My final two wines from Back Door Winery in Summerland are their Nice Rack White Blend, NV, a blend of Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer, and Viognier, and their Okanagan Hills Estate Reserve Pinotage 2018. The white wine comes under a Stelvin closure, while the Pinotage uses a synthetic cork. So we have two different wines from two different tiers from the winery. I am always excited to try Pinotage, whether from its birthplace of South Africa or here in BC. It’s a grape that has been misunderstood, partially because winemakers did not originally know how to deal with this grape to bring out its best. I am not sure of the naming of the Nice Rack White Blend but will let you conjure up ideas on your own.
My Wine Tasting Notes
Back Door Winery Nice Rack White Blend, NV (BC $17.99)
Appearance: A bright medium straw colour in the glass.
Nose: Medium-plus intensity aromas of peach, melon, and some bramble leaf. The aromas were a bit lighter with decanting. Besides the peach and melon, I now picked up some tropical fruit aromas. The bramble leaf aroma is lessened.
Palate: Off-dry, lighter-bodied with pronounced fruit flavors. Very smooth and round. Low acidity. Peach, pear, light citrus and a touch of grape stem. The wine continues to be smooth and round, but maybe a little fuller-bodied after decanting. Besides the pear, peach and light citrus, I now pick up a touch of pineapple, and honey from id palate to the finish.
Finish: Medium length finishing with peach and citrus flavours and a touch of pepperiness. Peach, citrus, some bramble leaf and honey flavours on the finish with decanting. Acidity does pick up on the finish.
A straightforward, lower acid, white blend to sip on the patio.
Rating: 
A lighter, bright straw colour. Medium intensity aromas of peach and melon, with touches of sweet spices and bramble leaf. Medium body, lightly off-dry, soft and round, with lower acidity. Peach, pear and citrus flavours. A medium-length finishing with mainly peach flavour, a touch of citrus, and honey with decanting.
Okanagan Hills Estate Reserve Pinotage 2018 (BC $45.99)
Appearance: Opaque ruby to the rim.
Nose: Medium-plus aromas, with lots of cedar, followed by blackberries, figs, purple fruit, and hints of cocoa and vanilla. The cedar aroma was still very strong after decanting, and the other fruit aromas persisted.
Palate: Medium body, dryish, smooth, with a lean mouthfeel. A mix of cedar, figs, cocoa, blackberries, vanilla, plums and cut red apples. A hint of nail polish (which has been common for Pinotage). Bitter tannins mid-palate to the finish. The wine has a bit more roundness with decanting. The cedar flavour upon opening and with decanting is quite strong. I get more plum flavours with decanting, but there are still the other flavours as mentioned, including the hint of nail polish.
Finish: A shorter length finishing with some bitter drying tannins, cedar and blackberry flavours. Medium length with decanting, lots of cedar plus blackberry flavours. Less bitterness and firmer tannins.
The cedar component from the oak ageing is quite strong, so I would recommend a very long decant, maybe 2 days, or buy the bottle now and keep it in your cellar for four years before opening.
Rating: – 
Opaque ruby. Medium-plus intensity aromas, with prominent cedar, and lesser amounts of purple fruit, blackberries, figs, vanilla and a hint of cocoa. Medium body, dryish, with a lean mouthfeel. Lots of cedar on the palate, followed by lesser blackberries, plums, figs, vanilla, cut red apple (toward the finish), and a touch of nail polish (one trait of Pinotage). shorter length finishing with cedar, blackberries and medium drying tannins.
Where Can I Buy These Wines?
You can purchase these wines through the winery website, or visit the winery.
The winery also has a Find Our Wines page that lets you search for cities and towns within BC.
