The top honours at the 2025 WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada were announced on August 1, with Mission Hill Family Estate being crowned Winery of the Year for the sixth time, marking a historic milestone as Canada’s most awarded winery in WineAlign's 25-year history.
“This landmark win underscores our team’s deep commitment to craftsmanship, innovation, and terroir-driven expressions,” says Mission Hill's Chief Winemaker, Taylor Whelan. “Through over forty years of operation, Mission Hill has continued to evolve, adopting sustainable farming practices, creating exceptional tasting and culinary experiences at our estate, and making a significant contribution to the Okanagan’s reputation on the world stage.”
In the article announcing Mission Hill's win, the awards' Founders, Anthony Gismondi and David Lawrason, note that "the overall level of quality and the number of producers in the race for the coveted 'Winery of the Year' moniker was substantial." Further, the piece asserts that by "limiting the Winery of the Year title to a winery’s best-scoring five wines, the door is open to any number of wineries and outcomes each year."
Mission Hill underground barrel cellar. Image credit: Ken Hagen
This year, Mission Hill entered 11 top-tier wines, earning two Platinum medals, five Golds, and one Silver, with all this year’s winning wines being vintages from 2020 to 2023. They also took home two Golds in the Library Wines category, though these do not count toward the Winery of the Year standing.
In addition to its sixth Winery of the Year honour, 2025 has been a landmark year for Mission Hill as it debuts a new collection of Iconic Experiences, expanded to offer a high standard of luxury, exclusivity and personalization.
This is the third time in the past four years that a Kelowna area winery has been named Winery of the Year. In 2024, SpearHead Winery was crowned Winery of the Year and Best Performing Small Winery; this year, the winery captured the third spot in the list of Top 10 Small Wineries, along with the number 4 spot on the Top 25 Wineries in Canada list. CedarCreek Estate Winery took home the Winery of the Year award for the third time in 2022, and this year, the winery claims the number 14 spot on the Top 25 Wineries in Canada list.
Central Okanagan wineries joining Mission Hill, SpearHead, and CedarCreek on this year's list of Top 25 Wineries in Canada are Quails' Gate Estate Winery, which secured the sixth spot for the second year in a row, and Tantalus Vineyards, which came in at number 10.
Numerous other wineries from Kelowna and the Central Okanagan also took home medals in the competition—a complete list of winners in each category can be found here.
Please join us in congratulating all the award winners from our region who continue to craft some of the world's most delicious and decorated wines!
About the National Wine Awards of Canada
The National Wine Awards of Canada were founded by David Lawrason and Anthony Gismondi in 2001. During the annual competition, judges from around the country complete blind tastings of wines in numerous categories, ultimately deciding the winners in each category, which leads to the Top 25 Wineries in Canada list, as well as Winery of the Year and Best Performing Small Winery.