Okanagan Valley Advice Needed

We’re planning a trip out west and will have a couple of days to spend in the Okanagan Valley area. I’m researching places to stay, places to eat and wineries to visit. One person in our group want to visit Gray Monk. Any other recommendations would be much appreciated.

Le Vieux Pin for some great wine.

On the bigger side Cassini Cellars

Was there for 5 days this past summer… are you looking for ‘pretty places’? or good wine?
Also there’s 4 fairly ‘distinct’ areas… top to bottom - Kelowna, Naramata/Penticton, Okanagan Falls, South Okanagan/Osoyoos. The drive from the top one (Kelowna) to bottom (Osoyoos) is 2 hours… so u can’t mix/match areas very easily.

Do you only have 2 days? that’s not very much…

LIVING- lots in Kelowna area, quite a few in Osoyoos area. Much less in the Naramata/OK Falls area.
If cost is no issue, look at the hotel at burrowing owl winery… or hester creek winery… we stayed at the holiday inn on points… not great but good enough since we’re there mainly to sleep

WINERIES:
Kelowna area - all the ‘big brands’ are here… with impressive tasting rooms (but mediocre wines)… a couple worth going to.
Mission Hill - iconic Okanagan winery. gorgeous grounds. Do the Occulus tasting if you can (it’s like $10 more)… you taste their 4 best wines… worth it. - this is the must see of this region.
Tantalus - interesting rieslings… worth a visit
Cedar Creek, Quails Gate, Sumac Ridge - all decent. if u are spending a WHOLE day in this area, then go to these

Naramata/Penticton area
Laughing Stock - Cab/Syrah/Chard - Great place… beautiful view and good wine for the area. Need appointment… and really a must see
Foxtrot - Pinots - Need appointment
Painted Rock
Poplar Grove
Dirty Laundry
La Frenz
I would visit in that order if you spend more time here

OK Falls
Blue Mountain - Pinots mainly… one of the best in the region. beautiful drive to there, and really a must go as well
Blasted Church - interesting/funky story
Liquidity Wine - decent wine, but the restaurant here is AWESOME
See ya later Ranch - dog angle if u like dogs
Stag’s Hollow - not bad.

South OK/ Osoyoos
Most of the best wineries are in this region so you probably want to dedicate a whole day here
These 4 i consider must sees.
LVP - Le Vieux Pin - great stuff… beautiful wines. rhone focus. they use Riedel Somm stems.
La Stella - family owned by the same guys as LVP. more bord/merlot/sangio focus
Burrowing Owl - iconic place… beautiful grounds
Black Hills - make an appt - great tasting lineup, and the nota bene is a good wine.
Others here worth visiting:
Tinhorn Creek
Jackson Triggs
Hester Creek
Road 13
Nk’Mip
hard to go wrong in this region really…

FOOD
Liquidity winery - GREAT bistro… wow
Poplar Grove - Vanilla Pod bistro - wow as well. loved it
Mission Hill - Terrace restaurant - excellent place for lunch…
Quail’s Gate, Burrowing Owl, Tin Horn Creek - all have restaurants with good views, and legit food. not as good as the other 3 above, but not bad

For 2 days… i would do this. Assuming you are coming into Kelowna (as most highways do).
Day 1:
A. Stop by Mission Hill. Make appt for Occulus tasting. Do a quick lunch there after…(10-1pm)
B. Drive down to Laughing Stock (in Naramata region) - Make appt for 2pm (1 hr drive). 2 - 3:30pm tasting there
C. Drive to Blue Mountain winery (in OK Falls region) - Tasting here at 4pm (30-40 min drive). 4 - 5pm tasting here
D. Get to Liquidity Winery (close by) - Taste there (open until 6pm). Eat dinner at the bistro there.
E. After dinner - get to your hotel in the Osyoos area.

Day 2: spend in Osoyoos area
A. Black Hills - Appt required. 10-noon
B. Lunch Burrowing Owl’s sonora room.
B-2: Since you’re there, taste the wines: Noon- 2pm for lunch/tasting
C. LVP: 2 - 3:30pm
D. La Stella: 3:30 - 5pm
then you’re not exhausted, free to choose TinHorn, Hester Creek, Jackson Triggs, or stop by Inniskillian (for ice wine).

If you have another day, i’d prioritize
Tantalus in the Kelowan area (go after Mission Hill), then adding in Foxtrot / Poplar Grove in Naramata area - ditch OK falls region from day 1
Day 2 - do OK falls, and add in Blasted Church / Stag’s Hollow
Day 3 same as day 2 above.

I’d also add if you want a break from wine tasting, spend a couple of hours, rent a boat and drive around the lake… it’s peaceful and beautiful…
we did it and it was a nice break from non stop wineries (wife/kid loved it :wink:)

1 Like

Could you be a little more specific? [wow.gif]

Just tryin’ to help! :wink:

Brian, thanks for the recommendations. Le Vieux Pin was also on my list. We’ll check it out.

Mark, I’m blown away! Talk about exceeding expectations. I think you need to submit this to Wikipedia.
I really appreciate all the great info. Now I have to fine tune all this.
Thanks again.
Ken

This is great as I was just about to ask about visiting the Kelowna area since I am a Tantalus fan. Super to have the run down on winery options.

Aside from wineries, is it a fun area to wander in? Thinking charming towns or hotels that are good for super relaxing?

I went there a couple years ago for the spouse’s Ironman race so it was on oddball time.

Beautiful scenery for hiking. The spouse says the lakes are the most clear and beautiful she has encountered so great for water sports.

I can offer the advice of avoiding the place around the race (not now technically an Ironman) because it means higher prices, tables and rooms are harder to come by (particularly Penticton), roads that are part of the course are partially or entirely closed, etc.

Lots of Sikhs farmers have immigrated to the area so not only are the roadside stands full of great fruit in season but some offer very tasty samosas.

We stayed at this God’s Mountain Estate. Our room was a bit rustic but the main building was cool. Amazing views. We also did one of their alfresco dinners which was very good and the company was very nice… they are Canadians, you know. [basic-smile.gif]

http://www.godsmountain.com/dinnerspecials.php

I’ve read through this older thread, and we’re considering going in September if travel is safe enough. Any updates to Mark’s fantastic list? New wineries or restaurants? Any closures?

Still wondering about updates for newer or improved wineries and places to stay in Kelowna, Summerland, Penticton, etc. Any thoughts?

In 2019, my wife and I went to Penticton for our anniversary in early August. We loved our stay at the Penticton Lakeside Resort. It’s located downtown, right on the lake, with lots of amenities, and water rental activities. A lot of restaurants were in walking distance from the resort. The best dinner we had was the Front Street Brasserie, but their website says they are temporarily closed because of COVID. Who knows if they’ll be open in September. It’s a small restaurant so you’ll want to make reservations. We also enjoyed dining at The Vanilla Pod which is part of Poplar Grove Winery. It has a beautiful view of the city and the lake day or night. My favorite wineries were Le Vieux Pin and Laughing Stock which has a beautiful view. At Laughing Stock, they sometimes have wines under the counter for “wine geeks” in addition to the wines offered for their regular tasting.:slightly_smiling_face: