Category: cider

Do you like apples or pears?  There are many cider makers in BC that will convert those fruits into tasty drinks for you to enjoy year-round.  They tend to be lighter-bodied than many wines, lower in alcohol and come in 500ml bottles, which makes it possible to enjoy by yourself in one session.  You can drive to several cideries in…

My last stop on my two-day tour of the Fraser Valley was at Taves Estate Cidery and their associated family farm.  You can easily spend a whole day here if you have children as they will be fascinated by all the farm animals.  They can pet and feed rabbits, goats, and more.  I enjoyed petting the animals, and taking a…

It is not too late to start checking out wine-inspired vacation destinations in British Columbia.  But if you have children and/or fur babies, you may want to pick locations and wineries that have something to offer for them as well. Here is a list of BC wineries and more that have family-friendly options for parents travelling with children or pets….

I enjoy attending the Top Drop Canada wine tasting each year.  It is probably my second favourite event after the Vancouver International Wine Festival.  If you have not heard of Top Drop before, the organizers describe it as “Top Drop’s focus and mandate is providing a platform for terroir-influenced, handcrafted wines, and the people behind them. We believe in the…

Did you know that Bottleneck Drive around Summerland has three driving routes along with which wineries, cideries, breweries, and distilleries are on each route?  You can drive each route on a separate day and have a fun long weekend.  Here is the press release from the Bottleneck Drive Association about the three routes plus a map showing the routes and…

If you have not yet purchased your ticket for Top Drop, which is on May 23 and 24 evenings, you should as the tickets are almost sold out.  Plus the ticket sales help support the BC Hospitality Foundation which provides financial support for hospitality workers coping with extraordinary health crisis costs. Here are the full details of Top Drop.  See you there!…

Twenty-five wines coming from BC and around the world made it to my near-perfect – star category this year.  I’ve arranged these fantastic wines into BC wines followed by wines from the rest of the world.  Italian wine showed up prominently with my near-perfect wine scores.  Chardonnay showed prominently as well, primarily from BC. You should still be able to…

Depending on the season, many of us prefer different drinks.  For wine drinkers, for example, crisp white wines in the summer and big bold wines in winter.  Cocktails can also change depending on the season.  I received a few mulled cocktail recipes via email that I would like to pass along to you to enjoy over the holidays and the…

When I am on vacation, if there is a winery nearby, I will usually drop by.  In this case, 40 Knots Winery is in Comox, just 30 minutes away from Campbell River, so I popped in to say hi to Brenda Hetman-Craig, Owner of 40 Knots, and to sample some of her wines on their patio.  This was my first…

Have you ever had a cider made from crab apples? I don’t think I have until today. I have two ciders from Creek & Gully Cider in Penticton. One is Just Crab 2021 and the other is Crabby Pear 2021 which is a blend of 50% Hyslop crab apple and 50% Bartlett pear. If you bite into crab apples you…