The valley's most recognized winery... Today's announcement that Mission Hill winemaker John Simes is relinquishing his position as Chief Winemaker in order to concentrate on the Von Mandl Family Estates vineyards is an indication of just how much things have changed since Simes arrived on the scene. He’s handing the winemaking reins to Darryl [...]
De-hilling at Waring House Vineyard, in Picton, Ontario I’m still sifting through the voluminous results of last week’s All Canadian Wine Championships, in which BC fared very well. The competition is held in Prince Edward County (about 275 kms. northeast of Niagara), widely regarded as one of North America’s most up and [...]
...Don't try this at home. It’s been a bit of whirl on the wine circuit this past week. All the more reason to get back to posting, so at least I can figure out where I’ve been. (Just kidding!) Though sometimes the best way to take stock, truly, is to sift through the [...]
Lost Inhibitions EFFING EPIC: irony not lost One thing about Bernie Hadley Beauregard: you never know what the guy’s going to come up with next! Hadley Beauregard, of Blasted Church, Therapy Vineyards (Freudian Sip), Dirty Laundry (and a host of other labels/brands) fame, looks set to repeat the kind of off-the-chart success registered [...]
Looking down on Golden Mile Bench from above Culmina Winery Today's announcement about the final approval of the Golden Mile Bench Geographical Indication (GI) adds up to a red letter day for the BC wine industry. In essence, you could call it a watershed moment, as it sends a firm signal that BC is [...]
Vintners Winner Farm2Fork's delicious Laksa with William Hardys Sauv Blanc nailed it! Even in matters of food and wine pairing, sometimes the planets align. One of the most challenging / enjoyable / filling parts of last week’s Vancouver International Wine Festival, was judging at the Vintners Brunch. (If you’re not aware of Vintners [...]
Wine Australia and Savour Australia theme region at VIWF The wine world always makes for an exciting place. It’s perpetually in flux—no matter where you look. Barely a decade ago, you might have been excused for thinking that Australia was all about two things: Yellowtail and Shiraz. In fact, sometimes it seemed it [...]
Similkameen Valley, looking east from Vanessa Vineyard (Howard Soon photo) (Updated 20/02/16 with 2013 reviews) Vanessa Vineyard is at the eastern end of British Columbia's stunning Similkameen Valley. The place (which reminds me a bit of New Zealand's Gibbston Valley) is extraordinarily beautiful. But the other thing about the Similkameen that’s truly striking—and unavoidable—is [...]
Forbidden Fruit's remarkable Cerise d'Eve, from the Similkameen Valley I’ve never been all that crazy about wine with chocolate, well, not entirely. In fact most of the time there’s little that appeals to me about matching a Cab with a piece of even good dark chocolate, whatever anyone says. OK, Port can be [...]
With two of the best vintages in recent memory (2012, 2013) and a third in the barrel (2014), most agree: it’s a pretty good time to be making red wines in the Okanagan Valley. However, it’s already been several years that Bill Lui has been thinking seriously about what it would take to make the [...]
