Often referred to as “Canada’s Tuscany,” the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island is home to several emerging wineries thanks to its warm growing conditions (Cowichan means “warm land” in a language of the Coast Salish Indigenous peoples), special soils that encourage quality wine grapes and its plentiful rolling hills.
Unsworth Vineyards is one of those wineries that is getting a lot of attention from international wineries, wine critics and wine consumers. In 2009, Tim and Colleen Turyk bought Unsworth when they were looking for a new challenge. The winery was named after Tim’s mother’s maiden name and built "one vine, one bottle, and one blend at a time" by restoring an old farmhouse on the property into a restaurant, creating a tasting room, and building a brand around sustainably managed vineyard practices.
Winemaker Dan Wright and his team currently farm 12 acres of grape varieties. The oldest block was Marechal Foch from 2007 but it's no longer planted on the estate. More recent plantings include Blattner varieties like Sauvignette, Labelle, and “40.05.83.”
“These varieties don’t require pesticides and flourish. It is an agricultural duty to reduce the amount of chemicals and sprays we use. It’s an important sustainability question, “ said Chris Turyk, wine ambassador for Unsworth. And equally important, these new varieties appeal to consumers and connoisseurs alike.
Recently traditional vinifera varieties such as Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir have been planted at Unsworth, supplemented by neighbouring vineyard partners.
A major development for Unsworth occurred in 2020 when two of California’s wine principals, Barbara Banke and Julia Jackson heard about the success of Unsworth and purchased the winery.
Jackson Family Wines is the owner of one of the finest collections of wineries in the world and is a leader in sustainable practices. They own and operate 40 estates in California, Oregon, Australia, France, Italy, South Africa and Chile.
Tim remains the general manager, Dan Wright is winemaker and Tim’s son, Chris Turyk, is marketing director and in charge of the wine club.
On a recent visit to Unsworth, tasting room manager Karen guided me on an impressive tasting of their portfolio.
1. Charme de L’ile Rosé ($28.90)
Charme de L’ile is a coined term for a Prosecco sparkling wine made on Vancouver Island with 100 per cent Vancouver Island Pinot Noir. Fruit-forward, it’s an easy-going bubbly. The Charming Charme exudes red berry aromas with refreshing flavours of red grapefruit, strawberry and cranberry ending with a dry finish. It’s a delicious and popular everyday wine.
2. Cuvée de L’isle
This is a more savoury bubbly than the Rosé. It’s mostly Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir, aged for three and half years on the lees with a nice brioche and nutty nose to it. In addition, there are flavours of ripe apple, lemon peel along with fine bubbles. The 2017 Cuvée de l'île is currently out of stock but the 2018 should be available in the spring of 2023.
3. 2020 Chardonnay ($30.90)
2020 marks the second release of Chardonnay and it won a Silver Medal at the 2022 Wine Align Canadian Championships! The fruit comes from Mildenstein Vineyard, which was gently pressed to neutral French oak barrels for fermentation and 8-month elevage before bottling.
Notes of beeswax, lemon curd, yellow apple and almond on the nose lead to a dry palate with ripe citrus, hazelnut and subtle spicy notes, which lead to a long finish with a bone dry lightly oaked Burgundian style.
Enjoy with halibut in a rich curry, seared tuna with tangy salsa, sushi and oysters on the half shell.
4. Pinot Gris 2020 ($25.90)
This single vineyard Pinot Gris outside of Duncan is from the Saison Vineyard which has more sunlight because of its southern exposure than the estate vineyard.
90 per cent of the juice was stainless steel fermented with 10 per cent in neutral French oak plus four months aging on the lees. Enjoy juicy ripe nectarine and lime zest aromas. Dry and bright on the palate with lots of flavour with notes of salinity, citrus and apple.
Pair with shellfish such as clams and mussels with tomato and chorizo, or with pork tenderloin in a lemon sauce garlic sauce (add a splash of the Pinot Gris to the sauce) as recommended by Unsworth Vineyards.
For information on tastings, online purchases, and reservations to the seasonal local farm-to-table menu in their restaurant, visit http://www.unsworthvineyards.com
