By John Schreiner
August 17, 2007
The most storied Chardonnay from the Okanagan was Mission Hill's 1992, the first made here by winemaker John Simes.
It went on to win the Avery's Trophy as the best Chardonnay at the 1994 International Wine & Spirits Competition, quite possibly the first really serious medal won by an Okanagan wine in international competition.
The wine is long gone, unless Mission Hill has a few bottles in its library. Even if it does, that vintage would be well past its prime.
But all is not lost if you did not taste that wine. Mission Hill is releasing a delicious Chardonnay under a new label that reminds me very much of the great 1992. And it is only $16.99.
The wine is the 2006 The Census Count Chardonnay from Ganton & Larsen Prospect Winery.
From who ? Bear with me. The story is a bit involved.
Mission Hill owns something called Artisan Wine Company, a holding company that serves as a firewall between the upscale direction in which Mission Hill is headed and the popular priced wines that also are produced there.
If you have bought either Rigmarole wines or Wild Horse Canyon wines, you will discover they are made by Artisan, which has an Oliver address, not Mission Hill's Westbank address. These two are inexpensive brands with a limited number of wines under each brand.
Prospect has also been launched under the Artisan banner, but there is a big difference this time. The list of Prospect wines is long, with prices in the upper teens, typically $16.99. The long range plan is to turn Prospect into a separate operation with a tasting room in the Oliver area.
The Prospect wines will be taking the place of Mission Hill's best-selling Five Vineyards range of VQA wines. The line is so strong that the Mission Hill Five Vineyards Pinot Grigio account for sales of $1.2 million in the British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch. The Five Vineyards wines typically sell for $16.99.
The Mission Hill brand is being taken up market, led by its flagship Oculus at $70, followed by the Select Lot Collection wines ($30-$40) and the Reserve wines ($20 and up). The strategy is to uncouple Mission Hill from wines selling for less than $20, lest they become a drag on the showpiece wines.
Nowhere on the label of any Prospect wine is there any mention of Mission Hill.
The strategy has a good chance of working for two reasons. First of all, the wines are very good. Secondly, the Ganton & Larsen Prospect Winery story or stories are appealing.
Ganton and Larsen are the names of two of the earliest Okanagan grape growers that John Simes contracted for Mission Hill in the 1990s. Appending their names to Prospect adds a ring of verisimilitude.
Then, each wine is rooted further in the Okanagan with a label that refers to a historical fact or a well known legend. Examples include Ogopogo's Lair Pinot Grigio and Larch Tree Hill Riesling. Ogopogo needs no explanation. Larch Tree Hill was the original name for that piece of Osoyoos geography now known as Anarchist Mountain. The labels elaborate the stories.
The Census Count on the Chardonnay refers to a Christmas Day bird count begun in 1905 by Major Allan Brook, a noted naturalist.
Perhaps the wine reminds me so much of the 1992 Chardonnay because American oak was used with both. The 2006 was 30% fermented in American oak, just enough to add a note of sweetness to the peach and citrus flavours. If anything, it is a more refined wine. At the price, it is a steal.
Three of the new Prospect wines – a Sauvignon Blanc, a Riesling and an unoaked Chardonnay – have been released to restaurants only.
The other are available, or soon will be, in liquor stores, VQA stores and wine shops. These include the Census Count Chardonnay, the Osopogo's Lair Pinot Grigio, the Birch Canoe Pinot Blanc, the Lost Bars Vidal Icewine and (come November), the Fats Johnson Pinot Noir.
At the price and the quality, and with the packaging, this is a brilliant re-launch of the Five Vineyards line.
