Carie Jones
The Wines of British Columbia are raising a glass this year to toast 30 years of the British Columbia Vintners Quality Alliance (BC VQA) – the standard of excellence for BC wines worldwide – with a look back on history.
Our industry has a lot to celebrate today with BC VQA Wine dominating wine sales and winning over critics and consumers internationally. Still, excellence was not always synonymous with BC wine. In the late 1980s, aside from a few industry pioneers, many of the grapes grown in BC were hybrids, and the focus was on quantity rather than quality. That all changed when a small group of visionary winemakers, grapegrowers and industry leaders came together to create the British Columbia Vintners Quality Alliance (BC VQA) and the BC Wine Institute (BCWI).
“Back then, BC wines were not well-received," says George Heiss, a founding member of the BCWI and creator of Grey Monk Estate Winery. "If the wine wasn’t French, no one was looking at it. We had to create a standard. If a wine region doesn’t have a quality standard it just can’t compete with the rest of the world,”
Adding to that challenge was the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement between Canada and the United States, which prompted the removal of two-thirds of the 3,400 grape acreage, leaving just 1,134 acres of grapes in 1990, only half of which were estimated to be vinifera grapes.
"Many growers lost their vineyards," says Lanny Martiniuk, a founding member of the BCWI and creator of Stoneboat Vineyards. "We realized we had to do something that would help us produce better grapes and convince the public that we were producing better wine. We (the BCWI founders) consulted with the wineries and proposed to the government that the only way to make this happen was to become a premium wine region.”
This launched the subsequent planting of quality vinifera varieties which saw the beginning of the modern BC wine industry and creation of the BC VQA standard. The designation guaranteed consumers they were drinking wine made from 100% BC grown grapes. Wine enthusiasts could now purchase BC wine with confidence, knowing they were buying a quality product.
Despite the challenges the industry was facing in the late 1980s, Martiniuk recalls vividly the positive impact it had on the community and the industry as a whole. “Everyone came together and said, ‘we have to work together, or we're all going to cease to exist.’ It gave me a far greater appreciation for the entire industry. It’s amazing what you can accomplish when you work together.”
Christa-Lee McWatters is President & CEO of Encore Vineyards and daughter of the late Harry McWatters, who was the founding Chair of the BCWI and a driving force in the British Columbia wine industry. She credits BC wine industry employees for their dedication to making the industry what it is today.
"My entire life and career have been in the BC wine industry," she says.
"I am so proud of and grateful to everyone who makes it happen.”
The BC wine industry has expanded to 282 licensed grape wineries today from just 19 in 1990. The number of BC vineyards has increased from 115 in 1990 to more than 929, and there are now more than 2,100 wines boasting the VQA designation.
To honour this milestone year, the Wines of British Columbia are bringing together the pioneers and innovators of the future. Special events, commemorative videos and campaigns are scheduled throughout the year inviting industry, trade and consumers to celebrate 30 years of BC VQA Wine.