Tag: sparkling

The first modern winery on Vancouver Island is Vigneti Zanatta which is located 10 minutes by car southwest of downtown Duncan.  I think what sets them apart from the other wineries on Vancouver Island is their specialization on making sparkling wines. The winery was named Vigneti Zanatta after the Italian family who owned the farm since the 1950s, and still do through…

Since 2011, Okanagan Crush Pad  (OCP) winery in Summerland offered the Okanagan Wine Campus, where the BC Sommelier of the Year has the opportunity to create their own wine label at the OCP facility.  They are part of the whole wine making process, starting with grape selecting, wine making, blending, labeling, marketing and bottling their wines.  $5000 of the “small lot”…

Italian wines can make any day feel like a holiday. But we do have holidays upcoming so here are a few Italian wines that I recently tasted in downtown Vancouver that you may want to consider purchasing.  Of particular note are the white wines made with indigenous grapes you may not have heard of; Carricante and Grillo exclusively grown in…

Having lunch with a wine maker, and listening to his or her story, about each wine, makes you appreciate it even more, and maybe even add to the deliciousness of the food pairing.  It is not too often that we get a wine maker coming up from Argentina, but standing among us media types, was Rodolfo “Opi” Sadler, from La…

BC bubble is growing.  Before we only talked about Blue Mountain, Sumac Ridge and Summerhill, but now there are Bella, Stoneboat, Encore Vineyards, and many more.  I recently received a white and a rose sparkling wine to taste from Encore Vineyards and their winery Evolve Cellars. The bottle labels are lightly coloured and appear to be bubbles in wine.  Nothing too formal,…

A wine agent’s portfolio tasting typically gives you the chance to try both listed as well as spec wines; wines that may only show up in specialty wine shops or restaurants, in limited quantities.  I have been to Mark Anthony Wine and Spirits‘ portfolio tasting now for a few years, and I am always very impressed by the wineries that…

I love to support our BC wineries.  I watched over the many years as the number of wineries has grown as well as the quality improved.  Wine critics from here as well as around the world, have tasted our wines, celebrated the quality, and told others.  Now you can find BC wines around the world, from Hong Kong to London….

Two years ago I was fortunate to meet wine maker Izele van Blerk from KWV, the largest winery in South Africa, at a Trade tasting in Vancouver 2 years ago.  I talked about my experience with South African wine through the South World Wine Society, where I was the President and cellar master at some time.  I’ve continued to watch…

Top Drop Vancouver is a collaboration between Vancouver’s wine industry, that focus on smaller boutique and terroir-focused wineries from BC and around the world, and offers these wines to taste at a public event, this year held at the Roundhouse in Yaletown on September 8.  I was fortunate to be able to attend this walk-about event, with a glass in…

The latest releases from BC’s VQA wineries is out, and I’m sure you are wondering which wines would be great on the patio this summer.  Here are 10, mostly white, wines for you to enjoy: Baillie-Grohman Estate Winery Recolte Blanche 2015 – A blend of Pinot Pris, Schoenburger, Kerner and Gewürztraminer.  Very aromatic with sweet spices, lychee and stone fruit aromas.  Off-dry,…