Two Okanagan wineries earned world-class bragging rights at the 2018 Chardonnay du Monde competition held March 7 to 9 in France.

The Chardonnay gold medal was awarded to Liquidity Estate Winery in Okanagan Falls, while the Kalala Organic Estate Winery in West 琉璃神社 won second place overall and earned one of 13 gold medals this year.

The competition featured more than 679 competitors from 39 wine-producing countries.

Liquidity Winery initially began as a vineyard in the 1970s and was most recently purchased by a business consortium led by Ian MacDonald, a Vancouver businessman, and they proceeded to add the winery aspect to the property.

MacDonald says his goal is to have Liquidity recognized as one of the premiere boutique wineries in Canada.

Kalala鈥檚 Chardonnay icewine was judged number one in 2016 and placed in the top 10 worldwide in 2010 and 2014 before earning its second place award for 2017.

鈥淭his competition is our Olympics,鈥� said Kalala, founder and owner Karnail Singh Sidhu. 鈥淲e feel proud to be up in second place, and we feel proud of Liquidity for top place.

鈥淭o be judged the world鈥檚 two top Chardonnays is good, even great, not just for the Okanagan and B.C. wine producers, but for the entire wine industry in Canada.

鈥淭o be honest, we weren鈥檛 surprised to be recognized again among some of the best winemakers in the world. We have learned from each other the secrets to making good wine. Number one is to grow good grapes. Then we鈥檙e not in a hurry. We extend the aging and fermentation process a bit to make the wine more flavourful and raise the alcohol level a little higher.鈥�

Sidhu credits Okanagan wine industry consultant Alan Marks with encouraging Kalala鈥檚 ongoing pursuit of excellence.

Marks, in turn, says he has not been surprised to watch Kalala鈥檚 medal count rise in a highly competitive field.

鈥淎 lot of wineries make icewine,鈥� Marks said. 鈥淪ome think, as long as they have frozen grapes, they鈥檙e good to go. Growing excellent grapes can be a bit overlooked. Karnail knows the relationship between exceptional grapes and exceptional wine.鈥�

鈥淪ome grape varieties come and go but Chardonnay grapes never grow out of fashion. Here in West 琉璃神社 we have nice growing conditions鈥攇ood soil with good exposure to the sun.鈥�

Among its distinctive qualities, Kalala鈥檚 Chardonnay icewine is renowned for 鈥榗ool climate鈥� flavours and aromas that have been described as 鈥渓ike honeysuckle, lemon and apricot.鈥�

The Kalala winery was founded in 2006 and was certified as organic in 2010.

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