Enjoy Wine, Food, and Travel with Karl MyWinePal
Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year, is a vibrant celebration marking the start of a new year on the traditional Chinese calendar. In 2025, it ushers in the Year of the Earth Snake, a sign in the Chinese zodiac symbolizing wisdom, intuition, and transformation. According to legend, the Snake, though often underestimated, is clever and resourceful,…
The holidays are a time when many of us get together with family or friends to enjoy a meal together; hopefully with a glass of wine. Here are a few last-minute suggestions of wines you can pair with traditional dishes for the holidays. Enjoy. Wine Pairings for Roast Turkey – Chardonnay: A lightly oaked Chardonnay complements the rich flavours of…
In 2024, I wrote 190 articles, with most of the articles reviewing at least one bottle of wine. From a quick calculation, I wrote about 493 wines on mywinepal this year. Wines submitted to me through the year ranged from to wines, but I usually only post wines that were at least . 5-star wines are the wines that I…
2022 is the last vintage in the Okanagan before the harsh winter cold snaps of 2023 and 2024. 2022 produced a large crop of grapes although the season started cool, it finished with a sunny Fall, so there is lots of wine to go around. I suggest stocking up on 2022 wines as 2023 and 2024 will be reduced in…
Nestled on the picturesque Naramata Bench in the Okanagan Valley, Ruby Blues Winery offers a charming blend of exceptional wines and stunning vineyard views. In 2007 Prudence and Beat Mahrer started Ruby Blues Winery, after selling Red Rooster Winery. Their goal is to keep the winery small and sell locally. I recently received two bottles of wine from Ruby Blues…
BC’s Hester Creek Estate Winery made two delicious wines that would go well with your holiday dinners. Both are elegant, flavourful, not heavy-bodied. I received their Source Collection Chardonnay 2023 and Syrah 2022 to review. The Source Collection represents a source of inspiration, these wines represent the treasured qualities of their rare Old Vine vineyard and that of their select…
Here are two holiday-worthy red wines from BC’s Township 7 Vineyards & Winery that you should consider. The first, under screwcap, is the Township 7 Provenance Series Merlot 2020; the second, under cork closure, is the Township 7 Benchmark Series Fool’s Gold Vineyard Syrah 2020. What’s the Difference? What is the difference between Township 7’s Provenance and the Benchmark series of…
This year’s harvest in the BC interior was extremely different from past harvests as the winter cold snap killed most of the grape vines. Coastal and Fraser Valley wineries did not suffer the same fate. The amount of grapevine loss varied a bit in the interior, depending on how close the vineyards were to interior lakes and the slopes where…
Do you like apples or pears? There are many cider makers in BC that will convert those fruits into tasty drinks for you to enjoy year-round. They tend to be lighter-bodied than many wines, lower in alcohol and come in 500ml bottles, which makes it possible to enjoy by yourself in one session. You can drive to several cideries in…
I am a Pinot Noir lover, so when I received two bottles of Pinot Noir from the 2022 harvest by Blue Mountain Vineyards and Cellars to review, I eagerly anticipated opening them. The two bottles I received were the Blue Mountain Vineyards and Cellars Estate Cuvée Pinot Noir 2022 and the Reserve Cuvée Pinot Noir 2022. Pinot Noir is a…
