Enjoy Wine, Food, and Travel with Karl MyWinePal
Here are my last two Interlude wines from Township 7 Vineyards & Winery. In case you don’t remember, Interlude, is their wines, crafted in BC, but coming from grapes outside the province, due to our cold winter snap that killed most grape vines in the Okanagan. The first wine, their Township 7 Vineyards & Winery Interlude Pinot Noir 2024, is…
We have had some turmoil in Canada and in BC for wines in 2025. Many BC interior wineries suffered from the 2024 cold snap causing them to either not produce any wine in 2024, or importing grapes from across the border, or from Ontario. We also had the removal of USA wines from BC government liquor stores. Overall, we had…
Gate 22 Winery in Surrey, BC, is probably new to many people. I know it only came on my radar later this year. It has an interesting name, which made me think of a gate at an airport, plus their logo shows an airplane propeller. When I checked with the winery, I was told the ownership group manages the Boundary…
Today, I paired my third dish from Sous Chef by Cardinal™ with a red and a white wine. The dish was the Marsala Braised Chicken with seasoned long grained rice. The white wine was the Township 7 Vineyards & Winery Interlude Chardonnay 2024, and the red wine was the Dobbin Estate Cabernet Blend 2020 (85% Cabernet Franc and 15% Merlot)…
Food and wine pairings can be exciting, with each dish and wine bringing out aspects of the other. I will be taking on four different food and wine pairings, with this pairing of Township 7 Vineyards & Winery Interlude wines with a Chicken Tikka Masala from Canadian, Cardinal Meats. Sous Chef by Cardinal™ entrées, were created by Executive Chef, Caleb…
From my recent tastings of white and sparkling wines from west coast USA during VanWineFest 2025, a few key trends emerge. Chardonnay remains a dominant varietal, showcasing a range of styles from richer, rounder textures with lower acidity in Paso Robles to fresher, more mineral-driven expressions from Oregon’s Willamette Valley. There is a clear emphasis on texture and mouthfeel, with…
At every Vancouver International Wine Festival, when I attend the International Festival Tasting Room, I have a plan for which wines to taste. Luckily, as an accredited media person, I can attend the International Festival Tasting Room several times. But each time, is different. For this one session, I visited the theme region, west coast USA, and tasted only red…
Hope Family Wines, based in Paso Robles, California, is a renowned family-owned winery known for producing bold, expressive wines that capture the essence of the region’s warm climate and rich soils. Hope Family Wines consists of six individual brands: Liberty School, Treana, Quest, Austin Hope, Troublemaker, and Austin. Led by winemaker and owner Austin Hope, the winery has built a…
While the term “Cru” is most often used for the French classification system, the “Cru” concept can apply to any vineyard or group of vineyards recognized for their superior quality. It was first mentioned in Champagne in 1911 and then spread across France, and now the rest of the world. This seminar, The Global Cru, took participants on a global…
Justin Vineyards & Winery, a benchmark producer in Paso Robles, California is renowned for crafting bold, Bordeaux-style wines that showcase the region’s rich soils and warm climate. Led by winemaker Scott Shirley, Justin focuses on producing structured, expressive wines with depth and elegance. Their flagship Isosceles blend—crafted from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc—delivers layers of dark fruit, spice, and…
Video Guide Uncorks the Story of British Columbia Wines. Buy Now.
