Fitzpatrick Family Vineyards south of Peachland began welcoming wine enthusiasts in April 2017. The winery was operated from 2003 until the spring of 2014 as Greata Ranch Vineyards by Gordon Fitzpatrick and his father, Senator Ross Fitzpatrick.
The estate vineyard features 40 acres of vines separated into 12 smaller, carefully tended blocks. There are seven varietals: Chardonnay, Ehrenfelser, Gewürztraminer, Meunier, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Noir, and Riesling. The Fitzpatrick family focuses on sparkling wine, crisp whites, and elegant, focused reds. The location is ideal for sparkling wines. The early morning sun that lasts throughout the day combines with a critical, early evening shadow cast by the mountain to the west. That gift of shade reduces acid metabolism in the grapes and retains the acidity so key to great sparkling.
Winemaker
Sarah Bain began her path in the wine industry working on the vineyards in Central Otago, New Zealand. At that stage, it was just a summer job after returning from snow adventures in the northern hemisphere. After her first vintage in 2005, it sealed the deal that growing and making wine was what she wanted to do full-time. Her career thus far has been mainly based in Central Otago New Zealand, at two leading organic & biodynamic producers. Firstly, with Burn Cottage making premium quality Pinot Noir and then with Quartz Reef one of New Zealand’s leading producers of Methode Traditionelle. During this time Sarah also travelled abroad to do vintages in California, Germany and Canada.
Sarah’s passion, aside from making terroir-inspired wines, is anything involving mountains – mountain biking, snowboarding, mountaineering, climbing, etc.
Harvest 2016
Gordon Fitzpatrick provided the following comment on Vintage 2016. The 2016 season kicked off with a warmer than usual spring initiating an early budburst. This lead into a fairly cool summer with a notably wet June. Autumn brought moderate temperatures leading to prolonged ripening and harvest.
For the sparkling base, the grapes showed great natural acidity and sugar balance with good flavour development without over maturity.
Generally speaking there were long hang times for the aromatics and reds. The whites came in all with great acidity and aromatics. The Bordeaux reds took some time to reach maturity but very happy with the quality and flavour once pick day arrived and luckily right before the rain set in.
The plan for the future is to be one of the best sparkling houses in Canada. Annually we will make a house Brut and as the seasons permit, reserve cuvee’s of Rose and Blanc de Blanc. New to the portfolio this vintage is a Cremant. A lighter “creamier” style sparkling made from estate grown Pinot Blanc grapes.
To compliment the sparkling wines there will be a range of aromatic whites. The goal is to make still and sparkling wines that are site, soil & season expressive. Terroir driven wines made with minimal intervention. Greata Ranch is such an exciting site with huge potential. My vision is be as much as possible a self-sustaining property with the possibility of organics in the future.
The Sparkling Wines
Fitz Brut 2016
66% Chardonnay / 26% Pinot Noir/ 6% Pinot Blanc / 2% Pinot Meunier.
Essentially dry, Fitz Brut is the winery’s signature bubbly that is adjusted yearly to reflect “the vintage, the people and the site.”
The bubbly opens with lemon, green apple and toasted bread on the nose. The palate is marzipan, creamy peach and pear with a vibrant finish. Drink now or hold even longer. Fitz Brut spends a minimum of 24 months on its lees. 92 Points
Fitz Blanc de Blancs 2014
The 2014 Reserve Blanc de Blancs is as crisp and refined as the packaging it wears. The 2014 vintage was very good to us with warm winds blowing up from the south to complement what was already a good growing season at Fitz. This crisp and refined wine presented us with a debate at bottling. To dosage or not to dosage? Because of the warmth of the year, it was close to perfect in profile. But in the end, we added just the smallest dosage to round it out a little. It was the right call. Our Reserve Sparkling wines are rested on lees longer than any other in our sparkling wine program at no less than 36 months.
The result is real richness and complexity in the wine – a quality you can’t rush. The Fitz Reserve Blanc de Blancs is made using traditional methods from 100% estate-grown Chardonnay grapes from Greata Ranch Vineyard.
This is a very dry, very focused, very linear wine with aromatics of blossom and brioche. Crisp green apple to start and a tingling, frothy mousse, the wine finishes medium-long and presents lemon rind upon completion. Rich and refreshing.
Gold medal at the prestigious Decanter World Wine Awards 2019
Please visit the winery website for the complete portfolio of Fitzpatrick Family Vineyards BC wines.
19 Bistro @ Fitz Restaurant
During the summer of 2021, 19 Bistro opened a restaurant at Fitzpatrick Family Vineyards.
19 Bistro @ Fitz is inspired by the beautiful region, province, and country we reside in. Our dishes are made with ingredients sourced close to home, from farmers and producers who believe in the same quality-first mindset as us. Naturally, those dishes are paired with a selection of delicious Fitzpatrick Family Vineyard wines by the glass, and a selection of top-tier Okanagan wines by the bottle to further elevate our guest experience. Wine, Cider, and cocktails follow the same local-centric mindset. Altogether, our culinary and beverage offerings are crafted to showcase the best that our home has to offer.
Neil Martens
We returned to 19 Bistro @ Fitz this summer to celebrate a family birthday and enjoyed a terrific lunch captured in the collage below.
Green Thai Mussels – 1/2 pound of salt spring mussels in a green Thai curry broth with a Thai basil herbed baguette.
Tataki Poke Bowl – Seared Togarashi ahi tuna, avocado, Sunomono onions and cucumber and Yuzu Ponzu rice crisps.
Fish Taco – Four corn tortillas, crispy red snapper, avocado, salsa, cilantro vinaigrette and pickled onions.
Oysters on the Half Shell – Fresh Kusshi oysters, shaved ice, classic mignonette, champagne pearls, freshly grated horseradish.
We have also enjoyed the chicken sandwich on previous visits.
Crispy Chicken Sandwich – Karaage style fried chicken thigh, crisp sunomono slaw, quick pickles, red curry aioli on a toasted artisan roll.
Be sure to take the rose garden path back to the parking lot as you leave the restaurant to enjoy the vineyard and Lake Okanagan view.
Note : The original June 2021 article was updated with the latest 19 Bistro menu.