B . C . ' S T O P W I N E R I E S
S P E C I A L F E A T U R E
Ripe for Success
B.C.'s fruit wine industry is reaping the benefits of quality
produce and knowledgeable growers
I
n the late eighties or nineties,
chances are if you drank a fruit wine
it was a homemade brew that tasted
overly sweet and syrupy. However,
within the last decade not only has
the craft of producing fruit wine
been refined, but in many cases, fruit
winemakers are making some of the most
innovative and interesting wines that
taste much like grape wines.
"The industry is producing excellent
fruit-forward, crisp, clean and bold
wines," says Doug Bell, owner of
Northern Lights Estate Winery. "Across
the province we have 30 fruit wine
growers dedicated to offering really
good fruit wines that can stand up to
grape wines."
Bell believes the five per cent market
share the industry currently enjoys can
reach 10 per cent in the near future, just
as long it can overcome the image battle
facing fruit wine producers. The issue is
many wine lovers equate fruit wines with
being "homemade" implying a lower
quality product. By creating a quality
product and educating consumers about
fruit wines, Bell says, wineries can change
those perceptions and gain market
share—and it is happening.
Across B.C., consumers are
increasingly buying and enjoying fruit
wines made from a variety of sources,
including apples, currants, strawberries,
raspberries, peaches, pears, apricots,
blackberries, blueberries and rhubarb.
Most fruit wineries are small family
businesses that either grow their own
crops or source their produce locally.
"The fruit wine industry in B.C.
primarily grew out of a need for
individual orchard owners to find added
value for their crops," says Bell. "By
blending fruits, we are producing unique
and complex flavours. We take the most
positive traits from each fruit and
balance the tannins, acidity and
sweetness factors."
Similar to grape wines, the fruit wine
industry is seeing new winemaking
techniques emerge, which are coming
from experienced European and
Canadian winemakers.
"One of the significant players
in fruit wines is Dominic Rivard (an
internationally renowned and award-
winning wine master specializing in fruit
wines), who has written books about
wines made from fruits, dandelions and
rhubarb for example," says Bell.
With more people, like Rivard, talking
about fruit wines and what they bring to
the table, Bell is very optimistic about
the future of the underappreciated—and
often misunderstood—industry. "There
is so much potential for fruit wines
here because we are seeing stronger
acceptance," he says. "In fact, there are
a growing number of grape winemakers
who are moving into the fruit wines. I
forecast that we will someday see fruit
wines alongside grape wines on shelves in
liquor stores across the province."
The quality of B.C.'s fruit wine
offerings has come a long
way over the years
