Aerial St Hubertus
St. Hubertus riesling harvest.
A brand new Gregoire grape harvester in the fields at the St. Hubertus and Oak Bay Estate Winery is a sign of the owner’s philosophy of balancing hard work with an enjoyable quality of life.
“We traded in the old one for the latest technology which includes destemming or “clean stemming” the bunches and leaving non-grape material in the vineyard as a by-product,” says Leo Gebert, viticulturist and co-owner of St Hubertus & Oak Bay Estate Winery (St. Hubertus).
“If you are looking for a flashy success story, or a winery restaurant, you’ve come to the wrong place,” he adds. “We want to keep it as a family operation that we can manage ourselves. I like to close the gate at 6 pm and be done, so I can go kayaking!”
While some wineries are aggressively dedicated to continuing growth, the Gebert family focuses on putting out a quality product, running a solid business, but taking time for family and friends.
Even the tasting room has remained unchanged since the great Okanagan Mountain Park fire of 2003, which blasted through the property “like mortar fire during a Swiss Army training exercise” on the evening of August 22, buffeted by 50 mile-an-hour winds. While the fire destroyed the winery, built in the 1930s, and ruined the entire 2003 harvest, it spared the nearby warehouse along with the entire stock of the previous years’ wine.
“We knocked a hole in the wall and moved the tasting room into the warehouse, opening for business almost immediately,” says Andy Gebert, Leo’s younger brother and winery co-owner, adding, “the shop remains there to this day.”
After taking a quick course in vineyard operation in Switzerland, Leo Gebert moved to the Okanagan in 1984 in search of a property suitable for farming, an option that would have been impossible back home where landholdings are small and extremely expensive.
Soon followed by his wife Barbara, an experienced vineyard worker, they took over one of the oldest vineyards in the Okanagan Mission, first planted by pioneering Kelowna horticulturist J.W. Hughes in 1928. Save for a 4.5 acre block of Riesling, which is used today to make an old vines Riesling, and Chasselas plantings, a delicately fruity, aromatic white variety popular in Switzerland, the Geberts removed and replanted all of the labrusca and hybrid vines with vinifera and suitable hybrids. He also considers a block of Pinot Blanc planted in 1985 as worthy of old vine status.
Gebert Family
Susanne, Andy, Reto, Leo Gebert and Barbara Gebert.
When younger brother Andy Gebert and his wife Susanne moved to Canada in 1990, the family divvied up the vineyards based on a ravine that conveniently runs through the property, with Leo Gebert keeping the larger two-thirds portion, referred to as the St. Hubertus Vineyard. Andy’s parcel became known as Oak Bay Vineyard, apparently in recognition of his partiality for varieties and wines with oak aging as opposed to the fresh white wine style typical of Switzerland preferred by Leo.
The winery officially opened in 1992, the third largest in Kelowna at the time, after Calona Vineyards and Uniacke, apparently edging out Summerhill which also opened in 1992, according to Leo Gebert. It was set up as a limited company in the early years with Leo and Andy as equal shareholders in the business. They adhere to the principle that good fences make good neighbours by clearly separating duties in an orderly fashion.
“That way we know what everyone is doing and it helps us get along better,” says Leo Gebert. “When we started Barbara and I were doing everything, including making the wine. The inclusion of Andy and Susanne in the business meant we could focus on caring for the vines, our greatest interest. I still do the accounting and reporting as well which keeps me in the office longer than I wish.”
The Geberts are always looking for ways to make life easier and less back-breaking in the vineyard. “Trading in the old model for the latest usually means less work and maintenance,” says Andy Gebert of the new harvester, the pre-season pruning tractor accessory, and new, super-light electric pruning shears.
The other new addition to the winery operation is Leo and Barbara Gebert’s son Reto, who joined the family business a few years ago after graduating from the Niagara College Viticulture/Enology Program and working in New Zealand. “His main forte is working in the vineyard, giving us the flexibility to take a day or two off occasionally,” says Leo.
While Leo and Reto work the fields, Andy is in charge of the “liquid” side of the business, namely production, working with winemaker Bill Pearson, plus sales and marketing which includes the in-house bottling line and label design. Recently, he received his remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS) certificate from Transport Canada which allows him to fly up to five drones simultaneously. “Now drones are better, easier to use and only a fraction of the price than when I started to fly remote controlled helicopters which I assembled myself in 2001,” Andy says. “With GPS, all you do is use software to program fly zones and push a button, almost like using a smartphone. It is pre-built, modular fashion, so it is simply a matter of replacing a part if it breaks. They are used primarily for taking promotional photos and videos of the vineyard.
harvest
The new Gregoire grape harvester at work.
“Like an early-warning system, they also give us a helping hand in the vineyard by locating issues that need attention such as frost damage or a broken irrigation pump. You still need to go in the vineyard to see what’s going on. Drones are helping out during St. Hubertus’ transition to full organic certification in 2020, by letting us know how we’re progressing with the changeover to new fertilizers.”
“The Okanagan lends itself to organic grape growing,” says Leo Gebert. “We’ve always used natural products but now there’s a lot more paperwork involved - a full paper trail is required and there are spot checks with no warning - to make sure we are always using approved, non-stale dated, made in Canada products,” he adds.
“For example, we employ leaf fertilizer from seaweed and seafood, but we have to make sure it is organic and from an approved supplier. The biggest challenge is controlling weeds without systemic chemical sprays which destroy microbes in the soil. We use a special new weed whacker trimmer/mower that goes in and out, between and around the vines as well as between the rows. Instead of sulphur for powdery mildew, which can be harmful, we prefer a pure horticultural oil spray, a milder alternative to protect vines against insects, mites and disease.
“Our plan is to produce wine from 100% organically grown grapes exclusively from our own vineyards,” he says. “There are no plans to expand production over the current 12,000 cases, which is based on 55 acres under vine yielding about 3½ tons per acre. The main goal is to use our own grapes and run the business the way it is right now, thank you very much.”
Due to Andy’s influence, the proportion of red wines, 45% of the total, is higher than is typical for producers grounded in Swiss winemaking practices. There are more than 120 of the 125-litre French oak barrels used for aging Pinot Noir, Meritage and sometimes Gamay. Labelled under the Oak Bay Family Reserve label, both the silky smooth, delicately floral 2016 Pinot Noir and intensely rich, layered 2016 Meritage are superb wines.
Andy Gebert sees a future for East Kelowna and Lakeshore Drive vineyards as a possible Sub-Geographic Indicator (GI) called South Kelowna Slopes. Situated on fairly steep, south and west-facing hillsides with uniformly poor soils forcing roots to go deep, wineries along Lakeshore Drive boast unique factors such as lake influence, air and water drainage and the right micro-climate for growing vines.
Prosperity is not taken for granted by the Gebert brothers. “When we started, banks laughed at you if you wanted money,” says Andy. “So, you had to learn to be self-sufficient.” But the formula is far from typical. “Our business model allows us to make money on $12.50 wine,” he says, referring to Great Canadian Red and Great White North which have both received excellent reviews. “The key is to make great wine at an affordable price…because wine should be on the dinner table, not just sold as a status symbol.” That philosophy is typical of a family that believes the winemaking business, like wine itself, is something that should be savoured and enjoyed, and that the quality of one’s life is more important than the size of one’s bank account
