I had the pleasure of meeting the four main family members that started up The Adega on 45th Estate Winery in Osoyoos (Adega means wine cellar in Portuguese). Ideally located on the road to Spirit Ridge, this lovely winery has now made it through their first year, although they have been years in the family business of orchards and farming in the Okanagan. Brother Fred Farinha and wife Pamala and sister Maria Nunes and husband Alex are at the centre of the family business, with children pitching in to help in the tasting room. During our visit Maria observed they produced their first wines with four year old vines, there are four of them and four grandchildren, and they just happen to have a Quarteto Tinto Bordeaux blend! “My parents were some of the first Portuguese families to farm in this area, and purchased an orchard in 1966, but it came to a point- as for many orchard farmers -that we had to either sell our land or make a shift,” says Fred, “it was really about keeping another generation here on the land.”
They first switched their vineyards over six years ago, and their winery vineyard four years ago. Their first vintage was the 2010 reds and 2011 whites. Two of their wines are named as a tribute to their parents – the ‘Manuel’ and the ‘Felicidade’. They also have a 2009 Portao, port-style made with Merlot grapes. The construction of their beautiful building is European style, with a barrel room cave dug into the side of the hill.
Bring along a picnic and enjoy a glass of wine on their patio with a spectacular view of Lake Osoyoos and surrounding vineyards and orchards.
www.adegaon45.com
~ Terry Meyer-Stone