In the first days of the new year, when the budget is slim but there still may be guests we want to entertain, who wouldn't appreciate the name of a bargain magnum to pour? Today's report is part of a continuing search for those bargains: it's Big Bottles,
One of today's more controversial topics in California wine is the use of the term "coastal." Ever since the Golden State jumped to respectability in the mid-'70s, almost all the research has suggested that premium grapes require moderated daytime temperatures
California's J. Lohr Winery will soon mark 30 years of production in Monterey County, which makes owner Jerry Lohr a certified pioneer on the state's Central Coast. Lohr's farming background led him to investigate numerous viticultural areas before settling
Three hundred years is little more than a blink of the eye when it comes to Italian winemaking history, so it should be no surprise that the barbera grape, thought to be planted in the Asti area of Piedmont around 1700, is not even the region's oldest
It's been 25 years since the Four Seasons Hotel originated Vancouver's first winemaker dinner series, and while many newcomers have fiddled with the format, the concept remains a hit with diners. The idea of a multi-course (and often multi-wines-per-course)
Out with the olde and in with the new is the battle cry of Victoria as the provincial capital, once described as a large scale retirement village, goes about re-launching its image as a cosmopolitan, West Coast city. One of the people helping to push
Twenty years of aggressive expansion is coming to a screeching halt in the key wine-producing regions of California, Chile, Australia, Argentina and the south of France. In fact some areas will be ripping out vines in an attempt to balance production
What do you do when the name of your winery no longer attracts the immediate attention of consumers? It's a question facing many New World producers who have global aspirations. How do you differentiate your chardonnay or cabernet from hundreds of
Not long after the doors open to the Playhouse Wine Festival tasting room each year, consumers and buyers alike flit from booth to booth hoping to discover the hottest new wines of the show. In 2001, the booth drawing most of the early attention was one
In Canada, where for the most part the liquor monopolies still decide what you get to drink, very little shelf space is allotted to non-mainstream varietals. Riesling falls into that category, and despite the protests of many aficionados who believe it
Like most British Columbians, I'm hoping that the weather in the second half of Summer 2001 will be a lot better than what we've experienced to date. Assuming that's the case, light, aromatic, fun-to-drink white wines may still have their moment in
It's been almost three decades since Jesse Jackson founded the Kendall-Jackson Winery on the dream of producing blended chardonnays that took advantage of California's treasure trove of growing regions and all the flavours they offer. Jackson's chardonnays
Hands up if you have seen or tasted any B.C. varietal wines labelled Sandhill. Keep those hands up if you have visited the winery. While the former is highly probable, the latter is impossible. That's because Sandhill is a brand, not a winery. Despite
In the 1970s cabernet sauvignon was the be-all and end-all of red wine grapes. It had an appealing dark colour that few other reds possessed. It was weighty and powerful in the mouth, and it was loaded with dry, hard tannins -- the type that leave your
A decade ago, California winemakers were challenging their French counterparts to determine who makes the best wines in the world. At the time, the Californians argued that while fighting centuries of winemaking tradition, they were producing premium
When I hear "organic" and "grapes" used together, my eyes often glaze over. It's not that I am opposed to organic anything, it's just that most of the organic wine I have been asked to taste is É well, not very good. I also object to the price gouging
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