Tag: BCWine

Here are two big red wines for you from Church & State Wines, a Meritage and a Syrah. The Syrah grapes are grown in the Coyote Bowl vineyard in the Oliver-Osoyoos wine region in the Okanagan Valley. The Coyote Bowl Vineyard had originally been three contiguous 10-acre orchards, situated along a large gravel bowl on the Black Sage Bench. Cabernet…

It’s Fall now.  We can’t hide from it, so time to embrace it with red wines.  I’m tasting Church & State Wines, Cabernet Franc and Merlot 2017, with the grapes coming from the Okanagan Valley.  2017 had a hot summer with smoke from forest fires starting in July.  Fortunately the smoke did not affect the grapes as it was early…

What do you know about Chardonnay Clone 95? It is originally from Burgundy, and is grown by Spearhead Winery in Kelowna, BC. Clone 95 makes full-bodied, intensely flavoured, medium yield Chardonnay clusters. Spearhead Winery barrel ferments this wine in 100% French oak, 40% new, and ages it on it’s lees for 10 months and undergoes a partial malolactic fermentation. You…

Why 2 Reviews of 4 Wines? I received a shipment of wines from Gold Hill Winery in Oliver, BC, over the summer and I’ve been tasting them two wines at a time and writing my tasting notes for you.  Twice during my tasting, one of the two bottles had a defect, so the wine was not review-able.  When you are…

Here are two more white Rhone Valley grape varieties that are made by Church & State Wines.  The Viognier and Roussanne grapes come from their Coyote Bowl and Bella vineyards in the south Okanagan.  The soils in these vineyards consist of sand and gravel.  How do these soil types affect wine’s aromas and flavours?  Sand gives fruitiness, elegance, less colour,…

Do you like Rosé Wine Jelly?  How about adding some pink peppercorns in?  Maybe put on a cracker with a slice of brie and enjoy with a glass of rosé wine?  And to top it off, help relieve family poverty!  You can do that by buying this Rosé Wine Jelly made in the Okanagan.  Here is the press release and…

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…

Summer is winding down, unfortunately. But sparkling wine can be enjoyed year round.  It does feel nicer though when you are outside on your patio enjoying sparkling wine with family or friends.  Here are two tasty sparkling wines from Church & State Wines, located on Vancouver Island. My Tasting Notes Church & State Wines Sparkling Pinot Gris 2017 (BC $25.29)…

Bizou + Yukon are two Great Pyrenees who document their travels, visit other winery dogs, and share what it’s like to live in Summerland at the Okanagan Crush Pad.  They, the dogs, launched a wine brand and I was provided with a bottle of their bubbles to review for you.   This sparkling rosé wine is made with Pinot Noir grapes, with…

Let’s get back to some BC wines. This time it is Robin Ridge Winery from the Similkameen Valley. I have an organic Chardonnay and an organic Rosé labelled Flicker. What is a Flicker you may ask?  In keeping with the bird theme for this winery, according to allaboutbirds.org the Northern Flickers are “… are large, brown woodpeckers with a gentle…