Room at the Vinn

Mod living amongst the vines at Burrowing Owl

Past the functional strip malls and ever-present traffic on Kelowna’s Harvey Avenue lies the best of the Okanagan: the vineyards and orchards that make this a place where someone who calls their lodgings "God’s Mountain Estate" is indulging in only the faintest hyperbole. It’s the natural habitat for the elusive vineyard inn, or vinn, a micro-niche for oenophiles and neo-philes alike.
Here are ten of the best vinns in the heart of B.C.’s wine country, from the Naramata Bench on the juicy east bank of Okanagan Lake all the way down to the 49th parallel.

Burrowing Owl Estate Winery and Guest House
This is the land of big reds and superlative amenities. The wine needs scant introduction, but it’s the 10 modern open-concept rooms-a rarity where everyone else channels Tuscany with abandon-that really impress. They all have slate floors, fireplaces and private patios; the 1,400-square-foot, two-bed/bath penthouse suite has its own private elevator. A new 25-metre outdoor pool offers a retreat within a retreat amid the picturesque Cascade Mountains and 140 acres on sun-gulping slopes.

Its Sonora Room was one of the pioneers of fine dining in the area, and time spent on the patio, delving into some of the cellar’s library selections, is a worthy way to while away an afternoon.
100 Burrowing Owl Pl., Oliver,877-498-0620, bovwine.ca wl

Apple d’or Guesthouse
The Taj Mahal of Okanagan vinns is an impeccable, 6,500-square-foot log palace that has transformed a simple apple orchard into the region’s only five-star accommodation.

Seven years in the making, the purpose-built fir opus of owners/imagineers Holly Stevens and Colin Moores is inspired by their love of Tuscany and Provence, with plenty of New World influence. One hall is lined with whimsical dry-mounted posters from the Naramata Bench Association’s spring-release grape parties; an iridescent Indian tapestry hangs next to a 17th-century Cornish refectory table. There’s geothermal technology and hardwood floors repurposed from grain elevators and high-school gyms.

Three luxe king suites have private patios under arbours corkscrewed with rose vines and wisteria. In the garden, cypress trees frame a lawn cut for croquet, metal sculptures by local artisans and giant granite boulders sourced from the nearby Kettle Valley Railway. A sunny-side pool overlooks the lake, and the sauna has its own Scandinavian-inspired cold-water dunk bucket. The "Apple d’Or Pop" sparkling wine, from a hobby vineyard of four immaculate rows of white varietals, is a friends-and guests-only perk.
2587 Naramata Rd., Naramata, 250-496-4045, appledor.ca

God’s Mountain Estate
On the hot bluffs above Skaha Lake, three dogs, Luna, Amos and Zola, announce your arrival and will later shepherd you through the vineyard to a vista of God’s country. (Even He can only afford 115 acres here, it seems.)

The sprawling Mediterranean-style villa, thoroughly whitewashed, is circled by floral arrays, a pond, a pool and a porch. The gated hideaway could be a stand-in for the Hollywood Hills. Food is revered here, thus the gourmet breakfast buffet and communal al fresco banquet (on scheduled evenings), provided by the epicurean whizbangs at Joy Road Catering.

There are 14 guestrooms (one of them roofless) and an elegant penthouse suite with panoramic views; common areas are a refined pastiche of antiques, rustic Canadiana and family heirlooms.
4898 Lakeside Rd., Penticton, 250-490-4800, godsmountain.ca