BC Wines for Halloween

“Trick or Treat- Enjoy these spooky Okanagan wines this “Hallo-wine”!

Black Widow Winery  2011 Phobia

$27.00; Syrah 70% Merlot 30%

Black Widow Winery is one of Naramata’s newer wineries, which opened their tasting room and small bed and breakfast in 2008. With a black widow spider on the label and the name Phobia, this wine will fit perfectly into any Halloween party. For this year, the Halloween trick is finding a bottle as it is next to impossible, unless you’re lucky enough to have one in your cellar. Make it a treat for 2014 by putting your name on the waiting list for the 2012 vintage.

Fairview Cellars  2009 Bucket O’Blood

$29.99; Syrah 30% Cabernet Sauvignon 70%

Could there be a more perfect Halloween wine?  With only one row of Syrah planted in the vineyard, this wine changes yearly from either a Syrah/Cabernet Sauvignon Blend, Syrah/Cabernet Franc blend or even all three. Fairview Cellars is one of BC’s original cult wineries and, with less than 3000 cases produced annually, your best hope of snagging a bottle or case is to visit the winery. Unfortunately, this wine is sold-out at the winery, so for 2013 it’s a trick, unless you can find a bottle in a BC wine store.

Black Cloud Winery  2010 Altostratus

$35.00; Pinot Noir

Black Cloud Winery is a virtual winery operated by Township 7 winemaker Bradley Cooper and his wife, Audralee Daum that specializes only in pinot noir. Every Halloween needs a black cloud moving across the moon, making this Pinot Noir a Hallo-wine treat. Available directly from the winery in Naramata.

Blasted Church Vineyards  2009 Nothing Sacred

$41.00; Meritage blend

Enjoy a special Halloween evening with Blasted Church Vineyard’s Nothing Sacred Meritage and a screening of the 1968 horror cult film Rosemary’s Baby.

Moon Curser Vineyards  2012 Afraid of the Dark

$22.00; Roussane  47% Viognier 31% Marsanne 22%

While any of Moon Curser Vineyard’s wines with their spooky labels are perfect for Halloween, our pick is the aptly named Afraid of the Dark.  Pair with Wes Craven’s slasher and cult film Scream.

Monster Vineyards  2009 Monster Cabs

$19.90.  Cabernet Franc 67% Cabernet Sauvignon 33%

Monster Vineyards began in 2006 as a line of mid-priced wines from Poplar Grove Winery. In June 2012, they opened their own tasting room, complete with a one-of-a-kind monster tasting bar.  If Halloween is too much of a fright, enjoy this easy drinking red with Walt Disney’s hit movie for both children and adults, Monsters Inc.

Van Westen Vineyards  2008 Vrankenstein Magnum

$110.00 ($10.00 to BC Children’s Hospital) Cabernet Franc

Named after Frankenstein because it’s a “monster of a wine”, Vrankenstein magnums celebrate  the Halloween tradition at Van Westen Vineyards of picking the vines in full costume with friends, neighbors and wine-lovers. Call ahead to the winery if you would like to partake in this year’s Halloween grape-picking party.

Covert Farms Winery – If you are in the Okanagan on Saturday, October 26, drop by for a wine tasting and the Annual Covert Farms Haunted Maze from 3pm-8pm. Costumes encouraged. Admission: $10.00

Road 13 Vineyards

For many, the number 13 has spooky connotations, making any wine from this vineyard a perfect Halloween wine. Pair your favorite Road 13 Vineyards wine with the cult slasher movie Friday the 13^th or one of its many sequels.

*feature photo curtesy of “redwolf” from devient art

Editors note:

Coming soon, Arbutus Distillery‘s Coven Vodka has a fantastic ghoulish label which only gets better as the lights go out! Photos courtesy of Hired Guns Creative, who created the bottle.