Okanagan Wine Festivals Society this fall. Attracting tourists was always a priority for Cipes, while other early wineries concentrated on winemaking instead. Today it attracts thousands of visitors a day during the tourist season, and touts itself as the ‘most visited winery in Canada.’ His reasoning from the beginning was concern over making a profit, with a 55 per cent markup on wines sold through the provincial Liquor Distribution Branch. Marketing wine then was a bit of a challenge, he admits, noting, “This was a beer and hard alcohol-drinking crowd. Wine wasn’t served. Tastes today are much more sophisticated. LDB sales of wines are up every year.”
However, one thing that hasn’t changed much, even though the wine industry has grown from those 13 wineries in 1991 to more than 300 today in B.C., is the commitment to the land and maintaining organic practices in the vineyard, notes Cipes.
Summerhill achieved organic status in the cellar in 2007 and went further to receive Demeter Biodynamic certification in 2012.
From the beginning, Cipes vowed to respect the land. Even as a developer in New York, he says he was the first to introduce restrictive zoning for steep slope development and to protect wetlands. “I wanted to end the rape of the land.” Despite his own restrictions, he built an ‘empire’ of properties in that east coast big city and still today owns a ‘hamlet’ just outside New York, including a shopping mall, where he continues to develop. He laments the lack of appreciation here of the natural environment. “It’s just not very sophisticated to take a chemically- grown wine; a wine that a lab would find toxins in,” he believes.
He is also concerned that chemicals used on-farm can leach into the lakes that follow the valley bottom south.
He blames not only the farmers who won’t commit to growing without the use of chemicals, but also the chemical companies who put pressure on the industry to spray.
“Every baby born would benefit from the whole valley going organic,” he believes. So passionate is he about this, he is on a crusade to turn the entire valley organic by 2020, and not just commercial farms, but every household, golf course, public area and park as well. “We could become a diamond on an emerald planet,” he says. For more information and to sign the petition, go to:
www.organicokanagan.com “We could all be proud of the valley, while being healthy and wealthy,” he
16 Okanagan vinyard and winry consulting comany
Pascal Madvon offrs rofssional advic to nw and mrging winris on vinyard managmnt, win roduction, and commrcialization. his st to hl othrs with thir rols in win follows 30 yars of rinc in win, notably as had winmakr of rstigious Bordau and Okanagan stats.
Madvon adviss Canadian winris on trroir, vin, win, and markting of rd, whit, and rosé wins. is goal is to work with assionat roritors and winmakrs who, lik him, ar looking to unlash th tru signatur of ach win.
Larn mor at ascalmad
von.ca Phon (250) 488-8497 mail: .mad
von@shaw.ca British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Winter 2016-17
believes.
He offers to host growers to talk about what’s involved in going organic, with the help of von Krosigk, who is a former president of the Pacific Agricultural Certification Society, a B.C. organic certification body.
There’d be no charge for the
workshop/coaching session, he promises. If interested, e-mail:
eric@summerhill.bc.ca and copy
stephen@summerhill.bc.ca
Cipes is proud of his sons, all of whom have worked in the business at his side, and he now has a six-year-old daughter named Esther as well.
Ezra Cipes is now the chief executive officer of Summerhill, while Gabe Cipes was always interested in plants and now is in charge of biodynamics for the operation. Biodynamics focuses on such beliefs as planting by the phases of the moon and giving back to the earth.
Ari used to help on the tractor from the time he was three years old, but now has decided to become a teacher, and Mathew began working in the wine shop at the age of 19, says Cipes.
“They’re all great artists, but it takes a business sense to run a business. You can gross $12 million and still not make any
money,” he explains. It’s important to have a head for business. Summerhill’s operation employs 170 during the season. “That’s a big responsibility.” As well as the winery, the business
includes a year-round organic restaurant and catering business called the Sunset Bistro; the 80 acres of vineyard owned by the winery at Summerhill, as well as a further 100 or so acres managed by other growers for the winery.
On the other side of his business persona, Cipes is a very spiritual being, and from the beginning sought ways to age his wines in what he calls a “sacred geometry chamber.” He built today’s pyramid for aging wines in 1997.
All Summerhill’s wines spend at least 30 days in the pyramid, where he believes they are clarified and energized. “I tingle when I walk in there. I feel the tingling between my hands. It enhances our aura; the energy we emit becomes bigger,” he believes.
Regularly he hosts the spiritual community on meditations in the pyramid and tours are held daily for visitors. Cipes is also completing a book called All One Era(
alloneera.com) about taking back power; lifting up the veil; and getting in touch with our feminine receiving selves.
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