Photo by Jon Adrian
Blasted Church Wines
The team at Blasted Church Vineyards is celebrating 20 years of operations in Okanagan Falls and raising a glass to a bright future under relatively new ownership. As the future promises to bring more outstanding wines and plenty of accolades, here is a look back at some of the highlights in Blasted Church Vineyards’ history.
Where It All Started: 20 Years of Bringing Irreverence to The Okanagan
The year was 2002 when the Campbell family acquired Prpich Hills Winery and Vineyard in Okanagan Falls to create a new, irreverent winery they renamed Blasted Church Vineyards.
The Blasted Church team didn’t just conceive the name from a shrewd marketing idea; the team is also paying homage to the true story of a local treasure.
The name refers to the iconic house of prayer in Fairview that endured a controlled blast in 1929 to move it to Okanagan Falls. A controversial topic, the name and mildly blasphemous stance arguably is Blasted Church’s most notable characteristic.
The Blessed Fruit
On a beautiful plateau in Okanagan Falls overlooking Skaha Lake, Blasted Church sources fruit from their estate along with fruit from contracted growers in Oliver and Osoyoos. Originally planted in the early 1970s by previous landowner Dan Prpich, their estate vineyards are some of the oldest in the Okanagan Valley.
With the slopes and angles of the estate vineyards tricky to maneuver for even the most sophisticated of harvesters, for quality control the Blasted Church team insists on handpicking.
A Place Of ‘Firsts’
When Blasted Church Vineyards first burst onto the Canadian wine scene, the winery made an instant and lasting impression with the colourful labels that adorned its bottles.
Blasted Church launched its inaugural vintage with labels illustrated by Whitehorse-based artist Monika Melnychuk. Bold and witty, the 2002 Pinot Gris depicted well-known characters in the BC wine industry such as journalists Tim Pawsey and Jurgen Gothe attending mass.
In 2005, Blasted Church became the first BC winery to move to screw cap closures completely, and soon after became the first winery to get introduced to the on-tap market, available at Tap and Barrel.
An After Party … Service
The winery has become a place where people gather. Some of the most fun Okanagan Wine Festival after-parties were at Blasted Church.
For example, after the Festival’s Grand Finale tasting finished on Thanksgiving weekend, the midnight service at Blasted Church started. The shuttles lined up at the Penticton Convention Centre brought ‘sinners’ who had tickets. On-site, they enjoyed a BBQ feast and music by Gospel Experience Choir until past midnight. Some people still miss it to this day.
View at Blasted CHurch
As a nod to these much-loved parties of the past, for their 20th anniversary the winery held a “Seven Deadly Sins” themed party complete with attendees dressed up as their favourite “sin”, such as music, food, and of course, the wines!
Owner Sean Morrison welcomed everyone and said he is so proud of the entire team, noting “they are elevating their guest experience to match the high quality of the wines that they produce!”
A Very Important Visitor
In 2008, the winery hosted Governor General Michaëlle Jean, and the winery team invited BC grape growers and everyone involved with the winemaking at Blasted Church to meet her.
OMG, Bubbles!
The release of Blasted Church’s first traditional method sparkling wine was a special occasion. The winery team decided to celebrate the summer solstice, on June 21st.
Every single bottle of OMG enjoyed that day was sabered with a few very foamy attempts at the end of the day when the wine was not as cold anymore. The solstice must have brought OMG good luck, because to this day, this is one of the most awarded wines produced by Blasted Church.
Speaking of bubbles, to celebrate its 20th anniversary as a winery, winemaker Evan Saunders has crafted two special edition wines (The Dam Flood blend and a Chardonnay) sporting the winery’s beloved first-generation label, originally released in 2002. The Dam Flood is a supple, juicy attack of red berries and plum that flows into the savoury mid-palate and through into the rounded finish - beautiful with a light chill on warm summer days! The Chardonnay is a vibrant attack of citrus and orchard fruit that leads into the beautifully textured mid-palate, along with lemon curd and a floral note through the fresh, balanced finish. Enjoy with religious abandon at blastedchurch.com
A Challenging Year
The year 2020 was challenging for everyone, and especially for the team at Blasted Church.
When the world shut down, the winery had to pivot. With no customers coming through the doors, the solution was to offer direct-to-consumer sales through their website. Every order included a handwritten card with words of encouragement, colouring pages and crayons.
When summer finally arrived, the Christie Mountain fire threatened the winery and vineyard, and the winery had to close while the team was evacuated for six days. Many staff members were also evacuated from their homes!
When the team was permitted back to the property, they witnessed helicopters filling their buckets in Skaha Lake and flying directly overhead, sometimes so low they could feel the drops of water falling from the buckets. To show gratitude for the firefighters’ life-risking efforts, the winery team painted a big “Thank You” on the parking lot pavement for the crews to see, still visible today.
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Thank you Firefighters
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Midnight Service
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Photo by Jon Adrian
Wine Production
Dave Courtemanche, Assistant Winemaker.
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Evan Saunders and John Bayley
Evan Saunders, Winemaker, and John Bayley, Viticulturalist.
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Photo by Jon Adrian
John Burke and Lisa Baxton Burke
John Burke and Lisa Baxton Burke on the patio.
In summer 2020, Sean Morrison purchased a majority interest in Blasted Church, and after founding owner Evelyn Campbell announced her retirement in the fall of 2021, Sean took over active management of the company.
Evelyn is now enjoying the retired life at her residence in Revelstoke, BC, while maintaining a minority shareholder investment.
Sean has been fortunate to have worked with many of Canada’s leading brands and businesses including The Keg, Lululemon, A&W, Aritzia, Mr. Lube, Boston Pizza and Air Miles Canada, and he was attracted to Blasted Church because of its status as an iconic brand in the BC wine industry. Sean brings his experience with leading Canadian brands to his work with Blasted Church’s award-winning wines, iconic branding and experienced management team.
Blasted Church Vineyards Today
In the past 18 months, many things have changed. The world started opening again, visitors are back to the tasting room, and new team members have come on board.
What has not changed is the team’s wish to continue to produce top-quality wines that reflect the Skaha Bench terroir and impress critics in Canada and beyond.
While showcasing wit and an often irreverent sensibility, the team at Blasted Church is all about the production of serious wine. The team applies progressive farming practices to produce handcrafted, small-lot wines that have gathered accolades from the most respected wine critics in Canada and beyond.
Landing the accolade of #2 ranked winery in BC and #3 in Canada by WineAlign’s National Wine Awards in 2021 is a win the winery team is very proud of.
Visitors to the winery can experience a taste of the sublime, taking in their choice of heavenly wine and food experiences while enjoying the incredible Skaha Lake views from the tasting room or pool area. To join the flock, visit blastedchurch.com.