The first release of Averill Creek wines will be the fruition of many years of hopes, dreams, and hard work, says winemaker and vineyard owner Andy Johnston.

Andy was brought up on a Welsh hill farm and graduated from Birmingham Medical School in 1971 as a physician, and soon made his way to Edmonton, Alberta, where he enjoyed a 30-year practice as both a family doctor and a businessman. He was one of the founders of Medicentres, the first primary care walk-in centres in Canada. This concept grew from one clinic in 1979 to 24 clinics in Edmonton and Calgary today.

“The next step involved gumboots and some back-breaking labour,” Andy says. “I started my new life by taking extended periods away from the clinics to work in wineries and vineyards around the world. I began at Villa Delia near Pisa in Italy; then on to Mcguigans in the Hunter Valley, Australia.

In 2000, a vintage at Chateau Terride in Gaillac, near Toulouse, was followed by some time at Trinity Hill in New Zealand. In 2004, I returned to New Zealand for the vintage with Larry McKenna at Escarpment in Martinborough. Larry McKenna is the doyen of pinot noir in the world, and made New Zealand pinot noir a world-class wine.

“This experience gave me a fascinating glimpse into the possibilities for a new wine life, and the work gave me a good grounding in what I needed to know to get things started.”

“The 2004 vintage will be the first of, I hope, many. We are looking forward to hosting many of you at the winery, and working in partnership with some of our favourite restaurants to present our vintages to the wine-loving public.”