Take cool, white wines and marry them with crisp, white snow and warm, full-bodied reds and place them in cozy, fireside restaurants.
These are the harmonious pairings discovered at Sun Peaks during the 16th Annual Winter Okanagan Wine Festival from Jan. 11 to 19.
Experience 10 days designed to tempt your palate with a series of events to educate, thrill and fill your soul with award winning British Columbian wine, food and hospitality.
“We have a waiting list because there are so many wineries that want to participate this year,” said Lori Pike-Raffan, Okanagan Wine Festivals Society public relations director. “About half of the 30 participating wineries are coming from the South Okanagan.”
Sun Peaks’ expansive mountain terrain and endless outdoor winter recreation opportunities are the perfect backdrop for the wineries of the Okanagan Wine Festivals Society and local chefs to prepare an elevated après ski experience found nowhere else.
“This is a really cool event that started out as just a one-weekend event and over the years it has come to be so popular they have expanded it to the 10 days, adding new events. This year alone there are seven new events,” said Pike-Raffan.
With many memorable events, including the flagship Sun Peaks Progressive Wine Tasting presented by WestJet, plan to stay a few nights for a very unique alpine break.
Over 9,000 past attendees can attest this is one of the best wine parties of the year combining progressive wine tasting, fresh mountain air while wandering around the village tasting wines from 24 B.C. producers.
Kicking off the event on Jan. 11 is the Comforts of Grilled Cheese and Wine at Morrisey’s Public House.
In the winter, a warm grilled cheese sandwich is one of those authentic comfort foods that goes so well with pares ski. The Dairy Farmers of Canada will serve eight different Canadian grilled cheese sandwiches paired with a B.C. wine. Guests will vote for their favourite combo.
Follow that up on Jan. 12 enjoying the Starbucks Sparkling Brunch at Delta Sun Peaks Resort Hotel or spend the afternoon combining your love of wine, food and art at Hearthstone Lodge.
Peter Stuhlmann, a professional acrylic artist will introduce over a dozen of his original art works, demonstrating his painting technique from photo sketch to final product all while guests enjoy tasting select Okanagan wines and Bella Italia appies.
Experience the magic of a winter’s night on a moonlight snowshoe tour, including a delicious campfire treat of s’mores. This one-kilometre guided tour takes guests through beautiful forest trails right to a roaring fire, mulled wine at a cozy winter camp.
Foodies can also rejoice at the Jan. 15 Taste of the Thompson, which has been elevated to new heights this year to include an expanded culinary roster with chefs from nearby Kamloops.
The evening will be an impressive showcase of regional chefs and wines of B.C. For more information on these events, and to view a full listing of the Winter Okanagan Wine Festival events at Sun Peaks Resort, or to purchase tickets visit www.thewinefestivals.com or www.sunpeaksresort.com.