Donald Triggs
Pioneer of the Canadian Wine Industry

Donald Triggs is the founder along with his wife Elaine of Culmina Family Estate Winery in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley ( The family sold the winery). Wine consumers will know him as the man whose name appears the very popular Canadian Wines Jackson-Triggs. 

Growing up in rural Manitoba as the sixth generation on a family farm, Don developed a passion for the land and a farming lifestyle very early in life. While Don's career led him into leadership roles in consumer goods marketing, agro business and the wine industry around the world, Don's life has now come full circle as co- proprietor of Culmina Family Estate Winery in the Okanagan.

A marketer, entrepreneur and builder at heart, Donald started his career in marketing at Colgate Palmolive after completing a B.Sc.H in Agriculture at the University of Manitoba and an MBA at the Richard Ivey School of Business. In 1972 he became the marketing manger for Parkdale winery in Ontario. He joined Labatts spending 10 years with John Labatt's wine division, first leading the Canadian and then their U.S. wineries. This sharpened Don's understanding of the wine market from a consumer, a grower and a financial perspective in Canada and internationally. The next seven years saw Don return to Canada and the UK where he and his new team grew a struggling Fison's North American Horticulture business in to a leader in North America

In 1989, three partners, 26 fellow employees and Don pooled their life's savings to purchase the wine business of John Labatt. With the impending North American Free Trade deal's elimination of all protective barriers and an often questioned potential for the quality and future of Canadian wine, much of the banking and financial community thought that Don and his partners had “totally lost it”. The team only saw opportunity and with partner Alan Jackson they co-founded the Jackson-Triggs brand which went on to drive the growth of the new company, renamed Vincor International Inc., through 12 acquisitions to become the largest winery in Canada, and the 7 th largest in the world with 14 wineries and 2,250 employees located in Canada, United States, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

Feeling the pull of their farming roots and love of wine, in 1998, Don & Elaine purchased a 100 acre apple orchard on the Niagara Parkway in Niagara-on-the- Lake, Ontario and over the next three years, planted eight vinifera varietals, with each of the two or three selected clones grafted onto two or three different rootstocks. Delaine Vineyard became their first research project to develop the best possible viticultural practices in order to produce the highest quality wine grapes . June 2006, Delaine Vineyard was sold as they prepared for their next adventure. 

In June of 2006, Vincor International was acquired by Constellation Brands. Don immediately resigned so that he could once again pursue his entrepreneurial passion in the business he loved. Don and his wife Elaine then re-shaped their life's vision to start a new venture, Culmina Family Estate Winery.

At an age when most people retire, Donald and Elaine have ploughed their considerable life savings into a major new Okanagan winery. “Retirement to me is a nasty word because it implies stopping,” Donald says. “I don’t think life is about stopping. It is aboutcontinuing and doing what you love.” (1) 

As a Canadian business entrepreneur and as a champion of the Canadian wine industry Don's contribution has been recognized in Canada and abroad.

January 2026 - Donald Triggs appointed to the Order of Canada

 Do Not Let The Smoke Get in Your Vines!!

Don’t let the Okanagan smoke get in your vines!
If you do I’m tellin’ you
You’ll wan’t tosss the wine
If Okanagan  smoke gets in your vines!

It has been a difficult few years for many Okanagan wineries.   Since the late 70s, Okanagan wineries have steadily grown in quality. Becoming a leader among the world's best.

In 2003, a Forest fire destroyed the St Hubertus Estate Winery.  It was a major setback for the winery but their neighbouring wineries came to their rescue, and they continued to produce world-quality wine

The 2024 growing season for BC wineries was one of the most difficult in provincial history. Interior regions (Okanagan, Similkameen, Thompson, Shuswap) suffered catastrophic crop losses of 90–99% due to a January deep freeze, while coastal regions (Vancouver Island, Fraser Valley, Gulf Islands) had a cool, wet but mostly normal‑volume season. 

The 2025 growing season in British Columbia was widely described as a remarkable rebound year—one of the strongest, most balanced, and most optimistic vintages BC has seen in years.

Across the province, winemakers expressed a “renewed sense of optimism” and called 2025 a genuine turning point for BC wine.

   

 But for the Summerland region and other  Okanagan regions, 2026 may be a disaster due to a horrid forest fire season. Early season reports from 2026 showed vines ahead of schedule, healthy. growth and a possible great harvest producing quality wines. 

However, extremely dry conditions have greatly aided the fires, and smoke will be reaching the vines of far too many wineries. Although no winery buildings have at this time been damaged , evacuating, crop loss, and a lost tourist season will greatly affect the wineries.

 

Forest‑fire smoke can significantly affect grapevines, especially the berries, by introducing volatile phenols that later create smoke taint in wine. The key issue is not vine health but wine quality: smoke compounds absorbed by grapes become bound to sugars, then release harsh smoky, ashy flavours during fermentation.

There is really nothing the winemaker can do. Current science shows that no spray, barrier, or vineyard practice reliably stops volatile phenols from entering grape skins, and even “clean‑looking” grapes can later develop smoky, ashy flavours during fermentation.

Wildfire smoke contains volatile phenols (VPs) such as guaiacol and cresols. Grapes absorb these compounds through their skins, then bind them to sugars as glycosides. These glycosides are odorless at harvest but break apart during fermentation, releasing harsh smoky flavours.

You cannot detect the smoke in the vines untill the wine is made!!! 

The BC Grape Growers Association States: The most important message is that wildfire smoke does not automatically mean smoke taint.

Comments are welcome. 

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On a beautiful  July afternoon, Barbara and I, along with friends Ken and Jane, decided it was long past time we headed for the beach and enjoyed some fish and Chips.   Moby Dick Restaurant is a long‑time beachfront favourite in White Rock, known for classic fish & chips. It’s located right on Marine Drive and is one of the most popular spots on the promenade,

Although it was busy, we were lucky enough to get a nice table on the patio. We were also lucky in getting one of the most professional and charming waitresses to serve us. 

I do not normally order a glass of wine with fish and chips, but today was the day. I will have to criticize the restaurant for not having a single BC wine on the wine list. I settled on a New Zealand wine. Oyster Bay Pinot Grigio. 

I would have to say it was not up to par with recent  Pinot Grigio wines I have enjoy. However, it was still good. The fish Yummy!  

We enjoyed our meal, then wander along the street to the ice cream shop. Barbara had Strawberry and I had chocolate. A perfect afternoon.