Our Team

We are so thankful to have an amazing group of individuals working with us at Moraine Winery. Each and every member strives to make our winery a customer-favourite here in the Naramata region. Good wine, service, and atmosphere would be nothing without the help of everyone here.

Learn more about our long-term partners below.

Oleg and Svetlana, Owners

Amber Pratt, Winemaker

Sophia & Anastasia, daughters of owners

Toshie Ogasawara, Operations Manager

Oleg and Svetlana, Owners

The winery owners are the husband-wife team of Oleg and Svetlana Aristarkhov, who, at a time when they were ready to make a life change, were enchanted by Moraine’s setting. The couple believes that wine offers one of life’s most simple, enjoyable, and accessible pleasures; and this philosophy spurred their leap into the wine industry. They relocated from Alberta, where they had lived for 15 years, to make premium Okanagan wines.

Amber Pratt, Winemaker

A background in Horticulture led Amber to the Okanagan to join the wine industry more than 10 years ago. A quick learner, she rose through the ranks with vintages at Road 13 and Black Hills wineries in the South Okanagan. As a winemaker, she garnered several prestigious awards with CC Jentsch Cellars for her work with Syrah, Malbec, and Bordeaux varietals.

Amber is excited to now be working with Pinot Noir and to become a part of the ongoing legacy of the Naramata Bench wine community here with us at Moraine Winery.

“For me, the best part of winemaking is the cycle of the year; each season and our actions within it play a crucial role in the coming vintage. Buds swell and burst forth with green leaves, tiny grape flowers bloom with beautiful fragrance, grapes form, change colour and ripen. Harvest leaves blaze with autumn colour and flutter to the ground. Snowfall. The days lengthen again, and we prune the old wood. Every single decision we make and step we take is connected and defines the character and quality of our wines.” – Amber

Sophia & Anastasia, daughters of owners

Sophia [left] and Anastasia [right] are the daughters of Oleg and Svetlana. The vineyard where Moraine Winery is located is named after Anastasia, and the younger vineyard that was planted is named after Sophia.

Sophia

Although she is a full-time student, Sophia loves to help with the family business throughout the year. She is currently studying at the University of Calgary in the Nursing program! Sophia handles all Moraine Winery social media platforms (e.g. Instagram & Facebook). She also helps manage the Moraine Winery Guest Suite on Airbnb. Find her communicating with all of our guests to ensure the best hospitality. In addition, she enjoys helping with the creative works of the winery, e.g., designing tasting lists, posters, website design, and menus!

Sophia is also the founder of the best-selling wine popsicles we have here at the Moraine Winery tasting room. “I’ve always wanted to create a product for our customers to enjoy during the hot summer weather. So I thought, let’s combine my favourite summer treat [popsicles] and our customer-favourite wine! I’m glad to see our guests enjoy these delicious snacks just as much as I do.” – Sophia

Toshie Ogasawara, Operations Manager

“After moving to the Okanagan in Fall 2012, my love and interests for wine kept growing. It had been my dream to work in the wine industry in Canada, just as I did in my home country (Japan) where I obtained my knowledge and experience with wine. When I started working for Moraine Winery in July 2013, the tasting room was a small, cozy cottage-style building where I enjoyed talking with customers and introducing our delicious wines. Although we grew a lot in size over the years, I am happy that it is still owned by the same lovely couple, Oleg and Svetlana, and kept the “family owned winery” feeling. My role has changed since the new building opened in June 2019, and I have less opportunity to greet customers as I’m doing behind the scene work here at Moraine. Once in while I get to see some familiar faces who are either our Wine Club Members or local frequent visitors, who remember me from before the renovation! I believe where we are now is thanks to all the customers who have been supporting us throughout these years. Happy smiles from our visitors is the most rewarding thing for me!” – Toshie

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