Month: December 2015

Here is my last wine review for 2015.  It has been an amazing year of trying wines from around the world, and meeting with wine makers from around the world.  BC’s winery list continues to grow, and winery regions as well.  I look forward to what surprises 2016 will offer us.  Happy New Year with much prosperity to all my…

Harry McWatters is a leader in the British Columbia wine industry for the past 40+ years. In 1980, he founded BC’s first estate winery, Sumac Ridge Estate Winery, and later started See Ya Later Ranch Estate Winery in 1995.  He purchased and planted vines on his Sundial Vineyard on Black Sage Road in 1993. Harry is the owner of TIME Estate…

In 2015, I only rated 7 wines with 5 stars.  There were many wines that came close to my idea of perfection in a glass, and many of these I gave 4.5 stars.  These are amazing wines still and I highly recommend purchasing any of them.  There are 77 wines that I classified as 4.5 stars.  All of these wines…

Today is a first for me;  Actually 2 firsts.  One of my firsts is that I will be meeting and interviewing Mr. Harry McWatters, who established Sumac Ridge winery and See Ya Later Ranch.  Harry has overseen many firsts in the BC wine industry and has been active for 40+ years here in BC.  I’m not sure why I haven’t…

The history of Masi is the history of a family and its vineyards in Verona, part of the Veneto. The name itself derives from the Vaio dei Masi, the small valley purchased at the end of the XVIII century by the Boscaini family, still its owners today. Masi now has lands in the best terroir sites of the Venetian regions…

5 Star wines are the top of my rating scale.  It takes a lot to convince me to give a 5 star rating to a wine.  I look for a balance of acidity, tannins, sweetness, fruit, oak and alcohol, as applicable for red, white, fortified, and sparkling wines.  These 7 wines below have everything I am looking for in a…

Bottega S.p.A. is located in Bibano di Godega (TV), in the Prosecco DOC area and a short distance from the vineyards of Collio, Cartizze, Amarone and Picolit.  We are a few km from Conegliano, the capital of grappa. Halfway between Venice (approximately 50 km), capital of art and culture, and the Dolomites, spectacular mountains, that can be spotted on clear days. It is a…

This is the second chance that I have had to taste and write about the wines from Serendipity Winery, in the Naramata Bench.  My previous review of Serendipity Winery’s wines is at this link.  The winery is managed and owned by Judy Kingston and her daughter Katie O’Kell.  They have 2 winery dogs, Toby and Whiskey, to greet you if…

The Near I recently reviewed Duncan, BC’s Blue Grouse Estate Winery, and mentioned in the article that I was going to cover their sparkling wine in a separate article.  The time is now!  Their sparkling wine is called “Paula“, after their only daughter, Paula, who is an aspiring opera student. The wine is a blend of Pinot Gris 38%, Ortega…

Burrowing Owl Estate Winery is one of the wineries from BC that both locals and visitors to our province know about.  I had guests once from New York state want to try Burrowing Owl wine.  Burrowing Owl has been a consistent producer and I was happy to try out the latest wines that they sent me to review. In 1993…