1 Mill Road Vineyard
Email: info@1millroad.ca
1 Mill Road’s Home Block vineyard was discovered in 2012 just past Naramata village when it was an abandoned pear orchard. Never having had a house on it before, the address listed was 1 Mill Road, and it was exactly a million dollars.
Now planted exclusively to Pinot Noir, Katie and Ben have undertaken to farm, grow and produce wine from this premium 1.5 acre vineyard while also sourcing Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from other sustainably farmed, unique vineyards from across the Okanagan Valley. Hand picked and hand sorted, the grapes are fermented and aged in beautiful wooden French oak tanks in the Naramata Wine Vault
Before moving to the Okanagan, Ben Bryant, an Australian winemaker, was enjoying the job title ‘Chief Winemaker of Australia’ for Pernod Ricard, orchestrating some of the most well-known and important wines in Australia. After two years with Mission Hill as VP of Winemaking for the Mark Anthony group, Ben set off on his own with the ultimate desire of creating a small collection of focussed wines that his hands were on from farm to bottle.
Katie, originally from the Okanagan, moved back in 2018 after a decade in South Africa. With an extensive background in hospitality and marketing, Katie dove deep into the subject of wine in 2016, eventually completing her Diploma with the Wine and Spirit Education Trust.
The pair met in 2019 and realized their common goal to farm, own and grow a wine business of their own. The couple took over the reigns of 1 Mill Road from Okanagan wine pioneers David and Cynthia Enns in 2022 and look forward to
introducing single vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir Rosé to the portfolio in 2023 to compliment the current Home Block and Block Two Pinot Noir offerings.
“We believe in the future of the Okanagan Valley, a budding and exciting wine region with nothing but potential”