Sandhill
2005 Pinot Gris, King Family Vineyard(Okanagan Valley)
At Sandhill Wines, winemaker Howard Soon makes only single vineyard wines. It is a commendable effort at starting to define the terroir of the Okanagan. The King Vineyard is on the Naramata Bench, just outside Penticton. It is on a plateau high above Okanagan Lake; the immense lake tempers the climate, so that this vineyard is never too hot but has a long season, ideal for producing ripe grapes with vibrant acidity.
That comes through in this crisp, tangy white wine, with aromas of pears and melons and flavours of green apples and honey dew melons. The “mouth-watering” acidity – to quote the back label – gives the wine a lean, crisp, even tart finish. Definitely a food wine. 86 points.
Reviewed August 10, 2006 by John Schreiner.
Other reviewed wines from Sandhill
Sandhill 2005 Barbera - Small Lots, Sandhill Estate Vineyard (Okanagan Valley)John Schreiner 3/28/2008 |
Sandhill 2005 Sangiovese - Small Lots, Sandhill Estate Vineyard (Okanagan Valley)John Schreiner 3/28/2008 |
Sandhill 2005 Petit Verdot - Small Lots, Phantom Creek Vineyard (Okanagan Valley)John Schreiner 2/22/2008 |
Sandhill 2004 Sangiovese - Small Lots, Sandhill Estate Vineyard (Okanagan Valley)John Schreiner 4/5/2007 |
Sandhill 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon-Syrah - Small Lots, Sandhill Estate Vineyard (Okanagan Valley)John Schreiner 3/14/2007 |
Sandhill 2004 Petit Verdot - Small Lots, Phantom Creek Vineyard (Okanagan Valley)John Schreiner 2/6/2007 |
The Wine
Winery: Sandhill |
The ReviewerJohn Schreiner has been covering the wines of British Columbia for the past 30 years and has written 10 books on the wines of Canada and BC. He has judged at major competitions and is currently a panel member for the Lieutenant Governor’s Awards of Excellence in Wine. Both as a judge and as a wine critic, he approaches each wine not to find fault, but to find excellence. That he now finds the latter more often than the former testifies to the dramatic improvement shown by BC winemaking in the past decade. |