OLIVER, B.C. — In a country where French is an official language, the folks at one of the Okanagan Valley’s newest producers are taking their Gallic leanings to an entirely different level.
Le Vieux Pin means “View of the Pine” and refers to a mature pine tree near the French farmhouse-style building in the south Okanagan’s Black Sage Bench.
“Everything is made in the French style,” said Daniel Bontorin, Le Vieux Pin’s winemaker. “The building style, the wine style. We try to do everything in the French tradition.”
Owned by the three partners of Enotecca Winery and Resorts in Vancouver, Sean Salem, Gregory Thomas and Anthony Burée, Le Vieux Pin is focused on making wines the likes of which have not been produced in the still-burgeoning Okanagan Valley.
“There’s a lot of good wine out there,” Bontorin said. “We’re not competing with the Okanagan Valley. We’re competing with France, with the rest of the world. Oregon’s doing it, Napa’s doing it and Washington’s doing it.”
To reach that level, Le Vieux Pin is willing to use hyper-low yields, often below a ton per acre, to get the level of concentration and flavor Bontorin seeks in the final product. He knows that will mean higher alcohols, and he’s OK with that. His wines tend to have softer acids, more aggressive tannins, mild oak and lots of big, concentrated flavors. To get there, his grapes are hand picked and hand sorted twice before being crushed and fermented in 25 to 40 percent new French oak. No expense seemingly is spared. In fact, the group spent $9 million the first year on land, equipment and construction. It owns 45 acres of vineyards, all in the south Okanagan.
The focus on quality means a bottle of wine with prices not often seen in the Okanagan — except, perhaps, for ice wine. A Merlot known as Époque retails for $45, and a Merlot called Apogée goes for $65, while a Pinot Noir called Belle is $45. At restaurants in the Lower Mainland, typical markups will put those wines at or above $100 per bottle. Thus, Le Vieux Pin targets restaurants with international wine lists rather than regional to avoid inevitable sticker shock. So far, most of the wines are selling at the winery and through such Vancouver restaurants as Lumiere, Sanafir, Gastropod, Tojo’s and Joe Fortes.
“People are willing to pay a higher price for something that hasn’t come from the Okanagan before,” he said.
Bontorin has been making wine in the Okanagan Valley for a few years, serving as an assistant winemaker at Hester Creek, Tinhorn Creek, Pentage and Hillside. In 2005, he spent several weeks in Italy to look for new ideas to bring back for Le Vieux Pin. That fall was his first as a head winemaker, and he produced 1,500 cases.
That rose to 2,900 cases in 2006, then 2,000 cases last fall. The winery has a maximum capacity of 3,500 cases.
“Our goal is to make the best quality no matter what,” Bontorin said. “If all we can do is 100 cases of a variety, that’s all we’ll do that year.”
The hard work already is paying off. Its Pinot Noir scored an “Outstanding” rating in this issue, and its Cabernet Franc, rosé, Chardonnays and Sauvignon Blanc are earning high marks across Canada.
And the group continues to move forward. The owners are getting ready to launch two more wineries, called Lastella and Selóna. Each will have a different focus, different price points and perhaps different winemakers. By this fall, Bontorin plans to be the winemaker for Lastella, which would seem to have an Italian flair closer to his own heritage.
Le Vieux Pin’s style, vision and focus have caused some hard feelings around the Okanagan wine industry. That isn’t getting in Bontorin’s or his bosses’ way.
“I know a lot of people don’t like us,” he said. “Personally, I don’t care if we ruffle feathers. They should be happy we’re making this wine because we’re helping to increase their prices, too. We’re not trying to be snobbish about it. That’s just the way we’re doing this.”
* Le Vieux Pin, 34070 73rd and Black Sage Road, Oliver, B.C. 250-498-8388, levieuxpin.ca
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