Robert Bell's

Wines of Canada

Since 1992

Tantalus Vineyards

Tantalus Vineyards

Tantalus is one of Kelowna's most popular and successful wineries. Tantalus was established in 2004 when Proprietor Eric Savics was presented with the opportunity to acquire one of the Okanagan Valley’s premier vineyard properties. Originally known as Pioneer Vineyards, the site was first planted to table grapes in 1927 by renowned, local horticulturist JW Hughes.

The old vine plantings – 1978 Riesling and 1985 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay became the backbone of the vineyard. Other varietals were removed and new plantings of the 3 flagship varietals commenced in 2005. The vineyard would not only have considerable vine age as its anchor, it would grow to have superior clone variation as well.

The 2021 British Columbia Lieutenant Governor’s Wine of the Year Award went to Tantalus Vineyards 2018 Old Vines Riesling. Tantalus Vineyards – 2018 Chardonnay was awarded a platinum medal .

Maija Savics (daughter) Eric Savics
Maija Savics (daughter) Eric Savics -owner

 Proprietor Eric Savics is content to be the quiet hand behind the scene at Tantalus, allowing his winery team to craft wines that have developed a reputation for quality & authenticity. Eric's considerable experience in the investment business, along with his passion for fine wine, art & travel have combined to give him the impetus to produce wines that stand out on the international stage. His day job is Vice President & Director at Haywood Securities, Vancouver British Columbia.

David Paterson- GM and Winemaker
David Paterson- GM and Winemaker

Tantalus winemaker David Paterson was named “One to Watch” by Maclean’s in their annual “Wine in Canada” publication – a cross-Canada, behind-the-scenes look at what’s happening in the Canadian wine industry.

 David joined Tantalus in 2009 after several successful vintages under his belt, he also took on the role of GM in 2016. David is a Kiwi with a Canadian connection, having been born in Vancouver but raised in New Zealand. He received his winemaking degree from Lincoln University in Christchurch, NZ and following time spent working in the local NZ industry (Neudorf Vineyards) he travelled the wine world gaining experience at premium wineries.

While honing his skills over a handful of international vintages, he was fortunate to work with some incredible mentors along the way including Anna Matzinger at Oregon’s Archery Summit, Blair Pethel at Burgundy's Domaine Dublère, and Stephen Henschke and Paul Hampton at South Australia’s Henschke Cellars.

Felix Egerer
Felix Egerer

Hailing from Germany, Felix Egerer is Tantalus’ Vineyard Manager. During and after his studies in Viticulture and Enology at Geisenheim University and UC Davis, he worked in vineyards and cellars in Germany’s Pfalz and Rheingau regions and then travelled the world working in Oregon, California, Burgundy, and Australia, before landing in the Okanagan in 2016. All the while, following the European tradition of learning both the vineyard and winery aspects of wine production. He first came to Tantalus as an intern for the 2016 harvest, returned to the vineyard in early 2018, and took over the Vineyard Manager position later that year.

 Taylor Ballantyne
Taylor Ballantyne

Taylor Ballantyne is the assistant winemaker. It was during Taylor’s first harvest in Marlborough New Zealand that he found his love for winemaking. Following that New Zealand experience, Taylor began making wine for his family on the Naramata Bench and continued his training with winemaking and viticulture education through Okanagan College, and subsequent harvest and winemaking jobs scattered throughout the Okanagan and Similkameen valley. He gained further niche experience with winemaking technologies as a consultant/operator and through this job he was able to work side-by-side with fellow winemakers to develop his own winemaking philosophy. This position led him to be assistant winemaker at Dirty Laundry Vineyard before coming to be part of the Tantalus winemaking team.

Maya Boyd is the sales Manager. She arrived at Tantalus in 2010 as a harvest volunteer.  After only one week she decided she was completely in love with the winery life and made the move to the Okanagan a few months later. Over the course of 8 years, Maya has woven her way through various departments at Tantalus, landing most recently as the Sales Manager.  Maya position oversees wine sales, including coordinating with our various sales representatives both in BC and across Canada.

Vancouver born and raised, Stephanie Mosley landed at Tantalus in 2010 via work and travels through many of the world’s great wine regions. Equipped with a background in journalism and desktop publishing, Stephanie combines her communications and media expertise in managing the Tantalus brand. Day-to-day, Stephanie handles our marketing and design needs, as well as our packaging, advertising, website and social media.

Heidy Sterling is the self-proclaimed ‘bean’ or actually the ‘bottle’ counter at Tantalus. Her responsibilities include payables, receivables, payroll, costing & tracking inventory, and providing financial and management reports. After receiving a diploma in ‘administrative management’ from BCIT, she went on to complete the courses required for a CGA designation in 1986. "I love the opportunity to come to work every day and work with the wonderful group at Tantalus and being able to be involved in all aspects of the operations including picking, bottling to pouring at wine events".

When planning a trip to the Okanagan include Tantalus Vineyards.

1670 Dehart Road
Kelowna, British Columbia
V1W-4N6

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