The Wine Knows

Wine lovers thought it was crazy enough when Zinfandel crossed the California border into Oregon (which, frankly, has been growing Zin in the Gorge for a century).

When the red variety made famous by California jumped the Columbia River into Washington, that was outrageous - made even more so when those Washington Zins started winning awards in NorCal competitions.

Now, Zinfandel has hopped the 49th Parallel into British Columbia. In fact, it's been there for a few years in tiny amounts, as we tasted an Inniskillin Okanagan Zin sometime in the past two years. The grapes are grown extremely close to the U.S. border.

Now, more Zin is going into the ground, this time on the Naramata Bench, north of Penticton.

I was on the phone Saturday with Bob Ferguson of Kettle Valley Winery, and he said he and co-owner (and brother-in-law) Tim Watts have found a spot they think is perfect for the sun-loving grape and are planting about an acre.

So when that Kettle Valley 2011 Zin is released in around 2014, I'll be ready!