Wine Guy: Celebrating with Rosé for Canada Day

Time to get out the Maple Leaf flags and wave a little celebration for Canada. Admittedly, given the heat of the season it seems sensible to head right to a toast with refreshing Rosé in the glass. After all, red and white makes pink. While it would be great to celebrate with bottles from across the country given the occasion, the sad reality is that wines from other provinces remain stubbornly hard to come by. On the other hand, we have lots of laudable local Rosés ready, so consider cheering from coast to coast to coast with one of these B.C. bottles.

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Bartier Bros. Vineyard and Winery 2025 Rosé, Oliver

($19.99, available through the winery and select private wine stores)

This week’s focus is on fun Rosés ready for a celebration. In essence, we’re talking fresh and accessible bottles that won’t bust the budget. Bartier Bros. main Rosé certainly hits all these marks. A light pink-hued wine bursting with red berry and melon aromas, it’s a mix of Cabernet Franc, Viognier, Merlot, and Petit Verdot (in 74/12/9/5 composition). Each grape variety was harvested and fermented separately, and the final blend is bright and juicy with a crisp finish — the perfect Rosé to pair with everything from a bucket of fried chicken to fish tacos.

Bottom line: A, Lip smacking and smile inducing.

Kismet Estate Winery 2025 Infinity Rosé, Oliver

($24.99, available through the winery and select private wine stores)

Kismet Estate Winery offers a fine tale of Okanagan Valley destiny. Owned by the Dhaliwals, the family has long farmed fruit in the South Okanagan, including grapes for top B.C. wines. Now managing nearly 250 hectares of vineyards, for their winery the family selects top estate-grown fruit. The wines are made by Manpreet Dhaliwal, Canada’s first female South Asian head winemaker. The growing wine lineup includes this Infinity Rosé, a fun and quirky blend of eight grape varieties made using the Saignée method. The result is a robust, soft yet savoury onion skin-coloured wine with a lingering fresh finish.

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Mt. Boucherie Estate Winery 2025 Rosé, West Kelowna ($23.99, #577148)

Listed as a field blend of Zweigelt and Pinot Noir and sporting a B.C. VQA designation, this engaging Rosé likely combines grapes grown in both the Similkameen and Okanagan Valleys — Mt. Boucherie farms vineyards in both. Pouring a light pink, it wafts aromas of baked rhubarb and flowers. A juicy entry leads to engaging texture and a crisp finish featuring hints of lingering spice and bitterness. Like most Rosé, this bottle is eminently food-friendly, and in this particular case screams to be paired with anything off the grill — from salmon to citrus-glazed pork chops.

Bottom line: A-, All-summer Rosé.

The Swirl: B.C. Wine Information Centre celebrates 30 years

Throughout 2026, Penticton’s B.C. Wine Information Centre (553 Vees Drive, Penticton) is celebrating their 30th anniversary with a special tasting on the 30th of each month. Now that summer — and peak wine touring season — has arrived, it’s worth building the dates into a wine trip itinerary. The next tasting is June 30 and features Elephant Island Winery and Black Hills Winery, offering in-store offering complimentary tastings, small bites, and door prizes from 1-4 p.m. For the complete tasting schedule head to pentictonwineinfo.com/.