Category: Malbec

  Dish N’ Dazzle is a yearly event where Argentinean wineries come to BC to show off their wines and some local Vancouver restaurants offer tasty bites from their menus. The event supports the BC Hospitality Foundation charity.  A few of the wines that were brought for us to enjoy are 2017 Argentina Wine Award winners.  Malbecs are definitely at the fore,…

Certain regions of the world are well-known for producing exceptional wines. Burgundy producing Pinot Noir, or Napa Valley producing Cabernet Sauvignon for example.  There is usually something about their terroir that brings out the best of their grapes, which then makes it into the wines. What is it about Argentina that makes Malbec special?  There are a few factors: altitude,…

Farm Friends was a stand-up grazing event, organized by several BC wineries in response to the recent boycott on the importation of BC wine to Alberta.  The day of the event, held at Edible Canada, the Alberta government dropped the ban so that the event became more of a celebration of BC wine and pairing with Alberta products, like beef and bison. A Farmer’s…

According to Wikipedia, “Malbec World Day is celebrated on April 17, to commemorate the day when president Domingo Faustino Sarmiento of Argentina officially made it his mission to transform Argentina’s wine industry. On that day, back in 1853, he tasked Michel Aimé Pouget, a French soil expert, to bring over new vines. Amongst his selection, was Malbec.” Did you know…

This past year I tasted a tremendous number of wines from around the world, but some wines really resonated with me.  It may have been the great balance of fruit, sugar, acidity for a white wine, or the fruit, tannins and minerality in a red wine, or something else. Something that made the wine stand above the other wines.  Could…

Who We Are Moraine Estate Winery is a family owned winery and vineyard overlooking Okanagan Lake, located just minutes from the City of Penticton. From its shelf-like location above striking clay bluffs, Moraine peers over the landscape and water. These iconic glaciated white clay cliffs comprise the breathtaking Naramata Bench and inspire the winery’s land-formed name. The winery owners are…

Bench 1775 Winery is located in on 1775 Naramata Road, on the Naramata Bench.  They believe that great wines start in the vineyard, so all of their vineyard sites were analyzed in detail before being planted with clones and rootstocks best adapted to their soils and site climate. Val Tait, the viticulturist, wine maker and GM of Bench 1775, tries to…

Having lunch with a wine maker, and listening to his or her story, about each wine, makes you appreciate it even more, and maybe even add to the deliciousness of the food pairing.  It is not too often that we get a wine maker coming up from Argentina, but standing among us media types, was Rodolfo “Opi” Sadler, from La…

Two years ago I was fortunate to meet wine maker Izele van Blerk from KWV, the largest winery in South Africa, at a Trade tasting in Vancouver 2 years ago.  I talked about my experience with South African wine through the South World Wine Society, where I was the President and cellar master at some time.  I’ve continued to watch…

Top Drop Vancouver is a collaboration between Vancouver’s wine industry, that focus on smaller boutique and terroir-focused wineries from BC and around the world, and offers these wines to taste at a public event, this year held at the Roundhouse in Yaletown on September 8.  I was fortunate to be able to attend this walk-about event, with a glass in…