Vancouver is located in the really very beautiful area surrounded by ocean and mountains. But the coolest part living in Van is being nearby popular wine region - Kelowna, which locates 5 hours driving away.
The proper name for this region is "Okanagan Valley wine region" - Canada's second-largest wine producing area. Driving along 135 km (84 mi)-long Okanagan Lake and many of its neighboring lakes you can find the bunch of vineyards location one by one, so you don't need to waste time driving from one to another one.
Talking about the history, the production of wine was started at the 1850s. Starting in the early 20th century the wine production was prohibited in the region up to the 1930s. Also, the region is famous for their fruit wines.
The Okanagan Valley wine region is unique - it stretches 160 kilometres (99 mi) north from the Canada–United States border with Washington state and is located 400 kilometres east of Vancouver between the 49th and 50th parallel north, putting it in the same latitude with the European wine regions of Champagne and Rheingau. It allows vineyards to survive from cold winters and accumulate a lot sun at summer time.
There are viticultural regions in Okanagan Valley: Lake Country/North Okanagan, Kelowna-Central Okanagan, West Kelowna-Mount Boucherie, Summerland-Peachland, Penticton-Naramata, Okanagan Falls, Oliver/Golden Mile and Black Sage/Osoyoos. Hard to visit all of them in one day - so plan your trip to Kelowna and stay there at least 3-4 days. You would have a chance to visit different vineyards, have a wine tasting, speak with owners and producers and learn more about wine in this region. Also, the place is beautiful. So after closing vineyards, it's a good idea to spend some time swimming in the lake or hiking nearby areas.
okay, now some photos an a small story - entrance in one of vineyards we've visited.
and the main hall / galery with store.
Couple words about valley before I would share more photos. The climate in the Okanagan is continental (which means hot summer and cold winter). The Cascade and Coast Mountains create a rain shadow effect shared by adjoining areas of Eastern Washington. The total low annual precipitation is between 250-400 mm, which doesn't give enough water to create the special environment to grow the grapes.
But also, it means most vineyards require irrigation from nearby water sources. A lot of beautiful lakes and rivers are located nearby, so it doesn't create any additional problems with irrigation. Sometimes at winter time, the temperature might go lower than −25 °C, but usually winters are short.
The Gray Monk Vinery:
During the wine tasting, you can find your favorite wine of the region and buy it. Some people come here and buy a lot of their fav wine to dring for the whole year. Usually, vineyards are open 9 am - 5 pm. So plan your visit according to the working hours.
So have you ever been on the wine tasting tours? Share your experience in the comments below!