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What was the last wine you tried that made you go rushing back to the wine store for more bottles? For me, the 2016 Zenato Valpolicella Superior is one of those wines and, at $27.00, it fits into my New Year’s resolution to search out quality wines for under $30.00! If you’re in Ontario (or…
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One last post before the Christmas shenanigans begin! I’ve been drinking quite a bit of sparkling wine lately, including the CedarCreek Home Block Sparkling Brut which retails for $24.99 and is available at Save On Foods and a selection of speciality wine stores. The Home Block Sparkling Brut is made from 100% Muscat Ottonel using…
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One of the things that I love about Whispering Horse Winery is that they are not trying to be the Okanagan or the Napa Valley. Whispering Horse is located in Yarrow, BC and they are focussed on showcasing the uniqueness of Fraser Valley terroir using 100% estate grown grapes. The proprietors of Whispering Horse Winery…
Continue reading Whispering Horse Winery: Traditional Method Sparkling Wines
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What is one of your favourite holiday traditions? I enjoy visiting the festive light display at the Burnaby Village Museum or listening to Festive Cantatas at The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts. I recently tried the 2015 Poplar Grove Syrah which, in itself, is very festive; it is like Christmas in a glass! This…
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What wines do you always make sure to have on-hand for holiday entertaining? At $18.99 the 2018 Cedarcreek Estate Grown Chardonnay is a great wine to add to the list. I enjoyed this wine alongside rigatoni with turkey sausage, mushroom, parmesan and kale. It would also pair well with cream sauces or poultry with sage…
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Named after 500-year-old pictographs discovered on the property, Painted Rock is a beautiful estate winery located along the Skaha Bench in Penticton, British Columbia. I was fortunate to have visited this winery in 2016, but I really fell hard for their wines when I tried the 2015 vintage at the Okanagan Falls Winery Association tasting…
Continue reading Painted Rock: Rendering a new Landscape for the Skaha Bench
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I think most people would agree that deciding to sell your home is a big decision. Now, in addition to selling your home, imagine quitting an established career, going back to school in a foreign country, moving to a completely different city and buying a farm. This is essentially what Chris and Beata Tolley did,…
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Earlier this month I had the pleasure of visiting CheckMate Artisanal Winery and catching-up with Natasha Sadowy, Experience Curator. Natasha toured me around the construction of their new facility, which is well underway. The new building has been designed by Tom Kundig and will include a winemaking facility, barrel room, tasting room and spaces for…
Continue reading CheckMate Artisanal Winery: Anything but Chardonnay?
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I recently re-watched Sideways, a movie attributed with spiking the popularity of Pinot Noir while massacring Merlot. According to a study led by Steven Cuellar, professor at Sonoma State University, the positive impact of Sideways on Pinot Noir sales was greater than the negative impact of the movie on Merlot sales, which primarily affected Merlot…
Continue reading CheckMate Artisanal Winery: You had me at Merlot
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Happy National Rosé Day! This celebration was officially registered in 2014 by Bodvár House of Rosés and it is celebrated each year on the second Saturday in June. Consumers are learning that Rosé wines aren’t just sweet, pink plonk anymore. Provence, in the South of France, is infamous for their dry Rosés and there are…