Vincor's joint ventures

Wines & Vines,  May, 2005  by Michael Botner

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Until a new winery is created in the vineyard, the wines are being made in a cuverie specifically designed and constructed on the side of Vincor's large Oliver winery. The winemaking process for Osoyoos Larose utilizes a sorting table for the hand-harvested fruit, gravity flow for racking, and 10 unique, cone-shaped fermentation tanks. Custom-designed by Alain Sutre so that the height is the same as the diameter, the shape creates an optimum size for the exchange surface and between the must and the cap, and is ideal for limiting temperature fluctuations and reducing problems with the yeast.

"They make wines differently than we are used to," Triggs said. "For example, they leave the wine to sit on the lees for much longer, so the tannin molecules extend in length, making them softer to the palate in the near term, but still retaining the wine's longevity. Such practices have made a profound impact on how we make Cabernet Sauvignon in our Oliver facility."

In 2002, the joint venture invited classically trained Bordeaux wine-maker Pascal Madevon, the former technical director of Chateau La Tour Blanche, to move to the Okanagan and become the resident winemaker and vineyard manager at Osoyoos Larose. "The decision to relocate from the Medoc with my family was made after spending three months working with the Vincor team during the late harvest of 2001," Madevon said. "Picked from vines planted in 1999, I was surprised by the fantastic quality and ripeness of the fruit." The 2001 vintage--the first for Osoyoos Larose--produced 2,200 cases of wine that sold out in 73 days at healthy prices.

Madevon works under the direction of Groupe Taillan consultant Alain Sutre, but is solely responsible for daily management of the vineyards and wine facility in Oliver. Part diplomat, he has had no difficulty adapting to both cultures. "The French are more structured, more class-conscious, while Canadians are more open and give the winemaker more freedom," he commented.

Le Clos Jordanne In Ontario

The classic Burgundy varieties Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are the exclusive focus of another, larger joint venture. Le Clos Jordanne is a major "domaine" or vineyard on Ontario's Niagara Peninsula, Canada's largest quality-wine producing region. "We have teamed up with Boisset because we believe that the Niagara Peninsula has the best potential for producing ultra-premium Canadian VQA wines from Burgundy's classic varieties," according to Triggs. By far Burgundy's largest merchant, Boisset owns of controls an impressive line-up of wine houses in Burgundy, as well as the Rhone and the Languedoc, and is involved in projects in Canada, California and South America.

The Boisset-Vincor partnership acquired and developed four sites on the gently sloping Jordan Bench of the Niagara Escarpment. They cover more than 200 acres of prime vineyard land, of which 133 acres are planted, with approximately 75% dedicated to Pinot Noir and the rest Chardonnay. "Studies show that our Niagara properties enjoy similar soil and climatic characteristics to the Cote d'Or in Burgundy, with its cooler summers, equivalent growing cycles and clay loam soils," said Jean-Charles Boisset, vice president of Boisset.