Kelowna’s newest winery has officially opened for business, virtually that is. 

Priest Creek Family Estate Winery is run by husband-wife duo, Darren and Jane Sawin — who started the winery a few years back as a way to help the family return to their farming roots. The vineyard originally grew table grapes but with the help of their children, they’ve turned their nine-acres into wine grapes.

“One of the [wines] we’ve launched as our celebration is our ‘Sparking Dacota’, it’s a celebration of the hard work our family has put into building this winery,” explains Jane. 

“The name comes from the first two letters of our children, so it actually means something to us so we’re really proud of that one.”

They have five other wines: 2019 Pinot Gris, 2019 Estate Gewürztraminer, 2017 Merlot, 2018 Pinor Noir, and a 2016 ‘Hat Trick’.

“We have a couple of hockey players in the family but that wine, in particular, was barrelled for over three years, the grapes come off of three different vineyards and it’s a Meritage of three varietals.” 

The boutique winery is set to create a 1,300 case lot. 

The winery’s name is an ode to the land’s first owner’s Priest Creek Ranch, the family wanted to pay tribute to the heritage of the land. 

“Back in the mid-1800s the mission had a massive parcel of land up here that was farmed by priests and Priest Creek actually runs behind the property and feeds into Mission Creek,” adds Jane. 

They understand this isn’t the way they hoped the winery’s grand opening would be but hope residents might want to try something new and support a new local business. 

“The people who have purchased some of our wines to try they're loving them, really good feedback. We’re just excited to try spread the word and get our name out there and let more locals try our wines.”

The winery is open seven-days a week for pick-ups by appointments. They’re also doing a social distant drive-thru event this Saturday and Sunday and depending on the popularity they continue to do this for the coming weeks. 

Castanet is highlighting how locally-owned businesses are coping with the COVID-19 pandemic. If you're a local business owner trying to make it work during the COVID-19 pandemic, email [email protected].