Tag: chenin blanc

Winemaking has been around for hundreds of years.  We are very familiar with wines coming from Europe, in particular France, where we talk about Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Champagne.  We typically call Europe the “Old World” wine region, while wines made from the southern hemisphere, are known as the “New World“, plus North America.  But where did the grapes come from…

Wanderlust.  We must all have it after staying in our homes for the past two years due to COVID.  Maybe venturing out to a nearby city or town within a day’s driving distance, but not getting on an airplane and going where your heart desires.  I love wine, and I enjoy going to wine regions around the world, meeting winemakers…

Today I have wines from the two signature grapes of South Africa; Chenin Blanc and Pinotage.  Chenin Blanc hailing from France but has flourished in South Africa. Pinotage, a red grape, was created in South Africa in the early 1920s, by crossing Pinot Noir and Cinsault.    Kanonkop Wine Estate and Ken Forrester Vineyards are both located in the quality…

Astrolabe Wrekin Marlborough Chenin Blanc 2018 (NZ $32) Simon Waghorn and his wife Jane Forrest-Waghorn set up Astrolabe in Marlborough back in 1996 after years of making wine in Australia and Gisborne. I love that they’ve taken a leap and planted Chenin Blanc because it produces an apple and honeysuckle-scented dry white wine that’s rarely seen in NZ. The 2018…

It is so hot outside, I decided to open two bottles of white BC wine made by Okanagan Crush Pad in Summerland. The 2 bottles are 1. Narrative Chenin Blanc 2019 and 2. free form Vin Gris 2019. In case you have not heard about Vin Gris, it is a very light Rosé wine made from red grapes. This Vin…

You may say that 1990 was when South African wine came on the international scene.  That is the year that Nelson Mandela was released and sanctions against South Africa were subsequently lifted.  Before that time South African wines were made in a style that pleased the South Africa palate.  But opening their wines up to the world and a more…

Esk Valley Winemakers Reserve Hawke’s Bay Chenin Blanc 2019 (NZ$29) Returning to his dry-style roots not seen since 2013, winemaker Gordon Russell has taken fruit for the first time from Ian and Linda Quinn’s Two Terraces Vineyard located west of Hastings in Maraekakaho where they grow two clones of chenin, 220 and 880.  Handpicked, cooled overnight and gently pressed to…

My third Dine Out Vancouver dinner was with good friends at Provence Marinaside in Yaletown.  Provence offers a $45 food menu plus $25 wine pairing, and it is totally worth it.  The food from Provence is top quality and a large portion.  I was very full and very happy at the end of my meal. We were treated with a glass…

Road 13 Vineyards has been producing award-winning wines for quite a while.  They were awarded the Winery of the Year 2018 by WineAlign.  In November 2018 Road 13 Vineyards were purchased by Mission Hill Family Estate from Kelowna.  So these wines will be one of the last vintages produced by the original Road 13 Vineyards family for you to try….

My first Trade tasting for 2019 was this week, with agents showing the latest new wines they have brought to Vancouver or new vintages of wines that are currently in our market.  I was quite surprised by how many sparkling wines I had a chance to try.  I normally see a peak interest in sparkling wine leading up to the…