Fort Berens Estate Winery

Fort Berens Estate Winery is a culmination of the dreams, vision and pioneering spirit of several entrepreneurs. It was founded with a pioneering spirit and forged on the road less traveled. The winery is owned by a team of eight individuals who share a common belief in the incredible winemaking potential of British Columbia’s Fraser Canyon and a shared vision to make Fort Berens into one of Canada’s leading producers of fine wine.

Founding partners Rolf de Bruin and Heleen Pannekoek initiated the venture in 2005 with a search for suitable land and a dream that was to become Fort Berens. The pair emigrated from Holland and settled in Lillooet, British Columbia, with their young family in 2009 to establish Lillooet’s first commercial vineyard.

Soon after planting the vineyard, Rolf and Heleen welcomed retired executive, Hugh Agro, corporate director, Sean Harvey, investment banker, Jason Neal, and mining executive John McConnell into the business. These four new partners helped to purchase the estate’s 65-acre property, build a commercial scale winery and retail operation and execute on developing Fort Berens into the business that it is today. Investment banker, Dan Barnholden and mining executive Patrick Downey, later joined as the seventh and eighth partners. Raymond Rae, an executive and leader in the building automation industry, joined the team in 2018.