Vineyard Kitchen - Oliver

This is a review of the Vineyard Kitchen. We came here for lunch just as we were about to leave Oliver. We had seen pictures of the view from the restaurant, and we just needed a nice pleasant place for lunch before making the long drive back to Vancouver. At this point, we had already done so many winery tours and tastings, and we were not really interested in purchasing more wine. The food itself was great, outstanding even, for a winery restaurant that claimed it's food was "only secondary to the wine". We had a pizza/flatbread, and a salad - very fresh, light and nicely balanced flavours that complimented the glass of Viognier we had.My beef with Black Hills is that as a winery, it's business model seems to be heavily slanted towards aggressive wine sales. Upon entering their doors, you are greeted with an overly enthusiastic "wine evangelist" - there were many of them, each one angling for a big sale. After being seated, we were told about their seated wine pairings - which cost money (unlike all the other wineries in the area who charged a nominal fee that is waived if you purchase wine). We were also told that their food is only secondary to the wine, and we got the feeling our server felt let down about not getting his wine commission from us. We were served promptly enough, and the service was friendly enough, but the overtone of "buy wine" was present throughout our visit. After your meal, you cannot pay your server, but have to walk up to the main counter up front in the bustling wine sales area and have to settle your lunch bill around all these other people while struggling to be heard above the wine evangelists and customers buying wine.

The pizza was phenomenal and their charcuterie plate is one of the best I have ever had! The charcuterie board is big enough for 2-3 people for sure. Well worth a visit!

This was a more expensive tasting option, with 2 tiers of tasting options. The least expensive one was for 3 wines of their choosing. They seemed more concerned with the amount you get to consume rather than the value of the wine and the experience. We opted not to do the tasting at this winery for that reason.

It may sound strange to have that opening comment about Black Hills but from the minute you walk in you feel that the exact purpose for your visit is to have as much money as possible extracted from you. The wine tasting for I believe 6 wines amounting to about two glasses of wine in total was $20.00 per person. I asked about trying the Carmenere and was told the 2015 wasn't available yet but would be soon at roughly $50 per bottle. However if I wanted to buy a two pack containing a 2013 and 2014 bottle of Carmenere I could for $199.00. Apparently these two years are worth twice the price of the 2015. What I came to understand later is that this winery is offering to buy back older vintages of their top wines and reselling them at higher prices than what they originally sold for. My concern would be how do you know the expensive wine you bought could have been one of these bought back bottles that you have no idea who owned it or how they stored it. I will not be returning here anytime soon.

This winery is very pricey but if you want to treat yourself than the plunge is worth it. Upon entering the winery you are welcomed with a glass of white and have the tasting selection and prices explained to you. Tastings are minimum $10 per person (will not be exempt even if you purchased) and the portfolio tasting is $20 per person. You are then seated at the patio (unless you are a VIP member where you can sit pool side) and greeted by a wine expert. Each wine is poured into its own type of glass and the pours are generous. We loved the Notta Benne and had a good laugh at the huge glass it was served in - apparently large enough to hold a whole bottle of wine. While tasting you can enjoy the DJ playing soft music - it was our anniversary and made a song request but unfortunately it couldn't be accommodated as no vocal songs are permitted. The DJ was very kind and even came up to our table to explain. The wine expert gives you your space to enjoy yourself before tastings and when done, the clerk at the desk is ready to accept your purchases. As first mentioned, the tasting and bottles to purchase are expense but it can be a nice treat for yourself.