Characteristics of Okanagan Valley Paper Example

Introduction

Okanagan is a region situated next to British Columbia interior in Canada. It is the second best region that produces wine in Canada. The area covered by vineyard has an approximation of 9900acres which accounts for 90% GDP. The vineyard is mainly found in along Lake Okanagan and other surrounding lakes such as Osoyoos and Vaseux Lake. The vineyard covered a distance of 135km along the lake and therefore vineyard plantation is the main economic activity of the people in the region (Bardoux, 1985). There are different terrains in Okanagan that makers it has diverse micro-climates and the kind of soil that favors the growth of vineyard. These features are considered as the favorable characteristics that make Okanagan suitable place for the growth of vineyards (Alley, 2004). The production of wine started a long time ago as from the 1950s at a time when there has been an establishment of Okanagan mission and the plantation of grapevines to increase the supply of sacramental wines (Sustainable Viticulture, 2017). Okanagan Valley is located in South-central British Columbia and it is 200km north from the American border. For the production of wine and plantation of vineyards to go on in Okanagan, there are some qualities of characteristics that must be there for such activities to continue.

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Geographical Location

Okanagan Valley is located in an area which is 200km long and 20km wide. It is situated in the center of two places namely Columbia and Cascade mountain ranges in south-central British Columbia (Gordon, 2010). It has very low hills and oblong lakes landscapes which were created by glacial activities which took place in the era of Pleistocene epoch which was considered the last reoccurrence of the movement of ice which took place 11000 years ago (Schreiner, 2009). During that period the movement of ice left deposits of gravel, silt, and sand on both side and the bottom of the valley (Murray, 1995). All these materials were swept by water and wind which results in alluvial fans and deltas. These sediments are used to support agriculture because they carry mineral salts and other soil elements that plants require (Teixeira, 2008). Within the same valley there are other lakes which were also formed through the glacier and therefore they are called glacial lakes. These lakes include Okanagan lake, wood lakes and other lakes found in the southern part of the region. In addition, Okanagan also extends 160km north from the Canada-United States border and it is also situated 400km toward East of Vancouver (Gordon, 2010). This makes it be in the same latitude Champagne, European region where the vineyard is grown in large scale.

A good Climatic condition that favors the growth of vineyard

Okanagan Valley is located in the rain shadow of the coast and two mountain ranges such as Cascade making the region to have hot, sunny and dry climatic condition that favors the growth of vine (Schreiner, 2009). This condition makes Okanagan Valley have a very low annual precipitation. It is estimated that all the valleys in Okanagan experience sunlight of an estimate of 2000 hours per annum and over 250 and not less than 400mm of precipitation. The only region that receives less rain in the southern part but it has around 300mm precipitation and it can still support the growth of vines (Teixeira, 2008). This region has a continental climatic condition which is cooled by Okanagan lake and other water bodies close to it forming part of Okanagan basin. It, therefore, means that al the vineyards in Okanagan Valley require irrigation by getting water from the lakes found within the Okanagan Basin. Furthermore, the region experiences winters that are not very cold and does not stay for long. The temperatures of this region do not go below 25 C (13 F) and because it does not take a very long time, it cannot damage vines. The day temperature at the time the vines are grown lies below 30 C (86 F) and its northerly latitude ensure that vines to go through along hours of daylight as compared to the southern part of the region.

The People of Okanagan Valley

This region was initially dominated by Okanagan who originated from the interior of Salish. they are the original people where the region was named after them meaning the place of water. These people can still be found in the northern region of Okanagan Lake and other parts of the southern region (Ian, 2004). Other three remaining groups of the people living in this area include Kelowna, Vernon, and even Penticton. These people practice dairy farming and vegetable growing in Northern Valley. On the other hand, the people living along Osoyoos and Oliver grow fruits making them love growing vines.

Winemaking Philosophy

The winemaking philosophy is also a very important feature that makes Okanagan Valley be associated with wine style (Teixeira, 2008). They use different approaches when making wines and as a result, they have a wide range of experience in dealing with wine. The people of Okanagan Valley, therefore, can produce wine using different techniques and therefore they lead wine style.

Differences north to south

The variation in rainfall intensity between northern and southern part of the region also makes it have a climatic condition that supports the growth and winemaking. The top valley gets rainfall of 400mm annually while the southern part gets 250mm and therefore is considered semi-desert (Shaw & Archer, 2008). As a result, for the people to grow vines, they have to irrigate their lands to grow vines. The temperature difference is also an important characteristic of Okanagan valley because it has 40oC during summer which is essential for the provision of high low balance temperature for vines (Canada.com, 2008). The altitude difference is also important for the growing vines. This supports the growth of vines and also ensure that there is the production of wines in large quantities.

European Settlement

There are very many European settlers in Okanagan Valley. Some of these settlers are traders who are working in the Pacific Fur Company. These people entered Okanagan Valley in 1811 when they entered this region to seen the Valley (Rayne & Forest, 2016). Other Europeans entered Okanagan Valley when they followed the train in 1914. There were also missionaries who reached this place in 1940 (Mithan, 2011). At the same time, there are miners who entered Okanagan Valley when there was a small gold rush at Chery Creek in 1962. These Europeans prefer wines than any other kind of drinks, as a result, they spread the behavior of drinking wines. Because there are very many people prefer wines to other drinks, the production capacity and farming of vines increases to meet the increasing demand for wines.

Fruit Baskets or Agricultural region

Okanagan Valley is the most significant region which supports the growth of fruits in British Columbia. It mainly grows fruits which are mostly used in the production of wines (Scalza,2010). In Okanagan valley, the first apple fruit was planted by Hiram and Smith along the lakes found in Okanagan Valley. In this region, there is a huge plantation of fruits especially the one for Governor Aberdeen (Teixeira, 2008). The governor also provided land to locals for fruit growing and this encouraged people to grow vines. These happened in the 1890s and there were other new plantations that were made around lakes such as Osoyoos. Until the 1930s, large and more equipped irrigation systems were developed in semi-arid sections to support fruit growing and in 1926, commercial grape growing was introduced and it is operating to date where it is currently done along the valleys (British Columbia Wine Institute, 2013). It is done to provide vines to local and al coastal wineries. To date, most fruit growing is done along the lake of Okanagan.

Willing to experiment

The people of Okanagan Valley still prefer doing an experiment for new kinds of vines. They do the experiment to ensure that they get the best vine seed that can produce high-quality vines. The urge increased the desire for most people to grow and plant vine (Rayne & Forest, 2016). The people or the vine growers are spending a lot of money to conduct GPS soil and satellite tests of the lands they use to grow vines. This is aimed at ensuring that they select the best vine and correct variety to grow.

Conclusion

Okanagan Valley has different characteristics that support the growth and production of wines. It is located in a good geographical area where growers can get sufficient water supply from different lakes. The climatic condition of the region also favors the growth of vines because it has a hot, sunny and dry condition which is good for its growth. In addition, the people staying in Okanagan Valley also like using wines. They are mainly composed of European settlers who prefer using wines to other kinds of drinks. All these characteristics of Okanagan valley influence the growth of vines and the production of wines in large scale.

References

Bardoux, M. (1985). The Kelowna detachment zone, Okanagan Valley, south-central British Columbia. doi:10.4095/120179

Rayne, S., & Forest, K. (2016). Rapidly changing climatic conditions for wine grape growing in the Okanagan Valley region of British Columbia, Canada. The science of The Total Environment, 556, 169-178. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.02.200

Shaw, J., & Archer, J. (2008). Winter turbidity current deposits in Late Pleistocene glaciolacustrine varves, Okanagan Valley, British Columbia, Canada. Boreas, 7(3), 123-130. doi:10.1111/j.1502-3885.1978.tb00270.x

Sustainable Viticulture. (2017). doi:10.1201/9781771885713

Teixeira, C. (2008). 12. The Portuguese in British Columbia: The Orchardists of the Okanagan Valley. The Portuguese in Canada. doi:10.3138/9781442688827-015

Schreiner, J (2009). The Wineries of British Columbia. North Vancouver, BC: Whitecap Books. ISBN 978-1-55285-983-4. Retrieved March 25, 2013.

British Columbia Wine Institute "BC Wine Institute Members: The Okanagan Valley" Accessed: March 26, 2013

Mitham "B.C. Growers Explore New Grape Varieties" Wines and Vines. January 2008. Accessed: January 3rd, 2011

Scalza, R "Mudslide Buries Okanagan Vineyards" Wine Spectator. June 18th, 2010

Alley, L. Canada Finds its Napa"'' Wine Spectator. August 17th, 2004

Gordon J. (ed) Opus Vino pg 126-130, DK Publishing New York 2010, ISBN 978-0-7566-6751-1https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/explore-canada/okanagan-valley-wine-region/

Okanagan 'terroir' probed by wine centre". Canada.com. July 23, 2008. Retrieved March 25, 2013.

http://www.the-buyer.net/insight/why-canadas-okanagan-valley-wine-region-is-full-of-surprises/ Ian R (2004). "Chapter 6: Climate Change, the last 15000 years in the Okanagan". In John D. Greenough, Murray A. Roed. Okanagan Geology. Kelowna Geology Committee. pp. 51-62. ISBN 0-9699795-2-5.

Murray A., Roed (1995). "Chapter 5: The ice Age in the Okanagan". In Roed, Murray A. Okanagan Geology: British Columbia. Okanagan Geology Committee. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-9699795-4-8.