Enjoy Wine, Food, and Travel with Karl MyWinePal
Today I tasted Pinot Gris two ways from Enrico Winery. The two wines I tasted are their Shining Armour Pinot Gris 2018 and their Celebration Charme de l’ile 2019. The latter wine is a sparkling wine, made with the Charmat (tank) method. Charme de l’ile (Island charm) is a term for this type of sparkling wine made by some wineries…
Have you tasted wines made from the Cabernet Libre grape? If not, you can have a chance if you buy a bottle from Enrico Winery on south Vancouver Island. Cabernet Libre is a hybrid developed by Valentin Blattner in Germany by crossing Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. This hybrid, and Blattner’s other hybrids, are developed to be disease resistant for…
I have two possibly new white grape varieties to introduce you to today. I am tasting 2 wines from Enrico Winery located on southern Vancouver Island. One is their Coronet Reserve Petite Milo 2017 and the other is their Tempest Ortega 2019. Of the two grapes, you probably have heard of and tried Ortega as it is grown on Vancouver…
As 2020 has been a disaster, we really should be toasting with a bottle of sparkling wine on New Year’s Eve to welcome 2021. Well, 2021 was not much better. Still had to keep to your bubble. I only attended 2 Trade tastings and no sparkling wines were on the list. Here are a few sparkling wines that I tried…
This was a crazy year due to COVID, which limited my usual number of wine tastings, but when I checked through the wines, I realized that of the wines I did taste, many almost made my 5-star category. These wines I rated as 4.5-5 stars. They are fantastic to drink now and would be OK to cellar for a short…
The 2020 harvest and the days and months leading up to it will surely be marked in our minds. Starting in March we had the shutdown of our economy and quarantining to keep us safe from COVID. In the summer there were major fires in California and Oregon, with the smoke travelling up to British Columbia. Then in October the…
Here are two more vegan wines for you from Blue Grouse Estate Winery. Their Quill Gamay Noir 2018 and their Quill Q Red 2018. The Quill Q Red is a blend of Merlot 75%, Cabernet Franc 11.5%, and Marechal Foch 13.5%. The grapes for the Gamay Noir come from the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island while the Q Red grapes…
Have you ever heard of the Ortega grape? Did you know that Ortega is a cross between Siegerrebe and Müller-Thurgau? And did you know that you can try Ortega wine from Blue Grouse Estate Winery from Duncan, BC? Vancouver Island is a very cool climate region and as such many of the wineries produce wines from aromatic white grapes such…
Canadian Thanksgiving is going to be very different this year for many of us who are accustomed to getting together with our parents, brothers and sister, and maybe aunts and uncles for dinner. It will be smaller, and may be just you, but you can still enjoy your turkey, ham, or vegan Thanksgiving meal with a glass or two of…
Today I’m tasting two white grape varieties from Alsace and from the Rhone Valley, but grown in BC! Church & State Wines grows both Pinot Gris (Alsace) and Marsanne (Rhone) grapes. And have done them very well. Church & State Wines originated on Vancouver Island near Victoria, and later added a second winery in Oliver in the south Okanagan. The…
Video Guide Uncorks the Story of British Columbia Wines. Buy Now.
