Wine Maven

by Mary Bailey

Just because it’s summer doesn’t mean we’re forced to drink one-dimensional quaffers that bore after half a glass. That said, simple isn’t easy. The wines below exhibit seemingly effortless sophistication—the vinous equivalent of the little black dress.

Mission Hill 2008 Okanagan Valley Reserve Riesling
Mission Hill 2008 Okanagan Valley Reserve Riesling

Mission Hill 2008 Okanagan Valley Reserve Riesling (BC)

The nominal amount of residual sugar is kept refreshing by near-perfect acidity allowing the lovely lime, pear and red apple aromas and flavours to shine. One of a good Riesling’s great charms is its ability to work with just about any food—green and yellow curries, salads, bitter greens, fresh summer vegetables, even steak.

Tinhorn 2009 South Okanagan Chardonnay
Tinhorn 2009 South Okanagan Chardonnay

Tinhorn 2009 South Okanagan Chardonnay (BC)

Tinhorn’s 2009 exhibits all we love about Okanagan Valley Chard; lively food-friendly acidity balanced by subtle creamy richness. There is a nice juicy complexity in the flavours with layers of fruit from green apple and Okanagan stone fruit to a whisper of tropicality, pineapple and melon, plus some fresh herbs. This wine is extremely versatile, complementing both trout in green curry and simple grilled salmon with rosemary. Our suggestion? Keep a bottle of this in your fridge at all times for emergencies.

Greywacke 2009 Sauvignon Blanc
Greywacke 2009 Sauvignon Blanc

Greywacke 2009 Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand)

Expectations were high, then more than exceeded. A wine by the master of Kiwi Sauvignon Blanc, Kevin Judd (Cloudy Bay) now on his own, redefining the category—again. This sauv blanc is subtle, with an elegant, sure-footed minerality, and evanescent fragrance of lime, yellow grapefruit, nectarine and just-picked ripe peach that comes in waves as if on a summer breeze. Fullbodied yet understated, with a firm structure containing lush fruit—we couldn’t stop thinking about (or drinking) this wine.

White Bear VQA Pinot Blanc
White Bear VQA Pinot Blanc

White Bear VQA Pinot Blanc (Okanagan Valley, BC)

Drink this and feel good, not just because the wine is a terrific sipper and value priced, but because 15 per cent of the sales go to support conservation efforts for the white bear (Kermode) habitat in British Columbia’s Great Bear Rainforest. White Bear Wines donated $100,000 on its first anniversary, April 2010. We like the crisp and clean flavours of the Pinot Blanc as an aperitif.

Joie Farm Rose
Joie Farm Rose

Joie Farm Rose (Naramata, BC)

Crisp, focused, packing a wallop of generous juicy red fruit. We loved this with a tangy strawberry and goat cheese salad or try with crispy calamari. The Joie rose could handle a bit of heat as well.

Find these wines in better wine shops.