Stag's Hollow Winery News

12 Wines of Christmas...Final Wine (#12) revealed

The 12th, and final, wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2017 Vidal Icewine. What a great way to celebrate Christmas dinner - serve our Vidal Icewine with dessert or turn it into a Holiday cocktail (see suggestions below)!

This was the first icewine we’ve ever produced here at Stag’s Hollow, and it was truly a team effort. Everyone brought their family and friends that were willing to help out in the wee hours of the morning, and we were able to bring the majority of the fruit in before it started to warm up. We have never seen the press so full! The remainder was picked in the New Year, and the two lots were blended together. Not in the least cloying, this wine has a richness of flavour that only comes about from extended hang time, but is balanced by a surprising amount of acidity. It finishes clean, but the lingering finish seems to go on forever.

The grapes were hand harvested on December 23, 2017 & January 3, 2018 at -10°C and -12°C, respectively. Harvesting stopped when the temperature started to rise. They were then whole-cluster pressed into tank, where the juice was allowed to settle before being racked, warmed and inoculated using selected yeasts. The wine followed a long, slow ferment (nearly a month), until it reached a point where we wanted to preserve the remaining sugars. The wine was then chilled to 0°C to stop fermentation, stabilized, filtered and bottled later in the year.

Varietals: 100% Vidal
Alcohol: 12.7% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 224 g/L
Total Acidity: 9.7 g/L
pH: 3.2
Harvest Dates: Dec 23, 2017 & Jan 3, 2018
Bottling Date: Aug 2018
Release Date: Sept 2018

Icewine Cocktail Ideas

Iceberg
2 tbsp of Stag’s Hollow Vidal Icewine
2 tbsp of vodka
Pour 2 tbsp each icewine and vodka into a champagne flute. Top with sparkling white wine or cranberry ginger ale. Garnish with an orange twist or frozen grape.

Tequila Ice Rise
1oz of tequila
1oz of Stag’s Hollow Vidal Icewine
3oz of fresh fruit juice
1 tsp of cranberry juice from concentrate

Iced Apple Jack
1.5oz of Stag’s Hollow Vidal Icewine
1oz of apple juice
Splash of Chardonnay

Ice Gimlet
2 ounces (4 tablespoons) gin
½ ounce (1 tablespoon) lime juice
½ ounce ( 1 tablespoon) Stag’s Hollow Vidal Icewine
Splash of Soda optional
Add gin, lime juice, and ice wine to a cocktail shaker. Fill with ice and shake until cold. Strain into glass and top with a splash of soda water, if desired. Garnish with a lime wheel and serve

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #11 revealed

The 11th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2019 Muscat Frizzante. Whether it’s 'Christmas Vacation' or 'Home Alone', pair your favourite Christmas movie with truffled popcorn - see Julie's recipe below.

A fresh and vibrant wine with bright, natural acidity, and a fun spritz that’s fitting for any occasion (including breakfast). Usually the first to be harvested, and the first to be bottled each year, our Muscat Frizzante is always an exciting glimpse at the quality that the new vintage promises.

Each lot was hand-harvested, sorted, destemmed and pressed. The juice was transferred gently into individual stainless steel tanks, where it was cold settled for 72 hours, and then racked, warmed and inoculated with selected yeast strains. All ferments were kept cool, in order to maximize aromatic expression, and were racked and chilled upon completion. All pieces were then blended, and the final wine was stabilized, filtered and bottled with in-line carbonation.

Varietals: 49.7% Muscat Ottonel, 45.3% Orange Muscat, 5% Riesling
Alcohol: 10.0% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 9.77 g/L
Total Acidity: 6.28 g/L
pH: 3.2
Harvest Dates: Sept 6 & 20, 2019
Bottling Date: Jan 2020
Release Date: May 2020

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #10 revealed

The 10th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2018 Dolcetto. Christmas carolling would not be the same without a thermos full of mulled wine. Check out the delicious recipe below - we served this at our Holiday Cheer Weekend and it was a hit.

Dolcetto is a grape that consistently inspires experimentation and excitement, with every new vintage. In 2018, we decided to experiment with delestage (a two-step “rack-andreturn” process in which fermenting red wine juice is separated from the grape solids by racking and then returned to the fermenting vat to re-soak the solids) through the peak of fermentation, which has resulted in a wine with deliciously soft tannins, and vibrantly expressive grape character.

Hand-harvested fruit from our Shuttleworth Creek vineyard was sorted, destemmed, lightly crushed and fermented in 1-ton open-topped fermenters, using selected yeast strains. The ferment was punched-down by hand 2-4 times daily, and then at the peak of fermentation, delestaged daily. The ferments were pressed off into concrete and stainless steel tanks, where they completed alcoholic fermentation, and then malolactic conversion. The wine aged gracefully here for 8 months, when it was finally racked and blended together. The wine was bottled in September 2019, after being stabilized and lightly filtered.

Varietals: 100% Dolcetto
Alcohol: 13.0% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 1.9 g/L
Total Acidity: 6.0 g/L
pH: 3.34
Harvest Dates: Oct 5 & 16, 2018
Bottling Date: Sept 2019
Release Date: Aug 2020

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #9 revealed

The 9th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2019 Pinot Noir, Shuttleworth Creek Vineyard. It’s time to wrap those last-minute gifts - so do it with our Pinot Noir - it really does make everything better. Cheers!

Our Shuttleworth Creek Vineyard continues to prove itself as an ideal site for high quality Pinot Noir. Being slightly cooler than our Estate vineyard, the fruit shows a distinctly different profile. A lifted, more feminine style to counter-balance the powerfully- structured wines produced from our Estate vineyard. 2019 was a cooler-than-usual vintage, which resulted in a lighter, more elegant style of Pinot Noir. 5 Dijon clones (777, 115, 667, 828 & Pommard) were blended to create this wine. All were kept separate through fermentation and 12 months of barrel ageing, until a final blend was decided on.

The grapes were 100% destemmed, without crushing, leaving as much whole berry fruit as possible. After a 48 hour cold soak, the must was warmed and inoculated with selected yeasts. Hand punch-downs started at 3 times daily and tapered off to once a day as tannins progressed. Free run juice was drained off and the skins were pressed off as soon as the primary ferment was completed. All lots were racked into 300L French oak barrels (16% new, remainder 2nd fill & 3rd fill), where each lot rested, untouched, for 12 months, before being blended, stabilized and bottled.

Varietals: 100% Pinot Noir
Alcohol: 13.0% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 1.4 g/L
Total Acidity: 5.6 g/L
pH: 3.6
Harvest Dates: Oct 14, 2019
Bottling Date: May 2021
Release Date: Aug 2021

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #8 revealed

The 8th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2020 Albariño. This is such a delicious pairing with seafood - so we’ve got a recipe for Pan-Seared Halibut & Crispy Caper Beurre Noisette from Chef Jordan Ash from Flambé @ Home below. Enjoy!

For the most part, the winemaking for this wine was very similar to our 2019 vintage. The goal was to build a richly textural wine that was true to its varietal character, but also complex and intruiging, and I think we achieved this. On the complexity front, we experimented with a small amount of skin contact and spontaneous fermentation, and I believe this had a really positive impact on the depth and interest of this wine. Interestingly, as this block has matured, we’ve found that the salinity that Albariño is so known for worldwide has become increasingly pronounced with each new vintage.

The fruit hand-picked and hand-sorted, destemmed, and lightly crushed before being pressed. A small portion of the fruit was crushed into a picking bin and allowed to spontaneously ferment on skins for 5 days before being pressed into a stainless steel tank. Of the pressed juice, a portion was racked, after 12 hours of settling, into stainless steel barrels and French oak barriques (one new, one 3rd fill & one 4th fill). The remaining portion settled a further 24 hours and was transferred into 2 concrete tanks. These inoculated ferments were kept cool (12-14°C), monitored closely, and all were aged on their lees with frequent stirring to build texture. After 6 months, the lots were blended, stabilized, filtered and bottled.

Varietals: 100% Albariño
Alcohol: 13.0% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 1.0 g/L
Total Acidity: 6.08 g/L
pH: 3.33
Harvest Dates: Oct 19, 2020
Bottling Date: Apr 2021
Release Date: June 2021

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #7 revealed

The 7th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our newly-released 2019 Renaissance Merlot. Whether a roast beef, roast lamb or a pan of roasted root veggies, our Renaissance Merlot will pair beautifully. Bon appétit!

Our Estate Merlot block has ideal terroir for Okanagan Merlot: a free-draining gravel soil profile and a southwest facing slope to gather the intense afternoon heat. Having tended these vines for over 25 years, we feel we have learned how to grow exceptional Merlot on this site, even in the most difficult of years. Despite the fact that these older vines are already quite self-limiting, with 2019 being one of these cooler, more challenging vintages, we had to be a bit more rutheless than usual with our cropping levels. More fruit than usual had to be dropped, but the result is an immensely elegant Merlot that is well deserving of cellaring.

All fruit was hand-harvested, bunch-sorted, destemmed and gravity transferred to one 1-ton fermenter. Approximately 70% of the berries were left whole and uncrushed. After a 3 day cold soak, the must was warmed and inoculated with selected yeasts. The cap was punched down by hand 3 times daily, and at the ideal tannin extraction, the must was drained of free run juice and the skins were lightly pressed. The wine continued its fermentation in French oak barriques (50% new & 50% 3rd-fill) through to dryness and then through Malolactic conversion. It has been left to mature undisturbed for 18 months before blending, and is set to be bottled without fining or filtration in August 2021.

Varietals: 85% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc
Alcohol: 14.0% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 1.2 g/L
Total Acidity: 6.32 g/L
pH: 3.5
Harvest Dates: Oct 17, 2019
Bottling Date: Aug 2021
Release Date: Nov 2021

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #6 revealed

The 6th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2020 Pinot Gris. It’s time to trim the tree and turn up the holiday music! We’ve created a playlist on Spotify just for this... CLICK HERE to listen to the Stag's Hollow staff favourites! Cheers!

Although 2020 proved to be a very diferent growing season to 2019, we were so happy with our first vintage of Pinot Gris that we set out to achieve a similar style in 2020. Thankfully, the weather permitted us to hang the 3rd pick a little longer, and really capitalize on the honey and spice notes that developed through the extended ripening. Owing to vintage variation, to achieve the balance we’ve achieved in the finished wine, we left a little less residual sugar this year, resulting in a slightly drier wine.

Fruit from this block was hand-harvested in 3 separate picks: the 1st for acidity and brightness, the 2nd for balance and complexity, and the 3rd for richness and flavour. Lot #1 (47%) was pressed and cold-settled for 48 hours, before being racked to a stainless steel tank, warmed and inoculated. Lot #2 (29%) was cold-settled for 24 hours, and then racked to stainless steel barrels, warmed and inoculated. Lot #3 (24%) was cold-settled for 24 hours, and then racked into 4 500L French Oak barrels (50% new), warmed and inoculated. After 3 months of regular batonnage, all 3 lots were blended, together stabilized, filtered and bottled.

Varietals: 100% Pinot Gris
Alcohol: 13.5% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 11.8 g/L
Total Acidity: 6.2 g/L
pH: 3.2
Harvest Dates: Oct 2020
Bottling Date: Apr 2021
Release Date: June 2021

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #5 revealed

The 5th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2019 Syrah. Sometimes after a long week, you just need a good bottle of wine to enjoy without thinking. It’s Friday - pour yourself a glass, turn on some music, sit back and relax. Cheers!

2019 was a cooler than normal vintage in the Okanagan. Because of this, we aimed to showcase the more delicate, feminine side of cool-climate Syrah. We feel that by lessening the maceration time and new oak for this wine, we were able to capture a fresher, more vibrant style of Syrah that is still complex and full of flavour, but perhaps a bit more approchable, and very food-friendly.

Hand-harvested grapes were sorted, destemmed into 1-ton open-top fermenters. After a 3-day cold soak, both whole-berry ferments were warmed and inoculated with selected yeasts. The ferments were punched down 2-4 times daily and as soon as the primary ferment had finished, were pressed into French oak barrels (35% new). After malolactic fermentation, the wine was aged for an additional 15 months on fine lees before being blended together and bottled unfined and unfiltered.

Varietals: 100% Syrah
Alcohol: 13.8% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 1.7 g/L
Total Acidity: 6.3 g/L
pH: 3.67
Harvest Dates: Oct 18, 2019
Bottling Date: June 2021
Release Date: September 2021

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #4 revealed

The 4th wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2019 Pinot Noir, Stag's Hollow Vineyard. It’s Thursday and we have a special treat. See below for the recipe for Prosciutto-Wrapped Breast of Chicken & Flambéed Wild Mushroom Sauce from Chef Jordan Ash from Flambé @ Home. Mmmm. It’s going to be delicious together. Enjoy!

Our Stag’s Hollow Estate Vineyard is home to the oldest of our Pinot Noir plantings. Now almost 27 years old, these well-established vines are among our most reliably-ripening, and intensely-structured. This particular blend is a co-ferment of the two Dijon clones planted to this block (115 & 667).

The grapes were 100% destemmed, without crushing, leaving as much whole berry fruit as possible. After a 48 hour cold soak, the must was warmed and inoculated with selected yeasts. Hand punch-downs started at 3 times daily and tapered off to once a day as tannins progressed. Free run juice was drained off and the skins were pressed off as soon as the primary ferment was completed. All lots were racked into 300L French oak barrels (16% new, remainder 2nd fill & 3rd fill), where each lot rested, untouched, for 12 months, before being blended, stabilized and bottled.

Varietals: 100% Pinot Noir
Alcohol: 13.5% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 1.1 g/L
Total Acidity: 5.7 g/L
pH: 3.6
Harvest Dates: Oct 10, 2019
Bottling Date: May 2021
Release Date: August 2021

12 Wines of Christmas...Wine #3 revealed

The 3rd wine of our 12 Wines of Christmas is our 2020 Tragically Vidal. Get in the spirit & enjoy making Christmas cookies while sipping on some Vidal - check out Erin's recipe for Tilly's Butter Cake Bites below. Cheers!

Vidal is always one of the last grapes to come in each year. We’ve found, over the 25 years of working with it, that waiting until just after the first frost to pick seems to be Vidal’s sweet spot. The grape’s tough skins finally soften enough that we are able to maximize flavour and aromatic expression, and there is a slight raisining that happens in certain pockets of the vineyard, that contribute to that beautiful honeyed bouquet. This year, the Vidal was so powerfully aromatic that we decided to blend in less Orange Muscat than usual. We also included a small amount of skin-fermented Vidal to boost textural complexity on the palate.

Our Estate-grown Vidal was destemmed, lightly crushed, and gravity transferred to membrane press, where the juice was gently pressed and pumped into tank. After settling for 48 hrs, the clarified juice was racked and transferred into another stainless steel tank before being inoculated with a select yeast culture. It enjoyed a long, slow, cool ferment, preserving as much of the aromatics as possible, before being arrested prior to sugar dryness by chilling the wine to 0°C. As we have come to do over the last few vintages of Tragically Vidal, we blended a small portion of our Orange Muscat into it, further boosting the aromatics, and giving the wine a slightly more floral direction.

Varietals: 98.7% Vidal, 1.3% Orange Muscat
Alcohol: 12.3% alc./vol.
Residual Sugar: 14.5 g/L
Total Acidity: 7.4 g/L
pH: 3.15
Harvest Dates: Oct 2020
Bottling Date: Feb 2021
Release Date: April 2021