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Public Events
There are many more complete wine and food calendars on the web but our goal is to post those events that appear to over-deliver for the ticket price. The key factors that affect our decisions (having spent over 20 years attending such events) include attending principals, the quality of the food and wine, the location and the chance to learn something new.
THE WEEK IN REVIEW
January 26, 2015. Holidays are done not that we missed much since Christmas other than the impending upheaval of the BC wine market as government regulates itself back into a position of complete power over liquor sales as befitting a monopoly. Expect to pay more for less selection in their stores starting April 1. Meanwhile in the real wine world we're gearing up for North America's longest running wine festival, held in our own backyard. Tickets to Vancouver International Wine Festival are on sale now, and many seminars and dinners have already sold out, so don't delay. AND your ticket is free if you book a downtown hotel with beVancouver.com. Details at VanWineFest. Trade Days tickets go on sale Tuesday, January 27 at 9:30 a.m. Treve and I will be speaking on a few panels throughout the week - we'll see you there. Thanks again for visiting our site where the scores are about the wines, not the reviewers. ag
After a long year of tasting and travel we are always proud to release our own personal “Top 100” list. In short, we like these wines a lot and in most cases we will likely enjoy them for years if not decades. Not every wine will be available at retail; some will already be buried in private cellars while others will be on restaurant list. Your job is to drink anyone you come upon. Good hunting.
The summer solstice arrives today and while technically the days will begin to grow shorter, most of us will celebrate the arrival of warmer, drier weather for the next three months. full article...
A handful of south Okanagan wineries, after working diligently for five years, has recently submitted to the B.C. Wine Authority what is the first proposal to create the Okanagan Valley’s first sub-appellation.There will be nothing easy about this application, beginning with objections from those wineries that are not located within the delineated borders as set by the application. full article...
When it comes to rosé worldwide, the colour of money in 2014 is pink, pale pink. True, certain markets still prefer a deeper tinge of pink and or even a touch red in their rosés but the reality is the light, pink/orange that originates in Provence is what consumers are clamouring for and producers around the world are shifting to the Provencal tint. full article...
The somewhat derogatory non-vintage moniker is an expression many champagne houses are moving away from preferring instead to describe these sparkling jewels for what they are: multi-vintage, multi-blended wines and our report would concur - there isn't quite anything quite like Champagne. full article...
Dan Kosta is a gregarious, forthright fellow, whose good fortune in the wine business is not lost on him. “We started out thinking we could make a few barrels of really tasty wine, if things went well. We never really thought of it as becoming some kind of cult thing.” Napa’s cabernets have the market cornered on that, but still, the kind of exotic, fulsome, fully expressed pinot noir Kosta Browne produces is in batches too small to slake the collective thirst. full article...
Late in the summer, Newfoundland’s star executive chef Jeremy Charles of Raymond’s restaurant in St. John travelled to West in Vancouver where executive chef Quang Dang was waiting as host. Charles brought a small brigade, food and wines featured on his list and they even brought some iceburg chunks, to cool the water at table. It was a fascinating look at the bounty of two oceans and two parts of Canada. full article...
Grappa as most people know it is a fiery spirit, clear, hard, and better taken with an espresso or strong coffee, where it is called in Italy, correto. The English connotation there is also appropriately evocative: it “corrects” not the coffee, and not the rough-hewn spirit, but the digestive system. full article...
New Year’s Eve evening is a great time for lingering over snacks with friends, before dinner or heading out to a party and there are certainly a number of cheeses that pair well with bubbles. We have been busy in the store all week selling our favourite matches so for any last minute shoppers here are some of our best bets. full article...
Do you know your guests well? If you are having close friends to your home, there is a good chance you may already know the kind of cheese they might enjoy. When you are entertaning people you hardly know and you know even less about thier tastes, it is always good to choose a more general selection. It is fine to push the envelope a bit, but you want to make people feel welcome in your home, not scare them! full article...
Having admitted that I don’t love all goat cheese and have been known to describe some as very 'goat-y' and 'barnyard-y', there are some that I like much more than others. I find that the more aged cheeses from the Loire Valley are some of my favourites, as well as some firmer goat cheeses like Queso de Cabra al Vino from Spain. full article...
The most important ingredient in Roquefort besides sheep milk is Penicillium Roqueforti. This mold is the secret that makes the taste of the cheese unique. The mold is specifically grown in special large loaves of rye bread. The bread is left in natural caves in the area until the centre has turned almost entirely to mold, and then the loaves are cracked open and the mold is ground for addition to the cheese curd before it is pressed. full article...
The most common Pecorino available in North America is Pecorino Romano. It is substantially saltier and much stronger than most of the other pecorinos we see. For me it lacks all the subtle fruity flavours that are the very reason I love sheep’s milk cheese. For cooking a robust flavoured dish, where a strong flavour is needed Romano is great, but for a table cheese it isn’t as appealing. full article...
Tasting wine takes you to many places, both hotels and restaurants - some good, some great and some bad. In response to many requests I will begin posting some basic details on where to stay and eat in wine country or wine friendly cities but only if I have first hand experience. Take it for what it is: a personal opinion but one that is based on many years of travel.
A 16 at 2355 Chestnut in the Marina area is named after a road in Italy. Expect delicious Naples-style thin crust pizza and light ricotta gnocchi as well as wonderful wood-fired cooking of Italy’s south. full article...
Four Seasons Resort Whistler's 273 guest rooms, suites and townhouses are generously sized and capture the spirit of a luxurious mountain residence. full article...
The Ritz-Carlton Santiago opened in June 2003 debut and immediately raised the standard of Chilean hotels. The hotel is set in Las Condes in the heart of the central business district. full article...
Cold, harsh winter weather has always benefited wine growers in this country if only because it acts as the perfect, natural pesticide but today freezing temperatures that blanket our vineyards each winter yield a much richer reward - icewine. full article...
January 26, 2015. Holidays are done not that we missed much since Christmas other than the impending upheaval of the BC wine market as government regulates itself back into a position of complete power over liquor sales as befitting a monopoly. Expect to pay more for less selection in their stores starting April 1. Meanwhile in the real wine world we're gearing up for North America's longest running wine festival, held in our own backyard. Tickets to Vancouver International Wine Festival are on sale now, and many seminars and dinners have already sold out, so don't delay. AND your ticket is free if you book a downtown hotel with beVancouver.com. Details at 
