The Rust Wine Company was a new project born of the dirt and inspired by rejuvenation. Their wines are sourced from four exceptional vineyards so they can showcase the distinct terroirs of the small lot, single vineyards Okanagan Valley wines.
Vancouver businessman Sonny Haung purchased this vineyard in 2015. The tasting room opened on July 1st, 2017. The first wines served were Golden Mile Merlot and Zinfandel from 2014 vintage.
The Vineyards
SOUTH ROCK VINEYARD – GOLDEN MILE BENCH
The Rust Wine Co. home vineyard is a 12-acre block that is the most Southern vineyard on the Golden Mile Bench. Rocky soils and a gentle East facing slope produce balanced mineral-laden reds and a rich Gewurztraminer. They are in the process of replanting some of the vineyards to Cabernet Sauvignon with the vision of producing a pure Golden Mile Meritage. The vineyard also includes Zinfandel and Merlot.
LOST HORN VINEYARD – OKANAGAN FALLS
Okanagan Falls is one of the unique vineyard sites in BC. A series of glaciers carved a great valley and left behind mounds of rocky soils. These along with long warm days and cool nights create wines with great acidity and mineral notes. The vineyard was planted with Riesling in the 1970’s, Merlot in 1997, Cabernet Franc in 2002 and recently with Syrah and Pinot Noir.
LAZY RIVER VINEYARD – SOUTH CAWSTON
The Similkameen Valley is an amazing place to grow a diversity of varietals. Windblown soils, alluvial fans and coarse rocky material have eroded from the surrounding mountains. The soils are derived from limestone, schist or granite giving a desirable mineral sensation to the wine. Riesling and Pinot Gris was planted in 1997 and Merlot, Syrah and Gamay Noir in the early 2000’s.
SUMMER BREEZE VINEYARD – WEST OSOYOOS
Summer Breeze Vineyard enjoys a west-facing slope towards Osoyoos Lake, Canada’s warmest growing area. This arid 17-acre site enjoys long, warm days and cooler afternoon thanks to the reliable wind that comes up daily. The soils are a mixture of sand, clay and gravel and have excellent drainage. The big bold reds thrive in the desert heat and this site is home to the majority of the Solus Red Blend. The vineyard was planted in 2007 with Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Syrah.
FERREIRA VINEYARD Black Sage Bench
The Black Sage Bench is the most awarded viticultural area in Canada. Here in the South-East part of the valley vines get more light than any other region in North America. This west-facing block bathes in it and we pick up to 2 weeks earlier than on the West side of the valley. The soils here are sandy loam from glacial deposits 10,000 years ago. Known as “The Beach” the sands here can be as much as 300 metres deep.
The Winemaker
Ryan DeWitte a recent transplant from Niagara where he has been the Assistant Winemaker at Leaning Post Wines, a super-premium small lot winery, for the past 4 vintages.
A passion for single-vineyard wines, an adept taster (WSET Level 3), and a spirit of experimentation made him a perfect fit for the vision of Rust Wine Co.
Vintage 2017
“The 2017 harvest saw exceptional fruit quality from our vineyards. It was a challenging vintage, however, due to the high humidity levels caused by the smoke. Many producers who were not up on their vineyard maintenance lost fruit to mildew. Our fruit was beautiful as this was the year that we invested as much as we could in rejuvenating our properties with a focus on quality.“
Kane Morgan, Winery Manager
Vintage 2019
“Despite it being a cooler year grapes were generally picked earlier than last year in order to maintain acidity and freshness while there was a lot of noise made about the cooler harvest and blah blah blah…..Without too much jargon we got all the ripeness we needed and these are still Okanagan wines. I’m really happy with the results and I hope you like them as much as I do.
To add some detail, we experimented with some skin contact on the Gewürztraminer and Pinot Grigio and whole cluster pressed the Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon Rose to make sure those wines stayed fresh and vibrant. The Rose is dry and fruity with great driving acidity it’s really tasty, I think you’ll agree. The Gamay is a little lighter than last year but it still has that Similkameen spice and fruit you expect, just in a more compact package.”
Ryan DeWitte, Winemaker
The House
Beside the Rust Wine Co. tasting room is a truly unique house built in the 19th Century as a bunkhouse for miners at the Sally Silver Mine near Beaverdell. In 1963 it was relocated to where it stands today on Golden Mile Drive. The house was moved log by log via the tricky Anarchist Mountain switchback road. The most striking feature of the house is one of a kind live desert roof that was sourced from the nearby hillsides. Today it blends into the surroundings and the winery with its constantly changing natural colours. This amazing piece of Okanagan Valley history is now the guest house for those looking for a unique setting to enjoy the vista and hospitality of the Southern Okanagan.
The Wines
Rust Wine Company Cabernet Franc 2016 ($25)
Grapes are from the Lost Horn Vineyard. Aged 13 months in French Oak, 20% new. A bold red with black cherry, blackberries, tobacco, toasted oak, smooth tannins and a long lingering finish. 90 points
Rust Wine Co. Pinot Gris 2017
Made from Clone 52 first planted in 1997, aged in 90% stainless steel, and 10% old French oak. The vines were planted on sandy clay loam, with limestone and granite rock.
Aromas of lemon, pear, and a hint of peach. Medium acidity, with lots of lemon and pear on the palate. Medium finish. Enjoy with summer dishes, salads or light white fish, or as a patio sipper. Great label with lots of information on the wine. 90 Points
You can visit the Rust Wine Company website for their complete portfolio of BC wines here.
Future Plans
“We have started replanting over 40 acres of vines with a vision of ideally matching suitability between site and varietals. We also want to showcase unique single vineyard wines showing the diversity of BC wine regions.”
Source: Rust Wine Co. provided the Winery and Vineyard information but not the tasting notes.
Note: Original article updated in March 2020 to include notes on the new winemaker and Harvest 2019.