I rolled into Venturi Schulze Vineyards just after 10:00 on a Friday morning – what a wonderful way to start the day! Venturi Schulze is located in Cobble Hill, about a fifty-minute drive outside of Victoria on Vancouver Island. If you miss the turn off from the highway at Vineyard Road, as I did, just take the next exit at Koksilah Road and back track along Vineyard Road for a few additional minutes.
I was fortunate to find Marilyn Schulze in the tasting room when I visited, as she tells me she is not often there anymore; Marilyn is one of the owners and she is very welcoming and knowledgeable. Originally from Australia, she moved to Canada in 1970 and earned a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology at UBC. Her husband, Giordano Venturi, is Italian-born and he moved to Canada in 1967. He worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway as a diesel electrical maintainer before earning a degree in education from UBC, after which he taught computers and electronics at Vancouver Techinical School. Both Marilyn and Giordano had an interest in languages which led them to the University of Montreal where they met in 1986.
Giordano’s upbringing in Italy meant that wine and winemaking were virtually part of his DNA. His love of food and wine were contagious and soon became a shared passion for he and Marilyn. In 1987 Giordano and Marilyn spent three days in the Cowichan Valley on holiday and they fell in love with the area. Within two months they had already purchased their farm and began plans for their vineyard.
The vineyard itself was established in 1988 on five acres of land; the other 10 acres of the property were left to forest, pond and wild flowers creating a very picturesque landscape. In 1999 a neighbouring parcel of land was purchased, expanding the vineyard by an additional 15 acres. The original farmhouse on the property was built around 1893 and it was renovated in 2011 to include their beautiful tasting room.
During my tasting Marilyn gestures towards the tasting room window from which you can see her daughter, Michelle, in the vineyard atop a machine which is dusting the vines with baking soda; a natural way to eradicate powdery mildew. At Venturi Schulze they believe in very little intervention with their grapes and, although their wines are not certified organic, the few products that they do use in their vineyard are listed on their website; these products are all natural and safe to consume even in their raw form. They consider their viticulture to be “beyond organic”, which means more labour intensive crops and lower yields, but a better expression of the land and place in the bottle. Venturi Schulze grows all their grapes onsite; they do not source grapes from any other growers.
2014 Brut Rose $36.10
This was one of my favourite wines from the tasting. It is made from 100% Zweigelt grapes and there are no added sulfites or fining agents. This wine spent 12 months on the lees in the tank before it was bottled. The wine underwent second fermentation in the bottle, in traditional method, and spent a minimum of 12 months “en tirage” before being disgorged. Venturi Schulze disgorges in 30 to 40 case batches and the whole vintage was disgorged within 18 months; no dosage was added. For me this wine had a really nice mouth feel with a hint of strawberry on the nose and palate, accompanied by toasty notes. This wine has a good, balanced acidity.
2014 Cut-Cane Siegerrebe $25.10
Some of the Siegerrebe grapes used in this wine were treated differently than the rest. Fruit that was naturally attached to the trellis was cut from the vine but allowed to hang on the trellis to dehydrate and concentrate before harvest. This wine is very aromatic with aromas of sweet, ripe papaya, hints of lychee and floral notes. It is a dry wine with medium body. The lychee and floral notes carry through to the palate and good acidity carries a long finish of apricot and peach.
2013 Bad Boys $28.10
This is a really interesting Pinot Noir and I am told that it is the wine that Whisky lovers like because of its smoky aromas. The wine itself is a medium straw colour with a kiss of pink. It is medium bodied with strawberries on the palate and a good finish.
2013 Primavera $20.10
This wine is a blend of Schönburger, Ortega and Chasselas. There is a minerality on the nose with a touch of green herbaceousness. The minerality follows through to the palate and is accompanied by citrus notes. The wine is ever-so-slightly sweet on the mid palate and then there is a nice refreshing acidity. While enjoying this wine, Marilyn tells me about a particularly hot day at the vineyard when her daughter, Michelle, made a great peach salsa and they enjoyed it with some tortilla chips and a bottle of Primavera on the patio – delicious!
2012 Pinot Noir $39.10
A medium bodied wine with leather and spice on the nose and cherry and raspberry on the palate. The tannins and acidity are balanced. Although this wine was tempting, I opted for a bottle of their 2009 Reserve Pinot Noir which Marilyn tells me was selected for a 100 mile dinner at the Zagat rated Herb Farm Restaurant in Woodinville, Washington.
2011 Brandenburg No. 3 $35.60
This wine was made with Madeleine Sylvaner grapes and the yeast used to ferment the wine was isolated and cultivated by Marilyn herself. This particular yeast can continue to ferment at temperatures below 0°C and stops fermenting when the alcohol reaches between 7.5% to 10% depending on the balance of sweetness, pH and acidity.
I am not usually fond of dessert wines but I found the Brandenburg No. 3 both intriguing and enjoyable. On the nose I found coconut and dried tropical fruit like mango and pineapple; the coconut carried through to the palate with hints of caramel.
In addition to their wines Venturi Schulze produces some really amazing balsamic vinegars which are complex with layers of flavour, such that they would make some wines jealous. They also have a large assortment of jams with flavours like Blackberry Balsamic Jalapeño and Strawberry Balsamic Black Pepper which would be an excellent addition to any Charcuterie platter.
Really enjoyed this trip into the lives and produce of the Venturi Schulze Vineyards. Some of their wines are going on my “wines to purchase” list. As usual your photos are brilliant.
Thank you – I’m glad you’re enjoying it!