Schell Chard
Speaking of Westbury, Schell Wines hired the Nagging Doubt owner to make just 57 cases of its custom-crush 2016 Chardonnay.
The collaborative Schell siblings, Jennifer, Jonathan and Jamie, grew up in East Kelowna and wanted their own label reflecting their roots.
So they sourced the grapes from East Kelowna’s Kitsch Winery and had the Chard made at nearby Nagging Doubt.
The result is an oak-kissed, citrus and peach expression of Chard with a hint of vanilla.
It went beautifully with the grey cod from Kelowna’s Codfather Seafood Market my wife coated in panko breadcrumbs and garlic scape salt from Farmersdotter Organics in Cawston and quickly pan fried.
Jennifer Schell is the co-organizer of the annual Garagiste North Small Producers Wine Festival in Penticton and, as such, picked small producer Nagging Doubt when it came time to become a garagista herself.
She’s also the former editor of B.C. Food & Wine Trails magazine and the author of The Butcher, The Baker, The Wine & Cheese Maker: An Okanagan Cookbook.
With it being so delish, and only 684 bottles made, the Schell Chard is disappearing quickly.
However, it is on the wine list at Waterfront Wines and Raudz restaurants in downtown Kelowna.
Schell will release a red blend next year and for the next vintage of Chard production will be tripled.
Jumping
They’re literally jumping for joy at Naramata’s La Frenz Winery.
To celebrate big wins at the Six Nation Challenge in Australia and InterVin International, a photo shoot was done with staff jumping up and down holding the medals in the winery’s cellar.
At the Six Nation Challenge, the top 100 wines from a half-dozen countries – Canada, the U.S., New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Chile – were judged in a best of the best in the New World format.
La Frenz snagged a double-gold medal for its 2015 Reserve Pinot Noir and a gold medal for its 2015 Ensemble Sauvignon Blanc Semillon. Both wines are already sold out. La Frenz owner and winemaker Jeff Martin is particularly proud of his Pinot Noir for standing on the podium alongside famous Pinots, such as Lingua Franca Mimi’s Mind and Christom, both from Oregon, and Akarua The Siren from New Zealand.
At InterVin, the competition put together by Canadian wine magazine Vines, 1,200 wines from around the world were judged.
LaFrenz won 18 medals, including gold for its 2016 Viognier, 2015 Reserve Pinot Noir and its non-vintage Liqueur Muscat.
It’s medal count put it No. 4 on the top 10 list of international wineries of the year.
Blindfolded
Does wine and food taste better when you can’t see it?
Find out Halloween night when diners will be blindfolded at The Red Fox Club restaurant at West Kelowna’s Indigenous World Winery for three courses of food and paired wines.
Not being able to see is supposed to heighten the senses of smell and taste, plus it’s a neat All Hallow’s Eve gimmick.
Chef Andrea Callan isn’t revealing what will be served, afterall, it’s a mystery dinner.
But Red Fox specializes in Aboriginal-inspiried dishes.
The wines aren’t being named either, but will be Indigenous vintages.
The set food menu is $49 and the paired wines are an additional $40.
To make reservations for anytime between 5 and 8 p.m., call 778-755-6360.
Steve MacNaull is The Okanagan Weekend’s business and wine reporter and columnist. Reach him at steve.macnaull@ok.bc.ca.