Tag: Similkameen

You may have heard about the winter cold snap damaging our British Columbia vineyards, but not the extent.  Below is the official announcement of the degree of vine damage.  It is high and as such, the amount of BC wine we can expect for the next few vintages is going to be more limited as vines will need to be…

In the late Fall, I interviewed a few BC winemakers about their 2022 harvest, but the wines were still fermenting in tanks, barrels or other vessels.  The winemakers sounded optimistic, thanks to the warm Fall weather.  But how would the wines taste?  This we explored with the following winemakers at the BC Vintage 2022 media preview: Laurent Fadanni, Whispering Horse…

To start off the Vancouver International Wine Festival, I attended this masterclass which featured 11 British Columbia wines from across the province, “Defining the Root of BC Terroir“.  Our panellists, the winemakers at the wineries, discussed the unique growing conditions of their vineyard and terroir of the area. There was also some discussion on what BC winegrowers are doing in…

I have been a fan of Mt. Boucherie Estate Winery‘s wines for many years.  I still have a bottle of their 2003 Summit Reserve Semillon I purchased at the winery that I hope to open this year with friends.  On my recent trip to Kelowna, I messaged their winemaker, Jeff Hundertmark, to see if I could meet with him.  Not…

Have you tried the wines from Robin Ridge Winery in the Similkameen Valley? This small family-run winery only uses their organic estate-grown grapes. Each wine label also is named after a bird I was given a bottle of their Robin Ridge Frigate 2015 to taste. A frigate is a large sea bird that lives in tropical areas, like Florida. The…

2021 was a year of extreme weather conditions in BC, which had an impact on BC grapes and wine production.  Temperature records were shattered in many regions.  I’ve been told that Kelowna, Kamloops, Osoyoos, and Lillooet were among 60 cities that broke temperature records.  The heat dome in the summer causes grapevines to shut down until the weather cools off. …

The Andrew Peller beverage company over the past few years brought in five BC wineries into their portfolio.  Andrew Peller also owns wineries in the Niagara region in southern Ontario.  For Cornucopia 2021, I and a COVID safely separated group of other people had a sit-down tasting of wines from the five BC wineries, plus a talk about each winery…

If you have not yet enjoyed lunch or dinner at Provence Marinaside in Yaletown, maybe this wine and food pairing menu will entice you.  Tomatoes are now ripening on the coast, and are already ripe in the interior.  Provence Marinaside is pairing Heirloom tomatoes with Clos du Soleil wines (partially owned by Dr. Henry).  Here is the press release with…

I paired for dinner a Japanese-style Sablefish dish with two wines from Mt. Boucherie Estate Winery. They have their new, to me, MODEST WINES label. I opened their La Graves Robber 2020 (a Sauvignon Blanc – Semillon blend) and their The Eye of the Partridge 2020 Pinot Noir Rosé wine. The labels are fresh and original.  The sablefish filet comes…

With Dr. Henry lifting restrictions for us being able to travel within our zone for recreation purposes, I present you with two “Lover’s Lane” wines by Seaside Pearl Farmgate Winery. One is a Cabernet Franc and the other Cabernet Sauvignon, from 2018.  The Wine Labels The Old Yale Road is a historic early wagon road that serviced the Fraser Valley….