The BC Wine Appellation Task Group

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Thompson Valley

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Thompson Valley

Thompson Valley. It includes the lowland along the Thompson River. The upland boundary is marked by watersheds that drain directly into the Thompson River. The valley is cut off at Chase to the east and start of the Fraser Canyon to the west.

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Lillooet-Lytton

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Lillooet-Lytton

Lillooet-Lytton - Kamloops. Lytton-Lillooet Appellation would butt up against the Kamloops Appellation at Spence’s Bridge to the east at the point in the Fraser Canyon where interior climate transforms into coastal climate.

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Shuswap

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Shuswap

Shuswap. Possible Shuswap Appellation would include the three watersheds that flow into Shuswap Lake.

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Kootenay

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Kootenay

Kootenay. Possible Kootenay Appellation(s) The region can be expanded to include the Grand Forks area by adding sub-basins of the Kettle River watershed.

Mandate: To work in collaboration with the BC Wine Authority to bring forward recommendations to propose amendments to the Wines of Marked Quality Regulation that represent the interests of all 100% BC Wine Producers, to better meet the demands of today’s consumers and for potential application for other sectors including 100% BC fruit wine, ciders and beer.

BC Wine Task Group

  • Ezra Cipes, Chair, Summerhill Pyramid Winery
  • Christine Coletta, Okanagan Crush Pad Winery
  • Bill Eggert, Fairview Cellars
  • Andy Johnston, Vice-Chair, Averill Creek Vineyards
  • Derek Kontkanen, Inniskillin Okanagan
  • Eugene Kwan, Chaberton Estate Winery
  • Ian MacDonald, Liquidity Wines
  • Christie Mavety, Blue Mountain Winery
  • Harry McWatters, Time Estate Winery
  • JAK Meyer, Meyer Family Vineyards
  • Rhys Pender, Little Farm Winery
  • John Skinner, Painted Rock Estate Winery
  • Bob Tennant, Terravista Vineyards
  • Don Triggs, Culmina Family Estate Winery
  • James Mack, Ministry of Agriculture

13 Recommendations

  1. We recommend that as a condition of having a winery license producers making wine from 100% BC grown grapes be required to become a member of the British Columbia Wine Authority (BCWA) and be subject to audits conducted and enforced per the Wines of Marked Quality regulations (“the Regulations”).
  2. We recommend ending the use of taste panels to assess faults in wines produced from 100% BC grown grapes.
  3. We recommend the continuation of using accredited laboratory analysis to ensure that BC wines meet existing health and safety and technical standards per the Regulations.
  4. We recommend the continuation of BC VQA as the appellation of origin for wines made from 100% BC grown grapes.
  5. We recommend changing the Wines of Distinction category name in the Regulations to British Columbia Wine. Wines falling under this category would be restricted to use only Product of British Columbia as a geographical indication.
  6. We recommend that the BCWA be given the authority to prohibit the use of any unregulated geographical indication associated with British Columbia on its members’ wine labels.
  7. We recommend that all wines made from 100 percent BC grapes must register as either British Columbia VQA (“BC VQA”) or British Columbia Wine in order to qualify for recognition as a Wine of British Columbia. Only registered wines will be eligible for market benefits.
  8. We recommend BC VQA wines that use an approved sub-GI be required to display conjunctive labeling to show both the region and sub-region on the primary display panel.
  9. We recommend the establishment of new geographic indications in four emerging wine grape growing regions – Thompson Valley, Shuswap, Lillooet-Lytton and Kootenays – subject to a final review of the boundaries and in consultation with stakeholders within each region. [See document: Appellations – Emerging BC Regions]
  10. We recommend that industry accept the set of sub-regions of the Okanagan Valley as identified by the Task Group as the basis for establishing sub- geographic indications. [See document: Okanagan maps – Terroir boundaries (final Oct 26]. - As a guideline for naming these new sub- geographic indications, the Task Group recommends only accepting a village or town name, or a place name that is historically associated with a region. A defining geographical feature may also be used in combination with a village or place name: i.e. Golden Mile (place name) Bench (defining geographical feature).
  11.  We recommend that the current 3 separate audits by the Liquor Control and Licensing Branch, BC Liquor Distribution Branch and the BC Wine Authority be harmonized into one.
  12. We recommend that section 29 (3) (c) of the Regulations be amended to include the following underlined phrase: At least two thirds of practice standards certificate holders and practice standard certificate holders who own vineyard land in a proposed geographical area or subdivision, who produce at least two thirds of the total production of wine made from grapes grown in that area or subdivision, must have voted, by ballot, in favour of the proposed geographical area or subdivision;
  13. We recommend deleting section 29 (3) (e) from the Regulations, and propose an additional review of the entire Section 29 by BCWA and Wine Industry Advisory Committee (WIAC).