The ‘Smokanagan’ is leading winemakers into uncharted territory

Are smoky wines shrouded in an unnecessary stigma?

That’s the opinion of local wine professional Laura Ingraham, who says 2018’s smoky summer will ultimately define this vintage's “terroir” for Okanagan wine.

A terroir alludes to the many factors that make a wine unique to its vintage, where everything from the vineyard’s slope to the weather can play a role in a wine’s finished flavour.

Wildfire smoke has defined much of August in the Okanagan, meaning it will likely be reflected in some batches of this season's wine.

"This summer's wildfire smoke is out of a winemaker's control, it's part of the region's terroir for 2018 and it will make for some very unique Okanagan wines,” explained Ingraham.

“Using grapes that have been touched by wildfire smoke relatively uncharted territory, some wineries have experimented with the effects and created interesting styles. However, it also hasn't always resulted in a successful end product.”

While a smoky flavour is sought after in certain spirits, such as mezcal or whiskey, the smoke factor in wine has not been fully accepted by the industry.

“There's a bit of mentality driven by misinformation and ignorance that exists because the industry isn’t accorded to that style,” said Ingraham.

“The Okanagan needs to continue to put out this style of product and help it become accepted because we can't run away from our region’s weather.”

One winery that has turned the region's smoke into a trademark wine is Oliver's Fairview Cellars, where the Mt. Kobau wildfire in 2015 came dangerously close to the boutique winery.

Fairview Cellars in Oliver B.C. 🙌🏻🙌🏻Wine maker and owner Bill is a bloody genius and makes some of the best wines in the valley. From his killer #cabfranc and #cabsauv to his inaugural vintage of #grunerveltliner every visit year after year is an adventure. His winery dogs Marty and Honey are also delicious and my new #bffs btw

A post shared by Kelley Abbey (@apoliteglassofwine) on Jul 20, 2018 at 9:36pm PDT

Luckily the vineyards weren’t damaged, but some of the wildfire smoke did infuse into the grapes.

Instead of discarding the grapes, winemaker Bill Eggert created Fairview Cellars' Fumé Franc, which features the Mt. Kobau wildfire on the label.

“Oregon is a big wine region and it has had lots of wildfire issues, so a winemaker from there actually talked me into just owning it, said Eggert.

“After tasting, about 80% of people love it and have ordered second cases, then there’s the 20% of people that can't stand it.”

Eggert says he has no illusions about the finished product, meaning if the wine tastes like an ashtray, he’s going to dump it.

Wine grapes are most susceptible to smoke infusion during a process known as veraison, which generally occurs between August and September.

Many winemakers won't know the extent of the smoke's impact on their grapes until they produce their first batch of wine.

Phd research is being conducted at the University of British Columbia Okanagan, where they hope to create a test that winemakers can use to assess the quality of smoke-shrouded grapes.

Regardless of the final taste, the release of 2018 vintage wines could be delayed as many winemakers will have to conduct a small batch test to properly plan their fermentation process.