Don’t forget the pink (and orange) wines this winter. Rosés and orange wines are not just for summer, they are perfect all year round. If you are looking for some new wines to try, Culmina Family Estate Winery has some excellent wines to choose from.
Culmina Family Estate Winery is located in Oliver, British Columbia. It was founded by Don Triggs and his wife Elaine. Don Triggs was part of Jackson-Triggs, established in 1994. He went onto become chief executive officer of Vincor International Ltd, the 14th largest wine company in the world at the time. In 2006 Vincor was purchased by Constellation Brands. Although this purchase was financially beneficial for Don, he and his wife decided to reinvest in the BC wine industry. Just months after the purchase of Vincor, Don and Elaine invested in a property on the famed Golden Mile Bench.
In 2012, Don and Elaine were joined by their youngest daughter, Sarah, who has a master’s in wine business from the University of Adelaide. Together they named their winery Culmina, which means ‘peak’ or ‘apex’ in Latin. The name “was chosen to reflect decades of knowledge in the wine industry as well as a desire to produce top quality wines.” (www.culmina.ca)
In 2019 Culmina was purchased by Arterra Wines Canada which, consequently, is owned by Constellation Brands. With this purchase there was a commitment from Arterra to continue the founders’ legacy, developing the property and striving to create iconic BC wines.
No. 013 Orange Wine Gewürztraminer Vintage 2020 $25.00
Orange wines are made from white grape varietals. The grape juice is left in contact with the grape skins for a period of time, producing a wine that is orange in colour and which generally has some level of tannins in it.
Culmina’s No. 013 Orange Wine Gewürztraminer is the first orange wine they produced. Grapes were sourced from a single block of Gewürztraminer. These grapes were hand harvested and left to sit on their skins for 67 days. Grapes were fermented using wild yeast and punched down twice weekly. The grapes were pressed using a basket press and the wine was bottled unfined and unfiltered.
This wine was my favourite from the trio. It has complexity and length, but boy did that bottle disappear quickly, each sip bringing you back for more. There were aromas of sweet, dried grass, dried pear, dried peach, dried mango, cantaloupe, pink grapefruit and orange tea. This is a dry, medium bodied wine with high acidity and low tannins. The palate offers tangerine and grapefruit rind, unsweetened, peach ice-tea, honey comb, dried apricots, dried peach, dried mango and cantaloupe, with a long finish.
No. 014 Wild Ferment Rosé Vintage 2020 $29.00
No. 014 Wild Ferment Rosé is a blend of 60% Cabernet Franc, 25% Malbec and 15% Syrah. This wine was produced using a combination saignée method and direct press. After two hours of skin contact the wine was racked in a combination of 70% stainless steel and 30% neutral French oak. The wine was left to naturally ferment over 61 days. The wine was bottled unfined.
On the nose this Rosé offers pink grapefruit, pear and peach with hints of strawberry and raspberry. This is a dry, full bodied wine with medium+ acidity. The palate is oily and juicy, opening with flavours of sweet fruit: strawberry, peach cobbler and pink grapefruit, with floral notes leading to a savory and peppery, medium finish.
Saignée Vintage 2020 $24.99
This Rosé is a blend of 48% Cabernet Franc, 17% Syrah, 15% Malbec, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot made using the saignée method.
The 2020 Saignée has floral aromas of Pink Lady apples, peach, watermelon, grapefruit, and raspberry. This is a dry, full bodied wine with medium+ acidity. The palate offers flavors of Pink Lady apples, apricot, raspberry, dried cherries, pink grapefruit and peppery notes on the medium+ finish.
I ordered the beautiful (and delicious) sugar cookies for this shoot from Maureen D’Souza. If you are in the Fraser Valley area, her cookies are the perfect accompaniment for any celebration. You can check out her incredible cookie art on Instagram (@maureen_dsouza) and Facebook (Sugar Cookies by Maureen).
References
Schreiner, J. (February 1, 2013). Donald and Elaine Triggs Announce Their New Winery. Retrieved from: http://johnschreiner.blogspot.com/2013/02/donald-and-elaine-triggs-announce-their.html