MyWinePal: A Triumvirate of Pinots from BC’s Red Rooster Winery

Have you tried the wines from BC’s Red Rooster Winery lately? This winery has been around for over 25 years, located on the Naramata Bench. Check out the new wine labels for the winery. I quite like the watercolour-like texture of the rooster. I received three bottles of “Pinots” from the winery: a Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, and a blend of 3 different Pinots. Let me tell you about these wines.

My Wine Tasting Notes

Red Rooster Winery Pinot Gris 2025 (BC $24)

Winemaker’s notes, “Fruit were selected from vineyards in both the North and South Okanagan as well as the Simlkameen Valley. Some of the juice spent a little extra time on the skins for added character, while the rest stayed cool—fermented and aged in stainless steel to keep things bright and fresh…”

Appearance: A bright, clear, medium-minus intensity mix of straw and pear skin colour in the glass.
Nose: Medium-intensity aromas of fresh stone fruits, some grape stem and stoniness, then a touch of lime with swirling. The aromas become a little more fruity and juicy with decanting.
Palate: This wine is dry, light-bodied, with a soft, smooth mouthfeel. Medium-plus acidity. You get a light acidic prickle on your tongue to start, but it fades quickly. Medium-plus intensity flavours of pears, stoniness, some grape stem, and a hint of peach. Some lime and grapefruit flavours after swirling. Medium body with a rounder, fuller mouthfeel after decanting. The peach flavour is also a bit stronger.
Finish: Medium-plus length, finishing with pears and stoniness, plus it becomes quite peppery. Add lime and grapefruit flavours after swirling. Add more stone fruit to the finish after decanting.

A Pinot Gris showing fresh BC stone fruits. Undecanted and decanted are both nice. Decanting gives you a little fuller body and stronger aromas.

Rating: – The Red Rooster Winery Pinot Gris 2025 shows a bright straw and pear skin colour with medium aromas of fresh stone fruit, grape stem, stony minerality, and a touch of lime. The palate is dry and light-bodied with a soft, smooth mouthfeel and fresh acidity, offering pear, stone fruit, stony minerality, grape stem, and hints of peach, lime, and grapefruit, with a rounder texture and slightly stronger peach flavours after decanting. It finishes medium-plus in length with pear, stoniness, and pronounced pepperiness, while lime, grapefruit, and additional stone fruit emerge with air.

Red Rooster Winery Pinot Gris 2025, Pinot Noir 2025, and Pinot3 2025 with wines in glasses

Red Rooster Winery Pinot Noir 2025 (BC $31)

Winemaker’s notes, “Fruit was sourced from select vineyards in the South Okanagan and East Kelowna. The grapes were handpicked and gently pressed. Fermented in stainless steel and co-inoculated for malolactic fermentation, with daily pump-overs to enhance colour and flavour extraction. Following pressing, each vineyard lot was aged individually before the final blend was assembled. The wines was aged partially in stainless steel and French oak for 5 months before bottling.”

Appearance: A clear, medium-intensity, not quite translucent garnet colour. Consistent colour from the rim to the core.
Nose: Medium-intensity aromas of mainly toast, with lesser amounts of sweet spices, red cherries, and cranberries. With decanting, you can remove the cranberry aroma and add some grilled sausage.
Palate: Dry, medium-minus body with a smooth, soft, light mouthfeel. Medium acidity and tannins. Red cherries, red fruit, raspberries, floral, and touches of sweet spices and candied red cherries on the palate. The tannins get a little stronger and body a little fuller after decanting. The red fruit flavour and floral is stronger and there is a touch of oak now.
Finish: Medium-plus length, finishing with sweet cherries, floral, and a touch of sweet spice and some bitterness. Medium-plus drying tannins. The bitterness disappears after decanting. Same flavours and drying tannins.

A Pinot Noir with a variety of red fruit aromas and flavours, plus floral on the palate. Decanting makes this wine a little fuller-bodied and firmer tannins. I give the decanted version a slight edge and my preference.

Rating: – with decanting. The Red Rooster Winery Pinot Noir 2025 shows a clear medium garnet colour with aromas of toast, sweet spices, red cherry, and cranberry, with grilled sausage notes appearing after decanting. The palate is dry and medium-minus in body with a smooth, soft mouthfeel, offering red cherry, raspberry, red fruit, floral, sweet spice, and hints of candied cherry, with a slightly fuller body, firmer tannins, and a touch of oak after decanting. It finishes medium-plus in length with sweet cherry, floral, and sweet spice flavours supported by medium-plus drying tannins, while the initial bitterness disappears after decanting.

Red Rooster Winery Pinot³ 2025 (BC $22)

This wine is a blend of Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, and Pinot Noir grapes. Winemaker’s notes, “Grapes were sourced from select vineyards in the South Okanagan. The Pinot Noir was handled in a white wine style, with all three varietals cool-fermented in stainless steel to preserve their freshness and aromatics. The components were then carefully blended to achieve an ideal balance of flavour and acidity, followed by a period of rest in stainless steel alongside a single 500L neutral French oak puncheon, where gentle bâtonnage added subtle texture and complexity…”

Appearance: Clear, bright, medium pear skin colour.
Nose: Light aromas of pears and pear skin. No change to the aromas or intensity after decanting.
Palate: This wine is dry, with light body and a soft, smooth mouthfeel. Medium-plus intensity flavours of pears, along with touches of grape stem, stoniness, peaches, and other stone fruits. Flavours are not quite as strong as for the Pinot Gris. Medium-plus acidity. Medium body after decanting. Same, subtle flavours behind the pears.
Finish: Medium to medium-plus length, finishing with pears, stoniness, and a hint of peach flavours. Some drying tannins on the finish. No change to the finish after decanting.

A lighter version of the Pinot Gris with more subtle flavours. No major change after decanting, so drink at your leisure.

Rating: – The Red Rooster Winery Pinot³ 2025 shows a bright medium pear skin colour with light aromas of fresh pear and pear skin. The palate is dry and light-bodied with a soft, smooth mouthfeel and medium-plus acidity, offering pear flavours supported by subtle grape stem, stony minerality, peach, and other stone fruit notes, with the body becoming fuller after decanting. It finishes medium to medium-plus in length with pear, stoniness, and a hint of peach, along with light drying tannins.