by Treve Ring | It’s the surest sign of spring for me, right up there with the burst of the cherry blossoms and the scent of fresh halibut on the grill. It’s the arrival of the newest vintage of wine, our first look at bottled, sealed and delivered 2014’s, ready for market.

For Lillooet’s Fort Berens Estate Winery, 2014 also marks the first time that every wine in the release is 100% Lillooet fruit. It’s a thought that would have been unheard of 10 years ago, when this pioneering winery in the eastern outbacks of Lillooet (outback for wine regions, mind) was founded. Fort Berens Winery was established by Dutch immigrants, Rolf de Bruin and Heleen Pannekoek in 2005.

On the Fraser River, rugged and unspoiled Lillooet is less than two hours north of Whistler, three and a half hours from Vancouver and two hours southwest of Kamloops – and light years away from wine production at that time.

Today, the winery’s Fraser River Bench soils yields a stony, herbal and tart pinot gris, one of the first of the 2014 vintage we’ve tasted. The crisp palate is tempered with a small cushion of pear and Asian pear, and sharpened with a line of white grapefruit and lime pith. The acidity gobbles up the 6 g/l of residual sugar, and this medium bodied gris finishes with an appealing pear skin / thistle bitterness. Pour with grilled calamari or lemon dressed halibut and cheers to spring.

I recently asked winemaker Danny Hattingh about the Message in a Bottle of Fort Berens’ 2014 Pinot Gris.

Fort Berens Estate Winery |Lillooet, BC | Pinot Gris 2014 | $15.99 + tax

Straight up – why did you make this wine? We made this wine to be evidently expressive of the region that it is grown in. It was grown and made in Lillooet and I wanted people to taste that.

Where are the grapes from? The 2014 Pinot Gris was made from 100% estate, Lillooet grown fruit.

Your ideal pairing with this wine would be…? Grape seed oil sautéed Belgian endives (grown locally in Chilliwack) wrapped in thinly sliced black forest ham and cooked in a béchamel sauce. Topped with parmesan and grilled.

Favourite BC wine, other than yours? As an expat South African, I love a well-made Pinotage. Stoneboat vineyards makes an exceptional Pinotage, even by South African standards.

What do you drink when you’re not drinking BC wine? Sparkling (traditional method) wines from anywhere and everywhere. I love to drink it as much as I love to make it.

MORE MESSAGES IN OTHER BOTTLES