Red Wines of Chatter Creek ..... Past and Present

Red Wines
Santa Rita Valle del Rapel, Chile
       Merlot 2002
            Santa Rita is an elegant dry wine and is perfect with roasted
            grilled meats and cheese.

Carmen Central Valley, Chile
      Cabernet Sauvignon 2002
            The wine exhibits a bright ruby colour with intense aromas of
            cherries, strawberries, raspberries and cassis. On the palate,
            the wine shows intense fruit flavours, soft tannins, a medium
            body and a lingering finish.
       Cabernet Merlot 2002
            The wine shows a beautiful deep ruby colour, with intense
            aromas of ripe red fruits, cassis, cream, mint, cacao and an
            intense spicy character. The balance of fruit and tannins is
            perfect, soft and ripe. It is a full, deep and meaty wine,
            medium to full-bodied and offers a very long aftertaste.

Stone Cellars by Beringer Napa Valley, California, USA
      Cabernet Sauvignon 2000
            Nice peppery, spicy, saddle leather nose with earthy, waxy
            aromas and blackberry, cassis and mint. Expect a smooth, round
            polished structure with very light, dry tannins. Good blackberry,             earthy, cherry licorice, vanilla flavours with a touch of coffee
            mocha in the finish.

Tinhorn Creek Oliver, BC, Canada
      Merlot
            This Merlot is very deep in colour and tannin extraction.
            It has a rich mouthfeel and good body intensity and should
            soften over time. Berry fruits, rich oak-vanilla and spicy flavours
            dominate the taste.

Kettle Valley Naramata, BC, Canada
      Pinot Noir
            “Full bodied. This wine was fermented and aged in American and
            French oak barrels for 16 months before being bottled. Rich and
            Full this Pinot Noir has more taste and will keep you guessing.”

Calliope BC, Canada
      Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon
            “Impressing us with it's smoothness of tannin, velvety texture and
            rich fruit, 85% merlot and 15% cabernet sauvignon, the wine has
            spent 16 months lounging in American oak barrels. Full bodied, its             complexity makes this wine compatible with all rich, savoury
            foods”.

Ravenswood Sonoma, California USA
      Vintners Blend 2001 Zinfandel
            A well structured Zinfandel with a charming, youthful fruit
            character. This wine is an ideal complement to pasta, poultry,
            red meats or other highly-flavoured dishes.”

Casa de la Ermita Jumilla, Spain
      Purple Capsule 2000
            "This wine was aged in French and American oak for ten months
            prior to being bottled unfiltered. It is a blend of estate
            grown Mourvèdre, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Tempranillo.
            The wine offers beautiful purity, admirable ripeness, and a
            mouthfilling, fleshy personality. There are 3,000 cases of this
            blockbuster, sweet, jammy, black fruit-scented and flavored
            Tinto. This teeth-staining, seriously endowed red will drink well
            for 2-3 years."

Villa Antinori , Italy
      Chianti Classico Riserva
            “Nice peppery, spicy, saddle leather nose with earthy, waxy
            aromas and blackberry, Rich in extract with a soft, lingering
            finish. Well aged delicious with your steak or your poultry”

Château de Nages Rhone, France
      Cuvée Joseph Torres 2000
            "Remarkable silky wine from an unheralded rising-star appellation.
            Elegant, refined, sophisticated and modern, it’s full-bodied
            and balanced, with floral aromas and mineral, wet earth
            and blackberry flavors. Drink now through 2010.
            2,080 cases made.”

Nicolas Catena , Catena , Argentina
      Lunlunta Vineyard Malbec 2001
            “Once again, the house style awaits: toast and char on the nose.
            But it's not masking anything; instead, that smoky edge not only
            carries but also adds a buttery edge to the strawberry,
            raspberry, chocolate and coffee that complete this textbook
            Malbec…"

Pirrammima, McLaren Vale, Australia
      Shiraz 2001
            Bright, distinctive and stylish. Firm-textured, lithe and
            nicely muscled with ripe blackberry, cherry and dusky spice
            flavors that sail on and on, shaded with a layer of spicy oak.
            Best from 2004 through 2012.”

Liberty School Paso Robles, USA
      Cabernet Sauvignon 2000
            “The aromatic complexity of this wine is very engaging:
            blackberry brambles, layers with dark cherry, chocolate and
            cassis combine in a way typical of Cabernet Sauvignon in
            its most pure expression. On the palate, initial softness
            amplifies into a warm, supple firmness. The aromas in the
            mouth clearly evoke those found in the nose. Whole
            this wine is approachable, balanced and elegant today, it
            will drink beautifully for up to five years from the vintage date”.

Dom. de Beaurenard Rhône Valley, France
      Chateauneuf-du-Pape 2001
            "From the Rhône comes this blockbuster. Both modern and
            traditional, a full-bodied red that bridges the past and
            the present, this is packed with Turkish Delight dessert,
            ripe and sweet fruit and lush tannins, with lots of
            spicy, smoky character and a round, caressing feel in
            the midpalate … Highly Recommended.”

There is going to be a lot of blue roof next to Chatter Creek. The lodges are becoming quite imposing. The other out buildings are the woodshed that houses the outdoor furnace, at the rear of the lodge, and the workshop and staff quarters beside the lodge. The lodge sits at the base of Lodge Ridge on the right, and West Ridge on the left. The Clamshell is located high on West Ridge. Early September and there is no snow yet, but it is coming soon! The peaks will be white within a few weeks.

Bedroom with an attractive occupant

Members of a "Ladies Group" relax after a day of cat skiing. Before or after a massage, the hot tub is a great place to "wind down", share some laughs and prepare for a big dinner. It's also great for some late evening relaxation before bed. Bar service is close at hand.

Cold weather leads to some interesting effects, as our poster boy can attest.

Chatter Creek's Dale McKnight and Dan Josephson accept the CFDC's "Internationally Recognized Business" Award for 2002. It was a proud night for partners McKnight, Josephson, Matt Cochand and Dave Markel.

Photo by Dave Parker
Kimberley's Photo West                 back to CFDC Business Award

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It was all over so very quickly! No fireworks! No "spectacular", and the Earth definitely did not move! Oh well, he's still smiling.
Close window to return.

Suspense

Ooops! This does not look promising.
Perhaps this "event" might be a bit of a bust........ >>

Roadside advice about fire prevention.

Vertebrae Lodge Construction Collage Jul/Aug.

From the top left, clockwise:
1. Building site with peeled and unpeeled logs.
2. Mike McKnight heading down the road to fix a birdge.
3. Merle McKnight siting in a notch in a log.
4. Partners Dale McKnight, Dave Markel and Matt Cochand. Dave designed the building.
5. Main trusses up and some bedroom roof purlins in place.
6. Jevan Zyp and the D4 cat before it sunk to the seat in the mud.
7. Scott Herring scribing a notch.
8. Partner Dan Josephson
9. Dale McKnight and Isabelle Thibeault back in the bush for more logs.
10 Bedroom roof rafters almost complete. Soon, part of the lodge will be dry.
                 return to the collage .........>>

                 Mountain Lodge Construction description .........>>

Mica Dam, located in BC at the north end of Hwy 23, is at mile marker 956 on the Upper Columbia River . The dam forms Kinbasket Lake. It was completed in 1973, with a powerhouse added in 1977. Mica is owned and operated by BC Hydro. Mica is an earthfill embankment dam, 800 feet in height. It was built in accordance to the Columbia River Treaty to provide water storage for flood control and power.
Photo credit to highwaylodge.com

Powder Skiing on Spruce Slide

Skiing in Spruce Slide, below Super Spruce on the East Ridge. Some mellow powder skiing interspersed with some very interesting "features", well-covered stumps and logs creating soft bumps and roll-overs. Lots of fun!

Chattter Creek doesn't groom any terrain, except for some of the Chatter Creek road. And it does not own a winch cat. However, Lake Louise does and here's one on the Lake Louise downhill course, pushing a load of snow uphill!

A better picture of Andrew. Still waiting, but this time on Wonderland.

From before the expansion to 36 guests and the move to rectangular tables, Mark Gallup gives us a glimpse of Chatter Creek guests enjoying dinner at Vertebrae Lodge after a day of powder skiing and riding. Here's a similar view with the new rectangular tables for 36 clients.

Hot below, freezing on top. At -15 or -20 C, the hair freezes pretty quickly. The hot tubs at Chatter Creek are a meeting favorite place after a day of cat skiing.

Room with occupant.

It's hard to believe how hard these lads work! Shouldn't you boys be doing something useful?          Put yourself in this picture.

Whistler "Weasel Workers" and "Alberta Sled Dogs" combine forces to build a world-class downhill course. Here's a load of "B" net waiting to be distributed around the course and erected. Albert and Doug are making sure it doesn't get stolen by marmots and George is keeping a wary eye peeled for the marauding varmints. Good work, lads!

We get volunteers showing up from all over Western Canada, the US and even from Europe. Cleatus came from Whitefish and maybe Hughie will come from the UK. If you are interested, register on the Winterstart Web Site.                   Here are some Weasel Working poster boys.

John on the east side of the East Ridge.

Roddy cutting up the Phat.

Near the highest point in the tenure, a snowcat traverses above the Windlip toward the notch that passes through to upper Jo-Pal. The large blowhole is just visible at the base of the rock, near the bottom of this photo by Wendy Robinson

After traversing Megahoop, the road to Vertebrae glacier passes through the Windlip to the Keyhole and the entrance to the Vertebrae glacier. Upper Jo-pal is on the right of the ridge. The rock at the top center of the photo is surrounded by an enormous blowhole. A snowcat can be seen on the road at the bottom of the picture.

Upper Jo-Pal with tracks entering from the Windlip, above the entrance to Vertebrae Glacier. After passing through the draw in the ridge, the Jo-Pal run turns to descend to the road near the Upper Lake, which is above Wonderland, and the north side of Megahooped.

Tracks in the Phat

John in the Phat. More glades behind.

Panorama from Lodge Ridge. The Clamshell is in the middle of the collage. Most of Forbidden Fruit is hidden by the near ridge. Click on the image to enlarge. Use the browser's "back" button when finished, then close this window.

A View from the Clamshell

A view of Jo-Pal from the Clamshell. The road to the Vertebrae Glacier runs across the far hillside.

Last Flight

The last flight arrives late in the day, among settling weather. Flights have to leave Golden on time so that the last flight can get back in daylight, bringing out the last of the departing guests.

Clamshell View

A view in the Clamshell.

Terrain in the Clamshell

Waiting for a Photo Op

And waiting, and waiting. C'mon, guys, it's only a little drop-off. Don't keep us here all day! We're waiting below the "Waterfall", which extends out of the photo to the right. The slope on the left is the bottom of "the Plank", a great run out of the Clamshell.

Kevin takes the small headwall coming out of Forbidden fruit and the Clamshell.
Close the window when finished. Click on the image to enlarge.

Picture from the early days of construction of Solitude Lodge.