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  • Pairing our Wine

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    Our 2012 vintages include two elegant full-bodied wines, a Meritage and a Syrah – two names you may not have heard of before. So what meals are best to pair them with?

    Let’s start with our 2012 Syrah. This is a full-bodied wine that gives off a rich bouquet of dark plums and floral aromas with notes of cedar. Black fruits, leather, white pepper, and chocolate notes fill the mouth layered over silky tannins. The long finish shows spice and smoky oak.

    A full-bodied Syrah, like ours, has bold flavours that pair well with flavourful foods. Try barbecued meats – pork, lamb, sausages all work well. For a unique but fitting pairing, try wild game or beef stew. And in terms of a cheese pairing, go with an aged hard cheese, something that will let the bold wine flavour shine without clashing with the cheese. Continue reading Pairing our Wine

  • The Meaning of Meritage

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    Our 2012 Meritage is a full-bodied blend with excellent structure and concentrated flavours. But what, exactly, gives it the name ‘Meritage’?

    In the late 1980s, a group of American vintners joined forces to come up with a name for the type of blended wine that they had begun producing in the popular Bordeaux style. The wines were a blend of ‘noble’ grape varietals that can typically be found in the Bordeaux region of France, famous for its excellent vintages.

    In 1988, this New World wine had yet to receive a recognizable name and so the alliance of winemakers decided to open up the naming process to an international competition. The chosen name ‘Meritage’, is a combination of the words ‘merit’ and ‘heritage’. ‘Merit’ was chosen to reflect the quality of the grapes while ‘Heritage’ was chosen to recognize the centuries-old blending process that was involved in making the wine. Continue reading The Meaning of Meritage

  • Our Rocky Roots

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    So what does it really mean for our wines to be ‘true to the heritage of its terroir’?

    The ‘terroir’ refers to the natural environment that a wine is produced in. This includes the soil condition, topography of the land and the local climate. Each of these factors play a role in creating a unique taste and flavour for that particular wine.

    Vanessa Vineyard is fortunate to be located in the beautiful and expansive Similkameen Valley in the Thompson-Okanagan region, just north of the US border. With 691 acres planted, comprised of several award-winning vineyards, the valley has a unique terroir that is very well suited to growing grapes. The summers are hot, with low rainfall, low humidity and strong afternoon winds, which reduces the chance of crops being lost to disease or pests.

    Continue reading Our Rocky Roots

  • Introducing Vanessa Vineyard

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    Having recently released our 2012 Meritage and Syrah, we are a premium BC vineyard offering high quality red wine from the beautiful Similkameen Valley.

    Hello and welcome to our first blog post!

    We are pleased to introduce you to one of the newest members of the BC wine family, Vanessa Vineyard. Planted in 2006, the vineyard is located on a sweeping vista that overlooks the Similkameen Valley in the Thompson-Okanagan region. Taking cue from the unique rocky landscape and the expert advice of industry veterans, we have focused on growing high quality red grapes that the area is well adapted to produce.

    Continue reading Introducing Vanessa Vineyard