Osoyoos Larose Red Bordeaux Blend Okanagan Valley Vqa le Grand Vin 2007

Osoyoos Larose is the Okanagan wine industry’s ultimate technology transfer, the result of a joint venture set up a decade ago between Vincor Canada and Bordeaux’s Groupe Taillan. The French company’s stable of distinguished properties include Château Gruaud Larose. The 80-acre Okanagan vineyard behind this wine is near the community of Osoyoos. Hence, a winery name that sounds like an entertainer in gold rush San Francisco.But this is a very serious and important Okanagan red. In a conscious knowledge grab, Vincor let its French partners pick the vineyard property and direct the planting (entirely to the five main Bordeaux reds). French consultants were around to launch the venture and a winemaker from Bordeaux, Pascal Madevon, was settled in the Okanagan to make the wine. From the first vintage in 2001, Madevon has been in continual awe of the unexpected quality of Okanagan fruit.While most of the Okanagan’s red blends have a Merlot backbone, none are quite so Bordelaise as Le Grand Vin. Even with its ripe tannins, this wine is firm and built for some serious cellaring. Dark in colour, it begins with aromas of vanilla, red berries and chocolate but also with that note of cigar box that Bordeaux collectors look for. The fruit is densely concentrated, with a sweet core wrapped inside the mineral notes. Decanting brings out the wine’s inherent richness, with a promise of more elegance and power with age. Some 10,479 cases have been released. 88-91 points.

For wine collectors, Le Grand Vin from Osoyoos Larose has emerged as a must-have Canadian red. This is the fourth vintage – and certainly the finest – to be released. The improved refinement of the wine reflects the maturity of the vineyard, where planting began in 1999. And the volume – 18,500 six-bottle cases compared with 4,000 six-bottle cases in 2001 – shows that most of the 60-acre vineyard is now in full production.Osoyoos Larose is a joint venture that was formed in 1998 between Vincor Canada and Groupe Taillan of Bordeaux. Except for marketing, the French have been calling most of the shots, including the choice of the vineyard, the Merlot-dominant planting strategy, the recruitment of a winemaker and the equipping of the cellar. Pascal Madevon, the Parisian winemaker, insists that he is making Okanagan wine, not French wine. However, the Bordeaux signature to his wines is unmistakable. This is a generous and dark-hued wine, with inviting red fruit aromas and flavours of plums, black cherries, and chocolate well integrated with oak flavours (the wine has 18 months in barrels, 60% of which were new, 40% one-year old). The tannins are long and supple but firm enough for reasonable longevity. On the palate, the texture shows excellent concentration. The finish is long and elegant. 92 points.