Graydon Ratzlaff, Proprietor of Recline Ridge Winery, has a message for wine drinkers everywhere.
“Recline Ridge, and in fact all of the Shuswap wineries, are not just another excellent BC product. We have unique growing conditions in this area, which allow us to produce wines that are completely different from mainstream reds and whites,” he says.
Most of the wines produced in the Shuswap are cool climate German-style wines. Highly aromatic and flavourful, they offer a nice alternative to the many wonderful Chardonnays, Sauvignon Blancs and Viogniers found in British Columbia’s wine regions. Ratzlaff says one of the perennial favorites at Recline Ridge is the 2009 Ortega.
“The Ortega is crisp and refreshing, with notes of tropical fruit. This is the white wine that red wine drinkers love. I usually ask our red wine-lovers to give it a try and they’re always surprised at how much they like it,” said Ratzlaff. The Ortega pairs especially well with Asian foods.
There are some sumptuous reds that are a hit, too, including Recline Ridge’s 2009 Marechal Foch. A bit of wine trivia…Marechal Foch wine is named after a French World War One war hero, Marshall Ferdinand Foch. The wine features hints of raspberry, cherry, caramel and butterscotch, and was a medal winner at the 2011 Fall Okanagan Wine Festival, as well as 2012 Savour Northwest, 2012 All Canadian Wine Championships, and the 2012 Wine Access Canadian Wine Awards.
The 2010 Hawk’s Haven, a blend of Zweigelt and Blaufrankisch is another wine that is unique to Recline Ridge. This fruit-forward red wine is spicy and rich in tannins, and goes extremely well with red meats, game and Brie cheese and was also a medal winner with the 2012 Savour Northwest competition.
~ Deanna Rainey