2006 Nk’Mip Merlot

I was in Osoyoos for the weekend visiting some family and during our Saturday night dinner we all shared a bottle of 2006 Nk’Mip Merlot.  Until last year, I wasn’t very familiar with Nk’Mip wines, but I’ve gotten to taste quite a few of them this year, and have been pleasantly surprised.  Their winery is actually just down the street from my mother-in-law’s place, so it’s an easy stop-off when we’re pressed for time.  Their facility is actually quite incredible.  They have an executive 9-hole golf course, campground, Patio restaurant, resort & spa, and a cultural centre.  You can read all about it HERE.  If you’re in the area, it is definitely worth stopping by.  I fully intend to play a round of golf there this summer, if I can find the time.

The wine was quite good.  Generally, I prefer their reserve wines (Qwam Qwmt), but this one was good.  Quite a wet wine and not too sweet.  We had it with a pot roast, which it complemented quite well.  Enjoyable for sure.

2007 Twisted Tree Pinot Noir

I bought this bottle on my trip to Osoyoos last year.  I was sorting some of the bottles in my cellar yesterday (which is really a stack of boxes in my crawl space) and found this one.  I actually forgot I had it.  So, I set it out and opened it last night.  I remember that when I bought this wine, I was actually really looking forward to it.  Meaning: I had high expectations for this wine.  According to the Twisted Tree website, this is an “aromatically intense wine” with strawberry, cherry, and floral aromas, followed by sweet spices and coffee flavours.  They suggest that it pairs well with salmon and leaner meats like pork or chick.

The wine was slightly more tame than I expected; however, it was definitely smooth.  I blame myself for this one though; I should have paired it with a meal.  Right away, I had a craving for some salmon with this one.  Or perhaps even some pork medallions.  However, I do have another bottle sitting around that I will be sure to pair properly.

2007 Road 13 Merlot

Last night a friend brought over a bottle of 2007 Road 13 Merlot.  I am quite fond of Road 13 wines, so I was quite excited to give this one a go.  I do have a couple of these exact bottles in storage myself, so it was good to see how this one was coming along.  Road 13 is working hard to define BC wines and what makes them unique, and this wine is a great example of their efforts.

This was a good, fresh tasting wine.  Another 6-12 months perhaps, and this one would have been perfect (based on my storage conditions anyway).

Update Jan 31, 2010: I had another bottle of this wine that I’ve been holding on to.  In my efforts to taste more of the wines that I’ve been saving, I opened this bottle tonight and had a couple of glasses.  I did find this wine to be much smoother this time around, and I actually enjoyed it a little bit more.

Overall, it was a great wine.  The flavours have come together nicely.  Good medium body wine.  Not too strong, and has some great flavours.  This wine, to me, is a great representation of what BC wines can be!

2007 Twisted Tree Six Vines

This past weekend, a few friends and I shared a bottle of Twisted Tree’s Six Vines from their 2007 vintage.  I have previously tasted and shared my experience with the 2006 vintage, and was incredibly impressed (see my post here).  That being said, I had high expectations for this bottle.

To recap from my earlier post,  the Six Vines is a blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, carmenere, petit verdot, and malbec and each of the wines was fermented in oak barrels.  In this vintage, I noticed much more of the oak than I did in the 2006.

The additional oaky flavour was a bit of a surprise to some of us.  But for those of us who enjoy oaky wines, it was a pleasant surprise.  For those of us who prefer sweeter wines (ie. the ladies), it was not as nice.

I have also found lately that a few 2007 wines have not been as great as their 2006 counterparts.  Not sure if this is a fair assessment, but it appears that 2007 may not have been as great of a year in the Okanagan Valley, while 2006 was possibly one of the best.

By holding this wine to its 2006 counterpart, it was not quite a good.  But overall, still a great bottle of wine.  Perhaps this one just need a little bit more time.

2006 Twisted Tree Six Vines

I was in Whistler this past weekend and brought a bottle of Twisted Tree’s Six Vines from their 2006 vintage.  I had bought this bottle at their winery back in May of this year.  As we were in Whistler this past weekend for a joint stag/stagette for some good friends of ours who are getting married in August, I figured it was worth bringing this bottle to share with them.  I will admit, however, that I had enjoyed a few beverages prior to this bottle of wine – so my palette was not entirely primed.  However, I enjoyed this wine so much, as did the others who shared some, that I had to write about it.

First of all, I was more than impressed with this winery when we visited it back in May.  I have been to most of the wineries on the Golden Mile (area between Osoyoos and Oliver), but I had not tried any of the Twisted Tree wines before.  I was blown away by their knowledgeable tasting room staff and their friendliness.  The owners came out and answered some questions for us as well.  By the time we left, I was a fan of this winery.  I intend to buy many more of their wines in the future.

The Six Vines is a blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, carmenere, petit verdot, and malbec and each of the wines was fermented in oak barrels.

The colour on this wine was so perfect that I may try aging a couples of bottles for about a year.

Note: See my review of the 2007 Twisted Tree Six Vines here.

2006 Kettle Valley Winery Merlot

I had this one a couple of months back at the Blue Canoe in Steveston (Richmond), BC.  I hadn’t had any of the Kettle Valley Winery wines before, and was quite surprised actually.  They are priced on the premium side of things (approximately $38-40 CAD at the store), which is a little bit higher than most wines I buy.  However, this wine earned its place in my notes, and I will definitely try it again sometime.

This wine had a real pucker to it and quite a thick taste with lot’s of oak.

Excellent overall wine, and a great experience.  I had it with prime rib which, as a powerful meat itself, went excellent with this wine.

2006 Blasted Church Vineyards Pinot Noir

In order to delay my studying a little bit longer, I decided to post a second review.  That, and this wine really got my interest, so I felt I had to give it some justice here.

I loved this wine, and will be sure to have it again.  I had it with fruit, cheese, and crackers that may have overpowered the wine a little bit.  However, it was a great bottle, and I will be sure to try one again soon.

2006 Inniskillin Malbec Discovery Series

In an effort to get the first post done and out of the way, I recently picked up this bottle at the Inniskillin winery in Oliver, BC this past May (2009).  I had been on a real pinot noir mission on this particular trip, and consequently, most of the wine I brought home with me was pinot noirs.  However, this one caught my attention.  I’m not going to pretend I know exactly what’s in it, but I do know that I did enjoy drinking it and would probably grab another bottle if I stumbled across one.

While my expectation was for a heavier wine (based on my tasting at the winery), it was quite a light wine.  Great wine for a sunny summer afternoon.  However, because we were on a wine tour, I was a little buzzed when I initially tasted this one.

But I will have to try this one again.