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New Zealand Pure Discovery 2019

THE SHOW

New Zealand is recognised as one of the world’s premium wine regions,
mainly due to the success of their Marlborough region Sauvignon Blanc

This explosive varietal introduced the world to New Zealand Wine.

In 2019 they would like to celebrate the success of their famous white
through sub-regional expressions as well as showcase the lesser known
varieties such as Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah and Rose.

Several weeks ago I was offered the opportunity to “speed date” a handful of
New Zealand Winemakers as they passed through Vancouver. I sat at a desk and
they showed up one at a time..each with a wine in hand.

Frankly, it was a blur.

In listening back to the discussions several things became clear.

Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is World Class but now it’s time to check out
sub regions of the North and South islands.

Simon Toneycliffe GM Whitehaven. (Marlborough’s Golden Mile)

Simon Toneycliffe WhiteHaven

Whitehaven wines are grown, crafted and bottled in Marlborough. Each wine is
a powerful, elegant and consistent expression of Marlborough’s classical
wine styles. The white label is the flagship. Their growth has been nothing
short of fantastic.

Whitehaven has been successfully exporting to the United States since 2004
when its first shipment totaled just 5,000 cases. In 2015 Whitehaven
celebrated the export of its millionth case of wine to the US.

Canada is showing the same kind of growth.

The reason is simple. Affordable World class wines.

www.whitehaven.co.nz

Wayne Leadbetter – VP Sales Te Awanga Wines (Hawkes Bay)

Wayne Leadbetter Te Awanga

Planted 25 years ago by a group of friends in one of Hawke’s Bay’s oldest
wine growing areas, they dreamt of making the region’s greatest wines.
They say they’re still working on it but believe their vineyard, right by
the coast truly captures something unique.

Sitting on an elevated site in the Te Awanga foot hills, the cellar door has views down through our vines,
across the Te Awanga basin and out to the Pacific Ocean. Spectacular.

Syrah and Chardonnay are exceptional.

www.teawangaestate.co.nz

Jim Robertson Global Wine Ambassador NZ Brands – Stoneleigh/Pernod Ricard
(Marlborough)

Jim Robertson – Stoneleigh

Stoneleigh Vineyard is situated in the heart of the Rapaura area on the
northern side of the Wairau valley in Marlborough, New Zealand. The ‘Golden
Mile’ of vineyards.

Stoneleigh takes its name from the stones that cover the
vineyard – land that’s now home to some of the oldest grafted Sauvignon
Blanc blocks in Marlborough.

The stones store and reflect the sun’s heat up into the vines, enhancing the ripening process and contributing to the
unique taste of Stoneleigh wines.

Jim travels the World – a natural storyteller and what a story. NZ wines
are recognized the World over.

http://www.stoneleigh.com <http://www.stoneleigh.com/>

Joel Watson – Winemaker at Luna (Martinborough)

Joel Watson – Luna

Luna Estate has been lovingly renovated and transformed into one of
Martinborough’s premier wineries.

While their main love is Pinot Noir, they also produce elegant Pinot Meunier Rose, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot
Gris, Chardonnay, and Syrah. It’s almost impossible to capture how
passionate Joel Watson is about NZ winemaking and Luna. It shows in his
wines.

A fierce believer in Martinborough.

www.lunaestate.co.nz

Rory Crawford – Loveblock (Wellington)

Loveblock is the home of Erika and Kim Crawford. Yup, the same Kim Crawford
who sold his namesake winery and Loveblock is what they did with the money,
honey.

This 180 acre (72 hectare) vineyard is perched on top of the hills
overlooking the Awatere Valley above Wellington..

The site is perfect for growing premium aromatic white varietals. Due to the
strong winds, the vine growth is slow and they tend to get very small
berries giving high aromatic concentration in the wine.

The main vineyard area produces Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris
predominantly, as well as Pinot Blanc, Tempranillo, Gewurztraminer, Chenin
Blanc and of course, Riesling.

www.loveblock.co.nz

Hamish McRae – Forrest and The Doctors (Marlborough)

Hamish McRae – Forrest & The Doctors

The vineyard of Doctors John and Brigid Forrest.

Forrest Wines – The first vintage for Forrest Wines came in 1990 when an
over-filled red wine fermenter “accident” resulted in a trophy-winning
Merlot Rosé.
Fast forward almost 30 years; many awards and accolades, 5 labels and
vineyards across the country. Forrest is set for generations.

Forrest is all Marlborough.

The Doctors – The Doctors’ range is about innovation and excellence.
New grape varieties, alternative winemaking techniques and select parcels of
fruit all qualify to create very special wines under this unique label.

https://www.forrest.co.nz <https://www.forrest.co.nz/>

https://www.forrest.co.nz/collections/doctors

www.nzwine.com

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON

2019 Judgment of BC – The Final One

The spectacular Phantom Creek Winery

Checking out  Cedar Creek Winery

The Italians pour in Vancouver – Michaela Morris co-hosts

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Charles Smith ‘s Third Jet City Rose Experience in Seattle.

( Ann Sperling stays home and makes New Direction wines)

THE SHOW

Charles Smith – Founder Wines of Substance

Charlie is the founder of Washington’s largest winemaker owned winery and the 4^th largest wine producer in Washington State.

Charles Smith

He created and then sold Charles Smith Wines, and five other wines to Constellation.

His new  company, Wines of Substance made 53 different wines last year in their Seattle Jet City facility. 51 were single varietal.

Today he has a portfolio that includes

 K Vintners – The original. Royal City. The Creator. The Boy.

SIXTO – High Elevation Chards. Uncovered, Moxee Vineyard, Frenchman Hills

CasaSmith –  Italian inspired. CasaSmith Sangiovese, Barbera, Primitivo

Substance – Cabernet Sauvignon is the star.

B Leighton  –  By winemaker Brennon Leighton. From Olsen Hills in Yakima.

Wines of Substance showcases Charles Smith’s dedication to producing the very best  wines. From vineyard to glass.

Charles built and opened Jet City in Seattle.  It’s the largest urban winery on the West Coast.

When I saw the artists that would take the stage in the cellar..Rev Horton Heat and Har Mar Superstar – I realized none of my questions or their answers would be heard.

Guests from this wild ride include

Charles Smith  http://winesofsubstance.com/

Chef Stuart Lane http://www.spinasse.com/about/chef-bio/

Andrew Latta – Latta Wines  http://www.lattawines.com/

Ann Sperling –  Winemaker Sperling Vineyards

Sperling Vineyards (Tourism Kelowna)

Note – Sperling Vineyards 2015 Old Vines Riesling Estate Bottled.  95 Points Decanter Wine Awards.  The only Gold medal winning still wine from BC

 A true original.

Ann Sperling creates wines in Ontario, Nova Scotia and most importantly in her family’s home vineyard in Kelowna at a special piece of land called Pioneer Ranch.

It was established and planted in 1929.

Ann grew up in those vineyards but found herself pulled away as more and more vineyards sought her expertise.

She spent several years at Cedar Creek. Then headed back East to the organic and biodynamic vines of Southbrook Vineyards in  Niagara.

Ann Sperling

Finally in 2008 Ann and her immediate family members decided to launch  Sperling Vineyards at Pioneer Ranch.

So..here we are 11 years later and the wines are  pushing the outer edges of what we know BC wine to be.  Wines to keep an eye on.

Their portfolio has specific series called Heritage, Market and Late Harvest/Icewine.

The one series that is really game breaking is The Vision Series of wines.

That’s what Ann and I are going to be talking about .

Organic Natural Amber Pinot Gris 2017 – Like no other Pinot Gris you’ve tasted. Orange and made from 40% whole cluster, 40% whole berry and 20% pressed juice. Nothing added. Nothing taken away.

Vision Chardonnay  2016 (BC Left Gov Award)  . Large French Oak barrels. Minerality and structure.

Organic Pinot Noir 2014 – Hand harvested Dijon clones  144. 777. 828

And the star of the show  Speritz Pet Nat 2018.  (Love and Labour)

Perle of Csaba grapes planted in 1934 – Honouring the Past.

8.3% alcohol.  No fining, No filtration. Wild ferment. Bottled with lees.

Seek and enjoy!!

www.sperlingvineyards.co

Many thanks to our great pal Tim Meeks, who suggested this event and ferried  us around Seattle!

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON

Tofino Food and Wine

A special feature on “field blends”

Fire Season in The Okanagan

The Wickaninnish Inn opens a spectacular cellar

Tofino mid-week experience. Chefs and more chefs

BC Shellfish Festival / Courtenay-Comox

Cowichan Valley Wine Festival

Chefs speak out on their/our  role in saving fishery

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THE SHOW

The Cowichan Valley Wine Festival came and went.  I missed it due to a road trip.

However, it’s an ongoing story that I just couldn’t pass up. Many thanks for photos to: Corey & Heather Wood

By all accounts, it was a huge success,  with many comments about the “new faces” showing up.

A whole new wine fan has discovered this  region just North of Victoria on Vancouver Island!

Let’s face it, if you’re not The Okanagan Valley, you just have to try harder to get people’s  attention.

That’s exactly what Cowichan  Valley is doing.

I sent a message to Mike Nierychlo at Emandare to ask if he could wrangle a gaggle of winemakers all in one spot to get caught up on 2019.

Wrangle he did. On the crush pad at Emandare. (And he even brought the sandwiches)

I will admit that during the last interview with Joe Busnardo I had real trouble understanding what he was saying..his accent was thick and he really rambled. I just kept nodding and smiling. I hope you do better with Joe. He’s a real treat!

Today’s guests are:

Mike Nierychlo –  Winemaker/co-owner Emandare  https://www.emandarevineyard.com/

Brent Rowland – Winemaker at Averill Creek and joue https://www.averillcreek.ca/

Garrett Deol– The next winemaker at Deolhttp://www.deolestatewinery.com/

Zack Brown – co-owner/winemaker at Alderlea http://www.alderlea.ca/

Mark Holford – co-owner/winemaker at Rocky Creek http://www.rockycreekwinery.ca/

Marilyn Venturi – co-proprietor at Venturi Schulze https://www.venturischulze.com/

Lorin Englis – GM at Enrico https://www.enricowinery.com/

Dan Wright – Winemaker at Unsworth https://www.unsworthvineyards.com/

Michael Abbott – Vineyard Manager/Raisin Rancher  at Blue Grouse https://www.bluegrouse.ca/

Joe Busnardo –  Winemaker/owner/legend at Divino http://www.divinowine.ca/

https://www.tourismcowichan.com/eat-drink/

https://www.tourismcowichan.com/cowichan-valley-wine-festival/

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON

FFFF  – the 7^th annual Food. Fishing. Friends. Fluids field trip

This year in the and on the Similkameen Valley/River

Full Italian

Harvest Roundup

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Two Wineries. Two Regions…Similkameen and Lillooet

The SHOW

 Every day 100’s of wine fans get in their cars and drive into the Okanagan to discover wine country. Good on you.

Many of them drive right through the Similkameen Valley and past some of the best vineyards in the country. Orofino, for example.

Some of those same well meaning wine fans head East through the Frazer Canyon and may have no idea that if they hang a left at Lytton they can head North into BC’s most promising new  wine region and Fort Berens Estate Wines.

 John Weber – Orofino

 This week we drive around with , sit down with and talk to John Weber, the co-owner and driving force behind Orofino in the Similkameen Valley.

John at Harvest 2019

John will take us to his latest planted vineyard, The Passion Pit. It was a gravel pit that Cawston teens hung out in.

He tastes us through his blend  White Bridge, his Cab, Syrah, Gamay and his award winning Bordeaux blend Beleza!

Also a word about Row 14  the new restaurant in the neighbourhood.

ROW 14

It’s been launched to great success by Clippers Organics.

Here’s a tip:  Orofino have two of the sweetest suites anywhere. Best of all you are right in the vineyard and looking down on the crush pad.

Highly recommended.

https://www.orofinovineyards.com

Rolf de Bruin  – Fort Berens Vineyards 

Rolf de Bruin

Fort Berens Estate Winery is a culmination of the dreams, vision and pioneering spirit of several entrepreneurs. It was founded with a pioneering spirit and forged on the road less traveled. The winery is owned by a team of eight individuals who share a common belief in the incredible winemaking potential of British Columbia’s Fraser Canyon and a shared vision to make Fort Berens into one of Canada’s leading producers of fine wine.

The voices and faces wine fans see and hear most are Rolf de Bruin and

Partner Heleen Pannekoek.

Just in case you missed the news and as if you needed another reason to drive up to Fort Berens…have a look at this

As voted on by the public, the Best of BC Wine Country 2018 included the following regional awards for Fort Berens:

Fort Berens Estate Winery Riesling – Best BC White Wine
Fort Berens Estate Winery Rosé – Best BC Rosé Wine
Fort Berens Estate Winery – Best BC Winery Tasting Room
The Kitchen at Fort Berens – Best BC Winery Restaurant Showcasing Local Food

That’s what you call a sweep!

Rolf and I will talk about his Rose, Gamay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and a white blend Camels White.  The new estate  vineyards they’ve planted and  their partnership with vineyard Cliff and Gorge

Rolf shares plans for a 10^th anniversary bubble. Created  by winemaker  Jim Cambridge who crafted it  with a combination of fruit from Fort Berens and their neighbours.

Watch for releases now labeled Lillooet VQA

Fort Berens wines are well worth the drive and everything in their portfolio is priced under $20.00 at the winery.

You just might want to join the wine club.

http://www.fortberens.ca

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON:

 Next week – The Cowichan Wine Festival

And soon the 7^th annual

Food. Fishing. Friends. Fluids field trip

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Coverage of the 5^th Annual Garagiste North – Kelowna

THE SHOW

 What is a garagiste? (gar-ah-jeest)?  

It started out in France (of course) where it was a derogatory phrase for those avante garde and crazy mavericks making wine in their garage and outside the highly regulated system. Gradually and grudgingly came the acknowledgement that something really interesting was happening with these small case lot artisan wines, and a movement was born.

Garagiste North  brings together the small guys. Wines produced from 100% Canadian grapes and under 2000 cases total production annually.  

We’ve been covering this gathering of small BC producers from the beginning. We like the people, the wines and the no BS approach to farming, creating and selling.

This year Sperling Vineyards was once again  the site for a gathering of the Garagiste.  Many of the favourites are returning, but with the growth of the wine industry we are excited to see new small wineries popping up.

Sperling Vineyards

The likes of Lightning Rock, Scorched Earth and Burnt Timer all seem to have a theme!  Added to this year’s event will be a wine pairing of Sperling Vineyards and cheese, music by Glendale Avenue,  food truck service from CrAsian, a cool booth by Taste Advisor and a pop up wine store by Fairview Cellars.

tdm and Ann Sperling

This event gives you an insight into the passion, commitment, craziness and excellence that is the hallmark of a small producer.  We love that for many this is their first time showing off their wines to the public. Others have been attending for awhile, carefully crafting their wines and growing their business and reputation. Others have grown up and graduated.

Former Garagiste are:

• Daydreamer
• Synchromesh
• Sage Hills
• Tight Rope
• Bella Wines
• River Stone
• Roche Wines
• Kitsch Wines
• Forbidden Fruit
• Marichel
• Deep Roots
• Van Westen
• Kraze Legs
• vinAmite

This year’s Garagiste guests are :

•  Schell Wines – Jennifer Schell
• Mayhem Wines – Terry Meyer Stone
• Dames Wines – Mireille Sauve
• Sperling Vineyards –  Ann Sperling
• Rigor and Whimsy – Costa Gavaris
• Nagging Doubt – Rob  Westbury
• Birch Block Vineyard – Sarah and Murray Bancroft
• Anthony Buchanan Wines – Anthony Buchanan
• Red Bird Estate – Remi Cardinal
• Giant head – John Glavina
• BC Wine Studio – Mark Simpson
• Scorched Earth – Anita and Peter Pasdernick

 Enjoy the stories and histories!

 STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON:

Fort Berens

Passion Pitt Vineyard – John Weber/Orofino

Year 7 –  Food, Friends, Fishing and Fluids.

Cowichan Valley Wine Festival

Fall Wines