Where to Sip Wine, Cider and Spirits on Salt Spring and Pender Island

There’s a noticeable lack of Amazon delivery trucks as I drive around the winding single-lane roads on Pender Island. I’ve forgotten to pack my shampoo and conditioner, and the modern convenience of being able to order anything with the tap of a finger has me feeling supremely inconvenienced that—on this Gulf Island, a two-hour-plus ferry ride through the Salish Sea from the mainland, accessible just a handful of times a day from Tsawwassen—I cannot simply pull out my smartphone and, like magic, summon a replacement to my accommodations for the night.

For locals on this and other Gulf Islands, being able to get absolutely anything you want at any time has never been a consideration. And that’s all for the better, with a burgeoning crop of local makers, growers and farmers who are creating goods from the island’s bounty and keeping the local economy fed and—well—growing.

Consider: the young couples who helm the winemaking process at Pender Island’s Sea Star Vineyard and Winery and Salt Spring Island’s Kutatás Wines and use almost exclusively grapes grown on their respective Southern Gulf Islands (strategically sourcing fruit from other island-based vineyards as needed); the crew of friends who opened a distillery on Pender Island to create spirits made with honey from a partnering farm’s crop-cover apiary; the cider makers on Salt Spring who create libations from the island’s 500 different heritage apple varieties; and the same island’s 30-year-old goat cheese operation that—despite selling everywhere up and down the Pacific Northwest coastline and in upscale grocers across Canada—has kept its production small and local since 1996.There’s also a vinegar maker crafting cider, balsamic and malt vinegars made exclusively from fruit sourced on the island—and, while we’re on the topic of oil and vinegar, Salt Spring Island even boasts the first-ever olive oil produced in Canada, thanks to a climate mild enough to keep olive trees alive.

Harvest here is holistic and local, heavily tied to terroir and growing conditions specific to the Pacific Northwest—particularly the Southern Gulf Islands, where marine breezes and dry summers make for ideal grape and apple growing conditions.

Tour de Salt Spring

“People here do things they’re passionate about,” Jason Griffin, my guide with Salt Spring Tours, tells me as I step up into his van, bound for a day of visiting wineries, cideries, goat farms and distilling operations. “It’s small volume, but the quality and handiwork are there.” As I sip on a dram at Salt Spring Wild Cider, that passion becomes immediately clear. The Garden Path Cider here is made from a blend of heritage apples and whatever other fruit happens to have fallen around the island that season. It’s tart and lightly floral with a gentle funk that hints at the wild fruit at work. I’m not likely to find this exact blend again; each batch is a little different based on the fruits harvested and foraged.

After we have a quick snack of mushroom toast to soak up the cider, Griffin grabs a jug of used vegetable oil from Salt Spring Wild Cider’s kitchen. His tour van runs on it. Because of course it does. It seems many things made or grown (or even discarded) on the island become part of a circular economy that feeds another maker’s work. Cooking oil powers the tour van; orchard fruit becomes cider or vinegar; honey becomes spirits. Next stop is Kutatás Wines (hot tip: its pronunciation is closer to “succotash” than it is to “frittatas”), a small-footprint winery nearby that sits on about 10 acres of vineyard. Owners MiraTusz and Daniel Dragert previously grew grapes before expanding into full winemaking, and Tusz’s background in microbiology certainly comes in handy when coaxing fermentation to life.

Visitors can pack a picnic and settle in around the property with a few glasses from the tasting room, which produces roughly 2,000 to 2,500 cases per year (a true micro-winery). The yields here may be low, but the quality is certainly high.

“We’re able to produce the quality of wines we have by growing our own grapes,” Tusz explains.

Their Blanc de Noir, served just below room temperature, offers creamy, bready notes, while the Kolibri—a lightly sweet white—leans on grapes grown largely on site. Natural wines like their Sauvignette skip sulphites entirely, leaving delicate swirls of yeast visible at the bottom of the bottle; skins and stems remain in contact with the juice during fermentation, adding depth and tannic structure.

READ MORE: Local Getaway Guide: Explore the Sisterhood of Oliver Osoyoos Wine Country

Despite their tiny production, Kutatás wines show up by the glass in some serious company: upscale Vancouver restaurants such as L’Abattoir and Nightingale, and Alta in Whistler. If Kutatás represents the island’s next generation of winemaking, Salt Spring Island Cheese represents the staying power of those who came before them.

Founded in 1996 by David Wood, the goat cheese operation now run by David’s sons, Daniel and Josh, has become one of the island’s most recognizable culinary exports. Their Juliette—a creamy, bloomy-rind cheese reminiscent of brie—is made entirely with goat’s milk, while the Romelia offers a stronger washed-rind profile.

“We’re a big small company,” Daniel says. The cheeses are sold across Canada and in the western U.S.—with sales reaching as far as California—but the operation keeps its roots in Salt Spring.

At the tasting room, visitors can sample cheeses alongside goods from other island producers—jams, preserves and other small-batch offerings line the shelves.

“We’re not making cheese people throw into their kids’ lunchboxes,” Wood explains. “We’re making the cheese you bring to a party when you want to show off something special.”

At the award-winning Garry Oaks Estate Winery, another young winemaker is carrying that ethos forward. Tyler Cox, who grew up farming organically on nearby Saturna Island, now oversees winemaking at the seven-acre property.

Cox takes a minimal-intervention approach, letting “nature do its work. ”The winery harvested about 10 and a half tonnes of fruit in 2024, producing wines that are mostly sold on Salt Spring itself, though a few bottles make their way into select Victoria liquor stores. Local restaurants like Tree House Café, Auntie Pesto’s and Rock Salt proudly pour Garry Oaks wines.

The island’s spirit of resourcefulness extends beyond wine, too. Bree Eagle of Salt Spring Island Vinegar collects fruit from farms—and sometimes from the backyard trees of residents who simply have more than they can use.

Half of her vinegars are made from dedicated crops, she says, while the other half come from what she calls “rescue fruit.” On the day I visit, there are vats of wild plum, quince, rhubarb, yellow plum, peach, pear and others fermenting in her garage set-up.

Pender Island Epicure

A short ferry hop away on North Pender Island, the maker culture continues—on an even smaller scale.

At Sea Star Vineyard and Winery, Julia Macdonald and Adrian Lindner guide the winemaking process with a devotion to the island’s unique growing conditions, using island-specific grapes like the soft and floral Ortega (made from 100-percent ortega grapes) or the small, one-time batch of Noctiluca, an “easy-drinking red” made with the Gulf Island’s gamay grapes.

Nearby, Bee Wild Distillery partners with Braeloch Farms, whose apiary supports fruit and botanical production throughout the fields. The honey becomes the backbone of Bee Wild’s small-batch spirits: the Nocturne Black Garlic Vodka comes from honey produced from product’s eponymous plant, as does the Hedgerow Blackberry Gin. The influence of these producers spills over into the island’s hospitality scene. At the Port Browning Pub, the Black Garlic caesar made with Bee Wild’s vodka appears on the menu, while Aurora Dining Room at Poets Cove Resort and Spa on South Pender pours Sea Starwines by the bottle.

Back on Salt Spring, Kutatás and Garry Oaks wines flow at Auntie Pesto’s, closing the loop between vineyard and dinner table. A glass of the Kutatás rosé pairs beautifully with the decadent ravioli special I ordered. I watch as the lineup out the door grows at the buzzy Italian-style bistro.

Somewhere between the cider tanks, the goat pastures and the honey hives, the earlier nuisance of not being able to order shampoo from my phone feels even more trivial. On the Southern Gulf Islands, craft trumps convenience. Wine, cider, cheese or vinegar—it’s clear that, here, good things take time, soil and makers willing to see them through. And, unlike that bottle of conditioner I forgot to pack, those good things simply can’t be delivered overnight.

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Gulf Island Getaway Stays

Pender Island

Poets Cove Resort and Spa

Individual cottages, villas and lodge rooms looking out to the ocean—along with a spa and two heated pools—are on offer for families and couples on retreat. In the main building, dine at Aurora Dining Room for special celebrations, or have a casual breakfast at Syrens Bistro. 9801 Spalding Rd., poetscove.com

Salt Spring Island

Mariner’s Loft

An upscale B&B-type build of large-format condos overlooks Ganges Harbour, where you can watch float planes and boats tootle around in the bay while you drink your coffee. 118 Rainbow Rd., marinersloftsaltspring.ca

See It All in One Go

Tour Salt Spring

Tours start at $100 per person plus the cost of tastings at each stop; choose from packages like a wine and libation tour, a sightseeing tour or a customizable tour for bachelor/ bachelorette parties and other celebrations. Owner/operator Jason Griffin can make killer recommendations and highly curated island stops if you tell him where your interests lie. toursaltspring.com