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River Flow - Block 23 Pinot Noir

Planted in 1994, Block 23 rises majestically from the earth upon high ground from sandy loam soil. The vineyard’s almost Northern exposure, combined with gentle, East-facing slopes expose the vines to cool morning sun, allowing the vines to develop gently and undisturbed, between sun and soil crafting Blue Mountain’s River Flow. This is Pinot as nature intended - a refined, elegant and composed Pinot Noir.

Sep 23, 2019 at 8:12 AM Permalink

Composting at Blue Mountain

One of the key pieces to sustainability in the vineyard is our use of composting. Typically a large amount of compost material arrives in the spring, where it is windrowed and left to decompose over 1-2 years before it is spread throughout the vineyard. We are always looking for ways to improve our farming practice and connection with this land. Happy Earth Day, and please enjoy this video of Ian explaining our wonderful compost heap. 

Apr 22, 2016 at 7:57 AM Permalink

2014 Chardonnay Video Notes

Our winemaker Matt Mavety gives a rundown on the 2014 growing season as we release this vintage of our estate label Chardonnay. 

Mar 14, 2016 at 1:07 PM Permalink

An Evening of Effervescence at Linden Gardens

We invite you to join us on July 18th at Linden Gardens in Kaleden for an "Evening of Effervescence". Get ready for the party of the summer: an art deco celebration of Okanagan Bubbly! 

When is it?
Friday, July 18th from 6:30 - 9:30 with pours from some of your favourite sparkling wine producers Blue Mountain Vineyard & Cellars, Bella, Sumac Ridge, Therapy Vineyards, Orofino, 8th Generation, Elephant Island & Haywire!

How much is it?
Tickets are $99/person and can be purchased at http://www.joyroadcatering.com/contact.php

Where is it? 
Linden Gardens in Kaleden

Fabulous food pairings by Joy Road Catering.

Costumes are required (think Gastby!) and you'll be glad you dressed up for an elaborate setting of antique cars, food and wine stations hidden throughout the gardens, and vignettes for photo ops from Vintage Origami.

We have put together some clothing ideas on Pinterest, check our Pinterest page for inspiration.

Follow Blue Mountain Winery's board Evening of Effervescence on Pinterest.   

Chef Dana Ewart at Joy Road Catering was on CTV Vancouver on June 9th, 2014 making some tasty bites and telling the big city about the "Evening of Effervescence" event at Linden Gardens, click here to watch the video. Joy Road Catering also got featured on Breakfast Television this past Tuesday and Chef Dana made a delicious asparagus hazelnut pesto.

Come celebrate Okanagan bubbles in style!

Jun 19, 2014 at 10:00 AM Permalink

Penticton Granfondo 2013

On Sunday, July 7th, 2013 approximately 2700 cycling enthusiasts and racers will take to the roads in the South Okanagan to complete a race that is fast becoming a must do on any cyclist's bucket list.  Weaving through beautiful lakeside vistas and lush orchards and vineyards the Valley First Granfondo is now in its third year and is drawing participants from all over North America. 

If you are not participating cheer on the riders from any of the magnificant vantage points along the route.  Here is a video clip of the section of road near Blue Mountain that the Granfondo riders will cruise along before stopping for lunch at Le Vieux Pin. 

http://www.youtube.com/v/97twEhyqhXI&autoplay=1&rel=0

Cyclists leaving the starting point near Okanagan Lake heading towards Skaha Lake.

Here is the full route including some information on road closures for those of you still wanting to get out and tour some local wineries. 

http://www.granfondoaxelmerckx.com/granfondocourse.php

Jul 4, 2013 at 9:00 AM Permalink

Valhalla Heli-wine Tours

From vineyard rookies to those connoisseurs who need a new angle on the Okanagan wine scene, try a Heli-Wine Tour. This is a one of a kind experience tailor-made by you which combines scenic helicopter flights around the Okanagan with stops at your choice of several participating wineries to enjoy the beverage that has made the valley so well-known. Valhalla Helicopters has agreements to land at approximately 30 vineyards around the Okangan, Shuswap and Similkameen.

A full day Heli-Wine tour is a 6 hour experience - starting at 10am and ending at 4pm - where you select about 4 wineries to visit. There are over 30 participating wineries from the Shuswap in the North to the US border in the South.

You may choose to go north with winery options in Kelowna, Lake Country and Salmon Arm, or select a southern route with vineyard choices in Lake Country, Kelowna, Summerland, Naramata, Penticton, Okanagan Falls, Oliver, Osoyoos, Cawston and Keremeos.The helicopter can seat up to 4 people (weight restrictions apply), but some wineries are only accessible with one couple onboard.

Most wineries have picnic spots and several have restaurants or will do a special catered lunch if you'd like to add that on.

Click here for a list of the Heli-Wine Tour Participating Vineyards.
Book by emailing tours@valhallahelicopters.com or call them at 1-866-769-1486.

May 29, 2013 at 10:00 AM Permalink

WineAlign

Do you ever ask yourself what is the best wine in my price range that I can buy in this store right now?  Now there is a way of finding out. WineAlign, Canada’s largest and most popular online wine site recently launched in BC and has more than 4,500 wines from the British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch in its database with more being added every day.

WineAlign was founded four years ago by Toronto web entrepreneur and wine lover Bryan McCaw, with the aim of providing immediate, objective and comprehensive advice to shoppers at Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) stores. In 2012 WineAlign attracted over 967,000 different people, making it one of the busiest wine sites in Canada.

WineAlign now provides B.C.-based wine consumers with ratings and multiple critic reviews on wines available at their local BC Liquor Stores. It will also provide inventory levels at their nearest BCLDB store. 

Following its debut in B.C., WineAlign will be exploring partnerships with private wine retailers in an effort to provide an even wider service to B.C.-based consumers.

Here is a review of Blue Mountain 2011 Pinot Noir by David Lawrason as an example of the type of information available on the WineAlign website.

"This is a light, spry, savoury, young and very complete pinot sports lifted cranberry, currant fruit with floral notes and beautifully integrated oak vanillin. It’s slim, tight, savory and complete. Excellent length here, with minerality, fruit and herbal notes nicely intertwined. Easy to like now but give it a few months to soften a bit. Should live through 2017." David Lawrason, Tasted February 2013.

To access this and other reviews sign up for an account with WineAlign.

Apr 2, 2013 at 9:52 AM Permalink

Blue Mountain Vineyard Tour

Proprietor, Ian Mavety discusses the various sustainable viticulture practices used at Blue Mountain Vineyards in the video above.

• Vineyard layout
• High density plantings
• Sustainable viticulture
• On-farm composting

The video is produced by Chris Stenberg at Vine & Beach

Feb 14, 2013 at 10:00 AM Permalink

How Wine Corks are Chosen

The choice to use cork as a closure for wine is something of a contentious debate. While there are many arguments in favour of a manufactured screw cap closure, or Stelvin Cap as it is known by popular trade name, there also exist many arguments against.

Blue Mountain continues to use all natural corks. This is partly due to the availability of top quality corks, and the increased quality of the cork available to us. It is also a style of winemaking that we feel has worked for us. Oxygen transfer, or lack thereof, into the bottle over time is a significant factor in how a wine ages over time, and we have reached a point where we know how our wines age in the bottle given the methods we have been using. A changeover to a metal screw cap would dictate a new approach to making our wines, and would also take time to understand whether or not we had made the correct choices in type of enclosure, type of glass, cap liner porosity, etc.

While there is certainly a place for the screw cap, we are sticking with the natural cork for our wines based on experience and testing over time. While we would never say never, at the moment there's just something satisfying about popping a cork. Call us old fashioned, but we like it that way.

What do you think? Do you prefer cork or screw cap?

Nov 1, 2012 at 9:59 AM Permalink

Wine Barrel Selection at Blue Mountain

Ian and Matt pay careful attention to the type and quality of barrels used at Blue Mountain. In the video above, Ian explains some of the technical aspects of coopering, and the reasons behind the choice in French Oak barrels for the Pinot Noir. 

While the oak for the barrels may come from several different oak forests in France (mainly Vosges, Tronçais, and Allier) the cooperage for the barrels used here maintains consistent density throughout the barrel. The barrels are also divided into different toast characteristics whether they be light, medium, or heavy toast. 

The selection of the wine barrel has a significant impact on the flavour profile of the wine, so we hope you'll enjoy this video if you're interested in learning about some of the behind the scenes decisions here at the winery. 

Sep 21, 2012 at 7:25 AM Permalink