Victoria’s Steamship Grill: a Tasty Nautical Nod

By |2018-01-21T15:05:18-08:00February 12th, 2014|Uncategorized, Dining|

I’m a bit of a history buff, especially where buildings, food and art intersect. That thought crossed my mind when I looked out of our window from Victoria’s Hotel Grand Pacific to see the stunningly refurbished and restored Steamship Terminal.  The majestic, Francis Rattenbury designed structure dates from 1924, when it was built to serve as [...]

No Roughing it in Osoyoos: Watermark Hits the Mark and More

By |2022-04-16T10:29:13-07:00September 27th, 2013|Wine|

The view from Watermark Resort: An ever changing panorama I’ll admit it: when I’m in full-on writing mode, I’m a bit of a home-body, which can be challenging on the road. All the more reason why I’m very happy to be ensconced in the Watermark Beach Resort, in Osoyoos, in southern BC. [...]

The Champagne Charlie Chronicles: Riding the Rails Around North America

By |2023-09-20T11:48:22-07:00September 23rd, 2013|Travel, Wine|

Everyone says it looks like we're getting married here but Richard Carras (left), who helped put it all together, is just showing us where to sign on the contract! Champagne Charlie was my name! ... In the Footsteps of Champagne Charlie: the challenge was to race around the world using only ground [...]

Paxton & Whitfield: A Slice of the Past (and Present)

By |2018-10-04T16:42:53-07:00September 19th, 2013|Travel|

Paxton & Whitfield, Jermyn Street On my way across London to Heathrow the other day, I had a little time to spare so I decided to  check out my old neighbourhood, St. James, where I used to work. Well, actually, it was really an excuse to drop by Paxton & Whitfield, at 93 Jermyn St., [...]

5 Reasons Why, Even in the Rain, this Cactus will Soon be Flourishing

By |2023-03-03T17:57:12-08:00May 7th, 2013|Belly's Best Bites|

Cactus Club Coal Harbour is Vancouver's ultimate destination for a spectacular Summer's afternoon. Here's what we found, inside looking out from that "giant dormer" mentioned further on ... Essentially, at the the push of a button, the entire wall of windows slides aside to bring the outside in. They've dubbed it the "Sea to [...]

Cherry Blossoms: On the Brink of Spring

By |2018-01-21T15:05:28-08:00March 7th, 2013|Nature|

Cherry tree redux ... UPDATED, March 17th, 2016 In case you were wondering just how early spring has sprung, here's 'my' cherry tree today, a good two weeks ahead of schedule... Also, just as I mentioned below, other people were there taking pictures. I love this cherry tree, which at some point suffered a catastrophic [...]

Feds Farmers’ Loan Actually Funds Imported, Not ‘Canadian Wine’

By |2023-12-31T08:40:15-08:00September 7th, 2011|Wine|

'Government of Canada Invests in New Technology for Canadian Wine', ... says the headline. Really? Not so fast. The key words here are ‘Canadian wine.’ Andrew Peller Limited has received a $1.04 million interest free federal loan to upgrade (and effectively double) bag-in-box production at its wholly owned Calona Vineyards subsidiary in Kelowna, and at [...]

Tales of the Cocktail Vancouver: Looking Forward to Next Year

By |2022-10-08T09:10:11-07:00March 21st, 2011|Spirits|

The English wrote the book on gin - Tim Pawsey photo We’ve been taking stock of last week’s cocktail infused days, sifting through images and notes from Tales of the Cocktail—the New Orleans success story brought to Vancouver by TOTC founder Ann Tuenneman. Kudos to the contingent of savvy folks behind the Canadian [...]

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