In this post I was visiting Summerland at the early start of the season. Pools were opening, menus were launching, and event calendars were posted for future fun. The following are a few of the wineries we stopped at for a tasting, tour, or small bite.
Haywire Winery
16576 Fosbery Rd, Summerland, BC VOH 1Z5
(250) 494-4445
haywirewinery.com
OK Crush Pad has three wineries under its umbrella : Haywire, Narrative, and Garnet Valley Ranch, and today we were at the former most.
It has been a while since I last visited Haywire, and since then they have undergone a rebrand that includes an overhaul and expansion of their tasting room.
We would make ourselves comfortable in their modern bistro with its theme bold colours and geometric shapes. We were welcomed with a glass of their The Bub, their signature crisp sparkling with a brioche bouquet and barely their fizz. This was the perfect lead in to our flight, split one between two.
We went with one highlighting their seasonal rosé wines, considering patio season is right around the corner.
The Haywire Pink Bub is done in traditional method. 64% Chardonnay and 36% Pinot Noir with grapes from Summerland and Oliver. Fermented in concrete, then aged 30 months en tirage. This was dry with toasty notes, vibrant citrus, and a long and elegant finish. It had a similar faint bubble feel to the original Bub, just with a little more character and body from the addition of red.
The Haywire Gamay Rosé is 100% Gamay. Whole clusters pressed and naturally fermented in concrete and stainless, then aged 8 months. The result was a pale salmon colour with bright raspberry and strawberry notes. It smelled of faint gasoline on the forefront and I did find that this industrial note did peek thorough in taste.
Free Form Cabernet Franc Rosé is a Certified Organic Cabernet Franc from Osoyoos. It is gently pressed and naturally fermented in concrete with full malolactic and extended lees ageing. I found it flat and musky like Kumbucha cut with spring water.
The Narrative Rosé is a fresh and lively bordeaux based rose. It is fermented using natural yeast in concrete and stainless steel tanks to retain its fruitiness. This had the most character and was the close to red berry grape in flavour.
After our sipping we got a personal a tour with Steve Lornie, one half of the owners of OK crush pad. He led us through their operations, taking note of their variety of cement vats from one shaped like a rocket-ship-egg to another what looked like a wine glass. Most notable were the square concrete vats that they made themselves, in winery.
Steve comes with a background in construction and as such is familiar with concrete. Which means that he has the technical skills to build his own concrete tank, and he did. He did this using soil from all three of OK Crush Pad’s wineries, wanting to see if each would make a difference in the flavour of the wine through its aging within, and he discovered that that it did.
Dirty Laundry Winery
7311 Fiske St, Summerland, BC VOH 1Z2
(250) 494-8815
dirtylaundry.ca
Dirty Laundry is a popular winery for its unique theme. A tasting at their winery includes a story of its history. This one started in the 1800’s with the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway and the use of Chinese slave labour. One such men opened a laundry service that grew popular due to its proximity, next to the lake. Considering the revolving clientele, he decides to expand his offering with the laundry shop upstairs and a brothel in the basement. Business to the former was required for access to the latter, and word grew as men left with the cleanest clothes and biggest smile.
As a way to stay connected to the story, all tasting guests are given a souvenir clothes peg to say that they got “pegged” at Dirty Laundry.
Tastings are typically your choice of 5 different wines to try between white and red, with sparkling options as well. We were spoiled with extra pours, and the following is what I tasted.
We started with their newest. The Sauvignon Blanc 2025 which is crisp and not too harsh, neither super bitter or tart. It finishes clean in the mouth with notes of papaya and peach, making it a great summer patio wine and one ideal for sangria.
The 2024 Riesling uses grapes from Washington State. This was due to the local cold snap, leaving not enough grapes to harvest locally. This was like alcoholic apple juice, sweeter and fuller body in the mouth.
Let’s get Fizzical had light “fizzy” bubbles, as the name suggests. Tingling tiny bubbles like numbing peppercorn, but without the sting. It was sparkling grapefruit and juicy blood orange. A nice and easy Pinot Gris and Reisling blend.
The winery specializes more in white wines than red, as red grapes don’t get ripe enough in the area, and they are forced to get what why need elsewhere, like everyone else, leaving little left in stock.
We then transition from white to red, with the winery’s proclaimed starter red. This was easy drinking, lighter red that was good with Italian food. Dangerous Liaison is an un-oaked Merlot and Malbec blend, aged in stainless steel. It is fruit forward with plenty of tannins for an even juicer mouthful. I got raspberry on the nose and in mouth, with a mocha finish.
The Malbec Cellar Series is a limited small batch with only 330 cases produced. It is aged 18 months in both French and American barrels, in order to achieve a more Old World drinking Malbec. You get wood and herbs, oak and rosemary with a surprising start of sour cherry, that ends dry. With its spiced black pepper notes, this would be good with pork and even salmon.
The 2022 Bordello is the star of the Dirty Laundry portfolio. The wine makers pride themselves on using the best grapes and processes to make this one. This is their priciest bottle at $44.99. A blend of Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon. You get a lot more wood influence with its 2-3 years in oak.
And as a bonus taste, we tried their new non-alcoholic white wine, cleverly named “Clean Sheets”, a sparkling Riesling. This was another 2024 Washington grown, Okanagan processed bottle. This was 3 years in the making and well done. It still tasted fermented like actual wine. It drank airy like carbonated water, with a touch of apple on the nose. You get a similar subtle fizz and bite that you would from a sparkling, coupled with tannins and tang that has you smacking your lips.
We would take a few of our remaining tasting sips out to the patio for lunch. The spacious deck is equipped with blankets for the still colder weather, and it overlooks their vineyards.
Their self help pizza and beer service opened recently and we took advantage. You order food via a kiosk and bring what bottles you want to drink to the cashier. For pints you head to the beef garden counter.
For food, I ordered the Laundry Basket Pizza, given its larger assortment of vegetable and I was craving some. Tomato sauce, salami, roasted red pepper, artichoke kalamata olives, parmesan, mozzarella, arugula, fresh basil, and balsamic reduction. This was best hotter, when the pizza’s crust was still crispy and the thicker layer of cheese was still melty. The flavours were Mediterranean with the olives, which also made bites saltier, and great with my leftover red tasters.
Detonate Brewing Company
9503 Cedar Ave #103, Summerland, BC VOH 1Z2
(778) 516-1119
detonatebrew.com
Detonate Brewing is Summerland’s local brewery and watering hole. We visited on a Saturday night and were greeted by a line up of patrons sitting on the bar, turning to take us in.
We ordered a couple of flights from said bar, to be able to get a good feel of their offerings from pilsners, IPAs, stouts, and sours; each served in a paddle.
The bar and brand is themed like a Country-Western with their logo a bomb and the walls painted to look like a mountainous sunset, but with aliens.
