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Morning Bay's 20 terraces climb 200 feet up the rocky south flank of Mount Menzies on North Pender Island off B.C.'s rugged west coast. In the lee of rainshadows projected by both the 12,000-foot Olympic Peninsula and Vancouver Island, itself 6,000 feet in altitude, Pender basks in a glorious mediterranean summer, with long stretches of dry, sunny weather.

Over an eight month season, with hand-tending and careful applications of water and nutrients, winegrapes ripen slowly and develop complex flavours. Hand-picked in late fall, grapes retain crisp aromatics while developing long, elegant flavours.

Construction of the vineyard began in 2001. By fall of 2002, after building a mile of deer-fence, a mile of terrace, five miles of trellis and a million-gallon pond, 5000 grapevines began to make Pender Island their home.

In the fall of 2006, five years after planting, Morning Bay harvested its first releases grown entirely on Pender Island: a Gewurztraminer-Riesling blend, a Pinot Gris, a Shonberger-based blend, and a pinot noir-based Rose called Chiaretto. Critics and consumers alike have praised the wines' light, fresh character.

Visit our terraced vineyard on Pender Island.