There are so many wineries in West Kelowna! We were out running errands this day, looking for a fruit stand selling peaches that didn’t have a big crowd. Our intention was to check out Ciao Bella Winery, but it looked too busy when we drove by so we kept going. We kept driving and came upon Kalala Organic Estate Winery and thought we would pop in and see what their organic wine was all about!
Kalala Organic Estate Winery is a producer of wines made with 100% certified organic grapes, located on the upper bench of West Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada. Kalala, meaning “Miracle Place”, is the symbol of our commitment to harmony with nature, organic viticulture practices, and our wines.
https://www.kalala.ca/about/
As we parked and got out of the car, someone greeted us and brought us over to the outdoor wine tasting area. They told us the wine shop was near capacity because of COVID precautions. We were happy to do our tasting outside anyway because I get anxious if we have to spend any considerable amount of time inside with other people.
The outdoor wine tasting bar was really nice, and we got a view of the vineyard as well as peeks of Okanagan Lake. Beyond the bar was a series of picnic tables and umbrellas. You can bring your own food, buy a bottle of wine, and enjoy the views.
There was a small fee for a tasting, waived with purchase. They had 4 wines to taste, and well as 2 iced wines for an additional fee. We got to learn more about the vineyards, as well as the wines. We learned afterward that we were chatting with Kalala’s Proprietor and Viticulturist, Karnail Sidhu. I really liked the Kalala logo, as Kalala means “Miracle Place” and symbolizes the legend of the origins of this particular village where farmers came upon a wolf and lamb sitting peacefully together.
The Pinot Gris was lovely, nice, and off-dry. The Rosé was an absolute rockstar, comprised of 4 grapes and tasted predominately of the Gewürztraminer. The first red Harmony Red was a blend, which didn’t really excite us. The second red, Aspire, a Merlot Cab Sauv blend really blew us away. It spent 30 months in oak, and those grapes hail from the Naramata and Osoyoos. We really enjoyed the 2014 Aspire, and were told it would be good to lay down for 2-3 years too.
Iced wines always pique our interest. We always taste them and almost always convince ourselves we need to buy a bottle. Then it sits around in our cellar for forever, because a bottle of iced wine is a lot to drink between 2 people. Kalala had 2 iced wines for tasting, a Riesling, and a Merlot iced wines. Both were fantastic! They were left to ferment for longer than usual for iced wines, which helps bring down the sugars. They had great mouthfeel, and the sweetness didn’t linger much in your mouth. We absolutely loved the Merlot iced wine but opted not to get any because while we loved it, we just wouldn’t have drunk it.
We had no idea how large Kalala’s wine portfolio was until we went inside to make our purchase. They were also selling a variety of jams as well as crystal wine glasses with their logo. They have a Frizzante that I’d like to pick up the next time we visit.
Ice wine bottles for door handles Kalala wine shop wine equipment some display wine barrels
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