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The Vancouver Sun - Moon Curser's success lies in avant-garde varieties

 

"Ever since attending a series of wine classes in Calgary less than two decades ago it’s been a bit of a storybook journey for the Tolley family, owners of Moon Curser Vineyards in the south Okanagan.

Today the hardworking, modest couple (Chris Tolley is a farmer/winemaker; Beata Tolley is the winery manager) find themselves Best Performing Small Winery in Canada awarded at the 2019 WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada for a winery producing 10,000 cases or less.

After those initial wine classes, the Tolleys quickly concluded that owning a winery was something they wanted to explore so they gave up their jobs in Calgary and headed for Lincoln University in New Zealand where they both took the one-year diplomas in viticulture and oenology.

In those early days, they did a fair amount of research by visiting wineries in New Zealand and quickly noticed a sameness in tasting room experiences. Visits to Australia proved more fruitful because many were exploring lesser-known varieties better suited to the warming climate. What they took away from those visits was that it was the odd wines like Viognier that captured their interest and became talking points after they left the winery.

The seed was planted, and when they got back to British Columbia in 2004, they bought an old cherry orchard on the east Osoyoos Bench in the south Okanagan Valley. Quickly they began to explore grape varieties that were decidedly different from the Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon, Merlot crowd.

Most of what they planted would send the everyday wine drinker running for Jancis Robinson’s famous Guide to Wine Grapes — and it is a strategy that has proven to be uber-successful. The list of non-stream varietal wines changing minds includes Touriga Nacional (Portugal), Carménère (Chile), Tannat (Uruguay), Arneis and Dolcetto (Italy), Tempranillo (Spain) — the list goes on.

Moon Curser began its life as Twisted Tree, a somewhat conservative winery name, that was dropped after a 2011 marketing overhaul. The Moon Curser name embodied the rich history of the South Okanagan, where gold smugglers would regularly cross the nearby U.S. border during the night. As historical as the name is, the winery is hardly tradition-bound. One could argue it may be the most experimental producer in the country.

Certainly planting avant-garde varieties has set the winery apart and in some ways could be instrumental in it moving forward if temperatures continue to rise in the Okanagan.

That said, not everything has worked. Early on, love for Italian varietals led to planting Corvina, a grape widely planted in Valpolicella in the Veneto, northern Italy. It never ripened. On the other hand, Arneis is thriving and is a fabulous addition to B.C.’s growing grape repertoire.

Much of Moon Curser’s recent success stems from old-fashioned, hard work. Now 15 years down the road, the vineyards and the knowledge to look after them seem to have meshed. You can’t teach experience, but you can earn it one year at a time, which is the real story of this small, hillside estate winery and one of the most exciting wine lineups in Canada.

At the end of the competition, the winery walked away with several medals led by a platinum for its remarkable ode to the Douro Valley, the 2017 Touriga Nacional ($40). They followed that up with six gold medals for a 2015 Tannat ($40); 2018 Dolcetto ($25), 2017 Malbec ($31), 2017 Tempranillo ($31), 2017 Petit Verdot ($40) and 2017 Dead of Night ($40), a blend of Syrah and Tannat.

All that is left for you to do is try the wine and eventually visit the winery on the Osoyoos West Bench and experience what the Tolleys did when they first got into the business — something new, intriguing and, most of all, different."

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Wine Align names Moon Curser Best Performing Small Winery in Canada

Taking top honours and winning the Best Performing Small Winery in Canada after winning 11 medals; 1 platinum, 6 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze.

 

"Moon Curser has been trolling the National Wine Awards of Canada for years surprising the judges with its “out there” grapes while slowing amassing a collection of gold and silver medals with such non-stream varietal wines as Touriga Nacional, Carménère, Tannat and Dolcetto. What looked like it could be a recipe for disaster has been anything but for co-owner and winemaker Chris Tolley along with his partner, winery manager, and wife, Beata Tolley, who made the jump to the top of the pack this year becoming the 2019 National Awards of Canada Best Performing Small Winery (10,000 cases or less) in Canada.

It’s been a storybook journey for the Tolleys who began taking wine classes in Calgary less than two decades ago and quickly came to the conclusion that owning a winery was the longterm goal. They soon left their jobs and headed for Lincoln University in New Zealand where they both took the one-year Graduate Diploma in Viticulture and Oenology. By 2004 they were back in Canada, where they bought an old cherry orchard on the east Osoyoos Bench in the south Okanagan Valley. By 2006 they had opened a winery.

 

Twisted Tree, the original, somewhat conservative winery name was dropped after a 2011 marketing overhaul in favour of the Moon Curser moniker. The Moon Curser name embodied the rich history of the South Okanagan when gold smugglers would cross the border regularly during the night. If you have ever experienced a full moon in Osoyoos, you can see why the smugglers would curse the moon that made capturing them far too easy for border guards. As historical as their name is, the winery is hardly tradition-bound. One could argue it may be the most experimental producer in the country.

A lot of the Tolleys’ success is directly related to early one-on-one research done visiting local wineries where they discovered many were producing the same main-line grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. What the Tolleys learned on those early visits was it was the odd Viognier or Syrah that piqued their interest, and it’s been a part of Moon Curser’s (nee Twisted Tree) story ever since. In some ways, not having a traditional wine background and vast knowledge of the world of wine set the Tolleys free to do things others would have never considered.

 

Certainly planting avant-garde varieties have set the winery apart and in some ways could be instrumental moving forward if temperatures continue to rise in the Okanagan. That said, not everything has worked. Early on, love for Italian varietals led to planting Corvina, a grape widely planted in Valpolicella in the Veneto, northern Italy. It never ripened, but on the other hand, the Arneis is thriving and is a fabulous addition to BC’s growing repertoire.

Much of Moon Curser’s recent success stems from old-fashioned, hard work. Now fifteen years down the road, the vineyards and the knowledge to look after them seem to have meshed. You can’t teach experience, but you can earn it one year at a time which is the real story of this small, hillside estate winery and one of the most exciting wine lineups in Canada.

 

At the end of the competition, the winery walked away with several medals led by a Platinum for its remarkable ode to the Douro Valley, the 2017 Touriga Nacional. They followed that up with six gold medals for a 2015 Tannat, think Uruguay; 2018 Dolcetto, that’s Italy; a 2017 Malbec, that’s Argentina; a 2017 Tempranillo, a nod to Spain; a 2017 Petit Verdot a classic from Bordeaux; and one final gold for a 2017 Dead of Night, a blend of Syrah and Tannat.

Well, you get the picture, this is one very different producer, and in many ways, a poster child for what we always hoped would be the kind of innovative, family estate winery that would grab the title of the Best Performing Small Winery in Canada. All that is left for you to do is try the wine and eventually visit the winery to experience what the Tolleys did when they first got into the business, something new and intriguing and most of all different."

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Vancouver Sun - Anthony Gismondi: B.C. wine of the week, wine to cellar and calendar items

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"B.C. wine of the week 

Moon Curser Tannat 2013, Osoyoos, Okanagan Valley

$37.30 | 90/100

UPC: 626990152781

This is the best Tannat we have seen from Moon Curser, and it has improved in my estimation since the National Wine Awards, where it showed very well. It’s big and chewy but with some softness and plenty of black plum fruit, cloves and a dusting of baker’s spices. You can drink this now, preferably with a rare steak, but I would wait a decade to see the real story (and it will be just fine under screw cap.) The fruit is grown on the very warm Osoyoos East Bench, where Moon Cursor says the sandy soils help mitigate the excessive tannins."

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Gismondi on Wine - Moon Curser Tannat 2013 - 90 points

"Moon Curser Tannat 2013 - 90 POINTS

This is the best tannat we have seen from Moon Curser, and it has improved in my estimation since the National Wine Awards, where it showed very well. This guy is aged in 225L French oak barrels, of which 30 percent are new and 70 percent are neutral one to three-year-old vessels. It’s big and chewy but with some softness and plenty of black plum fruit, cloves and a dusting of baker’s spices. You can drink this now, preferably with a rare steak, but I would wait a decade to see the real story and it will be just fine under screwcap. The fruit is grown on the very warm Osoyoos East Bench where Moon Cursor says the sandy soils help mitigate the excessive tannins."

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Gismondi on Wine - Moon Curser Dead of Night 2015 - 90 points

"Moon Curser Dead of the Night 2015 - 90 POINTS

Osoyoos, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia, Canada

Dead of the Night is a 50/50 mix of syrah/tannat grown on the Osoyoos east bench area that is the unofficial flagship red of the winery. As big as syrah and tannat can be this wine remains fresh and relatively bright on the nose offering fragrant notes of dark plums and ripe blackberries. The palate is much improved showing more finesse and refined dense tannins permeated by a strong black cherry flavour. Much more elegance than we are used to here and it is welcomed in what can be a brawny red. Impressive to say the least." 

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Vancouver Sun - Merlot makes a sexy comeback

By: Anthony Gismondi, Vancouver Sun August 19, 2011

It was not all that long ago, 2004 to be exact, when merlot had become the whipping boy of the wine industry. Overproduced and underflavoured, it was infamously damned in the movie Sideways during a pre-dinner scene when would-be novelist and pinot noir snob, Miles, informs his pal Jack, “If anyone orders merlot, I’m leaving. I am NOT drinking any f— ing merlot.”

In the months that followed, merlot’s image took a battering, as did sales. Fortunately for merlot producers, what goes around comes around, and just when it seemed the grape was doomed, its modern-day competitor, shiraz, began losing its lustre... / Read More