Though we spend much of our time tasting wine from around the globe, so far this month Anthony and I have been pretty focused on wines from around the Pacific Northwest.
He's just spent a week in BC wine country, touring around the Okanagan, interviewing winemakers and taking in the summer bounty, while I headed south to spend time with producers and in the vineyards in Willamette Valley, Oregon. My roadtrip ended with a few days in Seattle for Riesling Rendezvous, where my locavore streak was shattered with tasting Rieslings with from all edges of the wine world. Canada had a very strong showing at the event, surprising sommeliers and vintners from Germany, Alsace, New Zealand, Australia and America with our pure, pristine and diverse Rieslings. In the background, we've been busy finalizing the results of The Nationals with our WineAlign team; the first release is published today on Thinking & Drinking Pink across Canada. Keep an eye on WineAlign for full results of the awards, including Winery and Small Winery of the Year honours, next week.