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Howard Soon is used to being an award-winning record setter.
With 37 years at Calona and Sandhill wines in Kelowna and three in his current job at Vanessa Vineyard in Cawston, Soon is the longest-serving winemaker in Canada with 40 vintages under his belt.
That certainly played into the 2021 Canadian Wine Industry Awards' decision to bestow its highest honour on Soon -- the Karl Kaiser Canadian Winemaker Award.
By the way, the late Kaiser is a national wine pioneer as the co-founder of Inniskillin in Niagara-on-the-Lake in 1975, Canada's first estate winery.
Soon is also a wine pioneer.
When he started work at Calona Wines in 1980, BC was certainly not known for quality wines.
But quickly, Soon, a former beer maker who is a biochemist by trade and a winemaker by profession, started to put BC wines on the map.
He was the first BC winemaker to fashion a wine that won a gold medal at the Chardonnay du Monde competition in France.
Sandhill achieved the first clean sweep at the Canadian Wine Awards in 2009 winning best winery, best red wine and best white wine.
He was named to the Order of Canada a couple of years ago; won the Okanagan Wine Festivals' Founder's Award; the BC Wine Institute's Award of Distinction; and the Vancouver International Wine Festival's Spirited Industry Professional Award.
Plus, Soon is a great guy, always willing to talk and taste wine with anyone interested, mentor young winemakers and be the consummate ambassador for the Okanagan, BC and Canadian wine industries.
"We are proud of Howard and excited that his commitment to the wine industry is being recognized," said Vanessa owner Suki Sekhon.
"Howard was specifically selected to lead Vanessa Vineyard as our master winemaker because of his expertise, vast experience and his passion to elevate others through mentorship. Not only does this award exemplify Howard's character, it speaks to his dedication to be a viticultural visionary."
That vision was evident when Soon helped in the site development and selection of varietials for Vanessa.
Vanessa is on a rocky hillside overlooking the Similkameen Valley that has proven to be an exceptional place to grow the grapes that go into smooth-tannin, subtle-mineral reds, a distinctive Viognier and elegant rose.
Soon's winemaker of the year award was handed out during a virtual ceremony that included four other accolades.
Steve Bolliger, the Toronto-based, retired senior vice-president of marketing for Arterra Wines (Jackson-Triggs, Inniskillin, Sawmill Creek, Sumac Ridge and See Ya Later Ranch) picked up the Canadian Wine Industry Award of Distinction.
Debbie Trenholm, the Ottawa-based owner of The Savvy Company, sommelier and marketing consultant, won the Canadian Wine Industry Champion Award.
Sommelier and wine writer Kurtis Kolt of Vancouver picked up the Wine Growers BC Industry Recognition Award.
And Glenn Fawcett, the chief wine evangelist at Black Hills Winery in Oliver, won the Wine Growers BC Award of Distinction.
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