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Wine

2015 TOP STORIES: Kamloops headlines that got you talking

KAMLOOPS - As the year comes to a close, it’s time to reflect on some of the stories that had some impact in and near the community of Kamloops. Here are some of the top stories for 2015. THE WESTSYDE FLOOD %%Image2%%  A Westsyde neighbourhood was evacuated after a summer rain storm quickly turned into...

New web show lets you sip and learn about Okanagan wine in your slippers

SUMMERLAND – Looking for an alternative to stuffy shows that teach you about the Okanagan’s favourite beverage? There’s a new local wine review show hosted by a cast of colourful characters that features interviews and information about the Okanagan’s best wines and wineries. Sipping with Slippers premiered on YouTube in late September. They recently released...

Record grape harvest bodes well for Fall Okanagan Wine Festival

KELOWNA - It's been a stellar year for Okanagan vineyards and it will continue with a ten-day celebration of all things wine, which is expected to attract more than 20,000 visitors. Many local wineries are picking grapes earlier than ever before this year, according to Lori Pike-Raffan, the public relations director for Okanagan Wine Festivals...

Summerhill Winery steps up starling control with this amazing toy

KELOWNA - A local winery is using a unique form of pest control to keep an invasive species from stealing their grapes. Summerhill Pyramid Winery in Upper Mission is one of the few completely organic wineries in the Okanagan. They don’t use pesticides to control insects but there is another pest capable of causing even...

American travel writer predicts Kelowna the Next Big Thing

KELOWNA – A story written for a weekly newspaper in Colorado is getting some love on social media in the Okanagan. Travel writer Amiee White Beazley has an article in the Aspen Times predicting Kelowna will be the Next Big Thing calling it the Boulder, Colorado of 40 years ago, but with the added bonus...

Cold weather means record-breaking ice wine harvest in South Okanagan

SOUTH OKANGAN - Wineries throughout the South Okanagan have begun harvesting ice wine grapes after record-low temperatures sweep the valley. Nk’Mip Cellars Winery in Osoyoos has almost completed its harvesting, which has never happened so early in the year, says Moss Scheurkogel, winery supervisor. “It was completely unforeseen,” he says of the cold weather. A...

Wine documentary rolls out the red carpet for Okanagan premiere

SOUTH OKANAGAN - A documentary that follows three South Okanagan wineries through a season is rolling out the red carpet for its premiere showing in Oliver in two weeks. Local production artists and videographers Jon Hunwick and Kenton Gilchrist of Asymetriq Productions Inc. are ready to release their latest film titled Ventures in Wine Country,...

Okanagan Valley wineries propose new designation area

SOUTH OKANAGAN - Okanagan Valley wineries may receive a new official designation after a study revealed that an original agricultural landscape is a contributing factor to the production of unique wines.  Golden Mile Bench wineries, located near Oliver, have submitted a proposal to become the first official sub-Designated Viticultural Area of the Okanagan Valley DVA....

Wine festival a ‘grape’ success

OLIVER - Hundreds of people gathered  in Oliver this weekend to test some wines, enjoy the sun, and make a mess stomping grapes at the Festival of the Grape.  Wineries from all over the Okanagan set up to sample some of their best vintages, which were well recieved by festival attendees, judging by the comments...

B.C. Wine Awards to take advantage of new Penticton college centre in 2015

PENTICTON - The recently opened B.C. Wine Information Society Sensory Centre at Okanagan College's Penticton campus will host the Okanagan Wine Festivals Society's professional judging segment of the 2015 B.C. Wine Awards.  “Each year, the Fall Wine Festival brings some of the continent’s best palates to the south Okanagan to judge the entries for the...

Wine sensory lab officially open at Okanagan College

PENTICTON - Wine and viticulture courses at the Okanagan College are about to get a sensory overload with the official opening of the B.C. Wine Information Society Sensory Centre. The Centre is having its grand opening today thanks to a $300,000 donation form the B.C. Wine Information Society that made construction of the facility possible....

Skaha Hills Winery to release two labels in 2015

PENTICTON - Skaha Hills Winery is gearing up for this year’s harvest and will release its first batch of white wines next summer. The Winery will release two white labels in 2015, a Viognier, and a Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon blend. Red grapes harvested this year will be made into three red labels—a Merlot, Syrah,...

Okanagan Valley ranks No. 2 in world by USA Today

OKANAGAN - Readers of USA Today voted the Okanagan Valley as the second best wine region in the world, with Alentejo, Portugal ranking number one. “It’s important that the world is going to know that we;re a major wine region,” said Chris Bower, executive director of Tourism Penticton. Residents of the Okanagan have always known...

Wine would be winning addition to markets

KAMLOOPS - The province now allows liquor to be sold at farmers markets but city staff are not quite ready to make the leap, suggesting council move to a public hearing first if they wish to explore the possibility. Shawn Haley, co-chair of the Kamloops Regional Farmers Market Society, is requesting the city approve a...

Liquor added to wares peddled at Vernon Farmers Market

VERNON – The City of Vernon is following the lead of other municipalities in the province and allowing the local farmers’ market to sell alcohol products. City council voted this week to amend the city policy to allow the sale, and sampling, of liquor at the market. Breweries, distilleries, meaderies and wineries have all expressed...

City Hall holds the key to booze at farmers markets

VERNON - You’ll be able to pick up your artisanal cheese, baking—and booze—with a one-stop shop to the local farmers market, as long as Vernon city council okays it. The Vernon Farmers Market at Kal Tire Place and the Avenue Market on 30 Avenue are asking the City of Vernon to amend its policies to...

Local wineries bring Canadian wine to the table in new documentary

OKANAGAN - The Okanagan Valley is the latest subject of exploration for a documentary on Canadian wines. Local production artists and videographers Jon Hunwick and Kenton Gilchrist of Asymetriq Productions Inc. are filming for their latest documentary, titled Ventures in Wine Country, the story of three Okanagan wineries and their progress of becoming contenders on...

Okanagan Valley contender for top wine region in world

OKANAGAN - The Okanagan Valley is a top contender for USA Today’s 10 Best Wine Regions to visit. The valley is up against world-renowned wine regions including Tuscany and Veneto, Italy; Nappa Valley, California; Rhone, France; and Marlborough, New Zealand. “Having visited Nappa Valley and Tuscany I firmly believe the Okanagan Valley is equal, if...

Council considers sale of liquor at outdoor market

PENTICTON - Local vendors will soon be able to sell packaged liquor for off-site consumption at farmers’ markets, so long as council approves a change of what defines an “outdoor market.” In order to allow liquor sales and tasting at outdoor markets, the city needs to make a zoning amendment to the current bylaw. The...

Local winemaker gets creative with how he makes his wine

PENTICTON - Local winemaker Tony Lewis is trying a creative approach to winemaking by mixing his musical and inventing talents into the barrells of wines and translating the results into a fundraiser for orphans in Haiti. Lewis was inspired by his daughter, who, for her third birthday, wanted to have a music-themed party where all...

Penticton to host 2015 GoMedia Canada Marketplace

PENTICTON - Journalists and media from all over the world will come to wine country next year as Penticton hosts the 2015 GoMedia Canada Marketplace. GoMedia, part of the Canadian Tourism Commission, is the biggest annual consumer media show in the country. The events hosts industry partners from across Canada, the U.S. and 10 international...