A Gastronomic Adventure in The Okanagan Valley

Published by

written and photographed by Mary L. Peachin
Vol. 9 No. 10

Bang! Boom! Gunfire ricochet through the surrounding mountains. The blast was unnatural in the peaceful, colorful cornucopia of Kelowna’s orchards, vineyards, and fields of recently harvested vegetables. Precious, juicy, plumb grapes were ready to pick. Valley wineries blasted to protect their harvest from voracious birds.

The road of the beautiful Okanagan Valley winds over hills and through dales sloping from carved mountain peaks descending to sparkling crystal blue lakes. The larger cities of the Valley include Vernon, Kelowna, Penticton, Naramata, Oliver and Osooyoos.

Kelowna’s first packing house is the home of the B. C. Wine Museum and the Orchard Industry Museum. The city’s first heritage site is a great place to get your geographical bearings and learn about the 1920 depression era consolidation and centralization of the valleys’ original fruit packing companies. Director Wayne Wilson told us that fruit packers consolidated about the same time the first grapes were being planted. Originally, Okanagan grapes were used for Catholic sacramental wines.

Today, close to 100 vineyards may not produce the quantity of those in France or California, but they are increasingly gaining stature and making their mark. A number of vintages win an increasing numbers of awards annually. It’s wise to buy Okanagan wines from the winery as they are seldom sold outside of British Columbia’s private wine stores or fine restaurants.

Southeast Kelowna hosts a combination of both orchards and wineries and is home to many of the larger, established winemakers in the industry: Mission Hill, Quail’s Gate, and Calona-Sandhill-Cascadia Brands.

Tall, lanky, winemaker Howard Soon is the mastermind of Calona Vineyard’s 177 acres. He stresses the importance of “respecting the grape” while he carefully analyzes and refracts the brix or percentage of sugar—which enhances the quality of taste—to select the precise date of harvest.

Kelowna Land and Orchard company deserves an award for creative marketing. They harvest Fuji apples branded with personalized company logos. This great holiday gift is extremely labor intensive. In early summer, original artwork is applied to the apple which is then double bagged until it ripens in the fall. As harvest nears, the top bag is removed so the sun can naturally brighten the apple’s rosy color.

One of the valley’s fine restaurants is Fresco. Award-winning Chef Rod Butters’ menu features signature dishes like roasted Dungeness crab bisque cappuccino and oak-crusted arctic char. The high decibel brick and concrete restaurant is tastefully designed with original art. The dining area has an open, incredibly organized kitchen bustling with food preparation by four busy apprentices.

The city of Penticton, an hour south of Kelowna at the northern tip of the Great Basin, has miles of freshwater lake bordering the city. The city intersects the south end of lakes Okanagan and Skaha. The arid landscape is golden with hues of bunchgrass and the cinnamon-colored bark of Ponderosa pine. Some of its 30,000 residents include winemakers, organic farmers, visual and performing artists.

Along the Naramata Bench or plateau, eleven vineyards offer the visual impression you’d expect to see in wine country. Small vineyards slope gracefully between the lake and mountains.

Joie is a gastronomic guesthouse and farm cooking school. Proprietors Heidi Noble and Michael Dinn offer cooking classes in the patio of their unpretentious red house. The cooking experience brings new meaning to bringing the “field near the table.” Their weekend epicurean retreats ($795 per couple} focus on a particular region using ripe fruits and vegetables from their garden.

Elephant Island Orchard Winery exclusively harvests fruit for wine from their orchards. Wine advisor Lynn Porteous regretted she couldn’t pour their raspberry wine. “It’s still in bottle shock.” Wine must settle six months to a year in the bottle before serving.

Poplar Grove may be recognized for its Cabernet Franc wine, but they are unique because they are the only winery in the valley that has ventured into cheese production. Their soft-ripened cheeses include Tiger Blue, double cream Camembert, and Naramata Bench Blue. Proprietor and Denmark native Gritta Sutherland pointed out the alcohol content of wine kills any potential of bacteria, but the production of cheese is fragile and rigidly controlled by health officials.

She and Australian husband Ian have always loved cheese. After experimenting for their own enjoyment, they quickly learned the proper temperature for aging cheese was a constant 50 degrees. Now Poplar Grove can’t meet the demand of their 150 pound weekly production. “Cheese takes five weeks to three months to ripen compared to our wines that age for three years”.

Planting grapes in 1995, Poplar Grove first released wine in 1997 producing only 350 cases on their small six-acre vineyard. Friends and family are still eager to help them pick grapes. They celebrate the harvest by making it a festive event with lots of food and wine.

Main Street in Penticton is filled with the character of many “mom and pop-type” stores, restaurants, and bars with live entertainment. The Dream Cafe is one place where packed crowds enjoy entertainment that overshadows the food.

Docked at Penticton’s lakefront is the S.S. Sicamous, a Canadian Pacific vessel. The sternwheeler is one of city’s most popular tourist attractions. Between 1914 and 1936, the “Queen of Lake Okanagan” plied the waters carrying produce, livestock, and passengers making 14 stops before connecting with the Kettle Valley railway. The S.S. Sicamous provides the visitor with a historical perspective of the valley.

Further south in the city of Oliver, which proclaims itself “the wine capital of Canada” the hills are covered with barren grassland desert while the valley is green with vineyards and orchards.

The Sonora Room restaurant at Burrowing Owl winery offers the gourmet cuisine of Chef Dominique Couton. Meals are complimented with reserve wines that can’t be purchased because they have long been sold out.

Other vineyards also feature charming restaurants including the Barrel Room Bistro of Hillside Winery in Naramata. A tasty meal can be enjoyed at the former girl’s boarding school which is now the Naramata Heritage Inn, or the upscale cuisine of Magnum’s in the Pentiction Lakeside Resort and Casino.

Near Osoyoos, the southern most part of the Okanagan Valley, the vineyards and orchards appear more expansive and the area is scattered with hothouses of hydroponic vegetables. Foothills of high desert are landscaped with sage, greasewood, rabbit bush and small cactus. 23 species of critters inhabit the region including scorpions and rattlesnakes.

Nk’Mip Cellars (pronounced In-ka-meep, which means ” a place where the creek joins the lake”) is the first native winery and vineyard. The Osoyoos band, a member of the Okanagan tribe, produces 18,000 cases on its 243 acre vineyard. This fusion of culture and wine has already produced some award-winners.

In partnership with Vincor International, Nk’Mip Cellars’ future plans include a hotel and spa in addition to its existing nine hole golf course. The adjacent Nk’mip Desert and Heritage centre has interpretive displays and more than a mile of desert hiking trails.

For adventurers, the Okanagan Valley offers five nearby ski resorts, miles of bicycling along the Kettle Valley Trail, hiking, and a multitude water sports in its many lakes.

But for those on a wine buying mission, timing is important. While some Okanagan winemakers may consider themselves a “fly speck” compared to Napa Valley or Sonoma, they all manage to sell out. The key to a buying spree is to visit the valley during Okanagan’s spring or fall festivals. This will ensure the possibility of purchasing your choice of one of those award winning wines.

If you go:

Getting there: The Okanagan is a five-six hour drive east of Vancouver, British Columbia. Touring the Okanagan for three or four days is “an adventure of the senses.”

To Kelowna: East 240 miles on Highway 1 through the scenic Fraser Valley to the Coquihalla Provincial Highway 5 to Highway 97C-(Okanagan Connector) to the Okanagan. Follow Highway 5A Highway 97 north to Kelowna or south to Penticton, each a 30-minute drive.

To Vancouver: A scenic but longer (about 60 winding miles further) is to head south along Highway 97 to the junction of 3A just south of Penticton. A 20-minute loop takes you to Keremeos, the “fruit stand capital of Canada”. Follow Highway 3 through beautiful farm country and “The Crows Nest” or Hope-Princeton Highway along the Similkameen and Skagit rivers, where you might be fortunate to view a black bear feeding by the road.

At Hope connect to Highway 1, the Trans Canada Highway to Vancouver.

Air Canada, provides nonstop service from Vancouver to Penticton and Kelowna while Horizon Airlines has daily flights to Kelowna from Seattle and WestJet Airlines offers daily service to Kelowna from Vancouver. If you go:
Vancouver, a gateway to the Okanagan is ranked as one of the top vacation cities in the world. Vancouver International Airport is served by most carries including America West, Alaska, United, British Airways, Air Canada, American and others. BC Ferries operates from Seattle. (1-888-BCFERRY)
For complete city guide: go to www.tourismvancouver.com (one of the best city sites on the web)
Airport Hotels:
Fairmont Vancouver Airport (in the international terminal) (604) 207-5200 e-mail vancouverairport@fairmont.com or go to www.fairmont.com. You won’t believe this is an airport property!
Delta Vancouver Airport Hotel (800) 268-1134 or e-mail deltanet@deltahotels.com or go to www.deltahotels.com
City Hotels:
Fairmont Hotel Vancouver e-mail hvcreservations@fairmont.com or go to www.hotelvancouver.com
Wedgewood Hotel 1-800-663-0666 e-mail info@wedgewoodhotel.com or go to www.wedgewoodhotel.com
Marriott Pinnacle or go to www.mariott.com
Sutton Place Hotel e-mail info@vcr.suttonplace.com