Osoyoos Larose Estate Winery

The Free Bacchus Story

In 1998 Groupe Taillan of Bordeaux, which the French trade paper Vitisphere calls the leading appellation wine group in France, went into partnership with Vincor Canada with a single aim: a world-class Canadian wine made from the classic Bordeaux grapes. The site they chose is an 80-acre bench above Lake Osoyoos in the South Okanagan.

The first release was Le Grand Vin 2001. Vincor was folded into Constellation Brands Canada in 2012, and in 2013 Groupe Taillan bought the remaining shares and became the sole owner of the 32-hectare estate.

The vineyard is planted entirely to Bordeaux varieties, red and white: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, with Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle. PACS, the British Columbia certifier, lists every one of them as certified organic under the Canada Organic Regime, as client #16-938.

Le Grand Vin is made to keep. Its listing at PEI Liquor describes black fruit and spice, and advises drinking it now or cellaring it for ten years from the vintage.