Inniskillin Wines — Attraction in Niagara-on-the-Lake

My girlfriend and I were on vacation through Okanagan wine country. Over six days, we visited sixty wineries. You can follow our various locations with this disclaimer. That’s sixty wineries, not an exaggeration. We ended the trip with 120 bottles acquired. Recommending a specific location for a wine trip in the Okanagan is like dialing the chevrons on the Stargate. Yeah…wow, I totally went there. I had started thinking about how you need a specific location and then a point of origin, and the connection to that old movie just dribbled to the surface. Regardless, before a suggestion, you need a point of origin. From the North, start with Kelowna. From the South, it’s Osoyoos. If only rationed a few days, it comes down to those two, with Naramata the real reward for those dedicating more than a weekend to such a vacation. Thus, the BC branch of Jackson Triggs and Inniskillin (copy-pasted from here on because I know I’m going to get the spelling wrong at some point) is bizarre in that it sits away from basically everywhere. It’s the only winery between Oliver and Okanagan Falls, or at least just before you reach the latter. So, unless you’re on an extended trip, it’s unlikely you’ll take the trip. For us, it was an easy stop between larger concentrations of wineries. We left Osoyoos earlier so reached the complex just before its opening. I can see this place being busy during the afternoon, but at this morning, we had the place to ourselves. Unlike many other wineries in the region, Jackson Triggs / Inniskillin feels corporate, not unlike the Sandhill Winery near the dead center of Kelowna. As such, Jackson Triggs / Inniskillin a tad bit more sterile compared to others. With Naramata, you are most likely talking to owners or winemakers. Just around the corner sits the colossal steel drums that don’t look dissimilar to the hyperboloid cooling towers of a nuclear power plant (and yes, I had to look that up). Inside, it is mostly dark wood and contrasting ceramic countertops. There is a larger tasting lounge when it gets busy, but for us, it was the standard bar. There was a good selection of wine, though this was a location for the girlfriend, not me. I don’t mind the Inniskillin Icewines, but I have always personally placed the Jackson Triggs at just above mediocre. But if traveling between Okanagan Falls and Oliver, this is a great stopover between more...

My husband and I bought tickets for the Sip & Sizzle this year, we went Friday, May 16, we always have participated in the wine events, Discovery Pass, this one, they have always been excellent and we look forward to them every year and have shared our thoughts and experiences with family and friends here and visiting the Region. I suffer from migraines but have it managed with needles every 3 mos., I know to stay away from bought red wine and I do. For this reason when we visit a winery, as we did yesterday, I explained my situation and they have always, and in past years, substituted the red sample for a white wine, as did another winery yesterday, they substituted the red sample for a chardonnay, which was very appreciated. Inniskillin would not. I explained to the person who brought us our samples, she explained they do not substitute the red for a white, regardless of my challenge with migraines. (not her exact words). She offered me a mocktail which I passed on, these events only give you a sample, not a glass so I couldn't understand why they had a problem with this and totally disregarded my health concern. She went and brought her supervisor or whoever she was, I explained the situation and again the response was, we serve the red and that is all, we can give you a mocktail. I really felt my challenge with migraines was disrespected and myself for that matter. In all the years we have participated in these, not one winery every treated this situation this way, and I also thought, it would have been an opportunity for them to advertise one of their white wines, and possibly, if we liked it, we may buy a bottle, there was no logic here. So for any of my family and friends who can only drink bought white wine, or some only like white wine, I would not recommend selecting Inniskillin as one of the wineries to visit if participating in these types of events. I love living in Niagara and am very proud of our wineries, all the events here, and even though this is a beautiful winery and it is, this did turn me off, I felt they couldn't care less and all for a small sample of their white. This is probably a billion dollar winery, it is huge, it is beautiful, how sad. Of course I will share this experience with my family and friends when they ask for suggestions, but not unless they do, I hope this winery rethinks this attitude...

I was very disappointed with my overall experience at Inniskillin Wines. I am a local and a member of a wine club with another winery, so my expectations for a wine tasting maybe different from the average person. We were politely greeted by the staff and our wine was brought to our table fairly quickly. I had a couple of questions about a few of the wines before I ordered and the answers were fine for someone who knows little about wine but I was expecting a bit more of an in-depth explanation. Once our wines arrived at our table, the staff member told us which wines were which but did not explain anything about each of the wines and varietals we tasted. I paid $25.00 for a tasting and basically walked myself and my friends through their tastings. I had to explain to them what to look for from each of their wine selections. I was and am very disappointed with the lack of knowledge shared with us and the overall experience was unacceptable to me from one of Niagara's oldest wineries. I can only assume the staff has a strong knowledge of the wines at the winery, but that information was not shared with us during our tasting. I have come to expect a wine tasting experience at each of the wineries I visit in Niagara and I am not usually disappointed as we have a large number of educated and passionate professionals at many of our wineries, I did not get that feeling at...