I’ve been tasting and writing about Chardonnay recently, so I thought I would change things up and write about some other wines. I received several wines from Vancouver Island’s Blue Grouse Estate Winery and decided to start with their Rosé 2024 and their Pinot Gris 2024. These are from estate grown grapes and select partner vineyards. Vancouver Island is really cool climate when it comes to grape growing, so I expect lighter-bodied wines, higher acidity, citrus flavours for the Pinot Gris, and bright red fruit flavours for the rosé.
The back label of both wines indicates that the winery is Biosphere Sustainable. I have not heard of this certification before. According to the Biosphere Sustainable website, “Through our independent, objective, impartial and transparent verification methodology, an external auditing team of professionals checks and validates the sustainable efforts implemented by each entity, based on the indicators, criteria, objectives and sustainability goals of the United Nations, in the framework of the 2030 Agenda and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).”
Let’s get into my wine tasting notes.
My Wine Tasting Notes
Blue Grouse Estate Winery Pinot Gris 2024 (BC $30.99)
Winemaker’s notes, “Crafted from 100% Pinot Gris grown on our estate and select partner vineyards – Enrico and Saison. Each site was harvested and vinified separately to preserve nuance and complexity. Fermentation and aging took place in a mix of concrete and neutral French oak. A portion of the wine underwent malolactic fermentation to build roundness and balance the natural acidity.”
Appearance: A medium-minus intensity, clear, bright lemon colour in the glass.
Nose: Medium intensity aromas of citrus, citrus rind, along with touches of peach and stoniness. More peach aroma after decanting.
Palate: Dry, medium body with a lean mouthfeel. Bright acidity, leaving a light acidic tingle on your tongue. Tart citrus flavour with some stoniness and then citrus rind toward the end. Add peach to the flavour profile after decanting.
Finish: Medium-plus length, finishing with citrus, citrus rind, and stoniness flavours. Again, add a touch of peach to the finish after decanting.
This Pinot Gris shows bright acidity and citrus flavours. No need to decant.
Rating: 
The Blue Grouse Estate Winery Pinot Gris 2024 shows a bright, clear lemon colour with medium aromas of citrus, citrus rind, and subtle peach and stony notes, with peach becoming more evident after decanting. The palate is dry and medium-bodied with a lean profile and bright acidity, offering tart citrus, minerality, and citrus rind, with added peach after decanting. It finishes medium-plus in length with citrus, citrus rind, and stoniness, with a touch of peach lingering after decanting.
Blue Grouse Estate Winery Rosé 2024 (BC $29.99)
This wine is a blend of 63% Pinot Noir, 15% Pinot Gris, 12% Gamay Noir, and 10% Chardonnay. Winemaker’s notes, “Grapes for this blend were sourced from both estate-grown and grower vineyards across the Cowichan Valley. Each variety was harvested and fermented separately to preserve nuance and balance in the final blend. Fermentation and aging took place in a mix of stainless steel, neutral French oak barrels, and concrete tank. A portion of the wine underwent partial malolactic fermentation to enhance mouthfeel and balance the wine’s natural acidity.”
Appearance: Clear, bright, quite light intensity orange-salmon colour.
Nose: Lighter nose, with aromas of toast, red fruits, strawberries, and grape stem. The aromas bump up to medium after decanting, while the toastiness lessens.
Palate: This wine is dry, medium-bodied, with a soft, smooth, round mouthfeel. Medium acidity leaves a light acidic prickle in your mouth. Light red fruit flavours, strawberries, and stony minerality. With swirling, you also get some grape stem. Medium-plus acidity after decanting and the strawberry flavour is more prominent.
Finish: Medium-plus length, finishing with some mouth puckering, tart red fruits and strawberry flavours. No change to the finish after decanting.
Bright acidity and tart red fruit flavours. No need to decant.
Rating: The Blue Grouse Estate Winery Rosé 2024 shows a clear, bright light orange-salmon colour with subtle aromas of toast, red fruits, strawberry, and a hint of grape stem. The palate is dry, medium-bodied, with a soft, round texture and fresh acidity, offering light red fruit, strawberry, and stony minerality, with strawberry becoming more prominent after decanting. It finishes medium-plus in length with tart red fruits, strawberry, and a lightly puckering character.
Where Can I Buy These Wines?
You can purchase both wines online at the Blue Grouse Estate Winery website:
Both wines are available for purchase at BC Liquor stores and Everything Wine stores.
