The Family Business

Julie and Lanny Martiniuk were pursuing careers in Vancouver when they decided to leave the hustle and bustle of the lower mainland and move to the Okanagan Valley, where Julie was born and raised. They hoped to buy a vineyard with their savings. Because no vineyard land was for sale, they settled for a 15-acre orchard on the Black Sage and bought it on a handshake in 1979. Lanny left his career in nuclear medicine to farm it, while Julie continued practicing pharmacy.

Over the years after they settled, the Martiniuks continued their search for good vineyard land to support their growing family, eventually expanding their 15 acres to nearly 50. The planting and maintaining of this acreage was a full-time job for Lanny, who spent years developing an intimate relationship with the land and his vines- something that he insists comes only with experience. In addition to this, he sat on the BC Grape Marketing board for several years and was a founding member of the BC Wine Institute. Lanny also runs a grapevine propagation business, which has produced millions of vines for wineries and vineyards across BC.

Lanny and Julie are now both as busier than they have ever been with the 2007 harvest and crush. Julie’s background in pharmacy has prepared her well to do much of the winery’s lab work, and when she’s not analyzing samples, she can found in the wine shop pouring for guests. Lanny, as always, keeps to the vineyards, which need near-constant attention- although he’ pops into the wine shop now and then.

The Next Generation

 

 

 

 

After a year as a French major at Queen’s University, a car accident prevented one of the Martiniuks' sons, Jay, from returning to school the following autumn. While recuperating, Jay busied himself with the day-to-day activities in the vineyard and began to consider pursuing winemaking and vineyard management. During harvest of 2005, Jay worked side by side with winemaker Lawrence Herder as his assistant, and was an integral part in crafting the Stoneboat inaugural vintage. He has since spent one and a half years at Osoyoos Larose working under Pascal Madevon. Jay is currently studying foundational sciences at Simon Fraser University to prepare for an oenology degree, which he hopes to pursue in Bordeaux or California.

Jay's twin brother, Tim, has graduated with a degree in Political and Film Studies at Queen’s University. He has spent nearly every summer (and periods in between) on the vineyards, and has trained most of Stoneboat’s newest vines. Tim has been involved in the label and website design for the winery and will be managing the tasting room during the Summer and Fall seasons.

The Martiniuks' youngest son, Chris, has finished his first year at Simon Fraser University as a history major. From an early age, he has spent every summer working on the vineyards doing everything from rock picking to leaf plucking- at which he’s especially talented. Last summer he took on tractor work and was responsible for most of the mowing and hedging of grape rows. In training for his newest job, Chris has bent more posts and lopped off more sprinkler heads than he cares to remember. He is currently getting ready to begin a commercial aviation program, which starts in July.