110 Timms Road
Salmon Arm, BC
Swiss-born Jack Manser and his wife, Hazel, a nurse, purchased Larch Hills in 2005 from retiring founders Hans and Hazel Nevrkla, with Hans agreeing to mentor the new owners for a period. The original owners were making about 2,500 cases a year; the Mansers have more than doubled that production.
A professional forester, Jack feels completely at home growing grapes. The Larch Hills vineyard, at an elevation of 700 m, is the highest in British Columbia but, with a steep, south-facing slope, produces crisp and fresh whites from ortega, siegerrebe and madeleine angevine. In 2008, the winery released its first lemberger (replacing pinot noir) and began offering a selection of whites – pinot blanc, pinot gris and gewürztraminer – made from organically grown grapes.