My Wine Canada

After honing her skills in her native New Zealand, Moraine Estate Winery's winemaker Jacqueline Kemp (‘Jacq’ to those around her) had worked vintages in Western Australia and a little place in France called ‘Burgundy,’ before eventually settling in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley. While working with various wineries, she was raising her young boys in her Naramata home, and had always kept an eye on what looked to be an ideal vineyard property down Naramata Road, perched just above Lake Okanagan.

When area newcomers Oleg and Svetlana Aristarkhov eventually purchased the property, even though it wasn’t Kemp signing on the dotted line, serendipity struck and she took the role of winemaker, enjoying the opportunity to get her hands in the soil after all.

The hot days and cool evenings treat the grapes well, preserving their natural acidity, while the clay soils built from glacial deposit lend fresh minerality and provide solid structure for the wines.

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Here in Vancouver, we’ve had a record-breaking winter full of torrential rains and more snow than our West Coast capacity can handle. Finally, it’s spring - and as the sun beams a bit brighter and the cherry blossoms bloom, we look to refreshing, lively wines to echo the season.

I was clicking away here on My Wine Canada, and thinking how a selection from British Columbia’s Lang Vineyards, this week’s feature winery offering free shipping when you order six or more bottles, would suit the season so fine.

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Whether you’re at a greasy spoon or a white-tablecloth eatery on this continent, you’re almost certain to find Caesar salad on the menu...

I must admit, when I first came across the wines from Elephant Island Orchard Wines I was skeptical. For some reason, I always had reservations about fruit wine - then I had the privilege of staying at the winery for a few days! It was an idyllic place where I immersed myself in the world of fruit wine and developed an appreciation for it....

Here's one question you hear often from people new to wine: What's the difference between Pinot Gris and Pinot Grigio? They are often surprised to learn that Gris and Grigio, genetically speaking, is the same grape. It's a mutant clone of Pinot Noir that originally came from Burgundy — its name is a reference to its greyish pink skin. In France, as Pinot Gris, it's grown mostly in Alsace, and in Northern Italy, as Pinot Grigio, it's grown in Lombardy, Alto-Adige, and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. ...

Let’s face it, plenty of us are likely to get a cold or two this winter and a little chicken soup will be in order. In fact, I was thinking that the healing power of chicken soup was more of a placebo effect, but according to the New York Times, it can indeed reduce congestion, help you stay hydrated and have other positive benefits. Of course, for many of us, we’re not going to let a little cold get in the way of enjoying a glass or two of wine, right...

I first met Moraine Winery winemaker Jacqueline Kemp in the spring of 2010 when I moved to Naramata for a short-term stay over the summer, so I could observe the day-to-day life of a vintage close up...

Okay, I’m not much for pairing wine with anything Halloween. I’m also not super keen on trying to match wine with your favourite Halloween candy, and I certainly am not going to try and match a wine to your Halloween costume...

When I profiled i am a food blog in last week’s post, every time I went to the site for reference, the big photo and recipe up front was a Roasted Pumpkin and Sage Grilled Cheese Sandwich - and I’ve been thinking of grilled cheese sandwiches ever since. ...

What do you get when you combine an Aussie-born Master of Wine and a caterer-turned-baker-turned-winemaker and plop them down in the picturesque Similkameen Valley? Well, you get Little Farm Winery, of course. ...