During the summer, I wrote about Uppercase Winery in Okanagan Falls. You may recall that it is owned by Bert Evertt, an accomplished opera singer. You may also recall that Bert has opened a total of three wineries in the Okanagan over the past several years (read more here). The three wineries were opened under the umbrella of Montalvino Wineries Inc., and include Uppercase Winery, gadZook Vinery and High Note Estate Winery. Since Montalvino opened Uppercase Winery in 2021, Pascal Madevon has been the Consulting Winemaker, having previously worked at Osoyoos Larose, Culmina Family Estate Winery and French Door Estate Winery, just to name a few. Today Montalvino announced that Pascal will be passing the reigns at Montalvino over to Winemaker, Caroline Schaller, who brings with her nearly 25 years of winemaking experience.
Caroline was born and raised in Toulouse, France, and before specializing in oenology, she completed her master’s degree in plant chemistry and biology. After completing a degree in oenology, Caroline gained experience working in Napa Valley, Chile and France, where she worked with Bordeaux and Rhône varieties for 13 years.
In 2017 Caroline moved to the Okanagan Valley to be the Winemaker and General Manager at Osoyoos Larose. Four years later she took on the role of Winemaker at Rainmaker Wines on the Black Sage Bench, eventually being honoured with the Order du Mérite Agricole in 2021, for her contributions to agriculture. Thus Montalvino Wineries is thrilled to have Caroline onboard and the feeling seems mutual. Caroline says, “The chance to steward nine estate vineyards at Montalvino, each with its own distinctive terroir and exceptional potential, is what [makes it] such an exciting opportunity.”
Caroline started at Montalvion in August and oversaw harvest at all three wineries. She says that “although the crop may be small, our vineyards were resilient and rewarded us with pristine, concentrated fruit. We’re really excited by what we’re tasting in the cellar even at this early stage. They are characterful wines that uniquely express our estate vineyards from Naramata to Osoyoos.”
It is evident in my tasting notes that I have certainly enjoyed the wines from Uppercase Winery made under the direction of Pascal Madevon, and I am truly looking forward to trying Caroline Schaller’s wines when they are ready for release.
2020 Malbec $34.99
The 2020 Uppercase Winery Malbec is sourced from Gurbachan Vineyard, on the Golden Mile Bench, and Mariposa Vineyard, in the Simikameen Valley. The wine was fermented in stainless steel and then aged for 16 months in French oak barriques (30% new).
After four hours in the glass there are aromas of pepper, black plum, dried blackcurrant, liquorice pastels, a touch of sweet spice, leather and blackberry bushes in an autumnal forest. This is a dry, medium bodied wine with medium acidity and medium, fine-grain tannins. The palate is bright and fresh, offering notes of Italian prune plums, dried cherries, blackcurrants, pepper, liquorice pastels, clove and nutmeg with a medium+ finish.
2020 Cabernet Sauvignon $39.99
This Cabernet Sauvignon is also sourced from Gurbachan Vineyard, on the Golden Mile, and Mariposa Vineyard, in the Simikameen Valley. It was fermented in stainless steel and then aged for 16 months in French oak barriques (30% new).
After four hours in the glass there are aromas of cedar, dried blackcurrant, dried cherry, clove and nutmeg. This is a dry wine with a medium+ body, medium+ acidity and high, grippy tannins. The palate offers sweet, black fruit (blackcurrants, blackberries and cherries) that is balanced by just a touch of savoury green pepper and herbaceousness, followed by clove, nutmeg and a mineral/graphite, medium+ finish.
This wine evolved nicely in the bottle over several days and would make a particularly nice bottle for the cellar.
2020 Foundry $49.99
The 2020 Foundry is a blend of 60% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 20% Malbec. The fruit was sourced from vineyards in both the South Okanagan and the Similkameen Valley. The wine underwent an extended maceration followed by fermentation in 30hL French oak tanks. The wine was aged in French oak barriques for 8 months prior to racking and bottling. Five barrels were selected for this inaugural vintage of Foundry and only 120 cases were made.
After four hours in the glass there are aromas of cured meat, black plum, dried blackcurrant, black cherry, liquorice, mocha and graphite. This is a dry wine with a medium+ body and a silky mouthfeel; the acidity is medium and the tannins are medium and plush. The palate offers black plum, blackcurrant, black cherry, mocha, clove, cinnamon and graphite with a long finish.