Nk'Mip Cellars celebrates National Indigenous Peoples Day and its 20th anniversary
Led by Justin Hall, one of the first Indigenous winemakers in the world, the Osoyoos Indian Band winery teams up with local Cree-Dene chef Heat Laliberte for the Three Sisters Dinner Kit
Justin Hall.
JUNE 21 IS National Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada, and along with it, Nk’Mip Cellars on the Osoyoos Indian Reserve is marking its 20th anniversary. The story of the first Indigenous-owned winery in North America goes back much further than 2002, however, and is rooted in the practices—agricultural and spiritual—tied to the Osoyoos Indian Band land.
Nk’Mip Cellars’ head winemaker Justin Hall is a proud member of the Osoyoos Indian Band and one of the very first Indigenous winemakers in the world. He began his career at the winery in 2003 while attending college for viticulture in the Okanagan. He went on to complete a post-graduate diploma in enology and viticulture at New Zealand’s Lincoln University, returning to Nk’Mip Cellars in 2009. Hall now carries on the original vision for the winery—the culmination of a 30-year dream to be successful in viticulture and of self-reliance and opportunity for the Osoyoos Indian Band—of minimal intervention and ensuring practices remain as sustainable as possible.
Hall says grape-growing is a reflection of Indigenous culture.
“It is a feeling of being a part of the land,” Hall tells Stir. “The sustainable practices that we utilize reinforce the fact that our relationship with Mother Nature is a symbiotic one. What we take from the land, we must replenish, nurture, and leave in better condition than when we received it. The Indigenous peoples of North America are the original stewards of the land, and we must lead by example.”
For Hall, National Indigenous Peoples Day is a chance to recognize the history of the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples. “It’s an opportunity to celebrate, appreciate, and truly understand the beauty that our Indigenous peoples have brought to this land and what we know as ‘Canadian’ culture,” Hall says.
Heat Laliberte.
To mark June 21, Nk’Mip Cellars is hosting Elements Dinner, a multi-course meal featuring Nk’Mip chef Ian Stilborn and guest chefs Joe Dierickse and Cheyenne Sunday from neighbouring restaurant The Bear, The Fish, The Root & The Berry. Taking place on the Nk’Mip Winery patio with lake, vineyard, and mountain views, the feast will represent the elements earth, water, fire, and air and will be paired with a selection of the winery’s award-winning wines.
To get a taste of the Nk’Mip Cellars experience at home, the winery has teamed up with Vancouver-based chef Heat Laliberte of One Arrow Meats for The Three Sisters Dinner Kit, which can be delivered to your door. Inspired by his Cree-Dene heritage and the Indigenous legend of the three sisters—corn, beans, and squash—Laliberte created a meal that celebrates his roots. It pairs Nk’Mip Cellars’ Qwam Qwmt Chardonnay and Syrah, each included in the kit, along with a shopping list, Laliberte’s recipe for BBQ Salmon with a Three Sisters Salad, and a $40 Save-On Foods gift certificate. (The kit is $113). One of three tiers of wine made by Nk’Mip, Qwam Qwmt (pronounced kw-em kw-empt) is an Okanagan term meaning “achieving excellence”, the wines sourced primarily from the finest grapes grown on the old Inkameep Vineyards, which former Chief Sam Baptiste oversees and helped plant in 1968.
“In a three sisters’ garden, corn, beans, and squash are planted together to help each other grow strong,” Hall says. “The first sister, beans, takes nitrogen from the air and uses it to keep the other sisters healthy. The next sister, corn, grows tall stalks that the beans can climb, holding the plants together. And the last sister, squash, grows big leaves that cover the ground, keeping weeds from growing and making the ground moist. The spiny squash also keeps away any animals that would eat the sisters.”
Twelve percent of all B.C. grapes are grown on the Osoyoos Indian Band lands. Nk’Mip Cellars grows 11 varieties of grapes on the Osoyoos Indian Reserve: Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Malbec, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Semillon, and Chardonnay. The winery takes its name from the Syilx word that translates into “bottomland”, the vineyards being located at the southernmost (or bottom) end of the Osoyoos reservation. It is the “place where the creek joins the lake”. Last year, Nk’Mip Cellars launched a new tasting experience at District Wine Village on the Osoyoos Indian Band Reserve; Canada’s first wine village, it features 15 other artisanal and craft producers in the Okanagan region.
Three Sisters Dinner Kit
As a winemaker, Hall is especially keen on the fermentation process, which he describes as a combination of chemistry, biology, and intuition. And although winemaking involves hard work, especially in Osoyoos, where temperatures soar and where sagebrush and rattlesnakes thrive, Hall doesn’t see his job that way at all.
“It’s not work,” Hall says. “And the ability to wake up each day to a career that I am extremely passionate about and see the fruits of our labour—pun intended—turn into something magical that brings people together confirms it.
“Nk’Mip Cellars has been a part of more than half of my life,” he says. “I’m proud to be an Osoyoos Indian Band member, even more proud to be a part of leading one of our businesses that grow and educate our future people.”
Nk’Mip Cellars.
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