Syrah’s fortunes are linked to our warming climate, but as we all know climate change is not all about warming. It is also about unpredictable and heartbreaking weather events. Syrah’s rise in Canada is marked by both exhilaration and exasperation. 

I tasted my first Canadian syrah in 1997. I was enjoying dinner with compadre Anthony Gismondi at Diva at the Met, a highbrow restaurant in Vancouver. I believe it was during an episode of the Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival, when we were jointly launching Wine Access as a national wine magazine.  Suave sommelier Jeremy Roncoroni shimmered up tableside with two glasses of a dark hued mystery wine which he asked us to try.  One nosing shouted syrah – all stewed black cherry, pepper and smoked meat.  We ran down our mental checklists of northern Rhone appellations and vintage.  St. Joseph perhaps but likely Crozes Hermitage with its leaner frame, we thought. Not enough beef and density to be Hermitage or Cornas.  But no, it was Nichol Vineyard 1995 Syrah from the Okanagan’s Naramata Bench. Canada’s first syrah! We discreetly scooped our jaws up off the floor. 

Syrah’s Mediterranean roots in the Rhone Valley of southern France at latitude 45-degrees made this globally popular grape (shiraz in Australia) improbable in Canada from the outset. Well at least in B.C. at 49-degrees. Surely it wouldn’t ripen that far north, and even it did, surely its sensitivity to cold winters would cause chaos (more in a minute). Ontario is more aligned to ripen syrah latitudinally at 44-degrees, but the same winter threat was early-on deemed too dire to consider planting it.  So, it was not planted in Niagara until this same year, 1997, at Kacaba Estate, which again we explore below. 

Thirty years on syrah is indeed, remarkably well established. And commanding not only respect, but enthusiasm and even adulation by consumers, pundits and wine awards judges. Syrah is perennially a favourite category among the judges at the WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada, both in terms of expectation, and what we find in the glass. The 2026 NWAC syrah results show just how popular this grape has become.

Colleague Janet Dorozynski comments in the WineAlign introduction to the syrah category that “the results demonstrate the resilience and strength of the category. Fifty entries were received from British Columbia and Ontario, with 40 taking medals, (one of the highest medal ratios of any category) and most were high scoring, over 90 points. There were two Platinum medals, 10 Gold, 21 Silver, and seven Bronze.”  She concludes, “syrah has become one of the country’s most internationally competitive red wine varieties, capable of producing wines that combine Rhône-like complexity with a Canadian sense of place”

Many of the wines I have reviewed below are NWAC award winners – scoring 91 points or better in keeping with philosophy of this website. But I point you to the value index in the reviews to give you a more accurate picture of where syrah stands commercially. I don’t think generally Canada’s syrahs selling in the $50 to $65 range are a value match against international examples, which, except for the northern Rhone, tend to be undervalued.  Still, I am heartened by what’s happening stylistically and qualitatively, within the “hot” syrah pockets in Canada. It is definitely not a grape that flourishes everywhere in this country.

The Syrah Pockets in B.C.

Syrah is not growing everywhere in B.C. and overall acreage is actually small. Up until the freeze of 2024 it was about 500 acres, and may now be less.  But there are three regions in the southern interior where syrah can ripen well and make some really excellent wines – the very south of the Okanagan Valley on the Black Sage Bench and immediately next door in Osoyoos. Then a bit farther north near in Okanagan Falls, Skaha Lake and Naramata. And the third region is the Similkameen Valley one ridge to the west at the same latitude. 

In the South Okanagan, there is almost no point in differentiating adjacent Black Sage and Osoyoos geographically, except that there is minor moderating effect from Osoyoos Lake. The two official sub-appellations share a dry, hot summer growing season – with the highest growing-degree numbers in Canada. This is desert by any stretch (sagebrush and rattlesnakes included), and actually the northern tongue of the Sonoran Desert that dominates western U.S stated like Arizona, Nevada, Utah, eastern Oregon and Washington – then finally the southern Okanagan. So, lots of summer heat, almost too much sometimes, but moderated by B.C.s high altitude, cooler nights.

This is the heartland of B.C. syrah, attracting many important plantings and winemakers. None more so than Le Vieux Pin, established in 2006 with southern France raised and trained winemaker Severine Pinte installed as winemaker in 2010. She is a special talent, passionate and intelligent syrah purveyor, and the manifestation of what Black Sage Bench can do.  She has earned countless Canadian accolades, but international praise as well, including ‘Knight of the Order of Agricultural Merit’ from France for her work in Canada. 

But this part of B.C. has been slammed by climate change, initially in 2023 with lower crop yields, then totally in 2024 when on January 12 temperatures plummeted below -25C, freezing out 95% of the  crop, and killing some vines outright. Syrah from the south of France was never had to deal with a polar vortex.  In 2025 replanting was underway at Le Vieux Pin, but farther south in estate vineyards in Osoyoos which see some moderation from Osoyoos Lake. And in the 2024 vintage several wineries, including Le Vieux Pin, looked to Washington for ‘replacement’ syrahs, which we discuss in the reviews below.  Other notable Black Sage/Osoyoos syrah producers include Phantom Creek, Burrowing Owl, Black Hills, NK’Mip and Nostalgia. 

The southern Okanagan however is not the only source. A bit farther north, in Okanagan Falls, and on the west-facing slopes of Skaha Bench above Skaha Lake and the southern half of Okanagan Lake in Naramata, there are also some engaging examples.  West facing vineyards catch more evening sun this far north during the long summer nights, and in some places the heat radiates from granite cliff faces behind the vineyards. This is the source of the aforementioned Nichol Vineyard syrah and others like Moraine and Poplar Grove.  Code in OK Falls, Painted Rock and Pentage in Skaha also come to mind.  And even farther north in West Kelowna, Quails’ Gate’s unusual southeast facing Mt Boucherie Vineyard also ripens syrah very well.  Due to proximity to large lakes these regions suffered less damage in the winter of 2024.

The other important B.C. pocket is the Similkameen Valley, the next valley west of the South Okanagan. There is no moderating lake effect here, so winters are tough, especially in 2023 and 2024. But again, the west-facing warmer benches, with a high degree of granitic soil minerality  make this a powerhouse red wine region. I really love the Similkameen for the energy, structure and depth of its wines, including syrah. Two top producers – Clos du Soleil and Vanessa are reviewed below but other notables include Orofino and Corcelettes.

The Syrah Pockets in Ontario

Syrah acerage in Ontario is roughly half that of B.C., between 200 and 300 acres.  Although Ontario is much more latitudinally aligned with the south of France, the winter freeze bogeyman has forestalled syrah ventures to a certain degree. Nowhere else in the world is it grown where winter cold might wipe it out. And in some vintages it may not see enough heat and light to ripen fully. Yet it has been growing in Ontario since 1997, and so a track record is in place, and vintages since 2021 have been excellent for syrah.  

In July I went to Ontario’s first syrah-focused event called Shades of Syrah. It was a packed consumer event at $75 per ticket. Six producers attended, the who’s who of Niagara syrah, oddly minus founder Kacaba. They included Black Bank Hill, Creekside, Fielding and Leaning Post reviewed below, plus Redstone and Divergence.  It was a great ‘state of the syrah’ showcase, with some excellent wines to consider, some of which are detailed below. 

The most important winery historically was Creekside, which under the direction of veteran winemaker Rob Power, has been producing Niagara syrah since his first commercial vintage in 2004.  So, I asked him how many times had winter freezes shut down his syrah production?  He answered, three – vintages 2005, 2014 and 2022 – in 23 years.  I then asked him about syrah’s ability to ripen in Niagara. It certainly likes the warmer years which have been regular since 2022. But his comment was that “even in less ripe years syrah is not green, just lighter and perhaps more peppery” This somewhat defines the character of Ontario syrah. It is not as B.C. bold, dense and rich, which I understand is a major appeal. In Ontario it is lighter, higher acid, but it often evokes minerality, cured meat and peppery notes of northern Rhone syrah, which also appeals to me. And the NWAC judges.

So where in Ontario is syrah viable and working well?  The large Lincoln Lakeshore appellation is almost too broad a definition. But this sub-appellation close to the lake does offer a longer frost-free hang time potential into the fall, from which syrah surely benefits, with generally sandy soils creating ‘lighter’ wines.  The real sweet spot however is a patch of iron-rich ‘red’ clay soils at the toe of the Niagara Escarpment between Vineland and Beamsville. Redstone Winery was established here taking its name from the very local terroir. Black Bank Hill is here as well. As is the neighbouring mature Keczan Vineyard syrah employed by Leaning Post. Wines from all three are reviewed below.

To the east, occupying a similar position at the bottom of the Escarpment, are a handful of vineyards in St Davids Bench, the warmest Niagara sub-appellation, being farther removed from Lake Ontario. It is centred on the Queenston Mile Vineyard that for years has been the source of the premium syrahs forCreekside, but has now been sold with no future contract in place. The nearby Lowery Vineyard, more famous for pinot noir, also has some syrah which has found its way into the Fielding Syrah reviewed below. 

And ‘southern’ Lake Erie North Shore at 42-degrees latitude is also capable of ripening syrah. But not much is planted, because it too is suspectable to winter kill. Shallow Lake Erie freezes over more frequently than Lake Ontario, and the loss of winter moderation makes syrah risky business, as has happened severely again this year in 2026, leaving the future in doubt.  I have however enjoyed the 2020 Muscedere Syrah with its weight, open knit texture, but I regret not having tasted the 2022 Muscedere Syrah that took an NWAC gold medal this year.

Before getting to the reviews, one last stylistic observation from Janet Dorozynski, that I too am noticing and enjoying.  “One of the most significant trends evident among this year’s syrah medal winners is the continued shift away from heavily extracted and heavily oaked styles toward more vineyard and single-vineyard expressions. This allows Syrah’s peppery, floral, and savoury characteristics to shine while complementing the grape’s natural richness and texture”.  It’s a style that should come naturally in Canada.