Recent Quail’s Gate releases.
Quails’ Gate Estate Winery represents one of the Okanagan Valley’s most influential agricultural success stories; one that began long before the region was known for wine. The Stewart family has farmed its stretch of West Kelowna for more than a century, beginning in 1908 when Irish horticulturist Richard Stewart Sr. established one of the valley’s leading nurseries.
His son Dick planted the first grapevines in 1961, setting the stage for the family’s transition from horticulture to viticulture. In 1989, Dick’s son Ben and his wife Ruth formally founded Quails’ Gate Winery, laying the foundation for what would become an enduring BC estate.
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A clear vision.
Some wineries make great wine. A few shift the conversation entirely. CheckMate Artisanal Winery is one of those few. Situated on the Golden Mile Bench in the South Okanagan, it combines bold ambition with focused precision, and the results speak for themselves.
From the outset, CheckMate set its sights high: Chardonnay and Merlot crafted to stand alongside the best in the world.
It’s not just a standout in British Columbia; it’s one of Canada’s most ambitious wine ventures to date.
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A glass of Adega set against its sloped estate vineyard.
In the sun-soaked southern reaches of British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley, where the vines bask under one of Canada’s warmest microclimates and the views stretch from sloping vineyards to shimmering Lake Osoyoos, Adega on 45th Estate Winery is undergoing an exciting transformation.
Rooted in a story that begins in 1966, when a Portuguese family purchased the land and planted orchards, Adega (Portuguese for “cellar”) has always been about connection to place. When the second generation turned the orchard into a vineyard in 2009, the original plan was to grow grapes for others. But as is often the case in wine, vision meets passion.
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We’ve stayed in all kinds of accommodations in wine country: cozy vineyard cabins, refurbished wine barns, even luxury estates hidden among the vines.
The Flying Cloud Airstream.
But none have felt as immersive or as uniquely intertwined with the land as this. Okanagan Crush Pad’s Garnet Valley Ranch offers an off-the-grid escape unlike any other in Summerland, a serene corner of British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley.
Here, our wine country getaway came in the form of a 2022 Airstream Flying Cloud, glamping-style, parked amid organic vines and rolling hills. It’s peaceful, private, and feels like a true oasis—a rare chance to disconnect from the daily grind and reconnect with the land.
But Garnet Valley Ranch is so much more than a picturesque glamping site.
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There’s no question that the Okanagan wine industry has faced some tough years of late.
Winemaker Evan Saunders.
Beginning with the onset of COVID-19 in early 2020, the region has weathered a heat dome and forest fires in 2021, a major cold snap in late 2022, and now an even harsher cold event to start 2024. For Blasted Church winemaker Evan Saunders, it certainly feels like the Valley is being put to the test, but if anyone is up for the challenge, it’s him.
Evan became the head winemaker at Blasted Church in 2017 after working there for 4 years, following several years as a cellar hand at Osoyoos Larose in the Okanagan, along with working a harvest at Kosta Browne in Sonoma Valley, California. Throughout our conversations with people at the winery and in the industry, it is clear that Evan is highly regarded, with many expressing enthusiasm for the direction he is taking the wines at Blasted Church.
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