Q3 2026 tasting notes
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The Okanagan, first week of September. Harvest has started early again.
A letter from the founder
This season, we went west
Dear members,
September is the quarter when we stop planning and start picking. The tanks are filling in the Okanagan, the light goes long and gold by six, and the table moves back indoors — slowly, and only when it has to.
For Q3, the majority of our Canadian wines come from British Columbia. That wasn't a rule we set out with; it's simply where the most compelling bottles were this year. The Okanagan and the Similkameen gave us wines with tension and clarity — fruit that ripened without losing its acid, and growers who were unwilling to pick early for convenience. We followed the quality.
The wine we are most pleased to share is the rosé from Winemaker's CUT in Oliver, BC. It is, plainly, world-class — the kind of rosé that makes you stop mid-sentence. Pale, dry, saline, with real structure underneath the fruit. We've put a recipe alongside it further down this page, because a wine like this deserves something worth eating.
For our Founders Club members, we've opened the cellar. A 2014 50th Parallel Estate Pinot Noir — twelve years in bottle, and a very different story of Okanagan Pinot than the one you'd expect. I tasted it myself before choosing it for your shipment. Notes are below.
Pour a little cooler than you think you should. Let the bottles open up. Let the evening stretch.
Thank you, as always, for letting us curate these moments with you.
VJ Gandhi
Founder · Kascadia Wine Merchants
The wine of the quarter
A rosé that stops the conversation
Winemaker's CUT, Oliver, British Columbia — in every pack this quarter.
Tasting note
2025 Rosé
Winemaker’s CUT
A small-lot release, cool-fermented in stainless. Wild strawberry, raspberry and watermelon, with rose petal and citrus zest behind them. Bright, dry and mineral-edged — the Okanagan in late summer, still cold from the fridge.
At the table
Tuna tartare · grilled prawns · summer salads · charcuterie · goat cheese · sushi · herb-roasted vegetables · Mediterranean cooking
At the table · Serves 4 · 30 minutes
Grilled prawns with charred lemon, chili and herb butter
Smoke and citrus against cold rosé — the pairing the wine was built for. Cook the prawns hot and fast, and let the butter melt over them at the table.
Ingredients
- 1½ lb large prawns, shell-on, deveined
- 2 lemons, halved
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cloves garlic, finely grated
- 1 red Fresno chili, thinly sliced
- Small bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- Small bunch dill, chopped
- 1 tsp fennel seed, lightly crushed
- Olive oil, flaky salt, black pepper
Method
- Mash the butter with the garlic, chili, fennel seed, half the herbs and a good pinch of salt. Set aside at room temperature.
- Heat a grill or cast-iron pan until it is genuinely hot. Toss the prawns with olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Lay the lemon halves cut-side down and leave them until deeply charred, about 4 minutes. Move them to the platter.
- Grill the prawns 2 minutes per side, until the shells are pink and the edges have caught colour. Do not crowd the pan.
- Pile them onto the platter, spoon the herb butter over while they are still hot, and scatter the remaining herbs. Squeeze the charred lemon over everything.
- Serve straight from the platter with bread for the butter, and the rosé poured cold.
Wine pairing. The wine's citrus zest and crisp acidity cut the herb butter, while its red-berry fruit sits with the char on the prawns. Decant nothing; pour it cold and top up often.
Founders Club · Library release
A private release from our cellar
For the members who have been with us from the beginning — a twelve-year-old Okanagan Pinot Noir, valued at C$155.
Library collection · 12 years in bottle
2014 50th Parallel Estate Pinot Noir
Okanagan Valley, British Columbia · 13.5% ABV · C$155 Canadian cellar price
Deep garnet with developed brick tones. It opens with concentrated red fruit and a richness we did not expect from Okanagan Pinot — ripe cherry leading into French oak, baking spice and a distinct note of star anise, with medium tannin and a softly spiced finish. It tells a different story of this region, and one that could only have been written with time.
Bottles of this provenance are the sort we usually reserve for our Black Book clients. This quarter, it belongs to our Founders.
From the cellar
Give it 45–60 minutes to breathe. Serve slightly cool and let it keep evolving in the glass.
Also noted
Jamie Goode awarded this bottling 91 points.
Deep garnet · Ripe cherry · French oak · Baking spice · Star anise
Oh Canada members
Oh Canada, your way
Four Canadian wines every quarter isn't changing. This release, you have three ways to build the box.
Option 01
Revisit a favourite
We choose three Canadian wines; you choose the fourth from our available Canadian collection. Still thinking about something from a previous shipment? Consider this your encore.
3 Canadian selections + 1 member's pick
Option 02 · The cellar wildcard
2014 Reclamación Cabernet Sauvignon
Sonoma County, California. Approx. US$50 retail value. A sought-after library release with very little U.S. inventory left — we are pulling from some of the last available cases. Three Canadian wines, plus this.
Limited availability while inventory remains.
3 Canadian selections + 1 library Cabernet
Option 03
Keep it classic
Prefer exactly what you signed up for? Leave the choosing to us. Four Canadian wines, selected for the season. No substitutions, no decisions necessary.
4 Canadian wines · Curated by Kascadia
Tell us what's going in your box
Email info@kascadiawine.com with Option 1, 2 or 3 — and if you're choosing Option 1, the Canadian wine you'd most like to revisit. No response necessary to keep it classic; we'll curate your usual four.
Experience our
Virtual tastings
Dates for the remainder of 2026 are being confirmed. Members are emailed three weeks ahead, with time to get the bottles open.
Video archive
Coming soon — Painted Rock Winery · Terah Wine Co.
Member questions
Good to know
What is included in my member benefits?
Founders Club members also have access to our annual book club and discounted travel with our Canadian wine tour partners.
When do shipments go out?
When is the next virtual tasting?
What is the Founders Club?
Can I change what comes in my box?
Still have questions?
Send us a note and our team will be delighted to help — shipping, substitutions, tasting dates, or what to open first.
