From a chardonnay good enough to serve to the Queen to a sumptuous fortified wine made from green walnuts plucked from trees more than 100-years-old — the stories from Langley wineries have been bottled and are ready for you to pour, sip and explore.
Not enough people know that Langley is home to seven wineries, making it the largest grape growing region this side of the Okanagan.
“The firm I own, Jelly Marketing, did some targeted surveying on Facebook to Langley and Vancouver residents and found that the average person thought there were less than two wineries in Langley,” said Jelly Marketing’s Darian Kovacs.
So with full support from Langley’s wineries, the Langley Passport Wine Route program was launched on Sunday.
The Langley Passport program allows wine enthusiasts to explore the seven wineries at their own pace, collecting a stamp on their passport at each one.
The seven wineries are Domaine de Chaberton, Langley’s oldest and largest winery, Township 7, Vista D’oro, Backyard Vineyards, Blackwood Lane Winery, Fort Wine Co. and the new Krause Berry Farms Winery.
Once all seven stamps are on a passport, drop it off at the Holiday Inn Express or Best Western in Langley and you are entered to win amazing prize packages, including wine, helicopter rides and travel packages.
You can pick up a copy of the passport at any of the seven Langley wineries, the Tourism Langley office, or the Langley hotels. You can also print it off at home by clicking here.
“We talked with the wineries and built the website and passport and organized the media launch. We’re thrilled to see the hotels supporting this venture and the wineries embracing this program,” said Kovacs.
A total of 54 media guests, bloggers and those in the food and wine industry, from both Vancouver and Langley, were taken by bus on Sunday to sip and explore the seven wineries, with many Vancouver guests saying they were shocked at the quality and quantity of wineries here.
Langley’s wine history all began with pioneer winemaker Claude Violet who discovered south Langley’s micro climate (which gets 30 per cent less rain) and built Domaine de Chaberton in 1981. Now home to the popular Bachus Bistro, the beautiful winery is the biggest of the bunch. Down the way is Township 7, which just opened up its new wine cellar-style tasting room and did serve one of its wines to the Queen on her visit here in 2010.
Blackwood Lane Winery is a winding driveway that opens up to a hillside vista that serves up complex and delicious reds, including one Bordeaux blend that fetches for around $100.
Vista D’oro is dedicated to providing the ultimate agritourism experience with a bounty of artisan preserves and delicious reds including the new to be released “F Bomb.”
Backyard Vineyards is tabling its Nosey Neighbour series to wine enthusiasts, and spreading its wings selling to Alberta. The price point is under $20, the wine easy sipping and they are hoping to grow their presence on the wine stage.
Fort Wine Co. is a long established fruit winery in Fort Langley, using its own cranberries to bottle some pretty popular wines.
Krause Berry Winery is also a fruit winery, new to the group but offering a unique tasting experience as you saddle up to the bar and taste the fruits of their bounty in cowboy boot shot glasses.
To visit the website, click here or follow them on Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest.