Top row, left to right:
Adolf Kruger, Anthony
von Mandl, George and
Trudy Heiss. Middle
row, left to right: Harry
McWatters, Ian Mavety.
Third row: Brothers
Gordon and Walter Gehringer, Ann Sperling
58
son is longer. This supports full-bodied red wines, as
well as growing vines in other parts of the province.”
When Ian Mavety purchased property in
Okanagan Falls in 1971, climate change wasn’t on
his or anyone’s radar. But the challenge of growing hybrids became apparent. Mavety was among
the first to fully grasp the need to grow vinifera.
A visit to Europe convinced Ian and his wife Jane
that Burgundian varieties such as Pinot Noir and
Chardonnay would work.
The Mavetys started pulling out hybrids well
before a government-sponsored program in 1988. As
a result, when they opened Blue Mountain Vineyard
& Cellars in 1991 and released their first wines, many
were surprised. Blue Mountain proved it possible to
make good Pinot in the Okanagan.
Not far from Blue Mountain, Adolf Kruger purchased 10 acres (4 hectares) in 1984 and planted
Riesling and Gewürztraminer. The fledgling vineyard was severely damaged in the savage winter
of 1985.
“Luckily I had just enough money to buy crop
insurance. And that saved our skin,” says Adolf, who
opened Wild Goose, the first farm-gate winery.
On whether the Becker Project helped him decide
what to plant, he says, “I lived on the Rhine and wine
was cheaper than beer. And we drank predominantly Riesling, so that’s what we planted.”
Ultimately, it was a Chardonnay that put the
Okanagan on the world wine map.
E SS E N T I A L VA N CO U V ER 20 16 / 1 7
In 1981, a young wine importer named Anthony
von Mandl purchased a failed brewery and winery
with a spectacular view in Westbank, Kelowna and
established Mission Hill Estate. Von Mandl always
dreamed big. In 1992, he convinced winemaker John
Simes to move here from New Zealand’s largest winery in time for harvest.
Simes’s first barrel-fermented Chardonnay won
“Best in the World” at the prestigious 1994 London
Wine & Spirits Competition. The win turned doubters into believers, unleashing a pack of new wineries.
Von Mandl also launched Mike’s Hard Lemonade,
which gained priceless notoriety when he successfully sued the government for trying to stop him
from using the name. Its subsequent and considerable sales helped finance a spectacular winery, built
to the tune of some $40 million.
Since then, Mission Hill and others have won
countless accolades internationally and von Mandl
and Simes have increased their vineyards significantly. Von Mandl’s vision, embracing a dramatic
setting and landmark bell tower, proved pivotal in
helping to transform the Okanagan Valley into one
of the world’s “must-visit” wine destinations.
It’s thanks to the vision of these pioneers, and a
handful of others, that today’s BC industry is flourishing — not only in the Okanagan but on Vancouver
Island and elsewhere: Proof positive that perseverance, conviction, good taste — and occasionally a
little luck with the weather — eventually pay off.