Interior BC Winemaker’s Harvest 2024 Interview

This year’s harvest in the BC interior was extremely different from past harvests as the winter cold snap killed most of the grape vines.  Coastal and Fraser Valley wineries did not suffer the same fate.  The amount of grapevine loss varied a bit in the interior, depending on how close the vineyards were to interior lakes and the slopes where the vines were planted.  Most of the grape vines are vitis vinifera which cannot wholly withstand the cold weather, but we do have some hybrid vines that produced wine this year.  Because of this variability, I’ve asked more winemakers than usual to talk about their harvest and where they sourced grapes, if any. I will write a separate article for the wines produced along the coast and Fraser Valley.

The winemakers I interviewed are:

• Bradley Cooper, Director of Sales and Winemaking, at Therapy Vineyards & Inn
• Rob Hammersley, Owner | Winemaker, at Black Market Wine Co.
• Evan Saunders, Winemaker, at Blasted Church Vineyards
• Matt Dumayne, Winemaker, at Haywire Winery
• Grant Stanley, Winemaker & General Manager, at SpearHead Winery
• Alison Moyes, Winemaker/General Manager, at Solvero Wines
• Alessandro (Alex) Nel, Winemaker, Fort Berens Estate Winery Ltd

Where Are These Wineries?

Here is a Google map showing the location of the wineries, colour-coded to the winemaker names above.

My Interview

1. Where are your vineyards and winery located?

Brad: The winery and home vineyards are located on the Naramata Bench just above and south of the village at 940 Debeck Road.

Rob: Black Market Wine Co. is located in Kaleden, and all three vineyards that we farm are also located here. We do purchase about 30% of our grapes from growers in the Oliver/Osoyoos area as well.

Evan: Our vineyards and winery are on the Skaha Bench, and we also work with growers in Osoyoos. 

Matt: Our vineyards and winery are located in Summerland.  

Grant: Our vineyard in southeast Kelowna was hit particularly hard by the January cold snap, requiring a complete replanting which will happen in May 2025. 

Alison: Our vineyards and winery are located in Garnet Valley in Summerland. The latest cold winter snap caused bud damage to our vineyards, leading us to source premium Chardonnay from two top AVA regions in Oregon. 

Alex: Lillooet.

2. What percentage of your vines were adversely affected by the latest cold winter snap?

Brad: All of the vines on our property were adversely affected by the latest cold weather incident in January of 2024. That was the second incident over 14 months when counting from the December 2022 event that set back the production by 40% on our home property. 2024 saw about 8% of normal yield from these same rows.

Rob: We had a 100% crop loss last year, but most of our vines have survived (~85-90%). The previous year, we only had about a 25% crop loss.

Evan: Our vineyards and winery are on the Skaha Bench, and we also work with growers in Osoyoos. The latest cold winter snap drastically reduced our BC crop, we brought in approximately 5% of our expected crop from the pre-cold event estimates.

Matt: The latest cold winter snap significantly reduced our yield, resulting in the smallest harvest on record with just 50 cases of wine from our Switchback Vineyard. We have done an assessment and need to infill acres with approx. 12,000 plants. Those plants will go into the ground in the Spring of 2025.

Grant: We will be planting the same varieties (Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Riesling) while being strategic about where these vines are planted. In the areas prone to frost, we plan to put in more cold-resistant vines. We will not have a harvest next season.

Alison: We are currently re-trunking our damaged vines to preserve established rootstock and encourage future estate production. We are optimistically hoping to be back to ~50% production in 2025.

Alex: I do not have the exact figures for last year specifically, but roughly 8% of our vines have been adversely damaged or have died over the last few years. Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon were the most affected.

3. If you are going to replant, will it be the same grape varieties or will you try other varieties, e.g. more cold weather-resistant hybrids?

Brad: Therapy Vineyards is in the middle of a multi-year realignment of our vineyard cultivars. Beginning this spring, we began planting Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier in areas where Pinot Gris and Merlot formerly grew. This was planned before the recent weather issues as the winery takes a greater focus on sparkling wine production in the methode champenoise tradition. We were encouraged by some of our neighbour’s Pinot varieties and their capacity for production in the past season. Cold hardy hybrids remain a possibility but we have no plans to grow them at this time.

Rob: We have already pulled out one small block of Merlot on our estate vineyard, where most of the damage seemed to be. We replanted with Chardonnay rather than Merlot. The past two winters have highlighted just how sensitive Merlot buds are to cold temperatures. Our blocks of Bacchus and Pinot Blanc seemed to have fared better. In our leased vineyards, we grow Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Merlot. In those blocks, we have a few dead vines, but not to the extent that we are considering a full replant. We are not going down the path of cold-resistant hybrid grapes, as they tend to not be very heat tolerant. We get super hot every year, but based on historical data, the extreme cold events don’t happen every year.

Evan:  We will make some changes to the varieties that we have planted, but we are basing those decisions more on what varieties are best suited to the sites. We will implement some additional cold temperature survival tactics like hilling up the vines to give us some protection from Mother Nature. For the vines that did survive, we trained up the suckers that grew this growing season, and we will select the strongest one to become the new trunk going forward. The old wood will be removed from the vineyard, which will give us a great vineyard rejuvenation, and will hopefully set us up for success going forward.  

Alex: We have already ordered vines for next year. We will be interplanting the same varietals as well as planting a new 2-acre block of Chardonnay.

4. How are you managing your vines that survived the cold winter snap and how much of a harvest do you expect next season, assuming we have a normal winter?

Brad: We allowed the Chardonnay and remaining Merlot on the property to grow ‘freestyle’ for most of the last season, minimizing trimming and pruning and encouraging leaf and root progress. We are budgeting a 30% of normal yield for 2025.

Rob: That’s the million-dollar question! My approach is to focus on vine health as the number one priority, and if we manage to get a crop, that’s a bonus. We left a number of suckers on each vine wherever we could, and let them grow throughout the season. When we prune this coming winter, we’ll select a couple of the stronger canes and hopefully be able to train new trunks by selecting the strongest one at the end of this season. The vines in our estate vineyard are 40 years old, so their age was a bit of a contributing factor to the extent of damage we experienced.

Evan:  For the 2025 growing season, we are hoping for a 50% of average crop level, although the conditions this winter will have the final say in that regard.

Alex: We kept suckers from the base of the vine in case a trunk needed to be replaced. We also have reserve canes already established to replace any unproductive cordon-positioned arms, as we mostly spur prune. Our vines faired really well this summer and look very healthy. Besides the vines missing and a few rehabilitating vines, we predict 70% to 80% cropping level.

5. Will you be producing wine in 2024?

Brad: Yes, we are producing about a fifth of our planned production for 2024.

• Where did you source the grapes for this vintage? We were fortunate to have some local growers that had some crop this year and we imported some from the USA.

• How did you select where to bring in grapes from? We used a broker that we had dealt with previously who had familiarity with California sources.

• Which varieties are you bringing in and are you trying any new grape varieties? We specifically targeted gaps in our existing inventories that would be best served by specific varieties that could deliver quality and value. We imported Pinot Noir only this season to specifically address our rosé requirements. We had no plans to introduce new grape varieties. Our original plan was to also bring in Merlot and Cabernet Franc but ultimately chose not to during the harvest window due to a number of factors. We remain open to importing juice or finished wine to complement our existing stock should the need arise.

• Is there anything surprising or exciting about the wines you are making? This year’s wines are generally good to better quality. Local conditions produced a textbook, ideal growing season for the unfortunately small crop.

• How will you let consumers know that these wines are made with grapes from outside of BC? Wines made from grapes sourced from outside BC will have appropriate label information.

Rob: Yes.

• Where did you source the grapes for this vintage? We sourced all of our grapes from Washington (Columbia Valley AVA, Wahluke Slope AVA, Horse Heaven Hills AVA).

• How did you select where to bring in grapes from? Primarily it was multiple trips down south to meet with growers, walk vineyards, and taste the wines that were produced from them in the past. We are fortunate to have a colleague who has been working with Washington grapes for many years, so he was able to make several introductions and recommendations. I also did my viticulture and enology studies at Washington State University, so I’m already quite familiar with the landscape down there.

• Which varieties are you bringing in and are you trying any new grape varieties? My approach to this vintage was to try and work with different varieties as much as possible. This is partly to be able to experiment and grow as a winemaker by working with grapes we don’t normally have access to, and partly to distance these wines from our core BC-based wine portfolio. For whites, we are making Chenin Blanc, Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc. For rose we are using Cinsault. For reds, it’s Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre. I went down to Washington to press some of the grapes for white/rose wines, and shipped the juice back. We brought fresh grapes up for the reds.

• Is there anything surprising or exciting about the wines you are making? Everything is exciting, and the quality is amazing. I think one surprise might be how high the quality of the grapes were given the size of some of the vineyards. When a grower down there is farming over 1000 acres, it’s easy to assume that the level of focus and attention wouldn’t be the same as it would be in a small vineyard, as many are in the Okanagan. But that simply wasn’t the case in our experience.

• How will you let consumers know that these wines are made with grapes from outside of BC? We are firmly committed to supporting and growing our BC wine industry, and we don’t want any confusion when it comes to what’s in each bottle. We will be bottling these wines as a sub-brand to further differentiate them from our BC wines.

Evan: Yes, we will be producing wine in 2024.

• Where did you source the grapes for this vintage? We sourced top-quality Sauvignon Blanc, Grenache, Pinot Gris, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon from Andrews Family Vineyards in Washington State.

• How did you select where to bring in grapes from? Our winemaker, Evan Saunders, made frequent trips to Prosser, Washington, to oversee the harvest and ensure each grape meets our high standards.

• Which varieties are you bringing in and are you trying any new grape varieties? We are bringing in Sauvignon Blanc, Grenache, Pinot Gris, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon.

• Is there anything surprising or exciting about the wines you are making? Starting from juice is an interesting twist for us, and we are committed to maintaining the quality wines we have been known for since 2002.

• How will you let consumers know that these wines are made with grapes from outside of BC? We will ensure transparency in our labeling and communication with our customers.

Matt:  Yes, we will be producing wine in 2024.

• 

  Where did you source the grapes for this vintage?  We did not source grapes from other regions.
• How did you select where to bring in grapes from?  N/A
• Which varieties are you bringing in and are you trying any new grape varieties? N/A
• Is there anything surprising or exciting about the wines you are making?  We have developed new seasonal releases, including Narrative Haskap Lemonade, Hard Iced Tea, Mulled Wine, and Spiced Apple Wine, all packaged in lightweight, fully recyclable pouches. <MyWinePal.  I tried the Mulled Wine.  Delicious.>
• How will you let consumers know that these wines are made with grapes from outside of BC? N/A

Grant: Yes, we will be producing wine in 2024.

• 

  Where did you source the grapes for this vintage? We sourced grapes from vineyards in Washington and Oregon.
  Washington: The winery is partnering with several vineyards near Prosser to acquire a variety of grapes, including Syrah, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Riesling, and Pinot Noir for Rosé and white Pinot Noir. The Syrah will arrive as whole grapes, while the other varietals will be pressed in Washington and transported as juice in refrigerated trucks.
  Oregon: SpearHead Winery will source Pinot Noir from Cherry Hills Vineyard in the Eola-Amity Hills AVA, enough to produce approximately 1,000 cases. The grapes, which include select Dijon clones, may allow for the bottling of multiple expressions of Oregon Pinot Noir.
• How did you select where to bring in grapes from? Our winemaker, Grant Stanley, oversaw the vineyard selection and transportation to Okanagan Falls in temperature-controlled trucks.
• Which varieties are you bringing in and are you trying any new grape varieties? We are bringing in Syrah, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Riesling, and Pinot Noir from Washington, and Pinot Noir from Oregon.
• Is there anything surprising or exciting about the wines you are making? This unique vintage will be specially labeled to mark our first use of out-of-province grapes.
• How will you let consumers know that these wines are made with grapes from outside of BC?  The winery team plans to package and label this year’s unique vintage in a way that distinguishes it from their current offerings. We will ensure transparency in our labeling and communication with our customers. Town Hall Brands is working on a new label for us for these wines.

Alison:  Yes, we will be producing wine in 2024.

• 

  Where did you source the grapes for this vintage? We sourced premium Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for Rose and Sparkling Wine from the McMinnville and Chehalem Mountains AVAs in Oregon.
• How did you select where to bring in grapes from? Our winemaker, Alison Moyes, visited many vineyards in Washington and Oregon to personally select the vineyard blocks we would use for our production. These blocks were farmed to our specification and Alison spent the majority of September in Oregon to oversee the hand-harvesting and pressing of these grapes, ensuring that our high quality standards were met.
• Which varieties are you bringing in and are you trying any new grape varieties? We brought in premium Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (for Rose and Traditional Method Sparkling Wine). We opted to focus on the flagship grape varieties that we are known for and find vineyards in Oregon that align with our brand in both wine style and quality.
• Is there anything surprising or exciting about the wines you are making? We are embracing the opportunity to make wine with high-quality grapes from outside BC, providing an exciting, temporary addition to our lineup as our vineyards recover. 
• How will you let consumers know that these wines are made with grapes from outside of BC? We will ensure transparency in our labelling and communication with our customers, referencing the specific vineyard locations where the grapes were sourced.

Alex:  Yes we did! We actually completed two full harvests:

• Where did you source the grapes for this vintage? 
  • Lillooet, estate fruit:
    We brought in 50 tons from our estate vineyards! This represents about 32% of our normal harvest. Mostly Riesling and Cabernet Franc, actually quite beautiful phenolic ripeness this vintage. We are seeing well-balanced acidities and aromatic whites, especially on our Grüner Veltliner, while the Cabernet Franc from our Red Rock Vineyard expresses lots of concentration, while being fruit-forward.
  • Washington fruit:
    We also carefully sourced grapes from Washington. We selectively searched for a small quality focused winery that would allow us into their facility, where we could produce wine from Washington fruit. We wanted to transport wine, not grapes or juice, as this is the safest way for wine to be transported quality-wise. 

• 

  Which varieties are you bringing in and are you trying any new grape varieties? 
  Our Assistant winemaker, Seth, went to Washington to source the vineyards and winery. We chose Washington as the growing conditions are similar to what we have here. Seth spent the harvest season there making these wines in a similar style that we do here in Lillooet. In Washington, Seth monitored the fruit, selected the picking dates, hand-picked and pressed the grapes, and oversaw fermentation. The unfinished wine was then transported back to Lillooet. From here, we are finishing, aging, and bottling these wines in Lillooet.
  
  We brought in 68 tons of Washington fruit. We are looking forward to releasing a Washington Rosé (from Shiraz) Pinot Gris, Riesling, and Chardonnay. These wines will have a distinct label to indicate that they are wines we made from Washington grapes. We will be working on label designs in the coming months and plan to bottle these wines at the end of February.

6. Are there any vineyard or cellar innovations you are interested in implementing? This could cover new technologies, equipment, or experimental methods you plan to try?

Brad: We’re always looking at different takes on proven techniques as way of improving quality and efficiency in our operations.

Rob: Our focus is primarily in the vineyard, and learning from what we’ve experienced over the past two winters. Trying to find ways to enhance the resilience of the vines is our number one priority.

Evan: We are exploring new methods to manage our vineyards and ensure the quality of our wines despite the challenges posed by the cold winter snap.

Matt: We have embraced foot stomping (pigeage) and the use of amphora for our limited harvest from Switchback Vineyard, creating a unique vintage that captures what could have been a more abundant 2024.

Grant: We are dedicated to ensuring top quality and are exploring new methods to manage our vineyards and ensure the quality of our wines despite the challenges posed by the cold winter snap.

Alison: We are working to re-trunk our damaged vines and are optimistic about the future production of our vineyards. We are also customizing our irrigation practices in the coming year to achieve a more targeted approach. Matt Sartor and his vineyard team will be modifying the drip irrigation emitters to suit the different block elevations on our very steep vineyard site. This will be beneficial to both grape quality potential and water efficiency.

Alex:  I did a few more natural ferments on white wines in barrel. There was not a lot of fruit out there for experimenting this year.

7. Is there anything else that you would like to tell BC wine lovers about your wines and our industry in general?

Brad: Current challenges facing the BC wine industry specifically and the world in general are, to a degree, cyclical in nature. Booms and busts on the agricultural scene as well as the consumption side are to be expected and present opportunities to astute operators. Therapy Vineyards acknowledges the support by the wine-drinking public over the years and is making every effort to continue our mission of producing excellence and value in every bottle we turn out.

Rob: There are obviously two very different approaches that wineries are taking with respect to imported grapes. Neither is better that the other, and it really needs to be an individual choice based on the specific needs of each winery. As a small producer, we sell out our production every year, so don’t have a warehouse full of wine to carry us through the next couple of years. I’m firmly committed to making top tier wines from BC grapes, but in order to continue doing that, I still need to be in business next year. 

Evan: Despite the unconventional harvest, we remain committed to producing quality wines. For wine enthusiasts, our current releases are available both on-site and online at blastedchurch.com.

Matt: We are committed to preserving our customers’ trust in the authenticity of our locally-grown wines. Learn more about our offerings at okanagancrushpad.com.

Grant: We remain committed to producing exceptional wines. Learn more about our offerings at spearheadwinery.com.

Alison: We are committed to maintaining the quality of our wines and are excited about the temporary addition of high-quality grapes from outside BC. Learn more about us at solverowines.ca.

Alex:  We are extremely excited to showcase the 2024 wines made “here in Lillooet and there in Washington”. We have put a tremendous amount of care and effort into this vintage, and it is looking fantastic.

This difficult harvest proved once again how resilient and resourceful we are, as a winery and as an industry. While it was stressful and worrisome, it was also exciting and challenging to be able to come up with innovative solutions.

I feel the BC wine industry is standing strong and is looking positive. We are re-evaluating what is planted and where, we have been given a new opportunity to dig deep into what works here, and what does not.

To Summarize

The recent cold winters have deeply affected many Okanagan wineries, with significant losses in crop yields and vine damage. At Therapy Vineyards, the harvest was only 8% of normal, prompting a shift to cold-hardy varieties like Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier for sparkling wines. Black Market Wine Co. experienced substantial losses but managed to retain most of their vines. They are replanting and diversifying their offerings with exciting new blends while sourcing grapes from Washington to fill gaps. Blasted Church Vineyards saw a 95% crop loss and is adopting cold-survival tactics while maintaining production with non-BC grapes, clearly labeled for transparency.

Haywire Winery recorded its smallest harvest yet and is focusing on replanting and releasing innovative seasonal wines in sustainable packaging. SpearHead Winery in Kelowna lost its entire vineyard but plans to replant frost-resistant varietals, sourcing grapes from Washington and Oregon in the interim. Solvero Wines is using Oregon-sourced Chardonnay and Pinot Noir to supplement their frost-damaged vineyards and expects to recover 50% of their capacity by 2025. Fort Berens Estate Winery in Lillooet stood out with a stronger year, harvesting estate fruit and complementing it with Washington grapes to create a range of clearly labeled wines.

Despite the challenges, the resilience and adaptability of these wineries showcase their commitment to producing high-quality wines while navigating a changing climate.

Thank you to these winemakers for taking the time to answer my interview questions.  Let’s hope for a normal winter this year.