Haywire Winery / Okanagan Crush Pad
One location, four iconic labels — Haywire Winery and Okanagan Crush Pad share a striking concrete and graffiti-muralled estate on Summerland's Switchback Vineyard, producing some of Canada's most celebrated low-intervention organic wines through four distinct labels: Haywire, Narrative, Free Form, and Garnet Valley Ranch.
Highlights:
Founded in 2011 by Christine Coletta and Steve Lornie — who abandoned retirement plans for an "impromptu journey into winemaking"
One of Canada's most talked-about wineries — internationally recognised for game-changing low-intervention wines
Home to one of North America's largest concrete fermentation programs — 40 concrete vessels holding 120,000 litres
Four distinct wine labels under one roof — Haywire, Narrative, Free Form, and Garnet Valley Ranch
375 acres across two certified organic estate vineyard sites — Switchback Vineyard and Garnet Valley Ranch
Striking modern tasting lounge with tableside service — open year-round, overlooking Okanagan Lake and Switchback Vineyard
Standard flight covering Haywire, Narrative, and Free Form favourites — guided by knowledgeable hosts
Weekend Cellar Experience — vineyard walk with welcome glass, in-depth concrete tank cellar tour, and seated tasting with food pairings
Haywire Club membership — complimentary experiences for up to 5 guests, 10% off all purchases, Garnet Valley Ranch experiences, and Airstream stays
Narrative Gin also available for tasting — an acclaimed botanical spirits expression from the same team
Open daily noon to 6pm — confirm seasonal hours before visiting
The Vibe
There is something quietly radical about Haywire — a winery that has consistently prioritised philosophy over performance, farming over winemaking, and honest expression over commercial appeal, and been rewarded for it with some of the most enthusiastic critical recognition of any estate in the Okanagan. The winery building itself announces this intention from the moment you arrive — a stark concrete exterior bearing a bold graffiti mural by Vancouver artist Scott Sueme, with no attempt to soften or romanticise what goes on inside. Inside, the minimalist tasting lounge continues the theme — clean, calm, and entirely focused on the wine. Founded by Christine Coletta and Steve Lornie, who describe their decision to forgo retirement and start a winery as an "impromptu" one driven by a shared respect for the land, the operation has grown from a single virtual label into one of Canada's most genuinely influential wine estates.
The Experience
Tastings at Haywire are tableside, unhurried, and guided by some of the most knowledgeable and enthusiastic hosts on Bottleneck Drive — the kind of staff who can explain the difference between concrete, amphorae, and oak fermentation not just technically but sensory, in the glass in front of you. The weekend Cellar Experience takes this depth further — beginning in the Switchback Vineyard with a welcome glass and a conversation about Summerland's unique cool-climate terroir, then descending into the cellar for a hands-on tour of the concrete tanks, clay amphorae, and large format oak casks that define the house style, before settling into a seated tasting of the full portfolio paired with curated food accompaniments. For Haywire Club members, the tasting lounge and experiences are complimentary for up to five guests — making it one of the most generous wine club propositions on the trail.
The Wine
Winemaker Matt Dumayne has developed his philosophy over years of collaboration with some of the world's most respected viticulture consultants — farming organically, fermenting with native yeasts, eliminating additives almost entirely, and using concrete, amphorae, and old neutral oak as the vessels that give the wines their distinctive texture and mineral precision. The Haywire label covers the estate's certified organic vineyard-designated wines — including the benchmark Secrest Mountain Chardonnay, the Free Form skin-contact white, and expressive Pinot Noir and Gamay Noir. The Narrative label explores bought-in and rotating sources, most notably the celebrated Pinot Blanc from a 35-year-old high-elevation Okanagan Falls organic vineyard. Free Form is the experimental wing — skin-contact, pet-nat, and natural wine expressions that regularly stop experienced wine drinkers in their tracks. And Garnet Valley Ranch represents the estate's most ambitious terroir expression — traditional method sparkling, Chardonnay, and Pinot Noir from a spectacular isolated property surrounded by native desert habitat.
Good to Know
Best for: Wine enthusiasts, natural wine lovers, collectors, curious explorers who want to understand the how and why behind the bottle
Don't miss: The weekend Cellar Experience — a genuinely educational and sensory tour that changes the way guests think about winemaking
Signature wines: Secrest Mountain Chardonnay, Free Form White, Narrative Pinot Blanc, Gamay Noir, Narrative Non Fiction Red Blend
Tasting fee: Standard flight available — Weekend Cellar Experience by reservation, contact winery for pricing
Hours: Open daily noon to 6pm — confirm seasonal hours before visiting
Wine club: Haywire Club starts from approximately $225 per shipment — one of the most generous complimentary experience benefits on the trail
