Spotlight on Chardonnay

Of all of the vitis vinifera grapes — you know, the “noble” grapes most commonly used to make wines in the world — Chardonnay is arguably the easiest grape to pick on. More than any other grape, Chardonnay has been over-handled and over-made by winemakers, especially by those who were making wine in the New World in the 1990s. Overripe fruit and excessive malolactic fermentation aside, Chardonnay came to be defined by the barrel in which it was aged (and for how long) rather than interpretations of the grape’s true expressions. Continue reading →

Ortega in Nova Scotia

Last summer I flew to Nova Scotia from the West Coast and was hounded by delayed flights along the way. I planned for a relaxing night in Halifax, a fresh seafood dinner with local wines, but I landed five hours late with few options on a Tuesday night in a sleepy city. I raced in a cab to Obladee Wine Bar just in time to catch last call. Asking for a glass of something local, the waiter poured me Luckett Vineyards' 2011 Ortega. Continue reading →

Thank you!

We wanted to make this post a big Thank You to all of our winery partners. Canadian wineries are at the heart of My Wine Canada and many of the ones that you will see on this website have been with us from the start of our journey. In fact, it is more than likely that we have sat at tasting tables in their wineries while the proprietor has spoken at length about their wines and the unique history of their winery. We consider ourselves incredibly lucky to have the calibre of wines on the site that we do - from award-winning sparklings, tantalizing whites, and summer-loving rosés to smooth, rich reds, sun-kissed dessert wines, and port-style wines to unbelievable Icewines and fruit wines - we hope you enjoy trying each and every one!

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Confessions of a BC expat

The last thing I did before leaving BC and moving to Toronto was spend four days with friends in the Okanagan. We visited winemakers and the people behind the wines I loved and had sold over the past few years. We stayed at their houses and had dinner with their families. We watched their kids play in backyards that butted against rows of vines. It was a place I knew that made wines I understood. When I came to Ontario, it was a fresh start. I’d had little experience with Ontario wines. The few bottles that do trickle to the West Coast tend to lose their story somewhere along the way. I began to drink as much local stuff as I could, went to tastings and drove a couple times to Niagara. I was carving perceptions around what varieties I liked and where I thought they grew best.

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The Centre-point

As a wine columnist living right in the middle of Canada — and whose province’s VQA sales are split 50-50 between BC and Ontario wine — I taste a fair number of Canadian wines from both the country’s main wine-producing regions.

This year, however, I’ve probably tasted more Canadian wine than any of the 16ish years I’ve been in the biz. Judging at both WineAlign’s National Wine Awards of Canada as well as the BC Wine Awards provided a chance to visit both regions this year.

What I’ve tasted so far this year has surprised me somewhat and pleased me considerably.

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Genesis

“So, I’ve had this idea for a while…”

It was so long ago that my friend Jackie, one of the founders of this website, shared her idea with me that I can’t even pin-point how far back it was. What I do know, is that her idea has finally come to fruition and just by reading this very post, you’re a part of her vision being realized.

When she got into the nitty-gritty, about the concept of a nation-wide e-commerce platform for Canadians to purchase, discuss and read about Canadian wine, I had two immediate thoughts:

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Hello, Canadian Wine Lovers!

After years of being an idea, and months of planning and development, we are very happy to launch My Wine Canada! Canadian wine ranks among the finest wine in the world – our wines win gold medals from competitions like Decanter World Wine Awards and the International Wine & Spirit Competition, and admiration from international wine industry luminaries like Jancis Robinson - so we have created an engaging online marketplace where you can shop for and purchase these amazing Canadian wines directly from the wineries.  We’re proud to be your one-stop e-shop for Canadian wine.

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