Anthony Gismondi: Tinhorn Creek's Sandra Oldfield a trailblazer Vancouver Sun wine columnist Anthony Gismondi in Vancouver.
Published on: April 21, 2016
When Sandra Oldfield, CEO of Tinhorn Creek Vineyards, speaks the rest of the Okanagan should listen.
The transplanted American, now proudly Canadian, has blazed a trail few others have in the Okanagan and as she closes in on 25 years at Tinhorn the valley should be thankful for her enormous contribution to the culture of British Columbia wine.
Oldfield has never sought the limelight but it is hard not to think she shouldn’t be in it given her list of substantive accomplishments at Tinhorn, many of which have inspired others across the valley to reach for higher levels.
The environment has been a big focus for Oldfield over the last decade — or to be more precise, her focus is the impact the winery operation places on the delicate ecosystem of the south Okanagan desert.
Oldfield’s team has worked closely with The Land Conservancy of BC to protect indigenous plants, animals, birds and reptiles that lived in the neighbourhood long before the winery came into play. All the property not under vines has been restored to native vegetation.
Oldfield has taken up the challenge of converting seasonal employees into full time assets by encouraging her best workers to acquire new skills and work efficiently inside and out of the winery year round. The winery recently added an employee mentorship and education program to its group of benefits to encourage employees to improve their education or access other staff members for mentoring.
The mantra at Tinhorn is safe people are happy people, and the winery is entering year three of its “serious plan for workplace health and safety.” The winery team recently received an Occupational Safety Standard of Excellence certification, the first small business in B.C.’s food manufacturing industry to do so.
There have been many other firsts at Tinhorn: it is also the first carbon neutral certified winery in B.C.
There is a huge commitment to hiring and buying local at Tinhorn to help it stay rooted in the community. It’s no wonder the average employee has been around over six years. In fact, if you stick around for a decade of employment you can take a two-month paid sabbatical to as they say “rest, recharge and come back rejuvenated.”
Oldfield is also a social media maven, with more than 12,000 Twitter followers and her weekly #BCWineChat at 8 p.m. Wednesdays has engaged consumers on a wide range of topics. It’s not a Tinhorn discussion group but rather an open forum for wine drinkers that is now an important link to the Okanagan Valley wine culture.
Tinhorn’s wines have never been better. Oldfield hired viticulturalist Andrew Moon and winemaker Andrew Windsor to lead the charge and clearly things are turning the corner. And, with a little more time to tend to running the day-to-day operations of Tinhorn, Oldfield pulled off another first with some help from her neighbours — securing the Okanagan Valley’s first approved sub–appellation, or GI, known as the The Golden Mile Bench.
Last weekend I tasted the Oldfield Series Chardonnay and Gewürztraminer, the first two Tinhorn labels to sport the Golden Mile Bench GI on the front label. I don’t mind saying they taste as appealing as the screwcap that closes every bottle of Tinhorn wine looks, yet another first in the valley.
Oldfield and her team run a crack concert series and the winery’s Crush Club is one of the best run in the country. To top it all off, Miradoro, the on-site winery restaurant, just won Vancouver Magazine’s Best Winery Restaurant Award in B.C., for the fifth year in a row.
Oliver, BC (April 19, 2016) – Tinhorn Creek Vineyards will release its first Golden Mile Bench Oldfield Series Chardonnay wine on May 1, 2016. Since 2009 Tinhorn Creek’s CEO and president Sandra Oldfield has been closely involved in efforts to create British Columbia’s first sub-appellation, the Golden Mile Bench, which is located on the western side of the Okanagan Valley, opposite the Black Sage Bench, just south of Oliver.
“The unique soil of the Golden Mile Bench is very rocky as it comes from the mountain ridge behind the bench, not from glacial deposits like most of the valley,” says Tinhorn’s Winemaker Andrew Windsor. “The new Oldfield Series Chardonnay has a deep golden colour from its long and gentle aging in oak. The nose jumps out of the glass with intense honey comb, white flowers, caramel and citrus fruit. It has immense palate weight while retaining a lovely linear and fresh citrusy flavour. The balance is incredible. The palate delivers in waves, honey, lemon, marzipan, biscotti, and pineapple. It keeps coming, layer after layer, and the finish seems to last forever.”
In March 2015 the new sub-DVA ‘Designated Viticultural Area’ of the Okanagan Valley DVA was granted by the BC government, recognizing the Golden Mile Bench’s unique terroir due to its unique rocky soil and micro-climate that benefits from afternoon sunshine - making it cooler than the eastern side of the valley.
There will be limited availability for this first release – join Tinhorn Creek’s “Oldfield Club” to get your hands on a bottle or look out for it on select restaurant’s wine lists – including Miradoro, the recent winner of Vancouver Magazine’s Best Winery Restaurant Gold award for the fifth consecutive year.
If you love fruity sweet wines, you must try this recipe!
1 bottle Tinhorn Creek Gewürztraminer
Zest of 2 lemons
1/2 cup granulated sugar ( to your taste)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from two lemons)
1 Granny Smith apple, cored, halved, and thinly sliced
1 Bartlett pear, cored, halved, and thinly sliced
1 can (12 ounces) seltzer
In a large pitcher, combine wine, lemon zest, and sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves. Add lemon juice, apple slices, and pear slices and mix well. Place pitcher in refrigerator for 4 hours to chill and allow flavors to blend. Just before serving, top sangria off with seltzer.
Mar 16, 2016 at 3:19 PM
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Tinhorn Creek Vineyards Mulled Wine with Cabernet Franc
2 - 750 ml bottles Tinhorn Creek Cabernet Franc2 cups of water1 cup of sugar1 orange slicedJuice of one orange2 tart apples thinly sliced2 cinnamon sticks12 whole cloves2 star anise6 cardamom pods3-4 thin slices of fresh ginger6 inch piece of fresh lemon grass, bruised
Combine all ingredients in a heavy bottom stock pot. Cover and let simmer over low heat for half hour to blend flavours. Remove fruit and spices and ladle into mugs. Serves 8 |
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By Blane Bachelor
Published July 16, 2015
FoxNews.com
Dotted with gleaming lakes, surrounded by majestic mountains and abundant in grapes that produce some of the best wines in North America, British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley is a beloved summer vacation spot for Canadians....(read more)
As spring was ushered in, the 11 wineries of the Golden Mile Bench received long-awaited news that they were officially declared as British Columbia’s first official sub-appellation. The announcement came from Agriculture Minister Norm Letnick March 30 at Tinhorn Creek Vineyards in Oliver.
“Anyone can tell a story about their area, but a sub-appellation allows us to characterize unique geological characteristics that tie us all together,” says Sandra Oldfield, Tinhorn Creek’s president and CEO. “In addition
, the consumer now has the confidence that the grapes [at least 95 percent] came from that specific area on the label and they can start seeing how these wines relate to one another over time.”
The designation is a significant step for the province, as it’s the first major change the B.C. wine map has seen since the early 1990s, when the five current wine regions were carved out: Okanagan Valley, Similkameen Valley, Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands.
These regions are vast, however, and carry many geographical differences even within themselves. Breaking them into smaller zones allows producers to build a more meaningful reputation on the global market by demonstrating the wine style, varietal or characteristics unique to more specific appellations.
It took over six years for proponents of the Golden Mile Bench to systematically delineate why the area is distinctly separate from others in the region, but their efforts have at last paid off.
“The British Columbia Wine Authority . . . conducted a review of the application made by wineries from the area and recommended that the B.C. government approve the new sub-geographical indicator,” says Dave Townsend, government communications officer for the Ministry of Agriculture.
Criteria that the Golden Mile had to meet included grape production at commercially viable levels, a geographically distinct area with clearly defined boundaries, and wines consistently demonstrating distinctive characteristics relating to shared soil, topography and climate.
“Our grapes grow on a series of alluvial fan material that is very rocky with amazing minerality,” says Oldfield. “The soil is not from glacial deposits and silts as the majority of the valley is, but from the mountain ridge the Golden Mile Bench backs up onto. The area is defined not only by its unique alluvial fan soil but also as an east-facing bench, higher elevation off the valley floor and a 5-15 percent slope allowing for frost-free growing conditions.”
KELLY SCHWEITZER
Jul 2, 2015 at 12:09 PM
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We are celebrating Canada's birthday with our own special Red and White Day!
Starting at midnight on June 30, 2015 and ending at midnight on July 1, 2015 order a case (12 bottles) of any of the following wines and receive FREE SHIPPING!
To place an order:
select your wines from the list above (minimum of 1 case)
at checkout, enter coupon code: Canada15
We understand that with any technology there can be hiccups. If you experience one of those hiccups please send us an email to winery@tinhorn.com with your order and contact info, and we will get back to you on July 2 to process your order (emails must be have been sent / received on Canada Day July 1).
Jun 30, 2015 at 3:00 PM
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Oliver, BC (April 22, 2015) – Miradoro Restaurant at Tinhorn Creek, was honoured with a gold medal for Best Winery/Vineyard Dining, for the fourth consecutive year at yesterday’s 26th Annual Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards.
Vancouver Magazine describes Miradoro's Chef Jeff Van Geest as having "dug himself deep into the South 
Okanagan terrior, delivering authentically wholesome, unpretentious comfort food that mirrors the Tinhorn cellar uncannily. Anything from the wood-fired oven (starting with locally topped pizzas) is a win."
Restaurateur and co-owner Manuel Ferreira says that Miradoro's goal has always been to create an exceptional and authentic all-around dining experience in the South Okanagan. "We have always striven to maintain the highest standard of service and this award reflects the tireless dedication from both Chef Jeff Van Geest and our entire team. We at Miradoro are humbled to have received this accolade for the past four years”.
Held at the Sheraton Wall Centre yesterday the announcement of this prestigious award serves to reinforce Miradoro’s position as the Okanagan’s leading dining venue; celebrated for it’s creativity and commitment to local and sustainable produce its spectacular setting offers panoramic views of the vineyards, farms and lush valley below.
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About Miradoro Restaurant
At Miradoro Restaurant the Mediterranean-influenced wine country cuisine showcases the region’s finest ingredients alongside the award-winning wines of Tinhorn Creek Vineyards. Perched on the picturesque winery estate on the famed Golden Mile, the destination restaurant offers stunning views of the South Okanagan Valley. Its unique design seamlessly integrates a modern look with the natural landscape and the more traditional design of Tinhorn Creek’s winery and barrel cellar. The 4,000-square-foot space features 65 seats indoors and 65 seats outdoors on a wraparound deck, ample use of natural woods and cork creates a room that is simple, elegant — and lets the food, wine and view be the stars of the show. Miradoro Restaurant is open for lunch daily from 11:30am–3:00pm, for tapas from 3:00pm-5:00pm and for dinner from 5:00pm–9:00pm. For more information, please call 250-498-3742 or visit www.miradoro.ca.
Media Contact:
Hawksworth Communications
Sarah Lusk / sarah@hawksworth.ca
Annabel Hawksworth / annabel@hawksworth.ca
604.609.6678
Apr 22, 2015 at 10:48 AM
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The 2015 Canadian Concert Series is now available online. Check out these up and coming Canadian bands and come out to enjoy a great night at the concert.
Saturday May 23 Rich Hope & His Blue Rich Raiders
Saturday June 27 The John Welsh Band
Saturday July 25 Reuben & the Dark
Saturday August 22 Yukon Blonde
Grand Finale Saturday September 12 The Trews
Jan 28, 2015 at 1:55 PM
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