Our visit to Phantom Creek Estates was the perfect opportunity to discover an Okanagan Valley winery, positioning itself to set a benchmark in Canadian viticulture and winemaking. This is not only an attention grabbing wine estate but also, it has enlisted some of the best in the field to be part of its wine team. I was excited to learn about this up and coming Okanagan Valley winery.
Phantom Creek Estates, Okanagan Valley © Spaswinefood
Phantom Creek Estates
This much anticipated winery opened in 2020. It all began in 2016 when the Richter Bai family of Richmond, British Columbia, bought Phantom Creek and Becker Vineyards to accomplish a dream of owning an Okanagan Valley winery, allowing Bai to explore his love of Bordeaux-style wine. Summer 2017 the construction of the 45,000-square foot winery began. That same year Phantom Creek shocked the Canadian wine world by hiring superstar Alsatian winemaker Olivier Humbrecht as a consulting winemaker. Humbrecht is France's first Master of Wine, and owner of Domaine Zind-Humbrecht, one of the most prestigious wineries in Alsace. He is also President of Biodyvin, a European biodynamic certifying body. He will oversee white wine production, and the conversion of Phantom Creek’s vineyards to organic and biodynamic growing.
Phantom Creek Estates has assembled an impressive wine team. In 2021 Mark Beringer was hired as Director of Winemaking. The great-great-grandson of Napa’s Beringer Vineyards founding brother Jacob Beringer. Mark followed in the footsteps of his forefathers, by receiving an Enology degree from California State University, Fresno. Beringer spent a year working in the cellars at Benziger Family Winery, Sonoma. He joined Duckhorn Vineyards as an enologist in 1992, working his way up to Vice President of Winemaking. In 2009, he joined Artesa as Vice President and Winemaker. In 2015, Mark returned to his namesake Beringer Vineyards, as Chief Winemaker. As Phantom Creek Estates Director of Winemaking he will work closely with Luke MacKinnon, Winemaker for Red Wines and Karin Grosstessner-Hain, Winemaker for White Wines.
Other Phantom Creek Estates key players include Richards and Mateo. Amy Richards, Director of Farming, Australian viticulturist of the year in 2011, relocated to California in 2015 to manage the portfolio of Napa Valley grower contracts, before moving to the Okanagan. Phantom Creek Estates recently announced the appointment of François Mateo, as Managing Director.
To add to a state of the art facility, and an impressive wine team Phantom Creek Estates has acquired some of Okanagan Valley's best vineyards.
Phantom Creek Estates, Black Sage Road © Spaswinefood
Vineyards of Phantom Creek Estates
One of Phantom Creek's goals is to produce exceptional wines from historic vineyards. Within the Okanagan Valley's short wine history Becker, Phantom Creek and Kobau vineyards have gained attention. They are all part of Phantom Creek Estates. The Becker Vineyard, know as the Becker Project, is where Helmut Becker in the late 1970s, planted 33 traditional European grape varieties to see the results. In 1993, he introduced red Bordeaux varieties, which have become synonymous with South Okanagan wines. The Phantom Creek Vineyard is where viticulturist Richard Cleve planted Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah in 1996; this site has since made wines of international acclaim. Phantom Creek Vineyard is recognized for producing some of the best red wines in Canada. The vineyard is located on the lower terrace of the southwest-facing Black Sage Bench. Wines from this site have garnered over 85 awards in recent history. Across from the Black Sage Bench, on the Golden Mile Bench sub-GI, the Kobau Vineyard was planted with Cabernet, Syrah and Viognier in 2005. Moreover, Phantom Creek Estates recently has expanded its vineyard holdings to the southerly Similkameen Valley, and the Skaha Bench sub-GI. All of this prime vineyard offers the kind of potential for establishing the next benchmark in winemaking.
Phantom Creek Estates, Okanagan Valley © Spaswinefood
The winery’s estate vineyards, including the acclaimed Phantom Creek Vineyard, are being farmed organically and biodynamically. They achieved organic certification for their vineyards (a three year process that started in 2017). They have also been doing Biodynamic practices from the beginning however, this certification typically takes another three years after organic certification. By careful farming Phantom Creek Estates will produce wines that celebrate a sense of place.
Welcome to Phantom Creek Estates
Phantom Creek Estates specializes in single vineyard Bordeaux reds, Alsatian whites and the Okanagan’s benchmark varieties of Viognier and Syrah. While some of the estate's vineyards have been producing wines for some time, the first inaugural vintage under the Phantom Creek Estates label was in 2016.
Welcome to Phantom Creek Estates © Spaswinefood
James Nevison, a columnist with The Province, June 2022 described as Phantom Creek Estates as a destination winery:
What makes for a destination winery? Admittedly, it’s subjective. But providing a “wow factor” offers a good start, and there’s no denying the grandiose stature of Phantom Creek Estates. Fortunately, the wines in the bottle live up to the hype — marble sculptures, extravagantly elegant barrel room and VIP tasting room — and see the same level of attention to detail. Their Pinot Gris, for example, is fermented with Indigenous yeasts and rests 16 months in large-scale oak foudres, creating an amazingly layered nose of honeyed orchard fruit, flowers and subtle oak. It’s complex yet balanced and approachable, an elegant fish and seafood partner.
Phantom Creek Estates is clearly positioning itself to showcase not only the best of Okanagan Valley's Bordeaux-style wines but also, white wines.
Through the Vines, Phantom Creek Estates © Spaswinefood
Upon arrival we were pleasantly welcomed by the tasting room staff.
Wine Tasting, Phantom Creek Estates © Spaswinefood
Our wine tasting experience here was excellent. We not only enjoyed the wines but also, had a knowledgeable hostess. I look forward to reviews of future wine releases from Phantom Creek Estates. Phantom Creek Estates has a winery restaurant that I would love to visit in the future.
Why the Okanagan Valley?
Bai could have built a winery anywhere in the world. Yet, he chose to create Phantom Creek Estates in the Okanagan Valley, where 86% of the British Columbia's vineyard acreage is located. In case you are wondering viticultural regions are defined in British Columbia as areas of Geographic Indication (GI). The Okanagan Valley is one of British Columbia's nine GIs. The GIs participate in a Vitners Quality Allicance (VQA), an appellation of origin that is modeled after the European system. An Okanagan VQA certifies a wine is from this region and meets the quality standards.
The Okanagan Valley GI is very diverse with eleven official sub-regions, each defined by its distinct soil and climate conditions. They include: Golden Mile Bench, Golden Mile Slopes, Naramata Bench, Okanagan Falls Skaha Bench, East Kelowna Slopes, Lake Country, South Kelowna Slopes, Summerland Bench, Summerland Lakefront and Summerland Valleys. Phantom Creek Estates vineyards represent some of the best sub-regions within the Okanagan Valley GI. Given the careful planning behind this wine estate it could very well become a Future Star on the list of the World's Greatest Wine Estates.
Phantom Creek Estates, Black Sage © Spaswinefood
Each year the Okanagan Valley gets thousands of visitors seeking the best in wine and cuisine. Since the late 1980's I have had the pleasure of visiting this area. I have watched it transform from primarily a fruit growing region, to one of the top wine regions in North America. Wines of BC lists 1,234 vineyards and 341 wineries in British Columbia, with over 200 of them in the Okanagan Valley. These days the Okanagan Valley is showcasing its wines to the world. Given this impressive wine estate has enlisted some of the best in the field to be part of its wine team, Phantom Creek Estates has clearly joined that effort. In fact visiting it reminded me of our 2020 visit to Uruguay's extraordinary wine estate, Bodega Garzón.
Phantom Creek Estates © Spaswinefood
Phantom Creek Estates, with its state of the art facility, impressive wine team, and some of the best Okanagan Valley vineyards, is on the list of wineries to watch. Without a doubt, returning to the Okanagan Valley was an highlight of my 2023 wine travels in British Columbia. I invite you to join me in my wine travels in Okanagan Valley and elsewhere at Wine Travels with Dr. Sharon, and at Spaswinefood on Twitter and Facebook. I am so looking forward to sharing more on my vine-filled explorations in the Okanagan Valley.
CHEERS!
Sharon
June 2023
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia
© Spaswinefood
Phantom Creek Estates, Okanagan Valley © Spaswinefood
Phantom Creek Estates © Spaswinefood
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia, June 2023 © Spaswinefood
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