Nk'Mip Cellars - Canada's First Native Winery

Chief Clarence Louie joins Anthony Gismondi to offer some history and culture behind Nk'Mip Cellars, which is owned by his Osoyoos Indian Band. The winery is a part of their Spirit Ridge Resort, which includes a hotel, a stand alone restaurant a cultural centre and a golf course. They had considered creating a winery but it wasn't until the early 90s when Don Triggs, executing the "Big Idea" through his company Vincor, offered to lease hundreds of acres of vineyards from the band, that the band realized it could become a reality. They used Vincor's expertise, as a multinational wine marketing and distribution company, to create Nk'Mip, and launched the first native winery in North America, possibly the world.
The winery has incorporated elements of its culture including the "Four Food Chiefs", which the Chief explains. The Bear, Salmon, Bitterroot and Saskatoon Berry are included in a mosaic in the center of the winery's tasting room and the restaurant inside the winery pairs dishes made from them, with their wines.
The development has been a success, topped by band member Justin Hall becoming the head white winemaker.

Be sure to watch the other two videos in this series, "A New Expression in Wine" https://youtu.be/Pw18T5PZYTc. Justin Hall tells us about his approach to winemaking in a desert climate and shares an Okanagan language word that describes a quality found in wines unique to the region. In "Food Pairing" Hall and Anthony Gismondi, talk about matches with the wines as Hall reflects on his sharing his culture with guests.

To read our full story about Nk'Mip Cellars and our wine tasting notes visit: https://gismondionwine.com/blog/nkmip...


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