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5 reviews for Road 13 Vineyards
5 reviews in English
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Review from Cathy S.
8/2/2011
Road 13 has a weird castle appearance but is actually not too bad of a winery. They have some really nice blends in the Road 13 Honest Johns series that are pretty solid at an extremely good price point. I would seriously consider those for an event where you have a lot of people and you want to maintain some type of budget but provide a nice white, red and rose option.
We had a lot of fun with Donna, who handled our tasting, she was very personable. Also the winery owners have 2 little dachshunds - too cute! -
Review from K.Allen E.
6/11/2011
Now I'm a fan of some bold Syrah's, but Road 13 (used to be known as Golden Mile) takes the cake. White pepper blast!! My wife didn't seem to enjoy it, but I did.
The lineup is generally quite nice, with some standouts, and their price points are fair.
Update:
Upon returning, we find a very nice new tasting room, with their top tier wines called Jackpot. Throughout the lineup I'm finding less fruit forward, more acidity, and not as pleasing as before. I'll try again, but it didn't show as well this time. -
Review from John W.
Vancouver, BC
4/12/2011
Enjoy most of their wines. Rockpile Stemwinder and Honest Johns selections were what we last tried. Sometimes a little high in sulphites though if you are prone to reactions. Otherwise great price for quality.
Lovely buildings and tasting room. Love the story about the family dog on the label. -
Review from Scott P.
3/2/2010 1 photo
Huge fan! I have been reading about this vineyard for sometime and was finally able to enjoy their wines at the Parksville Wine Festival. Not only are the wines extraordinary they are priced right and the owners are so nice.
If you live in BC go to the nearest liquor store and buy yourself a bottle. If you are going to visit BC and can make it to the Okanagan wine region then stop in and say hello. Tell them Scott from San Francisco sent you. I can't wait to go and visit them in July.Listed in: Favorite Canadian Haunts
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Review from Sheila W.
BC
1/30/2009 1 photo
If you have any sort of princess fantasies, you can play them out here! As you drive up Road 13 you'll be swept away by a fairytale castle. That, in itself, is enough reason to make a trip to Road 13 Winery.
The winery used to be called Golden Mile Cellars, but it changed hands in 2003. The new owners gave into pressure from their neighbours to change the name from Golden Mile, as that refers to the wineries located along Highway 97, between Fairview and Road 18. Road 13 was coming up a little short for that title!
The wines are made in three tiers: "Honest John" at the less expensive end of the scale, "Road 13" (varietal series) is their middle of the road wine, and their premium is "Jackpot".
Don't let the castle fool you into thinking the royalty at Road 13 can't get their hands dirty. They believe wine is all about the dirt: good wine starts in the vineyard with good grape-growing practices.
You can drop in from Easter to Halloween to do tastings. If you want a special experience, book a private tasting and hit the Jackpot!Listed in: South Okanagan Wineries
Specialties
The wine making philosophy is to grow great fruit in the vineyard, maintain this fruit character through careful steps in the wine making, and finally, to perfect the texture of the mouthfeel of the wine with the use (or not) of barrels and fining.
Great wines are grown in the vineyard, period. Grapes brought in from the vineyard at a certain level of quality cannot be made into a higher quality wine. Thus, we use good growing practices and low cropping yields to ensure that the vines and fruits receive the correct amount of sunshine, water and nutrients to put them in a position to make great wine.
History
Established in 2003
The site was originally operated by a partnership between three field engineers who were kicked out of Russia by the communists after the revolution. After irrigation canal water became available in the early 1920s, they planted tree fruits and ground crops.
The property was sold in a derelict state to Hungarian Arpad Pallay in 1961. Arpad planted apples, cherries and ground crops. He was the first farmer in the lower valley to circumvent the growers' co-op and took his fruit direct to Vancouver.
Peter and Helga Serwo purchased the winery site in 1985. Coming to the Okanagan Valley in the late 1960s from Germany, and were responsible for a good chunk of the early Golden Mile plantings including the original Tinhorn Creek site. Pam and Mick Luckhurst purchased the land in 2003, when Peter and Helga wanted to slow down after 50 years of viticulture
Meet the Business Owner: Mick L.
Mick was born in Port Alberni, BC, in 1950. His background includes lumber trading, the building supply business, construction and development.
Mick now spends 90 percent of his time in the vineyard in pursuit of the perfect grapes. He continually studies farming philosophies, watering strategies and ways to control the vigorous growth our vines enjoy in the Road 13 Vineyards. His latest reading includes biodynamic, organic and sustainable farming. If you like to chat about the vineyard he's your man - never at a loss for words, he'll make sure you leave with a good understanding of our grape growing process and hopefully a few bottles of wine as well.
