Article by: Gord Goble

Summer and the associated throngs of tourists may be firmly in the 2025 rear view mirror, but there’s still plenty of “spirit” left in the Okanagan even as winter sweeps into view.

And much of that spirit was on full display over the past couple of weekends in the famed “Bottleneck Drive” wine route of rural Summerland during the running of the 2025 edition of the long-running Light Up the Vines celebration.

A temporary pre-Christmas reawakening of the wineries (and the cideries, distilleries and breweries) that make up Bottleneck Drive, Light Up typically attracts big off-season crowds to the four nights spread over two weekends that make up the event.

And the most of the venues go to sleep again ‘til spring.

We dropped in during the final night, Saturday Dec. 6, to see what all the fuss is about.

We kicked off our evening at a venue that’s undeniably become the star atop the Light Up the Vines Christmas tree, Summergate Winery.

Situated in the midst of high-elevation Prairie Valley, not far from the Kettle Valley Steam Railway station, Summergate is known for going all out at the end of the year bash.

The show begins from a distance when you first spot the 10-acre Summergate vineyard, generously decorated with seasonal lights.

That attention to detail continues when you turn off the road and are guided to a parking spot by one of several friendly attendants.

Walking the slope to the main facility, you encounter a series of flaming torch logs, many of which are surrounded, bonfire style, by other guests.

At the top you’ll find a tasting room, more bonfires, ample outdoor seating, a permanent food truck staffed by Summergate folks like co-owner Mike Stohler, and a seemingly endless supply of poutine and s’mores.

This year, Stohler and wife/fellow owner Gillian Stohler upped the ante a wee bit further by installing a heated guest tent that seats 50 or so.

By 5:30 PM, just a half hour into the event, there were perhaps 100 people roaming the property.

Two of those were Karen and Ron Denslow, happily married Manitoban imports who arrived in the Okanagan 11 years ago and, like many in the Summerland area, got to know the amiable Summergate owners.

“We came here and met Gillian and Mike and realized we had a Manitoba connection and have been good friends ever since,” said Ron. “They’re great people.”

Married now for 51 years, the Denslows said they’ve attended every Light Up the Vines since 2015.

For Gillian Stohler, Light Up the Vines is as important as any event they stage throughout the year.

“We do take it pretty seriously,” she said with a smile. “It’s the end of the year, so we like to make it as festive as we can and hope everyone has a good time.

“You want people to have a good time and hopefully enjoy your product and remember you.”

Giillian guesstimated 500-plus people would spend time at Summergate over the two weekends.

“It’s actually better than our summer weekends,” she said.

Next up was a comparatively new Light Up the Vines venue, Controlled Entropy Distilling. Debuting in 2023, the small batch distillery specializes in “cocktail-oriented spirits” such as liqueurs, vodka and gin.

And Saturday night there were dozens of Light Up guests already enjoying the ambience and sampling colourful cocktail “flights” when we arrived.

Some sat outside at picnic tables, others hovered inside in the tasting room and the distillery, while many opted to brave the cool night air at picnic tables and small bonfires.

Kathleen Bloom was one of a quartet of upbeat friends just beginning their evening.

“Yep, it’s a girls’ night out,” she laughed. “We dragged our husbands with us, so they’re here as our DDs (designated drivers). But we’re having a good time together and hitting all the wineries.”

It wasn’t their first Light Up get-together.

“We’ve done this for the past six years,” said Bloom. “We like quality wines and ciders and we like a good time and Bottleneck Drive always does a great job of it.

“Plus, we’re friends with many of the owners, so it’s a lot of fun.”

Bloom and buddies (and their DDs) planned to visit Summergate next, then Dirty Laundry Winery and Summerland Heritage Cider.

For Controlled Entropy co-owner Shae Bennett, who shares the reins with wife Nahome Boule-Paquette, the event was the culmination to a strong year.

“We’re now two and a half years in,” explained Bennett, “and this is our third Light Up the Vines.

“It’s been a good year for us, getting into a lot of restaurants and markets, and this is always a fun event to end the season. From here we do a few more markets and then we won’t be open again ’til spring.”

With a winery and a distillery now under our belt, we figured it was time to complete our trifecta with a visit to one of Bottleneck Drive’s four cideries. So off we went, up the hill and into the snow, to Nomad Cider.

That’s where we met friendly Pentictonites Ed and Tammy Bartlett, gathered with old buddies and new around the biggest campfire we saw all night.

“We do this every year,” said Ed. “I work part-time myself at Dirty Laundry so I’m doing that for much of the event, but I make sure I take one night to come out and have fun with my wife.

“And we just love it. We have a lot of friends in Summerland and we enjoy coming out. We spend the night at their house and have a big fire. It’s such a nice community event.”

Tammy Bartlett echoed her hubby’s thoughts.

“It really is a fantastic event,” she said. “Everyone looks forward to it. It’s such a good time, the lights are beautiful and it’s a great start to Christmas.”

Our night drawing to a close, we made a quick detour on the way home to Dirty Laundry Winery, where we chatted with yet another big and cheerful group of females out on the town for a night of tastings.

And we finally spotted the Kettle Valley train, fully decked out in Christmas glam.

It was indeed a good night.