Saturna Gewurtz

Boo and I may drink our fair share of BC wine. There's little doubt, however, that the vast majority of that wine comes from the Okanagan and Similkameen Valleys. Every so often, we run across the opportunity taste a bottle from BC's Wine Islands.

A couple of years back, Mickey Rooney asked us to visit them at their place on Saturna Island. That little trip happened before I'd started off on this Odyssey of mine. So, unfortunately, I didn't get to do a couple of postings there - because we certainly finished off more than a couple of bottles. Indeed, we had a grand weekend that included the Island's annual Canada Day Lamb Roast. It also included a hike along the cliff top and a leisurely lunch at the island's only winery. I'd have liked to add a picture or two from the weekend, but I couldn't find any of the pictures quickly.

Tonight's bottle has somehow managed to last until now before we've gotten around to opening it. I'll say that's because we kept wanting to get Mickey Rooney over to our place so that we could knock it back with them, but it might be more reasonable to admit that we don't tend to drink a lot of Gewurtz.

717. 2007 Saturna Island Family Estate Gewurztraminer (VQA BC Gulf Islands)

This one we liked though. I remember thinking that it was our favourite of the estate's wines at the time and I was glad to see that it hadn't suffered from our delay in popping the cork. Neither too floral on the nose, nor too acidic, this was a dry fruit-laden sip that I'd easily go back to again and again.

The Gulf Islands bank a lot on their climate that they liken to the Northern Mediterrean, but they are largely limited to growing white varietals and to Pinot Noir (with a few stabs at other early ripening reds). Although during the late 1990's, when the winery was just getting started and the vineyards were still being planted, grapes used to be purchased and shipped in from the Okanagan, but all the grapes are now being grown on the estate's 60 acres.

Maybe we can find some time and persuade Mickey Rooney to have us over again and I can blog some Saturna wines property. I'll just have to look into that.