Gina and Trevor Mitchell are all about vintages. She is the masterful winemaker working to create magic from each grape harvest and he is never happier than when he’s in the shop, restoring a classic vehicle to its original beauty. Vintage wines and vintage vehicles go together like, well, like Gina and Trevor, who worked together running Shorty’s Custom Auto before buying Oliver Twist Estate Winery near—you guessed it—Oliver.
Maybe it was the paints they used for the cars, but Gina just can’t resist colours. These days they’re busy rebranding the winery’s image.
“We’re using really vibrant colours, ones that make you think of fruit,” she smiles.
Gina might have earned her green thumb working on her parents Osoyoos orchard, but she has acquired her winemaking skills through education and dedication. And passion. How else to explain the mysteriously delightful flavours of chocolate-covered cherries to be found in the 2012 Patio Passion, a Silver Medal winner at the 2014 Savor NorthWest Wine Awards (Think Mexican food, especially with mole sauce!) Or the startling popularity of Oliver’s Choice, the Okanagan’s only off-dry Kerner—another award winner—that has become the winery’s flagship wine? Or, how about her 2010 Syrah, which was named Best Red Wine Overall at the 2012 Intervin International Wine Awards?
Expect to find some exciting new Oliver Twist releases in the wine shop this summer, as 2013 vintages of Viognier, Kerner and Late Harvest Kerner are deemed ready for consumption. This fall will see the release of a new blend for Gina, Merlot-Cabernet Franc.
~ Lorne Eckersley