I’ve really enjoyed tasting through Mt. Boucherie Estate Winery‘s flight of newly released wines, and now I’ve reached the summit. One of their top tier wines is known as the SUMMIT. This fantastic red wine is a blend from their top blocks of estate grown fruit in the Okanagan and the Similkameen valleys. All the grapes are handpicked and sorted. The SUMMIT 2017 blend is 43% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Franc, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Syrah, and 2% Malbec. The wines were aged in 100% French oak for 24 months, with 35% aged in new barrels. Their 2016 blend was 51% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Franc, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Malbec, and 3% Syrah.
It is interesting to see the differences in percentages and to compare that to the growing season. In 2016 the weather was hot in the Spring, cool in the summer, then warm in the Fall. In 2017 in the Okanagan Valley wineries experienced a later bud break by two to three weeks due to a wet Spring, a very dry summer and then very hot temperatures, some record breaking, in August, resulting with an earlier harvest by three weeks than usual. As 2016 was cooler, Cabernet Sauvignon does not ripen as well so you see a slight drop in percentage. Merlot is a more reliable ripening grape with a cooler season so you see an 8% increase in Merlot in the 2016 blend. Cabernet Franc was also lower in the warmer 2016 vintage, which I assume indicates that it needs more growing degree days to fully mature.
My Tasting Notes
Mt. Boucherie Estate Winery SUMMIT 2017 (BC $59.99) – This is a deeply coloured garnet wine, almost opaque at the core and about 80% opaque at the rim. It has medium-plus intensity aromas of deep ripe black fruits, blackberries, black cherries, ripe raspberries, sweet spices and cedar, light vanilla and oak. These aromas come in waves of different fruits, spices and oak. Very nice. With decanting there is a lot of ripe cassis flavours and a touch of chocolate. There is less cedar aroma. This wine is dry, with lower acidity and a silky mouthfeel. Soft fine light tannins. You get very ripe and round black fruits, black cherries, black plums, sweet species, vanilla and oak on the palate. Again a nice mix of sweet ripe fruits blending with the vanilla, oak and spices. With decanting the wine has a lighter mouthfeel and the tannins are a bit more prominent. The pepperiness in the wine also now starts at the mid-palate. This wine has a long length finishing with sweet black fruit, a hint of coffee, cedar and black pepper. Also the tannins briefly show up on the finish to dry your mouth. An excellent wine! Either decanted or undecanted, both taste very good to me.
Rating: 
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A top tier red blend from Mt. Boucherie. Lots of ripe black fruits on the nose and palate along with sweet spices. Medium bodied and very smooth.
Where Can I Buy This Wine?
You can purchase this excellent wine online via the Mt. Boucherie website. This wine may also be available at other private wine shops, but you need to ask. Swirl has the 2014 vintage in stock according to their website.
