MyWinePal

Oak barrels are important in the production of many red wines and some white wines.  Barrels can be used to ferment the wine, or they can be used to age the wine after it has been fermented in another vessel like a stainless steel tank.  Where the barrels originate as well as the production of the barrels can affect the…

Victoria Day has just passed in Canada and is known as our unofficial kick-off to summer.  For your summer wine enjoyment, you may lean toward white wines.  I have two white wines for you from Australia;  The Pewsey Vale Estate Eden Valley Riesling 2022 which is fermented in stainless steel and the Yalumba The Y Series Viognier 2022 which has…

Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc wines from New Zealand and British Columbia have a similar history with the growth in quality Vitis Vinifera wine production.  I will concentrate on the Marlborough region of New Zealand and the Okanagan Valley primarily plus the Similkameen for BC for this post. Vitis Vinifera grapes were first planted experimentally in the mid-1970s in BC…

I was fortunate to be invited to taste the wines made by Cristiana Tiberio at a lunch seminar held at Pepino’s Spaghetti House on Commercial Drive. From the winery, “Agricola Tiberio is a family-owned estate, specializing in wines made from authentic Abruzzo native grape varieties. The story of Agricola Tiberio began in 2000 when Riccardo Tiberio purchased the eight-hectare plot…

Gambero Rosso is the leading platform for the promotion of Italian wine in the world.  Each year they have a tasting of all Italian wines submitted to them and they rank the wines with the top wines given the title of Tre Bicchieri, Three Cups in English.   Last year a selection of people from Gambero Rosso reviewed 2,647 Italian wineries…

In the intricate world of winemaking, every element contributes to the final wine’s character and complexity. Among these crucial components, oak barrels can infuse wines with distinct flavours and textures while being a fermentation or a maturation vessel. Let’s delve into the anatomy of oak wine barrels, explore the oak varieties utilized in Europe and North America, learn about the…

Mother’s Day is this Sunday, May 12.  Your spouse or mother would probably love to enjoy a bottle of sparkling wine.  I have a spectacular bottle of BC’s Church & State Wines Gris de Noir Brut 2020 made in the Traditional Method from Pinot Noir grapes.  It is available at the winery.  It may also be at some of the…

Sunday, May 12, and Sunday, June 16, 2024, are Mother’s and Father’s Day respectively. Did you know that Mother’s Day has its origins in the United States, where it was created by Anna Jarvis in 1908 and became an official U.S. holiday in 1914, while the first Father’s Day was started by a woman named Sonora Smart Dodd and was first…

Gambero Rosso is an Italian food and wine magazine and publishing group founded in 1986.  Last year a selection of people from Gambero Rosso reviewed 2,647 Italian wineries and a total of 25,231 wines, rating them from 1 to 3 glasses according to the quality of the wines. Through a series of blind tastings, 498 wines were awarded their top…

My first BBQ of 2024 was a few days ago. I grilled steak and opened a bottle of Tom Gore Vineyards Farmer’s Blend red wine from Sonoma, California. It is a blend of 30% Petite Syrah, 30% Merlot, 15% Malbec, 15% Teroldego, and 5% other reds. Tom Gore is a second-generation grape farmer from Sonoma County and from the time…