Enjoy Wine, Food, and Travel with Karl MyWinePal
VanWineFest 2025 starts next week and one of the attractions of the event is attending the International Festival Tasting Room where there will be 121 wineries from 15 countries, with winery principals pouring and discussing their wines. Each year there is a different theme country or region. This year it is the United States; specifically California, Oregon, and Washington states. …
DISH stands for Drink, Indulge, Savour, Help. The DISH event supports the BC Hospitality Foundation. Many of the BCHF’s beneficiaries have been in accidents or illnesses which necessitated financial support. This is the 9th annual event and over the years the BCHF has helped 217 beneficiaries and granted scholarships to 188 students in the hospitality, culinary arts, beverage, sommelier and…
A Chinese proverb says, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step“. Walking through the Vancouver International Wine Festival tasting room, tasting wines and speaking with winery principals, I walked many steps, and my journey is now complete. I’ve finished compiling all my articles and videos that I created and posted them for you. I learned more about Chardonnay and…
The Vancouver International Wine Festival 2019 starts February 23. A big part of the festival is attending the International Festival Tasting Room that has 160 wineries attending, pouring a total of 1450 wines. How do you know which wineries you want to make sure you try? California is the theme region, so there will be more wineries from there, compared…
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…
Big news today. Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery‘s wines will be more accessible across Canada. If you have never tried their Fume Blanc it is top quality. If you have a chance to go to the Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma County, California, you will be greeted by spectacular grounds and winery. You will feel like you have stepped into a…
Summer is still going strong here in BC, so still lots of time to get out onto your patio and enjoy some refreshing white wines. Here are some white wines, plus a bonus wine, that I received from TIME Estate Winery, in the Okanagan. My Tasting Notes TIME Estate Winery Chardonnay 2014 ($25) – A deeper golden lemon in colour,…
The Fraser Valley has a few wineries, but they are not as well-known as our Okanagan wineries. One of the newer Fraser Valley wineries is Singletree Winery from the Abbotsford area. Being a cooler climate area for grape growing, expect aromatic white wines. But as many of the Fraser Valley wineries do, they also bring in grapes from the Okanagan…
Did you know that this year is the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Robert Mondavi Winery in Napa Valley, California? It is. I learned this when I spoke with Mr. Mark de Vere, Master of Wine with Robert Mondavi Winery during the Vancouver International Wine Festival 2016. What a milestone. Did you also know that Robert Mondavi started the…
Which region is known for their award-winning Pinot Noir? Sonoma County, California Burgundy, France Marlborough, New Zealand Champagne, France If you answered, all the above, you would be right. Burgundy being the most famous region in the world for Pinot Noir. But what about Champagne? Isn’t that sparkling white wine? Yes, but the grape that is used for many Champagnes…
