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I find the best way to expand my aroma and tasting vocabulary for wine is to really pay attention to what I smell and taste when I eat. This weekend I focussed on peaches, exploring the scent and flavour of peach skin, peach flesh, peach pits, grilled peach and even baked peaches with baking spice.…
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This spring, the Okanagan Crush Pad released a trio of fun wines under the Bizou + Yukon label. There is the Savvy Gris, the Pinkie Rosé and the Savvy Franc, all that was missing was the bubbles. Now, here they are! 2018 BEE-zoo Bubbles $24.90 After a hard days work, make sure to paws for…
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On Saturday I had the chance to make Florence’s Tarragon Chicken; a recipe from Jennifer Schell’s The BC Wine Lover’s Cookbook. This recipe comes from Phil McGahan, the winemaker at CheckMate Artisanal Winery. “Phil McGahan grew up in Western Queensland, Australia, as the youngest of 10 children. His parents, Jack and Florence, supported their large…
Continue reading CheckMate Artisanal Winery: Little Pawn and Tarragon
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There is some really beautiful Sauvignon Blanc coming from the Okanagan these days, including this one from Play Estate Winery in Penticton. I had fun pairing this wine with my favorite fish cake recipe from Donna Hay, served with garlic and caper mayonnaise. This wine would also pair very well with sushi. Play Estate 2019…
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August 18th is Pinot Noir Day and there are plenty of ways to enjoy this heartbreak grape. Pinot Noir comes in several forms: red wine, Champagne and even Rosé. The 2018 Leyda Rosé is made from 100% Pinot Noir grown in the coastal valley of Leyda, Chile. It is the perfect wine to open after…
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One of the things that I love about exploring wine, is learning about the people behind it. Recently I had the opportunity to taste Stoneboat’s Piano Brut while learning about Stoneboat’s proprietors, Julie and Lanny Martiniuk. Their story begins in Vancouver, where Julie worked as a pharmacist while her husband, Lanny, was working in nuclear…
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Recently I asked people to tell me about their favourite wine and food pairings, and a number of people said Riesling and Thai food. For me, an off-dry Riesling pairs well with Thai food because the residual sugars soften the spice, while the citrus and orchard fruit flavours compliment the cuisine very well. The inherent,…
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Have you visited CedarCreek’s stunning new Home Block Restaurant? It opened just last year to great acclaim, including being awarded one of Air Canada / enRoute Canada’s Best New Restaurants in 2019. I have not had the opportunity to visit Home Block myself yet, but I have been inspired in the kitchen by their Executive…
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I have mentioned before that one of the things I love most about Whispering Horse Winery is that they are not trying to be the Okanagan or 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. Proprietors Melissa…
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The 2019 Unoaked Pinot Gris from Hillside Winery has pretty much everything I want in a Pinot Gris. It is a lovely wine to sip on the patio, or pair it with charcuterie, summer salads, or even grilled vegetables and white meat. 2019 Hillside Winery Unoaked Pinot Gris $23.00 The grapes for this wine were…