The B.C. Day long weekend is in full swing and that usually means organizing or attending some sort of garden party or barbecue soiree. Such invitations can be perplexing. For instance, what is one to wear? Will it be shorts or khakis, flip-flops or loafers?
Today we begin with a strange topic for this page: A wine you cannot buy in Canada. Okay, maybe it's not that strange since there are many wines made around the world that you cannot buy in Canadian wine stores. But Weingüt Tesch Riesling Unplugged is
Earlier this week, the winners of the Lieutenant-Governor's Awards for Excellence in B.C. Wines were announced. This year's competition attracted 281 wines from 71 wineries across the province. This competition is like no other because the panel
In his excellent book Perfect Pairings: A Master Sommelier's Practical Advice for Partnering Wine and Food (University of California Press), author Evan Goldstein states "a rosé is rosé except when it is ... a rosé!" Goldstein's indecision
Is there anything more Canadian than a quasi-long weekend that comes with a Canada Day celebrated mid-week, too far from Monday and not close enough to Friday to make it a long weekend? No matter how the last two days have gone it is officially the weekend
It is the first week of summer and I am hoping to clean out my bulging ideas folders in search of stories with legs, but in the meantime, I will share a few of the more interesting notions as some of the stories build. o News that Ontario is
Some days I think the world has gone mad for red wine. Consider Shiraz. It wasn't all that long ago every partygoer in town showed up with a bottle of dark, rich, oaky red. Even as the cache of the big Australian red began slipping, it was quickly supplanted
News that a $34,000 bottle of Remy Martin Louis XIII Black Pearl was sold at Vancouver International Airport this week should be heartening to wine retailers struggling to sell any bottle over $30. True, it was a bottle of cognac, not wine, but the point
Several thoughts this week, beginning with Finance Minister Colin Hansen's amazing response to my article regarding the HST on wine. I am sorry, Mr. Minister, if I left you with impression that prices were going up. I thought it was clear that
June is Spanish wine month in B.C., and Spain is the theme country at next year's Playhouse wine festival, so let's explore the Iberian peninsula's major wines and regions before the Spanish wine armada arrives. From the old in Rioja, Ribera del Duero,
RED 87 Antano Rioja Crianza 2007 Tempranillo - Garnacha - Graciano - Mazuelo Rioja, Spain BC $13.00 specialty listing This wine is a pleasant surprise for the price with its spicy, sausage meat, leather nose and floral, black cherry, barnyard
As a result of the new harmonized sales tax (HST) scheduled to begin July 1, the provincial liquor monopoly is facing a three-per-cent drop in annual revenue. It is basic math, really. The current taxes -- 10 per cent PST and five per cent GST
The South Okanagan Wineries Association describes itself as a non-profit group representing the geographical wine region beginning at McIntyre Bluff and running south to the border at Osoyoos with a mission "to develop and expand the grape and wine industry
In the aftermath of the Playhouse International Wine Festival, I have notes scribbled everywhere and wanted to share a few observations on a number of subjects. I thought the tasting room never looked better, and while it was darker I still had a voice
The wines of Spain will be the centre of attention at the next Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival. And after the amazing show of energy by Argentina and New Zealand, Iberian peninsula producers, known for their individuality, are going to
GISMONDI ON WINE OUR TOP 50 VANCOUVER PLAYHOUSE INTERNATIONAL WINE FESTIVAL PICKS By Anthony Gismondi and Stuart Tobe The perennial question when attending the wine festival is what to taste? How to make best use of your time and money? Can
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