My last stop on my weekend trip to Lillooet and Kamloops was Monte Creek Winery.  I’ve followed along, tasted their wines, and wrote about them since they opened.  And as luck would have it, …

Vanessa Vineyard, located in the Similkameen Valley, may not be a well-known winery to many, but it should.  Winemaker, Howard Soon, joined Vanessa in 2017 after retiring from Sandhill Wines.  He h…

If you visit Osoyoos and stay at the Spirit Ridge Resort or visit the Nk’Mip Desert Cultural Centre, you will drive past Adega on 45th Estate Winery.  The winery and tasting room is at the to…

Here are my next two red wines from Osoyoos’ Bordertown Vineyards & Estate Winery to review for you.  I previously tasted their Bordertown Merlot 2020 and Bordertown Cabernet Franc 2021.  I now have their Bordertown Reserve Malbec 2020 and Reserve Cabernet Franc 2019; a step up in quality.  It will be interesting to see how their entry level Cabernet Franc compares to this Reserve Cabernet Franc. 

You may have noticed that I had not posted anything wine related for the last 2 weeks, as I was away, but now I'm back, and have my first two wines to tell you about from BC's Township 7 Vineyards & Winery.  I opened their Interlude Select Sauvignon Blanc 2024 and  their Provenance Series Cabernet Merlot 2022.  The…

Today I have two wines for you from south Okanagan’s Gold Hill Winery; their Gold Hill Winery Sauvignon Blanc 2022 and Charisma Cabernet Merlot 2021.  Charisma is their second label.  Charism…

2022 was an epic year for making wine, according to BC’s Hester Creek Estate Winery.  The year started out challenging with a late cold start, summer temperatures were not too high, low rainf…

Here are my next two red wines from Osoyoos’ Bordertown Vineyards & Estate Winery to review for you.  I previously tasted their Bordertown Merlot 2020 and Bordertown Cabernet Franc 2021.  I now…

My last stop on my weekend trip to Lillooet and Kamloops was Monte Creek Winery.  I've followed along, tasted their wines, and wrote about them since they opened.  And as luck would have it, on this visit, they were celebrating their 10-year anniversary of their first vintage.  People have changed over time, and they planted an additional vineyard, Lion’s Head, across the valley, and one in Keremeos, since that first vintage. 

You may have noticed that I had not posted anything wine related for the last 2 weeks, as I was away, but now I’m back, and have my first two wines to tell you about from BC’s Township …

This week we had a trade event featuring the latest BC white wines, many from 2024, as well as some red wines.  In 2024 we had a terrible winter freeze that killed most of the grape vines in the in…

If you have not heard of After 93 Vineyards & Estate Winery, you are not alone.  It was also new to me.  But, it is owned by the same family that operates Bordertown Vineyards & Estate Wine…

Today I have two wines for you from south Okanagan's Gold Hill Winery; their Gold Hill Winery Sauvignon Blanc 2022 and Charisma Cabernet Merlot 2021.  Charisma is their second label.  Charisma wines curates charming approachable everyday drinking wines.  There were scattered forest fires in the BC interior in 2021, but the winemakers at that time did not notice any smoke taint during the winemaking process. 

Vanessa Vineyard, located in the Similkameen Valley, may not be a well-known winery to many, but it should.  Winemaker, Howard Soon, joined Vanessa in 2017 after retiring from Sandhill Wines.  He has won over 100 awards for the wines he has crafted and has received the Order of Canada.  Recently there was the 2025 Top 50 BC Wine awards…

I had a wonderful visit at Hester Creek Estate Winery in Oliver, where head winemaker, Mark Hopley, took me behind the scenes to view the working harvest in the winery, to try tank samples, as well as a few finished wines.  Here are a few of the things that Mark and I spoke about. The 2025 Harvest: A Year of Abundance…

If you visit Osoyoos and stay at the Spirit Ridge Resort or visit the Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre, you will drive past Adega on 45th Estate Winery.  The winery and tasting room is at the top of a hill slope and gives you a wonderful view of Osoyoos.  The winery was recently taken over by Gate 22 Winery…

2017 was the last time I visited Fort Berens Estate Winery in Lillooet, along with other wine writers.  The winery was still young, but the quality of their wines were notable.  Almost every year since 2018, I interviewed their current winemaker to find out about their grape harvest.  And every year, I tell people how they should try Fort Berens' wines as they are top quality. 

If you have not heard of After 93 Vineyards & Estate Winery, you are not alone.  It was also new to me.  But, it is owned by the same family that operates Bordertown Vineyards & Estate Winery in Osoyoos, BC.  In 1993, the Gill family embarked on a journey to Canada with the aspiration of forging a brighter future. 

My last winery visit while I was staying in the Osoyoos area was the La Stella Winery.  I met with tasting room manager, Wade Martin, as he poured me their recent wine releases and discussed wines in general.  Their winery like other Okanagan wineries was affected by the 2024 winter blast.  Out of 70 acres of planted vines, they were forced to rip out just shy of 30 acres. 

2022 was an epic year for making wine, according to BC's Hester Creek Estate Winery.  The year started out challenging with a late cold start, summer temperatures were not too high, low rainfall during the summer, but then lead to a long, warm end to extend the growing season, allowing the grapes to fully mature.  Many wineries noted that their volume of grapes was above average for 2022, Hester Creek included. 

For many years, I've known Privato Winery in Kamloops for their premium Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines.  But times change as original family-owned winery owners bow out, and the winery is either taken over by their children, sold to someone outside the family, or the winery is shut down.  For Privato, the winery has been transitioned over to their children, who have their own ideas to expand Privato beyond its original wine creations. 

Now that you have some background about the BC winery situation for 2025 from part one of Brent Gushowaty's article, here is the second part of the article I have for you by Brent when you are at a BC winery's tasting room. Your Tasting Room Manners - Before You Arrive Group Think For most wineries, large groups arriving unannounced to their tasting room is not entirely welcome, though they will always do their best to accommodate them.

I was privileged to be invited to attend the “Iconic Wineries of British Columbia” Holiday Preview this week, held at the Holt Renfrew, in downtown Vancouver.  We sampled selections fro…

Bordertown Vineyards and Estate Winery was established in May 2015, but Mohan Gill and his family had already over 20 years of experience as growers, supplying some of Osoyoos’ best fruit to …

2017 was the last time I visited Fort Berens Estate Winery in Lillooet, along with other wine writers.  The winery was still young, but the quality of their wines were notable.  Almost every year s…