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Welcome to the latest series of Super, Neighbours blog posts where we highlight incredible travel destinations in British Columbia!Back in the fall I met some of the wonderful team from Hester Creek and was invited to come up and stay at the Villas in the spring. |
There is SO much to do in the Oliver-Osoyoos region, and even more to do when it's the weekend of the Half Corked Marathon, so I'm going to dive right into my adventure with the Primavera Dinner, held the night before the race.
The dinner consisted of some amazing bread, salad, two kinds of pasta, dessert, and a LOT of different kinds of wine from the wineries involved in the race. Held, at Church & State Winery, the family-style dinner was held under tents on the lush lawn right next to the vineyards. Mike Szalay of the band Great White North serenaded as the wine flowed and the pasta was devoured.
It was the perfect meal to have before an early morning 18km race, and a great introduction to the wineries (and the Half Corked blend wine made esp. for that weekend!). Check out the photos:
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Okay, the Half Corked Marathon is getting it's own post tomorrow, so I'm going to give you a glimpse into the other awesome activities and meals the area has to offer.
Right after the race, myself and the rest of the media were whisked off to Covert Farms for a tour (in that awesome truck below) to learn some history of the vineyard, try some wine and treats that the shop serves, and meet some highland cattle up close and personal. Have a look:
After a quick change (aka hot tub, pool, shower, and wine) at Spirit Ridge, the gang saddled up and headed out to Tinhorn Creek for dinner at Miradoro Restaurant, followed by a concert on the ground by The Town Pants. The dinner was delicious, starting with Watercress Soup and bubbly, and followed by Salmon with Risotto, and the amphitheatre where the concert was held was pretty cool (Tinhorn hosts concerts throughout the summer season, including The Boom Booms on June 28th - check out the event schedule).
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The final event associated with the marathon was the Pancake Breakfast hosted by Rustico Winery. The media gang and I rolled our tired bodies out of our bed and headed to the very unique winery for our breakfast. We ate our meal in the garden while hummingbirds buzzed around everywhere, and then took a look up in the art gallery above the wine shop.
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Finally, I have my dinner at Watermark Beach Resort to show you! After I left Spirit Ridge to head to Hester Creek Villas for the next two days, I headed into Osoyoos on my own for dinner at Watermark's Wine and Tapas Bar.
It was delightfully peaceful after such a hectic two days, and a great way to start off the second half of my wine country adventure.
I had the Soba Noodle & Squid Salad, followed by some Crème Brûlée...
So many thanks to hand out again, lets work backwards. Thanks to Watermark and Destination Osoyoos for the lovely dinner. To Rustico Winery for the pancake breakfast, Tinhorn Creek/Miradoro for the dinner and concert! Covert Farms for the lovely tour, wine and cheese, and awesome truck ride, and to the Oliver Osoyoos Winery Association (and Hawksworth Communications) for organizing pretty much all of the above, going above and beyond, and just being amazing people to spend time with!
Tomorrow you finally get to see what I captured while "running" an 18km marathon with my camera, and 14 winery stops along the way - it's the Half Corked Marathon!
