Todd Heintz.
Launching a winery in British Columbia in 2026 might strike some as an unusual choice. The province’s wine industry is still navigating the aftermath of devastating cold events, ongoing climate uncertainty and shifting market realities. Yet for the founders of Spacedog Wines, the timing felt less like a warning sign and more like an opportunity.
The new Oliver-based winery, which opened its doors this month at the District Wine Village, is the creation of Todd Heintz, Jason Harding and Dean Prevost. Together, they represent an unlikely trio of founders for a winery making some very ambitious claims right out of the gate.
Heintz spent more than three decades in the software industry before selling his business in 2023.
Spacedog now open at the District Wine Village in Oliver.
Long before that, however, wine had already become a serious passion. He was among the first groups in Canada to complete WSET Level 4 in the late 1990s, though he never pursued wine professionally.
That changed after moving from Vancouver to Kelowna in 2020. “We decided to dip our toes in the water and give it a go,” Heintz says.
The result is Spacedog, a winery whose branding feels deliberately different from much of the Okanagan’s established playbook. The name itself is playful, inspired loosely by a family dog but intended to represent something broader.
A distinct logo for distinct wines.
“Whenever you open a bottle of wine it’s about who you’re with and where you are,” says Heintz. “Spacedog is a metaphor for your companions on that journey.”
That sense of contrast—serious wines paired with an irreverent name—runs through the entire project. The labels have edge, the messaging is bold, and the ambitions are even bolder.
And yet, what makes Spacedog interesting isn’t the confidence. It’s the degree to which that confidence has been backed by thoughtful planning.
Before a single grape was harvested, the three founders sat down with veteran BC winemaker Pascal Madevon to define exactly what they wanted Spacedog to become. Together, they tasted benchmark wines from around the world and identified stylistic targets for each wine in the future portfolio.
Winemaker Pascal Madevon [source: Spacedog Wines]
Rather than asking what kind of wines they could make, they started by asking what kind of wines they wanted to be compared to.
For the Viognier, that meant looking to Condrieu. For Cabernet Sauvignon, it meant proving that BC can produce wines capable of standing alongside respected international examples. Once those benchmarks were established, Madevon helped design the roadmap that included vineyard sourcing, fermentation strategies, vessel choices, and extraction techniques.
“He really helped us build the program once we knew what we wanted to do,” says Heintz. If Spacedog is the founders’ vision, Madevon is the steady hand translating that vision into wine.
Multiple vessels used for wine fermentation.
As Spacedog’s winemaker, Madevon designed the program and directed key decisions throughout the vintage. But unlike many winery founders who remain removed from production, Heintz immersed himself in the day-to-day cellar work, handling everything from pumpovers and punchdowns to barrel transfers under Madevon’s guidance.
During harvest, Heintz and his wife Linda carried out much of the physical work themselves while Madevon remained deeply involved through regular visits, daily direction and constant communication. Heintz describes the respected winemaker affectionately as something of a “mad scientist”; someone whose calm confidence proved invaluable during inevitable moments of uncertainty.
Barrel tasting the reds with Todd.
“I could be panicking about something,” Heintz says with a laugh, “and Pascal would just say, ‘It’s fine. It’ll all come together.'”
The wines reflect Madevon’s winemaking vision and Spacedog’s commitment to an unusually labour-intensive production model. Heintz’s role in executing that vision has been far more hands-on than he originally anticipated, but the stylistic direction remains firmly guided by Madevon.
Low yields (typically below 3 tons per acre), combine with intensive cellar work that includes extensive barrel fermentation, multiple vessel types and frequent extraction management.
The clay amphora.
Stainless steel sits alongside an amphora and French oak barrels. Their Merlot spent 120 days on its skins in amphora, and their reds routinely saw multiple punchdowns or pumpovers each day.
The objective is clear: structured, age-worthy wines with concentration and presence.
That approach runs somewhat against current fashion, where lighter-bodied, lower-alcohol wines increasingly dominate conversation. Spacedog is unapologetic about heading in a different direction. “We’re focusing on big and bold because that’s what we like and what we know,” says Heintz.
Just as critical is fruit quality.
Harvested Viognier from Oliver’s Black Sage Bench.
Although Spacedog doesn’t yet own vineyards, the winery benefits from access to highly regarded South Okanagan sites connected to Madevon’s longstanding vineyard relationships. The arrangement gives the team unusual influence over farming decisions, yields and harvest timing. In many cases, Madevon was involved in planning or planting the vineyards now supplying fruit to the winery.
2025 Grace Undone Rosé.
Madevon’s approach to harvest timing also aligns closely with Heintz’s own views. Both believe that many red wines are harvested when sugar levels are achieved but before tannins have fully matured, with Madevon placing particular emphasis on finding the convergence of sugar, phenolic development and tannin ripeness.
That philosophy was evident during barrel tastings of the winery’s upcoming reds. Samples of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and a Syrah co-fermented with a small amount of Petit Verdot already showed impressive balance. The wines are undeniably powerful but avoid the heaviness or aggressive extraction that can sometimes accompany ambitious cellar work.
The first released wines offer an early glimpse into that vision.
2025 Disinherited Viognier.
The 2025 Grace Undone Rosé, made from Merlot, occupies a space rarely explored in BC. Crafted from three separate components (15% saignée, approximately 7% naturally fermented fruit, and the balance direct-pressed with one to two hours of skin contact) all fermented in stainless steel, it achieves remarkable texture and complexity without the influence of oak. While its colour evokes Provence, its depth, structure, and savoury character lean more toward Bandol. It is a rosé that clearly prioritizes gastronomy over poolside refreshment.
The 2025 Disinherited Viognier follows a similarly uncompromising path. Fully barrel fermented and inspired by the richer expressions of France’s Northern Rhône, it’s a wine designed to challenge assumptions about what Okanagan Viognier can be.
The winery’s flagship, however, is Cabernet Sauvignon. Heintz speaks openly about wanting to demonstrate that BC can produce world-class examples of the variety, a goal that reflects both his admiration for structured European reds and Madevon’s confidence in the region’s potential.
The timing of Spacedog’s arrival is perhaps the most surprising aspect of the story. Many entrepreneurs might have looked at recent winters and concluded that the risks outweighed the opportunities. Heintz sees something different.
A bold new voice in BC Okanagan wine.
He describes today’s BC wine industry as existing in a “before the frosts” and “after the frosts” era. Difficult as the past few years have been, he believes they are part of a broader conversation about what the province’s wine industry could become.
That optimism extends to the business model. Production was approximately 900 cases from the inaugural vintage and is expected to grow to roughly 1,400 cases from the 2026 harvest. Even then, the founders have no desire to become large. The long-term ceiling is about 5,000 cases annually, with the focus firmly on direct-to-consumer sales, wine club allocations and select restaurant placements.
“We felt there was a place in the market for a winery with a little edge and a little grit, that’s making premium wines,” says Heintz.
I will admit that I arrived at Spacedog with a degree of curiosity and maybe even a little skepticism. Ambitious goals are hardly uncommon in the wine industry, and many new wineries speak of producing wines capable of competing on the world stage. But ambition alone has never made a great bottle.
The answer is always in the glass…
For us, the answer is always in the glass. In this case, both the finished wines and the wines still resting in barrel prove there is substance behind the rhetoric.
Spacedog’s founders speak openly about building a sold-out wine club, producing highly sought-after wines and earning a place in collectors’ cellars. Those goals remain firmly in the future.
For now, the more immediate accomplishment may be that a brand-new winery has entered the Okanagan conversation with a clear point of view, a willingness to take risks and, most importantly, wines that already command attention.
In a region increasingly defining what comes after the industry’s recent challenges, that’s not only a compelling place to begin, but a story worth watching unfold.
A must-stop when visiting the Okanagan.
100 Enterprise Way,
Oliver, BC V0H 1T2
Tasting room open Friday-Sunday 11am-5pm. Reservations required.
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