Anthony Gismondi: Miss American red wines? Try these B.C. bottles instead

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Thanks to loyal Vancouver Sun reader Dean for this week’s topic. The notable shift to lighter reds, combined with the current tariff wars that have banned American wines in B.C., has left him asking for help “finding equivalent B.C. reds that would satisfy a big red drinker.”

Before we start, know that B.C. can’t imitate Napa Valley or Washington styles, but we can easily meet expectations for power and concentration, with polish and cellaring potential, while retaining our unique Okanagan freshness.

Our current list reflects all of the above and includes a wide range of grapes, from Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc to Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot, and the underrated Syrah.

• Black Hills Nota Bene 2023 ($70) has been a star performer over the last decade with rich black cherry, cassis, dried herbs, cedar and savoury desert scrub throughout. Serious, structured and distinctly Okanagan.

• Painted Rock Red Icon 2021 ($80) has always mirrored the top Bordeaux blends. The Skaha bench has proven to be the perfect home for this rich blend of cassis, black cherry, dark chocolate, and baking spice notes as big as they come.

• Osoyoos Larose Le Grand Vin 2022 ($60) continues to refine one of Canada’s best red blends. Refined, persistent flavours, silky tannins, and proven aging ability make it one of B.C.’s most convincing cellar-worthy reds.

• Laughing Stock Portfolio 2022 ($55) has really upped its game in the past five years. It is among the most Napa-like, with black cherry, cedar, cocoa powder, pipe tobacco, and sweet oak flavours, at a top price-to-quality price tag.

• Phantom Creek Becker Vineyard Cuvée 2021’s ($69) freshness and savoury complexity temper the considerable fruit weight of this intense, generous organic Becker Cuvée, making it an easy transition for California wine lovers.

• Clos du Soleil Estate Reserve 2021 ($70) is the winery’s flagship red and ranks among the top B.C. reds. The Similkameen Valley fruit comes from four estate vineyards, shouting plums and wild black fruits, dusted with desert scrub. Long and complex, it will age forever.

• Hester Creek The Judge 2022 ($52) has been on an uptick for a while. Ripe, rich, and stacked with cedar, oak, tobacco, spice, and substantial black fruit, it fits the bill and offers terrific value.

• LaStella Maestoso Solo Merlot 2022 ($75) gets little respect among the red varietals, but LaStella’s flagship label is as rich, bold, and mouth-filling as any big red wine drinker could want.

• The label that started it all, Mission Hill Oculus 2020 ($226), has improved incrementally since it began in 1997. For better or worse, it has driven up red wine prices across the region while maintaining a high standard of power and elegance.

• More reds fit the bill, but space will only let us name them: Burrowing Owl Meritage, CedarCreek Platinum Haynes Creek Syrah, Corcelettes Talus, Checkmate End Game Merlot, Culmina Hypothesis, Hillsdie Mosaic, Mission Hill Quatrain, Nk’Mip Qwam Qwmt Syrah, Orofino Red Bridge Red, Poplar Grove The Legacy, Road 13 John Oliver 5th Element, Roche Chateau and Tinhorn Creek The Creek.

$29.90 | 90/100

UPC: 857088000527

Célestiale has always been a lighter, early-drinking Clos du Soleil red wine, with one foot in Bordeaux tradition and one foot in the wild, windy Similkameen. The ’22 is a nice jump up in quality over the ’21. It is an unabashed Bordeaux blend mixing 44 per cent Merlot, 25 per cent Cabernet Franc, 22 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon, five per cent Malbec and four per cent Petit Verdot. The fruit is fresh and ripe, with raspberry and blackberry blended seamlessly in concrete to preserve it. Richer beef or lamb dishes work here. Good value.

$70 | 91/100

UPC: 058976502981

The ’23 vintage blends 37/35/28 Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc; the ’25 vintage is the last from vines pulled after the deep freeze in 2024. The Black Sage Bench base offered a dry, savoury nose, a mid-palate of black and ripe red fruit, and a smoky finish. The tannins are dense but sweet and will continue to integrate over time. It is still a baby and will reward patience through 2028.

$52 | 92/100

UPC: 626990112235

The Judge is crafted from old vines dating back to 1968 that shone brightly in 2022. Winemaker Mark Hopley has refined the blend, oak regimen and overall freshness, with its silky texture perhaps its best attribute. The blend includes 47 per cent Merlot, 34 per cent Cabernet Franc, 17 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon and 1 per cent each Petit Cerdot and Malbec. It is fresher and tighter, with refined black fruit, savoury dried spices, and cedar that blend into a polished symphony.

$55 | 91/100

UPC: 850451002104

The ’22 edition celebrates Portfolio’s 20th anniversary. It has a fragrant nose similar to Napa reds, with black cherry, cocoa powder, cedar, pipe tobacco, and sweet oak on the palate. The wine features good structure and texture, and is surprisingly drinkable despite its youth. The blend consists of 51 per cent Merlot, 29 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon, 10 per cent Cabernet Franc, six per cent Malbec, and 4 per cent Petit Verdot.

$60 | 94/100

UPC: 871610001554

A large team stands behind this wine, including renowned Bordeaux consultant Éric Boissenot, who helps blend for structure, restraint, ageability, and a sense of place, namely the Osoyoos Bench in the South Okanagan. The blend is a 74/14/7/4/1 mix of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec (the Cabernet Sauvignon has been increased to add structure now that global warming makes it easier to ripen every year). Osoyoos Larose has long been known as one of Canada’s best wines to cellar, and the ’22 will be no exception.

• Wine Business online reports that Jon Moramarco reviewed the U.S. wine market in the quarterly Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates (GFA) webinar and announced some “challenging truths” about wine consumption. Moramarco said much of the wine market’s growth in the late ’90s and early 2000s came from wine sliding seamlessly into people’s lifestyles. But, for a variety of reasons, it’s far harder for wine to do so today. Those reasons — GLP-1s, cannabis, energy drinks, online gambling, video games, disrupted household schedules, solitary living, economic struggles, health guidelines, health worries and more — are all significant headwinds that deter consumers from drinking wine or motivate them to spend their discretionary income elsewhere. We would add high prices to the mix.

• Kismet Estate Winery has opened Roop Nivas, bringing overnight accommodation to its Oliver estate for the first time. Set among the vineyards near the tasting room and the winery’s on-site Manzil Restaurant, the property offers 10 private guest suites for two, each with a king or queen bed, a private patio or balcony, a spacious bathroom, and in-room conveniences. An 11-bedroom estate house accommodates up to 24 guests for weddings, retreats, family gatherings, corporate groups, and private celebrations. Guest-suite stays start at $349 per night, plus tax. Book at kismetestatewinery.com/accommodations; contact the winery directly for Estate House and group inquiries.

$39 | 90/100

UPC: 628069990515

2025 marked Phantom Creek’s inaugural white Cabernet Franc release. It is an unconventional use of the grape, but we think consumers desperate for something different will love it. Technically, the wine is pressed off its skins on arrival at the winery to prevent any colour bleeding into the wine. After that, it is treated like a white wine, fermented cool, and aged in stainless steel. Look for an aromatic nose with lifted notes of orange and lime. The fruit is fresh, with tropical highlights of guava, papaya, and pineapple, plus some citrus-skin bitterness for balance. A great start.

$27 | 89/100

UPC: 681714160039

I swear Peak Cellars has a juice machine hidden somewhere in the winery. The 2023 Pinot Gris bursts with apple-orchard aromas, layered with exotic florals, orange blossom, and citrus. The palate is fresh and lively, with bright, juicy citrus fruit riding a silky texture through the finish. A well-made, dry Gris that pairs easily with everything from fish tacos to Asian-inspired noodle slaws.