlot icewine. Their first vintage was in 2001.

Lanny and Patricia took over the dome-shaped Willow Hill property in 1997. Then raw land, it is well located beside the road to the Gehringer Brothers and Hester Creek wineries. Their target
is to produce a total of about 5,000 half bottles a year while selling the
rest of the vineyard’s grapes to other wineries.

They also produce icewine for clients such as Church and State and Dirty Laundry.

There are no tasting facilities

Winemaker Lanny Swanky