Frind Estate Winery

What a difference a year can make! We came for a tasting when they first opened last year and were definitely under whelmed with the wine. We decided to come by again a few weeks ago and received a very warm welcome from Heather at reception. She informed us that without a reservation, it was over an hour wait but recommended some wine and suggested that we grab a glass and go enjoy it outside by the lake. We enjoyed our experience so much that we recommended Frind as a stop for our friends wine tasting tour and brought our parents for a tasting (which I booked online a head of time) and lunch. Karen provided a really nice tasting experience and the wait staff in the restaurant were very accommodating. We thought the wine was pretty good (we bought two bottles) and the food in the restaurant was okay. I think next visit I will grab a bottle of wine and some snacks from the bakery and sit out on the lawn at a picnic table. We look forward to coming back to enjoy some wine and the beautiful grounds again sometime soon.

I want to leave a review based on the service, as we unfortunately or fortunately ? Did not get to taste the wine. We were a group of 4, 2 of us from Vancouver and 2 friends who live here locally. We understand the current COVID protocols, which include reservation system. We were coming from Lake County, and ran into a bit of traffic. We were communicating with the winery via text message, which they advised us they would wait for 10 mins, past our reservation time. We arrived 3 mins late ( after waiting in line to get in ), which we were dealing with one of ladies in the front. We understand we were late, and also get if the winery could not accommodate us, however the lady in the front was utterly rude about the situation and even referenced that they can’t accommodate us since we were 15 mins late vs.10 mins. I understand , we are all trying to do our part and accommodate everyone during this pandemic. However, this lady was particularly rude , when we were just starting off our day. We had night and day experience at the other wineries , The Hatch, Mt Boucherie ... which I highly recommend vs. This winery.

This winery is so beautiful! The reds taste a little young, but whites are easy drinkers. We keep coming back for the premier Riesling and the view outside! Today I brought my mother, we had a bite to eat outside this afternoon as it was too busy for a tasting reservation. While we were waiting to buy a bottle at the end of our visit, we witnessed a disgusting display of entitlement by a CUSTOMER! From what we gathered, a group came too late for their tasting and then threw hissy fits when they were told they missed their slot. One lady even screamed about knowing the owner and getting one of the staff fired in a “don’t you know who I am” display. Even said THEY were local business owners & would destroy the winery’s reputation. The 2 staff handled them with absolute class, even offered to serve them outside but were threatened again! My mother was put off by the whole thing and still rattled. but I’m impressed with the ladies at Frind! You handled this craziness so well, it was worthy of a review. It’s sad to see that frind and so many other businesses in the okanagan have to display signs asking people to be nice to their staff and patient as they figure out Covid, but this is clearly why!! 🙄

Loved the amazingly beautiful property! Wines very good. Restaurant not so much. Overly casual menu for such a pristine and magnificent patio. Food choices limited to basically salads and sandwiches and what we ordered was disappointing.

We were in a couple Sundays ago and decided today to bring some friends in for a tasting and lunch. We were greeted with a friendly welcome by the host Chalene. Julie did an amazing job with our tasting then we finished off with lunch. We were very happy with our whole experience. Highly recommend this winery to everyone. Friendly staff and amazing wine and food.