Enjoy Wine, Food, and Travel with Karl MyWinePal
The Robert Mondavi Winery is historic for putting California, and New World wines, on the international stage. I was fortunate to have a chance to interview Kurtis Ogasawara, Winemaker for Robert Mondavi during VanWineFest 2024. I was told, “Growing up in Sunnyvale, California, Kurtis lived just outside of wine country in the Bay Area. When he went off to college,…
Two years ago Valley Commons, a new BC winery, launched at the new District Wine Village in the south Okanagan. I visited the winery and the Village in the Fall to taste their inaugural vintages which Mark Simpson of BC Wine Studio crafted. I picked up a bottle of their Valley Commons Cabernet Franc 2018 to take home. I opened…
In celebration of the upcoming Chinese Year of the Dragon, BC’s Haywire Winery is releasing its limited edition wine, Haywire Winery Lunar Red 2021. It is a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s made to pair with a broad range of Asian cuisines such as stir-fried vegetables, pan-seared sablefish, and BBQ duck according to the winery. This…
Happy New Year. With that, I have my first two wines to review for 2024. I decided to pick two big red wines from BC’s Hester Creek Estate Winery. I have their Hester Creek Estate Winery The Judge 2020 and Garland 2020. Both wines are Bordeaux blends with The Judge being a right-bank blend and Garland being a left-bank blend. …
These are probably my last two BC red wines for me to taste in 2023. The wines come from the Church & State Wines. I have their Church & State Wines Cabernet Franc 2019 and Syrah 2019. While the winery started on Vancouver Island, they do make wines from Okanagan-sourced grapes as well. The Cabernet Franc comes from the terraces…
This year I had many terrific wines to taste and review. Wines that I rate as 5 star I deem as needing nothing to add or subtract. They are perfect as-is. I had one wine that reached that status this year so instead of making a separate article for that wine, I am including it in this article. My 4.5-5…
I have two red blends from BC’s Hester Creek Estate Winery. Both show off ripe fruit flavours and are smooth and round, with fine-grained tannins, that I think would be easy to enjoy over the holidays with appetizers or main courses. The two wines are the Hester Creek Estate Winery Cabernet Merlot 2022 and their Character Red 2022, a blend…
Here are two musical compositions in wine from BC’s High Note Estate Winery. Cadenza Red Blend 2021 (of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Sangiovese, and Cabernet Sauvignon) and Verismo Syrah 2021. Wonderful wines to share with family and friends for the holiday season. Let me tell you about these wines. My Wine Tasting Notes High Note Estate Winery Cadenza Red Blend 2021…
I was invited to attend the Swirl Around BC 2023 seminar recently to hear from BC winemakers about the challenges and opportunities in the BC wine industry. Our Moderator for this seminar was DJ Kearney, and our Panelists were: Alistair Veen, JoieFarm, Bailey Williamson, Blue Grouse Estate Winery; Charlie Baessler, Corcelettes Estate Winery; David Paterson, Tantalus Vineyards; Ross Wise, Black…
Ontario’s Stratus Vineyards is a 55-acre farm, set in the Niagara Lakeshore appellation of Niagara-on-the-Lake, and is planted to 16 grape varieties. All the grapes are grown sustainably. Their winery is the first in the world to be fully Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) – certified, which embodies their commitment to sustainability. The winery uses geothermal heating and…
Video Guide Uncorks the Story of British Columbia Wines. Buy Now.
