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"Gael Arthur Tastes the Fruits of Jackson Triggs
Labour" ©

Say Shiraz and the average wine lover will think Australia.

Press a little harder and they might say South Africa, or remind you that there isn’t a big difference between Shiraz and Syrah, other than semantics.

This leads the discussion to the wonderful Syrahs of the Rhône Valley, often artfully blended with Grenache, Mourvedre, Cinsault. From there, an acknowledgement that they are making syrah or shiraz in all kinds of places.

But Canada? Who could possibly imagine that a little valley in British Columbia could be making creditable Shiraz?

Unlikely that many oenophiles would do more than roll their eyes at such a statement.

Until now, Fall, 2006, when Bruce Nicholson accepts the Rosemount Cup, part of the International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC) in London.

The Jackson-Triggs Okanagan Estate Proprietors' Grand Reserve Shiraz 2004 was chosen as the world's best in the Shiraz / Syrah category. This is the first trophy ever to be awarded at the IWSC to a Canadian red wine.

The Rosemount Estate trophy has almost always gone to the big Australian Shiraz offerings, including the Wolf Blass Platinum Label Shiraz, the Leasingham Classic Clare Shiraz and the Eileen Hardy Shiraz.

Yes, a Canadian wine has won top honours for Shiraz at the London Wine Fair. And the importance of this award ranks right up there with a Canadian wine winning best Chardonnay at the same wine fair more than a decade ago.

Back then, the comments were polite, but with the classic reservation. Yes, Canada might be able to produce a great white wine, but red wine would have been unthinkable.

It was as though a gauntlet had been thrown down: White wine indeed. Viticulturists had already been experimenting energetically with more and more locations around the winegrowing areas of British Columbia, Canada’s most western province, famous on the coast for its mild climate. But mild is definitely not the word to use for the area that is home to the vast majority of the province’s grapes, the Okanagan Valley.

Extreme is probably closer, where 40 degrees Celsius is as common in summer are minus 40 degrees Celsius is in winter. Not exactly what the average vinifera vine would call a zone of comfort. And dry. The Okanagan is home to Canada’s only “hot” desert (much of the Arctic qualifies based on precipitation, even though it’s a bit hard to think of polar bears in the desert).

Although the first grapes were planted in British Columbia back in the 19th century, the development of quality wine production really began about 30 years ago. The industry got a kick start in the 1990s, when the free trade agreement with the United States encouraged committed winegrowers to see if quality vines could survive in the harsh climate.

Hybrids were pulled out and vinifera planted in select areas. New vineyards test the limits every vintage, as winemakers seem to be constrained only by their imaginations and their budgets.

Back to Jackson-Triggs: Bruce Nicholson has been with Jackson-Triggs pretty much since the beginning of its Okanagan vineyards (J-T has large holdings in Canada’s other major winegrowing region, the Niagara peninsula in Ontario). He has participated in the decisions about what to grow and how to vinify, so it’s no wonder he is proud and a bit proprietary about the wines. The company is large enough that it has lands suited to every main grape variety and not a few of the less common types. If there is land that shows potential, it has the resources to acquire it.

Without question, the best way to enjoy and appreciate Bruce’s wines is over dinner. From an analytical perspective, sitting at a tutored tasting brings out the flavours and nuances associated with words. But for the pure joy of wine, a meal imparts on the taster the relationship between the fruit and the tannins, as they relate to different foods.

It’s a small dinner at O’Doul’s, in Vancouver’s West End, where Bruce gets to showcase his wines this night. O’Doul’s is the perfect venue, as the restaurant focuses on the whole dining experience, including a great wine list (with an extensive wine by the glass programme), live music (jazz) almost every night and a comfortable room. The restaurant is located in the Listel Hotel, home to an impressive collection of art, some of it even for sale.)

The focus of the food at O’Douls is on quality ingredients, simply assembled in compelling combinations.

The flavours are balanced and it seems there is only one way to improve upon them: by having a sip of a well-chosen wine.

Bruce has a selection of wines to taste. With this winery, it’s easier to name the types of wine they don’t produce. The 2005 Proprietors’ Reserve Sauvignon Blanc shows well, bit it is the 2005 Viognier that really stands out. With no malolactic fermentation, the acid is crisp, the flavours slowly revealing themselves as the wine warms up. The textbook apricot is there along with a subtle hint of licorice and other elusive aromas.

The meal is superb, and choices of halibut, jambalaya, duck and rack of lamb make for great matches with various wines. (See Bon Appetite page for Goat Cheese and Caramelized Onion Tart recipe.)

As we move to the reds, the award-winning Shiraz being the main reason for the dinner, it’s a debate of what else to taste. The 2003 Grand Reserve Syrah is one choice and it’s a good one. While Bruce acknowledges that the 2004 is better, on this particular evening the 2003 is tasting more integrated and, to use a Jurgen Gothe word, yummy. The 2004 has a lot going on, and it’s easy to see why it won the Rosemount Cup.

A week later, I happen to see a bottle of the little sister to the Rosemount Cup winner, the 2004 Proprieters’ Reserve Shiraz. A bottle to go with a prime rib dinner, then back to the store to pick up four more bottles – at under $20, it is an extremely well-priced gem, worth grabbing a case to stick in the cellar for a year or so.

There won’t be much chance of getting a case of the Grand Reserve, which will be snapped up by the restaurants that have been strong supporters of Jackson-Triggs for years. O’Douls will be a good place to enjoy another bottle of it, some time in 2007.

Report by Gael Arthur ©

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Key web sites:

Jackson-Triggs Winery:http://www.jacksontriggswinery.com/
O’Doul’s: www.odoulsrestaurant.com
Listel Hotel: www.listel-vancouver.com