Roger and Nancy Dosman operate this winery near Duncan (which used be named Alderlea) on the slopes above Quamichan Lake. Established in 1992 Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir are grown on the slopes of this Cowichan Valley winery. Other quality white wine varieties, Pinot Auxerrois and Bacchus and a dark full-bodied red Clarinet, made from 100% Marechal Foch grapes round out their varietal releases. Alderlea also produces a powerfully aromatic white blend. Angeliquend a very dark rich port style wine Hearth.

Roger often uses a method know as tending to aid in the ripping of the grapes. Polyethylene sheets are draped over the vines in spring to accelerate growth through a green house effect. This is an aid for late maturing grapes.

Winemaker : Roger Dosman
Philosophy: dedicated to growing high quality grapes and producing 100% estate grown wines

This winery is currently under development; expect first release 2006. Owned by Andrew Johnson from Alberta. Andrew has researched and worked in the wine industry since 1998 .Andy prepared by apprenticing in the vineyards of Italy, France, Australia, and New Zealand.

Andy was drawn to Vancouver Island, in particular to the Cowichan Valley. This valley in the rain shadow of the Olympic Peninsula and the Malahat has long dry summers and very good grape growing soils; deep, with well-drained sand and gravel. The property has 46 acres on a steep southward slope. Over 1400 vines are currently planted, including Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Gewürztraminer and Merlot

The Averill Creek Winery takes its name from the pretty little creek that cuts through the vineyard as it runs down the southern slopes of Mount Prevost into the Cowichan Valley of Vancouver Island, British Columbia

Winemaker: Andrew Johnston

Located on the beautiful Saanich Penninsula. The winery owened by Jon and Lana Popham
actually operated under WinchesterCellars licence. The winery is named after their yellow lab named George.

Origianlly operating as a farm owned by Jon's parents. Jon's father Ed following his dream planted the vineyard 1977 . Ortega and Baccus been the two main varitities. Newer varities include Pinot Noir and Foch. They began producing wines in 2005.

The winery is certified Organic signature wines are Ortega/Bacchus Blend and Dornfelder/Blackberry Port

Winemaker: Ken Winchester

winemaking philosophy: Pure and Happy! You can taste the love! We are a Certified Organic Vineyard

Located on Blue Grouse Road in a country forest setting; established in 1989 they feature a red wine made from Black Muscat. Dr. Hans H Kiltz Winemaker states "Accepting the challenge to be a vintner on Vancouver Island requires making a commitment. To Blue Grouse this means that the character of our wines must reflect this unique location and complement the regional cuisine of the West Coast in the best possible way."

The soil at Blue Grouse Vineyards is mainly a mixture of clay and sand, however there are also areas of gravelly soil. The winery grows only Vitis Vinifera, the real wine grapes introduced from Europe which are primarily cool climate varieties such as Bacchus Ortega, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir and Müller-Thurgau.

October through March - Wednesday through Saturday 11am until 5pm
April through September - Wednesday through Sunday 11am until 5pm

Website

 

Chalet Estate Winery
11195 Chalet Road
North Saanich BC
V8L 5M1
250-656-2552
chaletestate@shaw.ca

Located in Deep Cove on the Saanich Peninsula. Specializing in hand crafted high quality wines. Owners Michael Betts and Linda Plimley were the first Farm Gate Winery in the Saanich Peninsula and Victoria area.

The winery features a beautiful tasting room and patio. Michael Betts is a man of many talents he continues to build on to the winery adding to the consumer's enjoyment. Tours by appointment.

Winemaker: Michael Betts

Winemaking Philosophy:
Their philosophy is: Quality Wines from Quality Grapes

Website

Gallery / Catering/weddings /Patio

Cherry point was purchased in 2003 by the Cowichan Tribes making it the second winery owned by First Nations. Cherry Point Vineyards was established in 1990, and was licensed as a farm winery in 1994. Situated on a gravelly glacial deposit in the Cowichan valley, our terroir has been compared to the best of the Alsace and Chablis locations. Owners Wayne and Helena Ulrich have a unique picturesque spot for their vineyard near Cobble Hill. The winery has produced a 2000 Reserve Agria. Agria is an early ripening red grape that has been developed on the Island. A number of government research projects are carried out at Cherry Point to find the best grapes for the Island.

Winemaker : Simon Spencer

Philosophy: the production of hand-crafted premium wines made entirely on our own premises,
using 100% British Columbia grapes.

Website

Tours/Events

All by itself off the wine path in the northwest lies this new winery,owned and operated by Vaughan Chase and Ron Crema . The winery started by chance when some decorative Gewürztraminer did extremely well. This led to the planting of other varieties in 1996. Five acres in total. Hard work and difficult conditions plagued the winery for the next few years.

In 2003 the winery opened the its wine shop with only 150 cases but good wine sells and it provided some much need cash for future development.

The winery focus on German style wines that suit the local market of Port Alberni.

The winery currently has 12 acres of vines.

Located just to the north of Nanaimo featuring Pinot Noir. Proprietor Harry Von Wolff features Pinot Noir. Harry designed his tasting room with a European flavour. Look for their Grand Rouge dessert wine.

Winemaker: Harry von Wolff

Vancouver Island lost one of its most vivid wine industry figures when Harry von Wolff, the founder in 1998 of Chateau Wolff, died on December 22, 2005

Opened May 2003 , as Victoria Estates located in the Saanich Peninsula on Vancouver Island. Described by noted author John Schreiner as One of the five best-designed wineries in British Columbia. The winery has 21,000 square feet of space including a tapas Bistro managed by chef John Crossley Hall. The winery also has a Viticulture Centre.
The 26 acre winery located on the scenic peninsula is the dream of renowned winemaker and consultant Eric von Krosigk.
Initial wine offerings from Victoria Estate Winery currently include: Chardonnay, Madeline Sylvaner, Pinot Gris, Riesling and Merlot.

Madeleine's Bistro & Deli. Named for their signature white wine, Madeleine Sylvaner, the cozy bistro features fresh selections from local ingredients. Food items can also be purchased for the licensed picnic areas.

Victoria Estate Winery opened its door to the public on May 16th, 2003 and in less than a year has already welcomed more than 52,000 visitors, been awarded 24 medals from international wine competitions, and recently ranked 12th in the Top 20 Largest Wineries in British Columbia.
In 2005 the winery decided to change its name to Church and State.

Winemaker: Bill Dyer

Website

Madeleine's Bistro / Tours/Gray Line Shuttle from Victoria's Inner Harbour

 

When Joe Busnardo retired from his winery in the Okanagan he relocated to Vancouver Island and started a new winery in Cobble Hill. They are located close to the Trans Canada Highway not far from Cowichan Bay. Joe was a successful owner and winemaker in the Okanagan before selling his winery and moving to his cooler Island location. Their wine shop is open only Friday and Saturday afternoons.

Located in Glenora area ( near Zanatta & Godfrey-Brownell ). Owned by Albert Brennink and his son Edward. They operated a farm cultivating Scottish Highland cattle before realizing the potential of their land for growing wine grapes. Their consultant is Eric Von Krosigk. They started by planting a small experimental vineyard of 1 acre with 40 varieties. The best varieties will be planted covering 20 acres.

website

B&B

May 20th 2000 marked the official opening of John Kelly and Ruth Luxton's Winery. Glenterra Vineyard is located on Cobble Hill Road. They started out in almost perfect fashion winning a Silver Medal at the All Canadian Wine Championships for their Pinot Gris.

Winemaker : John Kelly

Located in the Cowichan Valley near Duncan. The owner is Dave Godfrey. "The valley is clearly a cool climate area, with all the advantages (and dangers) that designation implies. With a very short history (and global warming), nobody can really say what varieties will triumph, but our early choices indicate how we've placed our bets on the roulette table: Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Gamay Noir, Chardonnay, Bacchus and Marachel Foch."

Winemaker: Eric von Krosigk
Philosophy: We want to make wines of fundamental quality that people enjoy.
We attempt to keep the whole process, from vineyard to bottle, as natural as possible. Organic, biodynamic, eco-agro, whatever term you want to apply, there seems to be clear evidence that the healthier the terroir, the better the wine potential. The warm winters of the valley make it very easy to ferment and age without artificial intervention.

The gods made the land; the land makes the grapes; the grapes make the wine: the winemaker's task is to make sure he's as invisible as possible.

website

Lorne Tomalty has developed his vineyard on the steep slopes of the Malahat. He has five acres on the southeastern slope. It may be the highest vineyard in Canada.
Ortega and Pinot Noir make up 80 percent of the vineyard.

Winemaker : Lorne Tomalty

tasting room

Located in the tranquil Mount Newton Valley of the Saanich Peninsula above Victoria
the Marley family's dream came true. The vines were planted in 2000 and the winery opened in 2004.

Marley Farm Winery is a family-run boutique winery, owned by Mike Marley, the second cousin of musician Bob Marley, and Mike's wife Beverly. Together with winemaker Eric von Krosigk, the most medalled winemaker in Canada , the Marleys produce both traditional grape wines as well as fruit wines, using produce from their farm and local growers. Marley Farm Winery is the only fruit winery on Vancouver Island . Resident sheep and geese help to weed and fertilize the 5-acre vineyard and Marley Farm is also home to chickens, turkeys, ducks, horses and horse-drawn carriage trials.

The vineyard was planted with Pinot Grigio, Ortega and Pinot Noir, being the best suited varietals for our micro climate, soils and exposure. Fruits wines are also produced at the Marley's farm.

Winemaker: Eric von Krosigk

Philosophy: Make great wines.  Keep it simple.  Have fun

Website

Food Licence

Merridale Estate Cidery is located in Cobble Hill, just 40 minutes from Victoria in the The Cowichan Valley . The newly open Cider House provides a unique venue surrounded by the orchards where you can enjoy tastings and lunch.

Merridale is said to be BC's first estate cidery. Owned by Janet Docherty Albert Piggott is the cider master. Plans are under way to make the farm more suited to visitors. The farm is located near Mill Bay. Some of the varieties of apples grown include Dabinett, Tremlett's Bitter, Frequin Rouge, Hauxapfel, Chisel Jersey, and Bulmer Norman to name a few.

Philosophy: Merridale Ciders are handcrafted, all natural, and made from 100% undiluted juice.

website

The winery names after the creek which borders the property is owned by Holford Family. Linda is the general manger and Mark is the winemaker. It is the first winery to be establish in Ladysmith located 85 km (53 mi) drive north of Victoria BC The town sites on a hillside over looking Georgia strait.. It has one of the best mean climates in North America

Mark is a third-generation winemaker. After making amateur wines for over 20 years, we decided to establish a winery because of many requests from people who wanted his wine and winemaking experience. The winery is currently producing 4500L with plans to achieve 10,000L per year by 2009

signature wines : Pinot Noir, Ortega, Blackberry Port
Wine label are designed by local artists.

Winemaker: Mark Holford
Winemaking philosophy.
We are a boutique winery. The key to our success is our high quality wines from grapes grown on Vancouver Island . We expect our wines to meet VQA quality standards. We uphold uncompromising quality standards and operate our business with consistent integrity, excellence and honesty.

Website

Tours by appointment Only

Located in Cobble Hill, Giordano Venturi and Marilyn Schulze-Venturi are committed to growing the highest quality grapes without pesticides or herbicides, and are crafting world class wines. Michelle, Marilyn's daughter also plays an important role at the winery.
The family also produces balsamic vinegar. The vinegary, or acetaia, was expanded by 2,000 sq. ft. in 1999. It houses dozens of large "nursery" barrels and 108 ageing barrels custom made in Italy from chestnut, cherry, acacia, ash and oak.

Philosophy: Each wine is an adventure woven around the season, the soil and the personalities of the varieties and winemakers. We add minimal amounts of sulphite at bottling to some of our wines. None is added to our Brut or dessert wine. To retain as much of the character of the grapes as possible, we neither fine nor sterile-filter, so storage temperatures become important: we recommend 10° to 12°C (50° to 55°F). All 750 ml bottles are closed with a crown cap instead of a cork. After so much effort in the vineyard and winery, we are not willing to compromise on quality by putting an unpredictable piece of bark in the neck of the bottle.

Web site

The Zanatta family operates a 25 acre vineyard in the northwest corner of the valley. Their historic family home was built in 1903. The 120 acre farm was originally the site of a dairy farm when the Zanatta's purchased it in 1958. Since then 30 acres have been planted in vines, including Ortega, Cayuga, Auxerrois, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Nero, Muscat, Merlot, and Madeleine X Sylvaner. The remainder of the farm is in pasture, hay fields, forest and old fruit orchards.

Philosophy:
Winemaker Lorrete Zanatta; "Our goal is to produce quality wines with exceptional regional character. We achieve this by using only Vancouver Island grapes and unrushed winemaking techniques which allows for complete expression of the wines."

Vinoteca, food and wine bar was established in May of 1996. This new venture for Vigneti Zanatta allows us to explore the fascinating art of pairing simple country cuisine the wines. Vinoteca was Ileana Zanatta's creation. She took the family's 1903 farm house, restored it as closely as possible to its original character, added her own unique style and created an eclectic place to dine or sip your afternoon away.

website

Vinoteca

Located on the Saanich Peninsula near the capital of British Columbia, Victoria. This is Ken Winchester second winery. His first was in Paso Robles california which he successfully sold.
Ken also teaches at Okanagan University college and has become president of the Wine Island Growers association. His journey into to wines began in 1980 when he started making wines at home.

Earlier Ken had obtained his Master degree in environmental science at the university of Toronto
He also met his wife ,Fiona, thus promoting their return to Canada

Winchester produces only Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris

Winemaker: Ken Winchester
Winemaking philosophy.

Website