Wine Insights from Nimmo Bay
We’ve asked our Sommelier Claire King the hardest question of them all: pick 5 wines to showcase from this 2024 season. Narrowing down our delightfully crafted list of both local B.C. wines and those beyond is an incredibly challenging task. We knew she would be up to the task though and can’t wait to share these picks with you. We also pull back the curtain a little bit and asked Claire to share how she curates the full wine list for Nimmo Bay each season.
Meet Our Somm
Before we get into the list, we’d love to share with you a bit more about our Somm Claire, who’s been with us at Nimmo since April 2023. She is originally from Australia but has been in Canada for the past 8 years. In her own words, “British Columbia has absolutely stolen my heart”.
Claire has a long history in the hospitality industry. Starting out as a teenager, she’s worked in cafes, bars and clubs, restaurants, events, and remote lodges. While all of these experiences were valuable steppingstones full of growth, she was looking for something more. Searching for a place that encouraged endless learning and would embrace the constant change she craved. Claire found this in Nimmo Bay. The resort is a place where her passion for beverages, connecting with people, curating beautiful spaces and creating unforgettable moments can thrive.
The Wine Cellar
The freedom we have with our beverage program at Nimmo is both refreshing and exciting. We’re able to highlight a selection of our favourite B.C. producers and offer a reserve list featuring wines from regions like Champagne, Burgundy, Barolo, Tuscany, Sonoma, and Napa. And, if you’re looking for an even deeper experience with wines, we also have a selection in our specialty cellar. It holds unique, small-production wines that are incorporated into our Taste the Wild culinary enhancement. It is endlessly satisfying sharing these diverse wines with our guests and guiding them through new regions, styles, and varieties. It’s our goal at Nimmo to have something for everyone, whether you’re an industry professional or a casual taster.
Our Philosophy
Claire is of the mind that wine should be joyful! It’s often the case where choosing, drinking, or talking about wine can seem intimidating or pretentious. Her approach makes sure that everyone at the table is comfortable. No question you ask is wrong and every tasting note you experience is valuable. For Claire, “encouraging curiosity and genuine exploration is key to fully appreciating wine. People’s interpretations of flavours and aromas are shaped by their personal history, making each glass of wine a uniquely individual experience”.
How the Wine List is Crafted
When selecting a new wine to add to the list, there are a few things that Claire takes into consideration. Most importantly, is it delicious? Second, is there an emphasis on sustainable or regenerative practices in both the vineyard and the winery? Third, does it speak to a specific place or vintage? Lastly, will it complement the outstanding local seafood, foraged ingredients, and farm produce that our chefs work with? Each of these questions helps determine whether a wine will be a good fit for our list.
Showcasing B.C. Wines
Nimmo Bay also values showcasing local B.C. wines and supporting the vineyards in our home province. All the by-the-glass wines available in our restaurant are from British Columbia. For Claire, she believes that our local wine regions are just beginning to reveal their full potential. We love being able to offer a wide range of these beautiful wines for our guests to explore. The Okanagan Valley, our most well-known region, has experienced a string of challenging vintages, affected by wildfires, heat waves, and extreme cold snaps. Now, more than ever, it is important to support these producers who are crafting authentic and remarkable wines.
THe Top 5 Wines
1. 2018 St Katherina Vineyard Traditional Method Pinot Noir Sparkling By Jordon Kubek and Tyler Knight of Pamplemousse Jus
Summerland, British Columbia
This is one of my favourite sparkling wines in Canada, crafted from a single vineyard of beautifully gnarled, old vines planted in the 1960s. Left relatively untouched, this unique vineyard is now considered to have its own clone of Pinot Noir. Jordan aged the wine for four years on its lees (the process of letting wines mature and age on top of spent yeast and other particulate matter) before release. The result is a bright and complex wine with delicate bubbles. It’s filled with layers of fresh raspberry, lemon sabayon, honeysuckle, and shortbread. I love serving it with local oysters from Fanny Bay, which are delightfully sweet and saline, topped with a rhubarb mignonette and pickled bull kelp.
2. 2023 En Terre Riesling By Nadine Kinvig and Terravista Vineyards
Penticton, British Columbia
Produced from two blocks of the Stormhaven Vineyard in Okanagan Falls, this Riesling is a stunning debut for this project by Nadine Kinvig and the Terravista team. Their commitment to continuous learning and heartfelt exploration shines through in this carefully crafted wine, which has quickly become a staff favourite. It offers a touch of sweetness on the palate, balanced by zippy acidity and a blend of stone fruits and delicate florals. Complexity builds with each sip, it’s lovely on its own, as well as being an excellent pairing for a wide range of dishes. My favourite pairing is with a dish celebrating locally farmed carrots—glazed, fermented, pureed, and topped with a spicy guanciale condiment. The dish is full of flavour; sweet, spicy, salty, tangy, and with it, this Riesling just sings.
3. 2022 Tormenta by Veronica Ortega
San Juan de la Mata , Spain
Veronica, an exceptional winemaker from Spain, crafted this 100% Godello from organically farmed, 25-year-old vines in San Juan de la Mata. The Small Grain Godello, the oldest clone of this variety, yields smaller berries with a rich concentration of flavours. Aged for 13 months in amphora and neutral oak barrels, this wine is both elegant and complex. It evolves beautifully in the glass, revealing aromas of lemon balm, genmaicha, and white flowers, along with a distinctive salinity. On the palate, citrus fruits and minerality combine with the noted white flowers and green tea. This wine pairs wonderfully with shellfish, and I particularly enjoy it with a simple yet elegant dish of seared scallops with a celery and charred leek emulsion.
4. 2021 Celery Diversion by Costa Garvis at Rigour & Whimsy
Okanagan Falls, British Columbia
The name “Rigour and Whimsy” reflects the universal quest for balance—between ourselves, our relationships, and the natural world. It embodies the balance between exploration and tradition. This wine is leaning into the joy of exploration and simply put, this wine is fun! It’s an exploration of what Sauvignon Blanc can be and how to embrace the unexpected in life.
A vat of Sauvignon Blanc grapes shows up at your winery doorstep with little to no notice and it’s already started fermenting. What to do? The answer for Costa was to de-stem it immediately and let it ferment on its skins for 2 weeks in open top bins. Next, it was aged for 7 months in neutral oak. The result is an intriguing skin contact Sauvignon Blanc, in between an orange and a white wine. It makes for some exciting pairings. The aromatics jump out of the glass with first impressions of lychee, honeydew melon, and kefir lime. The palate adds brine, citrus fruits, and an undercurrent of pyrazines (notes of bell pepper or jalapeño). These flavours create an herbal note that turn this wine into a mind-bending experience. Only 111 cases were ever made of this beauty.
5. 2021 La Neblina Pinot Noir By Radio Coteau
Sonoma County, California
I was drawn to this family run estate because of their commitment to conservation and sustainability. Over 10% of their land is left undisturbed to preserve native wildlife and migratory routes. They enhance biodiversity with pollinator and hedgerow plantings for bees, insects, and birds. They plant cover crops to enrich the soil and prevent erosion. Habitat restoration is a priority, using goats to manage invasive plants and support native species. Wildlife structures are also built on the property, like owl boxes and bee habitats that help control pests and boost pollination.
The 2021 La Neblina is a vibrant wine from an excellent growing season in Sonoma Coast. This vintage, free of major weather events, highlights the elegance of Pinot Noir from Western Sonoma. It presents notes of red currant, cherry, cool wet earth, cinnamon bark, and dried flowers, complemented by subtle wood spice and fine-grained tannins. I intend on keeping these bottles in our cellar for some years. It drinks wonderfully now, but I am particularly excited to see how it evolves in the bottle over the next 5 years.
Words by: Alexandra Janes
Photos: Jeremy Koreski and Alexandra Janes