Naramata has been one of my favourite places to visit in the Okanagan Valley. And one of my special destinations is La Frenz.
It’s an estate winery where 95 per cent of the wine grapes are grown in their own vineyards. And it’s a family winery. An Australian winemaker in New South Wales, Jeff Martin and his wife Niva joined the emerging BC wine industry in 1994 establishing a vineyard and a winery overlooking Okanagan Lake. Today Jeff is Production Director, Niva is the General Manager, and their daughter Elise manages their four vineyards. Meanwhile fellow Aussie, Dominic McCosker is the winemaker.
By 2017, their belief that they could produce world class wines was realized when La Frenz was awarded “Small Winery of the Year in the Canadian National Wine Awards and the Dan Berger International Wine Competition in California.
Last spring Martin guided me through a private tasting of his portfolio. He has two delicious Chardonnays.
Martin described his 2018 Chardonnay ($19.04) as “a balance of fruit and oak. It’s a really big Chardonnay. Peaches and cream, enough lingering caramel and oatmeal. We think it's a really good refreshing style of Chard!”
For something completely different, we enjoyed the 2017 Reserve Chardonnay ($25.13). Martin explained the reserve style. “We have a single barrel program that has 100-per-cent indigenous yeast. Indigenous yeasts are riskier but the end result is more complex and nutty. Twelve months on barrel lees stirring, really oatmeal, nutty, buttery” with “must, mushroom, earth, and little bit of flint and gunpowder.”
“We actually do a number of Chards and a number of Pinot Noirs. In 20 years time, they will be the varieties that the Valley’s known for because they ripen well here, they’re well suited for climate, and they’re winter hardy. Now a lot of people are doing it,” Martin revealed.
According to Martin, this Chardonnay will age for five to 10 years. Because it is a Wine Club Exclusive, you must become a member. Visit [email protected].
Next we switched colours and sampled the opulent 2017 Desperation Hill Pinot Noir ($24.26). Martin admitted, “I was trained as a technical winemaker where we control everything. Whereas, some of your best wines are not like that. By stepping back the winemaking and letting the fruit, the soil, and the vineyard come through we end up with wines that reflect the vineyard, more than the winemaker’s stamp.”
Martin characterized his Pinot: “Great colour, good ripeness, really nice red fruits and herbs in the aroma; you should be able to smell some really nice soils. It’s really Pinot-esque, and it's a fairly structured Pinot but it’s silky smooth.”
At the Six Nation Competition in Sydney, Australia a couple of years ago, it won a platinum medal, among the top five Pinots in the New World. As Martin concluded, “We were very happy with that!” Enjoy the 2017 La Frenz Pinot Noir with wild boar pate, quail with a red wine jus, or rack of lamb with mustard and rosemary.
La Frenz wines are available in Vancouver at all Liberty Wine locations, Everything Wine, Legacy Liquor Store, and Kitsilano Wine Cellar; in Ladner at Liberty Wines, and in Steveston at Sockeye City Grill.
As of Saturday April 11, the La Frenz Wine Shop at their winery in Naramata will open seven days a week.
Eric Hanson is a life-long Richmond resident, retired teacher and wine educator. Eric has also taught wine appreciation courses in Richmond and throughout Metro Vancouver for many years. He continues to be a journalistic ambassador for the enchanting world of wine through his weekly column.
