The Judgment of B.C.
Okanagan Merlot is best and New Zealand Pinot Gris tops the list. Every year, the B.C. Wine Institute pits vintages from the province against international benchmarks as a way of seeing how local wine stacks up on the world stage.
The competition is called the Judgment of B.C. in honour of the Judgment of Paris in which a California Chardonnay and a California Cabernet Sauvignon upset French equivalents.
This year, 12 Pinot Gris, half a dozen from B.C. and six from elsewhere on the globe, were chosen.
As well, 12 Merlots were put to the test, six from B.C. and six from other countries.
Pinot Gris is the most planted white grape in B.C., Merlot the most planted red.
The 2013 Merlot ($85) from CheckMate Winery in Oliver was deemed the best in a blind tasting by a panel of 22 international and national judges.
Duckhorn 2013 Merlot ($64) from California was second and La Stella Maestoso 2012 ($90) from Osoyoos came in third.
The 2016 Kim Crawford Pinot Gris from New Zealand ($19.50) topped the Gris list with Domaine Zind Pinot Gris from France ($41) the runner up and 50th Parallel 2016 Pinot Gris ($20) third.
“It’s not about British Columbia wines winning or losing,” said Vancouver-based wine expert and Judgment curator DJ Kearney.
“It’s about tasting our wines and trying to understand their distinctiveness and strengths against a global competitive set. It’s a courageous exercise that developing industries like ours can beefit from and take pride in. Benchmarking allows us to evaluate our progress and adds to our collective knowledge.”
Pinot Gris comes in a bunch of different styles from dry and savoury and softly sweet and ripe to lightly oaked.
The winning Kim Crawford version is fruit-forward, crisp and zingy.
The 50th Parallel has added complexity thanks to a kiss of oak.
The CheckMate and La Stella Merlots were praised for their excellent structure, nuance and elegance.
At the celebration, Pluto, an ambassador burrowing owl from the society, made an appearance with biologist Lauren Meads.
“(The winery’s) long-term support has given our society the stability and means to focus on what is most important, rebuilding a self-sustaining population of these tiny, amazing owls in the Southern Interior grasslands of B.C.,” said conservation society president Mike Mackintosh.