Tasting Note: I first visited Emandare and tasted this wine in the fall of 2025 and was shocked by its quality. It was a ‘pinch me’ moment so I had to seek it out again for this review, and waited impatiently this month. I was not disappointed.  It is a gorgeous pinot that captures so much of what I love about this grape – fragrance and complexity with a fresh coastal ambiance, a silky mid-palate, yet fine boned acid leverage and modest 12.5% alcohol. It has a weave of everything that I call ‘pinosity’.  It is pure with voluminous aromas of sour cherry/raspberry fruit, gentle evergreen, violet, very fine oak toast/smoke (not wildfire) and spice. It is medium bodied, fresh yet serious, even yet still gently warm and edgy, with slightly chippy tannin. The length is excellent to outstanding.  

Backgrounder: Emandare is small property on a gentle south facing slope northeast of the town of Duncan in the northern Cowichan Valley. It is in the rain shadow of Mt. Prevost and overlooking Somenos Lake. Winemaker Mike Nierychlo claims it is the warmest site for grape-growing on Vancouver Island. He and partner Robin purchased the 20-year-old, dry farmed Fleurie vineyard in 2013 and restored it. “Emendere” in Italian means “to amend or repair and to perfect”.  The wines are 100% estate grown, organically farmed and vinification takes place naturally with wild yeasts. This all happens in neutral French oak, with a minimum of six months spent on lees to soften the acids.  Emandare makes less than 1000 cases a year, with its small volumes selling out quickly through a Wine Club that offers 12 bottles or 24 bottles per year.  They also make pinot noir and chardonnay from the former Wolff Vineyard, as well as sought-after estate chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, traditional method blanc de blancs sparkling, and an energized $30 blend of gamay, foch and pinot noir called Valley Red.