Enjoy Wine, Food, and Travel with Karl MyWinePal
I’ve enjoyed the wines of Luigi Bosca from Argentina for many years, Malbecs in particular, but this winery is about more than Malbec wines. In this video interview undertaken at VanWineFest 2023 with Gaston Caltabiano, Area Manager for Canada, I spoke with him about their Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon wines. Listen and then look for these wines at your…
Did you know that the wine you taste when you pour it from the bottle, may not taste exactly like the wine that the winemaker had sampled at the winery? A barrel sample in wine tasting refers to a small portion of wine that is drawn directly from the barrel during the ageing process. Winemakers use barrel samples to assess…
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…
I had an excellent talk with Andres Izquierdo from Viña Undurraga in Chile at VanWineFest 2023. He talked about the history of Viña Undurraga, which was established in 1885. We then moved on to a discussion of the cool-climate region of Leyda Valley where their Sibaris Pinot Noir grapes were grown. Do you know what Sibaris means? Listen to Andres…
June 10 is National Rosé Day, but what do you know about Rosé wines? Here’s some background so you can further appreciate these wines and toast a glass or two on June 10. What are Rosé Wines? Rosé wines, often referred to as rosé, are a category of wines that bridge the gap between red and white wines. They are…
Three years ago, in March 2020, I interviewed Dr. Laura Catena from the Bodega Catena Zapata Winery in Argentina at the Vancouver International Wine Festival. The next week, there was the COVID lockdown that went around the world. Luckily now that the Festival is back this year to its full program, Dr. Catena came back to the Festival, in part…
This seminar at the Vancouver International Wine Festival helped us learn how California’s landscape and climate shape the Golden State and its wines. Each wine we tasted explored a different aspect of California from the coastline to the mountains, with a winery principal talking to us about the wine and the region. Our Moderator was DJ Kearney while our panelists…
I have a few Riedel glasses at home that I use for red Bordeaux blends, Pinot Noir, oaked Chardonnay, and aromatic white wines, but have not tested the theory that the shape of a glass can really positively or negatively affect the taste of the wine, until I attended this seminar at the Vancouver International Wine Festival, hosted by Alysha…
One of the highlights of the Vancouver International Wine Festival 2023 was the International Festival Tasting Room where 147 wineries from around the world were pouring their wines for you to try. Plus, there was a winery principal for you to talk to about their wines. This year the theme region for the Festival was South America, so we had…
To start off the Vancouver International Wine Festival, I attended this masterclass which featured 11 British Columbia wines from across the province, “Defining the Root of BC Terroir“. Our panellists, the winemakers at the wineries, discussed the unique growing conditions of their vineyard and terroir of the area. There was also some discussion on what BC winegrowers are doing in…
Video Guide Uncorks the Story of British Columbia Wines. Buy Now.
