Dog days of summer at See Ya Later Ranch Winery
Okanagan Wine Sub-Region: Okanagan Falls, known for gewurztraminer, riesling and pinot noir.
See Ya Later Ranch is a quirky winery tucked into the stunning hillside of Okanagan Falls, BC, just south of Penticton.
There’s a bit of an uphill drive to reach the winery, but it’s worth the small trip once you look down over the rolling green hills of grapes with the blue southern tip of Skaha Lake far below.
Part of the quirkiness of See Ya Later rests, of course, with its unconventional name. One of the legends of the name says that Lord Hugh Fraser, the original owner of the property and first to plant grapes there, came home one day to find his wife gone and a note in the frying pan that said “See ya later!”. But don’t let the kitschy name fool you, this winery is a consistant awards winner for top quality, inexpensive wines.
The second way that the ranch keeps unique is in how they express their unending love for dogs. Dogs? You ask. Yes, See Ya Later Ranch loves dogs and raises money for local SPCA charities year-round. Many of the wines are named after good old Ranch dogs like Ping (a red Meritage) and Nelly (named after Lord Fraser’s playful puppy), who now rest in the winery’s small doggie cemetery. It’s much more heart-warming than strange, and a nice reminder of the loyal animals that live at wineries and vineyards all over the Okanagan.
See Ya Later Ranch is known for their Gewurztraminer, as they should be… their 65 acre Hawthorne Mountain vineyard is the largest Gewurztraminer planting in North America. The vineyard is perfectly situated on the edge of a mountain slope that catches more sun than the rest of the surround valley (seen in the photo above with classic truck). It’s a light, crisp, fresh white wine and I’m looking forward to pairing it with indian curry in the future.
The tasting room and wine shop on the property are located in a heritage home on the property with a panoramic view of the valley and lake below. The shop was surprisingly well-stocked with wine-related goodies, and I was particularly impressed with their selection of BC cookbooks, what better time to pick up some new ideas for dinner to pair with your wine? There is a small patio restaurant serving simple but tasty fare such as pulled-pork sandwiches (great with the Pinot Noir) and house-made desserts.
A visit to See Ya Later Ranch is a fun little trek off the beaten wine path of the Okanagan and well worth a visit, with or without your dog.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011 at 1:21 pm and is filed under BC Wines, British Columbia, Food, Travel, Wine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.