Pentage
Seeking out unusual and unique wines brought me to Pentâge Winery above Skaha Lake in Okanagan Falls, where one of the oldest winemaking processes is employed to produce an Appassimento-style red wine; a 2013 Reserve Cabernet Franc.
Since antiquity, the technique of drying grapes on mats or racks, or hanging bunches on hooks from the rafters, has been used to increase sugars, concentration and strength of wine.
Techniques include picking the ripest (although not over-ripe) and healthiest grapes and careful handling and good ventilation to prevent rot during the dehydration phase.
The best known “appassimento-style” wine is Amarone (more correctly Amarone della Valpolicella), a big, rich, concentrated dry or off-dry red wine with port-like flavours and a bitter finish from the Valpolicella region of northeast Italy. At Pentâge, co-owner and winemaker Paul Gardner crafted his first appassimento-style wine in 2011, making only 40 cases.
“2013 is the second year,” he says, add the process is meticulous.
“Only clusters with no blemishes, that look perfect, are hand-selected,” he explains. “They are placed in a single layer in baskets and air-dried naturally for 35 days.”
The result is a deep, dark powerhouse of intensity, richness, complexity and structure.