Cornucopia’s top white
Time Winery’s 2017 Riesling ($25) being named top white for this year’s Cornucopia Food & Drink Festival in Whistler came as a complete surprise to Time president Harry McWatters. “I didn’t even know it was entered,” he said with a laugh. “Christa-Lee (McWatters-Bond, his daughter and marketing director for Time) takes care of all that kind of stuff.”
Luckily, Christa-Lee entered the Riesling hoping it would win and get the attention it deserves.
Time winemaker Nadine Allander crafted a classic, fresh and crisp Riesling with lemon, lime and peach aromas and flavours backed up with lip-smacking minerality.
Time is located in downtown Penticton and sources its grapes from all over the Okanagan.
The fruit for the champion Riesling came from The View Vineyard in Kelowna.
Cornucopia runs Nov. 8 to 18 with loads of events at Whistler hotels and restaurants.
All of the wines that will be poured at the marquee Crush Grand Tasting Nov. 10 were considered for the Top 20 Wines contest.
The list of victors was released prior to the festival to generate publicity and give a heads up to those attending the Crush Grand Tasting.
Time 2017 Riesling was singled out as top white and the C.C. Jentsch 2015 Small Lots Malbec ($58) from Oliver was crowned top red.
Eighteen other wines from the Okanagan, Washington state, Spain, Argentina and California rounded out the top 20 list. See the complete line up at WhistlerCornucopia.com. Time isn’t a stranger Cornucopia’s best list. Last year, its 2013 Syrah was named top red when Quails’ Gate’s Stewart Family Reserve Chardonnay 2013 was best white.
The spotlight being on Time prompted me to taste five other vintages in the winery’s line up.
The 2016 Red Meritage ($33) is an elegant cherry-berrypeppery blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.
The McWatters Collection label also offers a 2016 Red Meritage ($30) that’s bigger and bolder, but still has soft tannins.
There’s also a Time 2017 White Meritage ($25), a blend of lightly oaked Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, that will give you a complex taste of pear, melon, mango, tangerine and gooseberry.
Continuing to drink Rose through the winter is easy when Time’s 2017 version ($23) is dry and food-friendly with a strawberry-raspberry-grapefruit profile.
The 2017 Time Viognier ($23) was mostly cool fermented in stainless steel tanks, but a portion as also barrel fermented for a short time in new and used French oak to produce a lush sipper with hints of everything from pineapple, orange and apricot to flowers and coconut. aromas and flavours backed by subtle dried herb, mushroom and earth tones.
All wines are crafted by Matthew Fortuna, who apprenticed under former winemaker Grant Stanley.
Without any real promotion, the new Transparent Tasting Room and Block One Restaurant were slammed this summer.
“We were so busy we didn’t have time for a grand opening,” said Krouzel.
“We’ll have the grand opening when the weather gets warm again on May 31, 2019.”
The tasting room earned the Transparent name because its a glass-enclosed space surrounded by vineyards. It, and the wine shop, are open daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Block One refers to the indoor-outdoor restaurant’s proximity to the first block of vineyard planted at the winery.
The eatery remains open through the fall and winter for dinner, Thursdays through Sundays, and lunches on Fridays and Saturdays.
50th Parallel’s free shuttle was a hit in the summer and will continue through the fall and winter with pick ups and drop offs at The Private Residences at the Delta Grand hotel in Kelowna, Lakestone in Lake Country and Predator Ridge Golf Resort near Vernon.
Call 250-766-3408 to book.