Category: italy

The ship has sailed and I am halfway through this trip on the Rhine River with Avalon Waterways.  I saw many steeply sloped vineyards yesterday south of Koblenz as well as a few castles perched on hillsides. Today we passed by Heidelberg.  Here are my tasting notes for a few more wines I enjoyed during my dinners.  I have been…

Cruising on the Rhine River with Avalon Waterways cruise line, the wine list at dinner changes daily.  Here are a few of the wines I tasted from my first two dinners.  All wines from the cruise are European. Many are from Austria.  None of these wines are currently available through the BC Liquor store, but who know, they may be…

When I first read the label, I almost thought that this is an Amarone from Veneto.  But on closer inspection the label says Amorini.  There is no official tasting notes from the winery that I could locate.  I did find a few other websites that reviewed this wine and it appears that this wine is a blend of two or…

This April, Port Moody’s Pizzeria Spacca Napoli marks 10 years of wood-fired Neapolitan craft – a milestone that arrives with a new addition to the kitchen and two firsts for the restaurant. Recently arrived from Naples, pizzaiolo Salvatore Russo brings more than 25 years of experience in Neapolitan pizzerias, including overseeing multiple kitchens. His arrival deepens a program already rooted in traditional…

We have had some turmoil in Canada and in BC for wines in 2025.  Many BC interior wineries suffered from the 2024 cold snap causing them to either not produce any wine in 2024, or importing grapes from across the border, or from Ontario.  We also had the removal of USA wines from BC government liquor stores.  Overall, we had…

As we close out 2025, we like to look back at what we enjoyed and learned about, like Italian wine, and what we may look forward to in 2026.  Below is a press release from the Consorzio Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and APOT providing us a review of this year and what to expect from them in the New Year. …

You have probably had Balsamic Vinegar of Modena of Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) drizzled over tomatoes and mozzarella cheese in a Capreze Salad.  And you know that this deeply coloured, thick vinegar, comes from Italy.  But there is an interesting story behind Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI.  I was with a few other select media members to learn about the…

The Italian Trade Commission had their 19th Annual Italian Wine Tasting in Vancouver.  There was the opportunity to meet the principals of 40 distinguished Italian wine estates.  I tasted mainly white and sparkling wines at this tasting and at the very end tried a few Italian red wines.  What I like about Italian wines is that many of the grapes are…

I recently was invited to taste a flight of wines from Sicily and have them paired with a variety of Italian street foods.  The venue was Bar Corso on Commercial Drive.  The setting was casual with the wines poured in a leisurely manner and the Italian appies coming by quickly, giving us a good chance to try all the wines…

In my last article on the IVSA trade tasting of wine, beer, and spirits, I concentrated on sparkling wines, but at the end of the tasting, I did take some time to taste a few red wines, and I was pleasantly surprised by all of them, so I am listing them here for you. My Red Wine Picks Ceci Antico…