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Banding Together: British Columbia’s Nk’Mip Cellars

Located in the southernmost tip of the Okanagan Valley, Nk’Mip (pronounced IN-ka-meep) Cellars is North America’s first aboriginal-owned and –operated winery. As you sit on the atmospheric dining patio situated on a bench of land that overlooks Osoyoos Lake (the “warmest lake in Canada”) and the town of Osoyoos, the dry desert air washes over you and the driving chant of Indian music plays softly in the background. Even the white man can begin to appreciate the spiritual allure that this sacred site held for the Osoyoos Band of Okanagan Indians thousands of years ago.

In this “place where the creek joins the lake,” stark desert landscapes punctuated by sage grasslands, ponderosa pines, and bleeding-heart sunsets set the stage for a dining experience never to be forgotten. The meal begins with a wooden platter of Native Indian Crisp Bread accompanied by Nk’Mip’s Snake Bite Dip, a spicy-hot chickpea purée.

Skewers of chicken with sweet chili sauce, bison with berries, wild-game sausage flavored with juniper, and roasted vegetables are arranged over saffron-scented rice. A bright-yellow daisy adorns the plate. On special-occasion evenings you’ll find traditional salmon barbecues, with salmon threaded dramatically between alder planks and cooked over a bed of glowing embers in the fire pit.

The winery, plus the Sonora Dunes nine-hole golf course, the Desert & Heritage Center, and the Spirit Ridge Vineyard Resort & Spa, are located on the Osoyoos Indian Band Bench. The Osoyoos Indian Band, made up of about 400 members, is part of the Okanagan First Nations. Their reserve inhabits some of the last large tracts of desert lands left in Canada. About 25 percent of the total acreage planted in the Okanagan is on Osoyoos Indian land.

The Bench is one of the most desirable grape-growing areas in the Okanagan Valley thanks to its unique combination of heat, sunshine, and sandy-loam soils. The 243-acre Inkameep Vineyard was first planted in 1968, producing quality grapes for the Okanagan Valley’s handful of winemakers.

In 1990, when Osoyoos Indian Band viticulturist and vineyard manager Sam Baptiste came on board, he quickly realized that some of the older grape varieties—such as Chancellor, Verdelet, and Pearl of Csaba—were less than desirable. He experimented with newer and more popular grapes—Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay—and wineries lined up for their allocations.

Soon, thanks to the vision of Clarence Louie, who became chief in 1985, the Band began to dream of using its own grapes to produce its own wines. The Chief, who emphasizes economic development as a means to improve his people’s standard of living and basic needs, devised a corporate motto. The Band’s watchwords are: “In Business to Preserve Our Past by Strengthening Our Future.”

Nk’Mip Cellars winery showcases that commitment, an 18,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art winemaking facility with a contemporary “desert-heritage” design and the capacity to produce 18,000 cases of wine.

Nk’Mip’s varietals include Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Meritage, and Riesling Icewine. The Qwam Qwmt (pronounced kw-EM kw-EMPT and translated as “achieving excellence”) line of wines was introduced in 2002. Nicknamed “Q2,” these limited-availability wines represent Nk’Mip’s top-tier efforts in winemaking. I find the Nk’Mip Cellars Chardonnay star among the whites; among reds, I’m fond of the Q2 Merlot and Meritage.

After years of growing grapes for others, today members of the Band save a significant tonnage of these premium grapes to make their own wine. To make outstanding wines from grapes grown on their own land is a dream come true, for members of the Band and wine aficionados alike.

Nk’Mip Cellars
1400 Rancher Cerek Road
Osoyoos, B.C. V0H 1V0
(250) 495-2985
nkmipcellars.com