Tag: france

Wine agencies attend various trade events where they show their wines alongside other agencies.  But to be able to better tell their story about these wines these agencies usually have a portfolio tasting once a year where various winery principals from around the world are invited to attend to tell us their wine story.  I was fortunate to attend the…

Besides tasting wine and attending seminars during the Vancouver International Wine Festival, I meeting with winery principals at the Festival Tasting Room and doing short video interviews with them.  Here is the list of all the interviews I did.  Many are from California, as this was the theme region for the Festival, but I also have an Australia, France, and…

Most of the excitement about the Vancouver International Wine Festival is with the theme country or region; California for this year.  But, we should not shy from visiting the rest of the Tasting Room and try wines from other parts of the world, as well as Canada.  Below are a dozen wines that I enjoyed and recommend for you to…

Valentine’s Day is a special day to spend with your significant other.  A bottle of sparkling wine to sip together is a great way to cap, or start, the evening together.  Below are 6 different sparkling wines that I tried over the last 12 months, from BC and overseas, that I think are exceptional.  Enjoy these wines on their own,…

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…

February 5, 2019 is the Chinese New Year of the Brown Earth Pig.   In Chinese culture, pigs are the symbol of wealth. 2019 is supposed to be a great year to make money, and a good year to invest. According to chinesenewyear.net, “Pigs might not stand out in a crowd. But they are very realistic. Others may be all talk…

Did you know the Rhone Valley is the 2nd largest French AOC wine area?  Or that 27 different grape varieties are grown in the Rhone Valley?  Or that Canada imports 6% of Rhone Valley wines in the world? There is a lot to like about Rhone Valley wines.  Not to get too involved in the details of the area, it can be…

This is Part 2 of my top rated wines for 2018.  I earlier released my list of 40 white and sparkling wines for 2018, which you can read at this link.  This red wine list came from Trade tastings with agents and BC VQA wineries, the Vancouver International Wine Festival, visits to wineries, and personal purchases.  I categorized the wines below to…

I tasted through many years this year through Trade tastings with agents and BC VQA wineries, the Vancouver International Wine Festival, visits to wineries, and personal purchases.  I rate all the wines I taste from 1 to 5 stars.  Fortunately, the quality of many wines is quite good, giving them at least a 3 out of 5-star rating.  At the…

One of the great names in the Champagne region is Taittinger.  Champagne Taittinger was founded in 1734 by Jacques Fourneaux.  It is the third oldest Champagne house in the region.  The current family that owns Taittinger started in 1931 with the purchase of the Forest-Fourneaux vineyards by Pierre Charles Taittinger. Taittinger concentrates on using Chardonnay grapes for their wines but…