Winter in Wine Country

Crisp air, bold pours, and vineyard views dusted in snow—Kelowna’s wine country shines in winter

Winter is a wonderful time for a wine tour in Kelowna. Not only is it less crowded inside tasting rooms, but you also have a better chance of meeting the winemaker. What’s more, the vineyards are absolutely beautiful covered in a light dusting of snow.

Wine tours

One of the best ways to experience Kelowna’s growing wine scene is to join a wine tour. A knowledgeable driver will take you around to four or five wineries for an afternoon of sampling everything from oaky Chardonnay to robust Zweigelt. 

Ice wine

Canada is the world’s largest producer of ice wine, which is a style of dessert wine that’s created using wine grapes that have frozen on the vine. Once the temperature drops to -8C, the grapes are picked (sometimes in the middle of the night!) and then pressed while still frozen. The freezing process concentrates the sugars inside the fruit, so the resulting wine is deliciously sweet. If you’ve never tried it, you’re in for a treat!