Stephanie Stanley, a seasoned winemaking professional originally from the Okanagan, is shaping the future of whites, roses and sparkling wine in Lake Country. Having trained under Howard Soon, after many years with Peller Estates along with several winters in the southern hemisphere, she found her path leading back to the Okanagan Valley where she commissioned the new Fitzpatrick winery and ultimately arriving here at O'Rouke's Peak Cellars.

So what is happening in Lake Country? Hear Stephanie tell the story of Carrs Landing, new initiatives and plantings at Peak Cellars Winery. She's making single varietal wines from Riesling, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Gruner Veltliner and Gewurztraminer. It's starting to sound like Alsace, non?

What does you wine glass say about you? Does it say "I like the finer things in life"? Does it say "I know my wine"? If you prefer a flute then you are looking for streams of fine bubbles. If you tend towards a coupe or the shape of Marie Antoinette's breast, then you are looking for fun. If it's unique shape for each grape variety then congrats - you appreciate the sensual elements of wine. If it's generic suiting all wine and washable in the dishwasher, then way to save money and time. For the record, here is my short take on wine glasses.

Cheers to you for your interest in Moldova. Our next live session is this Thursday at 7:30 pm on Zoom. To register, follow this link. It's free to attend. If that doesn't fit your schedule our last session is June 22 at 11 am. Sign up here.

Welcome Back! It's Part 2.
This is Part 2 in our series on Moldova - a country that you have never heard of, that is until now. If you missed Part 1 here is the link. It introduces the history of Moldova from 10 million years BCE to present day which sheds light on why you may not be aware of this amazing wine country.

If you are interested in the wine story of Moldova, please join us June 10th at 7:30 pm by registering on Zoom. Use this link to reserve your place.

Moldova. Moldavia. Bessarabia. Today it is the Replublic of Moldova. It is a land far far away. But it's not the Disney story with the happy ending. Moldova was the wine gem of Russia, kept behind the iron curtain and turned into a wine factory making vast quantities of low quality wine. In the last decade, with a complete about face, Moldova is coming out and facing the West. There is an incredibly long  history of grape growing and wine making. You'll find a sunny and favorable climate, unique soils, a long list of both international and indigenous grape varieties. You'll witness a number of development agencies working with Moldova to turn the tide in it's favor away from its dark past and towards modern production techniques and export markets. This is Moldova's chance to rewrite, revamp and revitalize it's industry and you can be a part of it. If history is a teacher then we have much to learn about the tenacity of Moldovan people and Moldovan wine.

BBQSomm is a live Zoom event with VanMag's sommelier of 2020, Robert Stelmachuk and your host Good Wine Gal, Barb Wild. Join Robert and me as he shares his secrets for the best wine pairings to accompany Vancouver’s favorite BBQ. It might be southern, it might be Chinese, Japanese or Korean but one thing for sure - it's going to be tasty.

A few years back, when visiting Napa City, I found myself noshing on pork ribs that had been smoked for 24 hours and sipping some of Napa's best red wines. The meat was compact along the bones, the flavours were not just coating the surface. This was smokey, meaty California star power perfection. The place was called the Bounty and it turns out they also have the California star power wine list too. Ya, that's right. Wine and BBQ. You've heard it said a lot of beer goes into making good wine - I grateful for that. Everyone needs a cleansing ale from time to time but for me, when it comes to BBQ - I'm wine - all in.

5-Week Series on Rose All May | Week Five
Join Alison Kent of the Home Kitchen and me, Barb Wild of Good Wine Gal, as we explore the world of Rosé Wines throughout the Month of May.

Welcome back to Rosé All May! Hi, it's Barb. This is our final week and wow, we are having so much fun I'm not sure we can stop this train. How about you? Have you been following along? In case you missed our previous Rosé posts here are the links: Week 1 - Cinsault, Week 2 - Grenache; Week 3 - Bordeaux Varieties; Week 4 - Red & White grape blends.

5-Week Series on Rosé All May | Week Four
Join Alison Kent of the Home Kitchen and me, Barb Wild of Good Wine Gal as we explore the world of Rosé Wines throughout the Month of May!

To chill or not to chill?! NOT being an absolute wine enthusiast like my good friend Barb, I used to be less fussed about whether wine was served chilled or at room temperature, because by mid-glass it was always room temperature anyhow so why bother. HOWEVER, Barb’s wisdom has definitely been rubbing off on me, and I often DID appreciate that first sip of cool liquid on my throat enjoyed right away.

5-Week Series on Rose All May | Week Three
Join Alison Kent of the Home Kitchen and me, Barb Wild of Good Wine Gal as we explore the world of Rosé throughout the Month of May.

Welcome back to Rosé All May! It's Alison. Rosés used to be too sweet for my taste. But they - like White Wine - can also be dry (= not sweet), light, bold, sparkling … Old World (think centuries old European vineyards where the ways of wine-making were developed) Rosés tend to be more dry, with New World styles (typically non-European vineyards that have taken the old styles of wine making and adapted them to suit new technology and the evolution of taste preference) can be sweeter. Of course, there are exceptions, and then there are the Ancient World wines - the true OG’s.

Our second session with Vancouver Magazine's 2020 Sommelier of the Year, Robert Stelmachuck is happening on Zoom May 19th at 7:30 pm. It's promising to be a tasty night of eye opening wine and food pairings garnished with excitement, stories and laughs.

The pandemic has been a catalyst for change. It's thrive or die. To show it's true colors and ability to think outside the box the Hungarians wine industry has taken a new approach to wine awards with the addition of winery website awards. The goal is to inspire and engage with it's industry to spur on adaptation and success in the global wine market.

The following is a list of the wines, cheeses and dishes that suit our upcoming live Zoom session with Mark Shipway on the red wines of North East Italy. You will find some useful links to further your enjoyment food and wine of the regions. All of the wines mentioned are available in the BC market either at the BC Liquor stores, or Marquis Wine Cellars. Private wine stores may have additional offerings. If you have any questions, please let us know.

Is there a better long lunch than DimSum? Influenced by "nouvelle cuisine"  in the 70s, trends in Hong Kong quickly crossed the Pacific arriving in Vancouver. Succulent petite portions of super fresh prawn, scallop, and pork dumplings in a variety of shapes and sizes with fillings that could transport you places that you'd never been. Flavours that you'd never tasted before exploded onto your palate and all you wanted was more texture, flavour and slurpy goodness. Then there were sauces - smooth spicy red chili, yellow mustard, oily hot chili flakes, salty soy, sweet umami hoisin and sweet vinaigrette that could shift sweet succulent Sui Mai into a fiery salty mouthfilling explosions.  Pass me a glass of water, green tea or Coca-cola.

Now add Robert Stelmachuk and voila -  mind blowing! It's DimSomm - four styles of wine paired with the main styles of Dim Sum and the celebration just moved to a whole new level. Who would have thought? Yet imagine champange with Har Gow? Pinot Noir with steam rice in tea leaf with minced meat? But don't listen to me - find out what Robert recommends.

All wines are evaluated on a 100 point scale. The tasting notes are converted to word clouds that reference the key highlights of each wine. The top scoring BC Wines then go into wine packs of 2, 3, 4 and 6 bottles. These packs are posted on 90+Wines and can be ordered online for pick up or delivery.