I am certain that many of you have all heard of the term ‘terroir’ but for those of you have not it is the term used to describe the unique influences of climate, soil and the people that produce wine from a specific plot of land. I am going to take that term and apply to us here on Vancouver Island. I’m not going to use it to describe Vancouver Island wines, rather I believe that our consumer behaviour is unique to us.

No where else in the world will you find a market as diverse as it is here on South Vancouver Island. Yes I included the lower mainland and other parts of B.C. in that statement. We not only have a vibrant and dynamic market for locally made beer, wine & cider, but have an equally vibrant desire to explore wine, beer, cider & spirits from outside our borders. Most other parts of the world feature 90%+ market share for domestically produced products. In fact in places like Australia, Argentina and Chile it is very difficult to find imported wine or beer.

In contrast we here on South Vancouver Island are consuming an ever growing percentage of Island grown products. It has become culturally acceptable to embrace products grown by our neighbours yet the wine we drink in most often wine from somewhere else (by the way Naked Grape is actually wine made elsewhere in the world, imported to Canada and bottled here). This is what makes us unique and, in my mind, this is a difference to celebrate. Why?

Good question! It means that instead of having 5-10 food pairing options we have 30-40 with each dish and that to me is wonderful. Let’s face it there are only a few occasions over the summer where I am willing to spend $25+ on a bottle of wine, whereas there are multiple occasions where I will be enjoying some local salmon. Although many of the Pinot Noirs and Marechal Fochs that are made here on the island match well with local Salmon, I demand a great pairing for under $20 everyday of the week. If we lived almost anywhere else on the planet this may not be possible.

Great wine pairings, red or white, for Salmon all share some key characteristics. They all feature a delicate body, have balanced acidity and feature bright fruit flavours. The classic pairing is Pinot Noir but right now I would go with 07 or 08 Bardolino. Tasty examples feature bright sour cherry and raspberry flavours with some underlying spices and a long finish but have soft tannins that are not present when paired with Salmon. Here are a couple of choices that hopefully will improve your quality of life one sip at a time.

Masi 2007 ‘Frescaripa’ Bardolino (Italy) $18.99 – sinfully good and wonderfully curvaceous.

Nobili Palazzolli 2008 Bardolino (Italy) $12.99 – simple pleasure and so versatile.

Here’s to finding another reason why we live in the best of the world- cheers!

Wow what a week last week. As some of you may know I was in Argentina on a buying trip that kept me hoping. This article will be the first in a series that will hopefully be a snapshot of Argentina through wine splashed lenses.

I arrived into Mendoza, which is about a 1 hour drive east of the Andes mountains and has about the same population as Victoria, at noon on Saturday May 8 and had my first of 61 visits with wineries was at 1pm with Edgado de Pepolo of Dona Paula. It was a great omen for the rest of the week as Edy’s passion and enthusiasm seemed to be echoed with every person that I met.

I went there with the long term goal to significantly expand the number of wineries represented in B.C. and our stores, and to expand the offerings in terms of region and grape type. In fact I am looking to double the selection and volumes of Argentine wines through our stores over the next year. At present a tiny percentage of Argentine wineries are represented in B.C. while 90% of all volume is focussed on Malbec. This, I think, is a risk to the health of the Argentine wine industry. It is a problem that I call the Australian problem.

At present the popularity of the wines of Argentina are on a curve similar to that of Australia 5 years ago. Today Australian wines are suffering from being severely pigeon-holed as a simply a supplier of decent value, juicy Shiraz. When that happens there is only one sales strategy available and that is to lower the price, which is great for the short term, but won’t re-build an industry. I fear that Argentine wines are running the risk of becoming simply known for Malbec and not having a regional identity.

The opportunity of course is to promote regionality and quality wines other than Malbec. In both cases there is a plethora of options. I came away from my trip having tasted 387 wines which came from Patagonia, Uco Valley, Argelo, Luyan de Cujo, Santa Rosa, San Juan, Salta, Tucoman, and La Rioja. Each region showcased differences from the others. Uco and Argelo were slightly different in terms of taste, but the difference between Salta and Patagonia, or Santa Rosa and Argelo was incredibly pronounced. I believe that diversity is the energy that drives the wine business and these regional differences should, and will be properly promoted.

Of the 387 wines tasted 120 were Malbec, 55 Torrontes, 53 Bonarda,  29 Cabernet Sauvignon, 24 were Sauvignon Blanc, 21 Syrah, 18 Sparkling Wines, 17 Chardonnay, 15 red blends, 11 Viognier, 8 Merlot, 6 Pinot Noir, 5 white blends, 3 Tempranillo, and 2 Sangiovese. Of all these only a very few, 5% were disappointing, 65% were okay and represented pretty decent value, 10% were sublime but would be over $50 here, and 15% were WOW Factor wines of which the majority (35 of 58) will be under $20 and at least 10 will be under $15.

Over the coming weeks and months I will go deeper into the regional differences and the nature of wines made with grapes such as Bonarda and Torrontes, all with the goal of improving your quality of life … one sip at a time.

Carmenere (Karmen – yair), also known as Grande Vidure, is referred to as the lost grape of Bordeaux. On a recent buying trip to Chile, I had the wonderful opportunity to taste some incredible Carmeneres that really changed my mind about this grape. Here is the story of Carmenere.

Until 1867 Carmenere was a key component of the ‘Bordeaux Blend’. In fact Carmenere was considered one of the six noble grapes of Bordeaux (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petite Verdot and Carmenere).

Carmenere can have lovely cherry and berry fruit flavours, with an engaging, sultry smokey/spicy component that is simply sublime. The tannins are softer than those of Cabernet Sauvignon and the colour is deeper. 

In 1867 a Phylloxera plague nearly wiped out all European vineyards. Carmenere was not readily found for replanting and therefore it was considered to be extinct.

In 1850 Chilean landowners brought clippings of the Bordeaux varieties and planted them in the relatively protected and dry valleys of Chile.

The Carmenere vine and leaf look very similar to the Merlot vine and leaf and thus Carmenere was planted in the same blocks as Merlot.

In 1994 Chilean winemaker Alvaro Espinoza, noticed that blocks of ‘Merlot’ were not ripening at the same time. This observation lead to the discovery that Carmenere was not extinct at all, but in fact, alive and well in Chile. 

Since that day Chilean winemakers have embraced Carmenere as their ‘defining’ grape. 

From the beginning of my recent trip we noticed the youth and energy of the winemakeing community. As it turns out this energy had a lot to do with a determined belief that Chile was finally coming out from the shadows of Europe, California and Australia and showcasing world-class wines that truly defined Chile. 

Chilean vineyards are blessed with long dry, and relatively consistent summers. Carmenere is most expressive in these conditions. 

Of the 725+ wines I tasted over the two weeks a significant number were Carmenere. I was very impressed with the simple fact that the majority of Carmenere now featured the desirable characteristics and only a few were thin and green. 

Perhaps the most outstanding value was the Vina Maipo Carmenere ($11.99). I think this wine characterizes a couple of things. One of course is that fact that you don’t have spend a lot of money to get a great wine. Two is the fact that Chile continues to produce some of the best values in the world. If all wines were created equal, this wine, like many from Chile would be in the same league as some that are $15+ from California, Australia. To get the same kind of richness and depth from Bordeaux or Burgundy you would have to spend $25+. 

The Vina Maipo Carmenere is better suited to meals like burgers, steak and rich pasta dishes and remember to let it breathe for 15-20 minutes before serving. 

Heres to improving the quality of life… one sip at a time.

This cocktail was created for a recent Thursday Drink Night online with cocktail bloggers where the theme was “Dark Rum”.  I had vowed the previous week to @cocktailnerd that in the interests of creating something the group could mix (i.e. no “weird” Canadian ingredients!), that I would keep it to 3 main ingredients.  Well, when I got out all the dark rums I had in my liquor cabinet, I couldn’t resist mixing them up.  Technically its all rum, so its all one ingredient, right? 

This looks rummy, but is very well balanced with the Green Chartreuse, creating a smooth but complex cocktail.  The addition of the elderflower cordial creates a nice bright note and the bitters pull everything together.  If you don’t have Jerry Thomas Bitters, try it with Angostura instead.  Its dark, smooth and tasty, so I’ve called it The Velvet Underground 

*The Velvet Undergound* 

    * 3/4 oz. Cruzan Blackstrap rum

    * 3/4 oz. El Dorado 15 year old rum

    * 3/4 oz. Goslings Black Seal rum

    * 3/4 oz. Green Chartreuse

    * 1 tsp. Elderflower cordial*

    * 1 tsp gomme sryup (or 2:1 simple syrup)

    * 3-4 dashes Jerry Thomas bitters

 Stir with ice, strain into a chilled cocktail glass.  Garnish with an orange twist

     * (Elderflower cordial made by Bottlegreen can be found in

    supermarkets like Pepper’s locally)

Janice Mansfield is a local food artist that makes killer gluten free breads to order check out her website at www.realfoodmadeeasy.com

The other day, on my way home I was listening to one of my favourite Podcasts, Marketplace of Ideas. The discussion was with Tyler Colman who writes a popular daily wineblog – www.drvino.com. He also wrote a book called Wine Politics. In it he writes about the politics of wine in the US, France and Australia, and about the influence critics like Robert Parker of The Wine Advocate,  and The Wine Spectator have on wine suppliers, retailers, and yes, you the consumer.

As much as I appreciated the politics, I was most interested in the influence of the critics. He stated that Robert Parker, or the Wine Spectator, could make or break a winery depending on the score.

So I did a little research on my own that tried to quantify the relationship between a wines price and the score it is given.

I took the scores and prices of 1500 products rated in the Wine Spectator over the last number of issues, and created a ratio. The ratio is points over dollars expressed in terms of points per dollar. For example a 90 Point Brunello from Italy that sells for $70 would have a ratio of 1.28/$1.00 (90/$70), whereas an 90 Point Spanish Wine that sells for $16.99 would have a ratio of 5.29/$1.00. Theoretically you are getting a bigger bang for your buck with the Spanish wine. Here is what I found out.

The regions with the best ratio are Chile and Argentina, followed closely by Australia, Spain and Portugal.

The regions with the worst ratio are France, Italy and California.

However if you separate out Southern Italy and Southern France from their more pricey compatriots to the north, both Southern Italy and Southern France score very high.

The average price of a 90 point wine was $48.75/bottle. The average price of a 95 point wine was $78.65/bottle. The average price for a 89 point wine was $28.35.

One of the best statements that Tyler Colman made was that there is no way to score art. Wine is about personal taste. Many times that I have had a 95 point wine for which I paid $80+, that I would trade in a heartbeat for an unrated wine that I truly enjoy for under $20. Simply trust your taste.

With all being said we made a real score a little while ago. I visited a winery in the Calatayud region of Spain that had recently produced a wine that received 90 points from the Wine Spectator. The label was one designed by a US importer and thus I was unable to purchase that label, but I was able to purchase the wine. What’s silly is I can’t say that the wine is the 90 point wine because those points are associated to the label- crazy. Anyway the wine is the Vina Acered Crianza 2006 ( $16.99) and it is ridiculously good… assuming you like richly flavoured and textured wines that offer a hint of cinnamon and spices on the finish. This is a curvaceous and sensuous wine!

Heres to improving the quality of life… one sip at a time!

Went, by majority demand, with the Masi. Dinner, of which I had no control and was a complete surprise, was Noodle Box. My dish was the Teryaki Beef with Udon noodles. On the surface not a match made in heaven yet it was surprisingly good. Maybe it was the richness of the Udon noodles or the cumin in the spices, whatever it was it was really enjoyable. Now I have to say that both my wife and I were in great moods, the kids were nestled on the couch watching a movie so the meal was kind of like the two of us just reminiscning about the day. I know that a lot of wne geeks will want to focus on the technical part of the meal, but the reality was all the elements of the meal, mental and physical, have to be taken into consideration. Part of the excitement of this meal was certainly the unkown. Unknow wine, unknow meal, unknow dynamic of conversation. All in all it worked. I especially found that the sour cherry flavour and the supple finish to the wine were very attractive and I found myself saying that with each sip. Thanks for this and let’s do it again next week.

Every year it seems that there is a break through grape. This year I figure one of the reds in this category will be Primitivo.

Primitivo is one of the tremendous values coming from Southern Italian region of Pugila. Primitivo can be black or garnet in colour and have robust fruit and savoury flavours that make for a great glass of wine whether with food or not.

Remarkably Primitivo has similar flavours to ‘America’s Grape’ Zinfandel. Zinfandel is to American winemakers, what Shiraz is to Australian winemakers – a point of distinction. In 1972 Primitivo was declared to be Zinfandel’s European cousin and descendant from a grape whose name just rolls of the tongue – Crljenak Kastelanski (chir-l-ye-nak Cash- tel- lan- ski)– which hails from the Dalmatian coast of Croatia. Today you can find some great wines from Croatia that are simply referred to as Kastelet.

When I say Zinfandel you could be thinking a semi-sweet pink wine known as White Zinfandel. Not a bad thought given that White Zinfandel out sells Zinfandel 6 to 1. The truth, however, is that White Zinfandel is made from a red grape; the red skins are separated from the juice prior to fermentation, whereas red wines are made by fermenting the skins with the juice.

Primitivo is believed to have been brought to the Liponti region of Northern Puglia by Don Francesco Filippo Indellicati, the priest at Gioia del Colle in the 1700’s. He wanted a grape that produced big rich flavours but was early ripening; ‘primo’ meaning ‘early or first’.

The marriage of Countess Sabine of Altamura to Don Tommaso Schiavoni-Tafuri of Maduria in the 1800’s insured that Primitivo would be widely grown throughout Puglia, as clippings of the original vines were a part of the Countess’ dowry.

To get the best flavours out of Primitivo let it breathe for 30 minutes for younger vintages (2006-2009) and at least 1 hour for older vintages (2005 & older).

Today the global demand for wine continues to grow by 15% per year, as a result we buyers scour the globe looking for ever more great wines that over deliver taste and texture for the price- Primitivo, like Negramaro, Grenache, is certainly in this category.

Here are a couple of suggestions.

First is the Nobili Palazzolli Primitivo (Italy -$14.99). Correct in flavour and texture, but the real value here is in the silky finish. The finish is comforting and cozy and seems to caress the big blackberry and blueberry fruit flavours, while lifting the savoury spices.

The Fatalone Gioia del Colle 2005 Primitivo D.O.C. (Italy – $18.99). For me this wine is like kissing heaven. You have to let it breathe as it will be a little stinky (in a good way) to start. The nose is of freshly harvest tobacco leaf along with dried blueberries and fresh blackberry. The palate is rich and elegantly textured. Layers of flavours open up including some earthy spices. The finish is silky smooth and features a hint of toasted almonds. Ooh ya!

Explore these wines and improve your quality of life… one sip at a time!

Over the last few years Rose wines have doubled in popularity. I am no scientist but there seems to be a strong correlation to the fact that the last two summers, last year in particular, have been consistently warm if not downright hot.

Not only am I excited about the prospect of warmer weather as it means more time on the back deck with a glass of thirst quenching, condensation dripping, mouth-watering ___________ (you fill in the blank: Gin&Tonic/Rose/Aromatic White/Hoppy Beer/Sparkling wine; I know, ain’t summer great), but also that it will mean that more of you will have that Rose epiphany. If you are quiet and sitting on your deck looking at the stars you will no doubt hear the familiar sounds of the epiphany happening. It will either be the sound of giggles, short bursts of exhilaration, or a prolonged AHHHHHHHhhh! No need to call Wine-1-1 that is just someone discovering the pure pleasure of quality Rose.

When I speak of Rose I am not speaking of White Zinfandel that can be too sweet and candy-like, rather I am talking about dry Rose. For those that don’t know, Rose is made by taking a red wine grape and making it like a white wine. Red wine gets its colour from the skins of the grapes. The skins are kept in contact with the juice during fermentation. Conversely white is made by crushing white wine grapes and removing the skins before fermentation. When you do this with a red wine grape some the colour in the skin escapes into the freshly pressed juice… Voila Rose!

Rose can and is made with any and all red grapes and what you will find it the lighter, fresher, perhaps more exuberant parts of the red grapes character are expressed in the Rose. This means, that generally the wine is lighter in body, fresher in flavour and should be drank chilled and with lighter foods.

Some of my favourites are made from Grenache, Malbec, Pinot Noir and Gamay Noir. In fact some of my favourites are made right here in B.C. and feature mostly Gamay Noir.

Over the coming 2 months you will see a plethora of new Rose releases hit the market. Take advantage of this as these wines are meant to be drank young and as fresh as possible. One of my favourites that is available right now is the St. Hubertus Frizzante 2009 Rose.

St. Hubertus Frizzante 2009 Rose is made mostly from Gamay Noir with a little Pinot Noir, and is almost strawberry in colour, which is great, because the nose is a basket full of fresh strawberries, cranberry and sour cherries that still has cool condensation dipping off it. The palate is wonderfully crisp and is a mouthful of ripe fruits with just the slightest touch of black pepper on the finish. Truly this is a hedonists Rose as it simply delivers fresh, invigorating flavours that are sure to create a few epiphanies this summer.

Heres to quality Rose improving the quality of life on sip at a time!

Recently I had the good fortune of travelling with a friend to tour the Turning Point Brewery which is located in Richmond.

I posted some info on our Facebook page and a really good conversation sprouted about what makes a brewery a ‘Craft’ brewery?

It seems that the most common definition is what a craft brewery is not and less about what it is. Here are a couple of examples:

Craft brewers will emphatically tell you that lovingly craft their beers for quality whereas the large national brands manufacture their beers for speed and efficiency. I learned the other day that brands like Budweiser, Kokanee, Canadian and the like are brewed and shipped to the market within 7-10 days. What makes this possible is the use of high fructose corn syrup in the brewing process. In addition, at a point in the brewing process beers made with high-fructose corn syrup are actually toxic. Whereas beers that come from brewers like Phillips, Driftwood, Lighthouse, Vancouver Island, and indeed Turning Point, take a minimum of 3 weeks to a month to properly brew (min. 24 days for ale and min. 28 days for lager), and do not use high-fructose corn syrup and are never toxic during the brewing process.

Craft brewers will also tell you that they have small production. This is in relation to huge brands like those mentioned above and Sleemans, Okanagan Springs and Granville Island. Part of this distinction is derived from taxation levels. Smaller brewers are not taxed at the same level as large brewers and thus it is easy to make a quantitative distinction between a craft brewer and commercial brewer. Notwithstanding this taxation difference, in this case I don’t believe size is a good indicator of what a Craft brewer is. I mean the image of a single brewmaster working under the light of one bare bulb in an old wooden barn with small tanks until all hours of the night honing his or her craft, is very appealing but it simply that a romantic image. A barn, a bare light bulb, some small tanks don’t necessarily add up to a great beer. In fact I am almost certain that most craft brewers if afforded limitless cash reserves would have larger tanks, a large facility, and some state of the art equipment, but when they started out they did what they could with the cash they had to work with and I applaud them for the guts it takes to to that… especially when the result is truly a superior product.

Next is a subjective statement on taste. The common refrain is that Craft brewed beer offers more flavour and more character. I am 100% behind that statement as my experience has proven this. In fact I think this is why the term craft brewed is thrown around so often as it suggests that the product inside will have more flavour and character than the products on the shelf that don’t say craft brewed. Any smart marketing whiz at any brewing giant will figure this out regardless of whether or not there is truth in the product. The best example of this is Alexander Keith’s IPA that isn’t an IPA at all. The marketing people at Alexander Keith’s know that IPA will convey more quality and craftsmanship and thus allowing the brewery to charge more for each 6 pack.

What does all this mean? My belief is that a craft beer can only be defined by what is not used to make it and the length of time it takes to brew a batch. Outside of this the definition gets muddled and although the source of many a good conversation, using taste and size cues will only serve to exclude deserving breweries and include some that are not so deserving.

Please pass along your notes and comments and they are valuable. As my grandfather said “if you stop learning, you are dead with your eyes open.” Cheers

Rod Phillips

It’s Thirsty Thursday and this week we have a few stellar contributions

Drunk Punch Love – Originated By Shawn Soole, Clives, Victoria, B.C. Canada

1 ½ oz Hendricks Gin

½ oz Absinthe

8 basil leaves

Dash lime juice

1 ½ oz White Cranberry Juice 

Tear basil leaves and drop into a boston glass. Add all other ingredients with ice and hard shake. Double strain over crushed ice in a old fashioned. 

“I created this about 7 years ago. It can be made with Thai Basil as well which works nicely with the absinthe. My friends and I used to dare each other and compete with ingredients, pulling a few ingredients off the back bar and from the cooler and try and stump the other one. We would take them back to chef and get him to taste them and decide on who gets the points. Quiet days breed fun competitions like this and it kept us on our game. Many good cocktails came out of these mid afternoon lulls.” -  Shawn Soole

The Travelling Scot by Janis Mansfield, Victoria, B.C.

This cocktail was originally developed for a Thursday Drink Night where the theme was Scotch.  (I did post the original back in January), but decided to tweak it a bit.  The ingredients are a little bit tropical, a little bit New World, and a little far-flung in general, hence the name of the cocktail!

The starting point was the citrus/scotch pairing in the Blood and Sand, but that’s about where it stops (its not an equal parts cocktail).   Some sweetness was added through the sortilage, and the pink grapefruit juice adds some tart without too much pucker.  When tweaking the recipe, I also added a small amount of elderflower syrup and a few drops of my homemade grapefruit bitters to add a little more brightness.  The Angostura helps tie everything together.

The cocktail itself is classic in style, but is a little bit on the sweeter side.  My goal was to develop a Scotch-based cocktail that was accessible enough for non-cocktail drinkers, but had some complexity to it to make in an interesting sip.  I also switched out the Arran Malt whisky for Blended Scotch in this version to make it easier to make at home.  For those who want to make it at home, all the ingredients are available, with the exception of my homemade grapefruit bitters, however, Bitter Truth makes a version which Carmen at Charellis has been bringing in.

The Travelling Scot:

• 1.5 oz. Blended Scotch
• 0.5 oz. Sortilage (maple syrup-Canadian Whisky liqueur)
• 1.0 oz. pink grapefruit juice
• 0.25 oz. Elderflower syrup
• 4 dashes grapefruit bitters
• 2-3 dashes Angostura bitters

Shake well with ice, strain and serve up in a chilled cocktail glass.  Garnish with a grapefruit twist

Janis is a local amateur mixologist creating professional quality cocktails. She also has her own Facebook page and website called Real Food Made Easy (www.realfoodmadeeasy.ca) and is responsible for some of the best gluten free breads that I have ever tasted. If you want some follow her on Twitter and place your order www.twitter.com/toot11

The Wicked Mary by Shawn Sutton Brown.

The WICKED MARY story began 20 years ago in a small town in Southern California.  I was working at a busy bar in the Harbor and was turning out drinks on any given Sunday for brunch.  I whipped up all of the different drinks for a good brunch, everything from a Ramos fizz to a mimosa.  

All of these drinks were great except for the Bloody Mary.  This one always seemed to fall short.  Nothing but vodka, tomato juice, a splash of Wooster and a dash of tabasco.  Nothing to write home about.  So I developed my own.  The Wicked Mary.

WICKED Mary mix base
1 can (48 fl oz)            Heinz Tomato Juice
½ tea spoon     Onion powder
½ tea spoon     Garlic powder
½ tea spoon     Celery salt
1 tea spoon      Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
½ tea spoon     Prepared horseradish
½ tea spoon      Angostura Bitters
¼ tea spoon     Tobasco hot pepper sauce (heat level is low at this point but can be adjusted when the individual drink is made)

WICKED Mary Individual serving

Rim large pint glass or hurricane glass with celery salt
Fill glass with ice

2 Oz                Vodka
Dash                Onion powder
Dash                Garlic powder
Dash                Celery salt
2 dashes          Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
Dash                Angostura Bitters
1/8th  tea spoon           Prepared horseradish
Dash                Tobacco hot pepper sauce (Heat as desired)

Fill glass with WICKED MARY Mix 
1                      Lemon Wedge
1                      Celery Stock
Pinch                           fresh grated horseradish
1 Large            Pitted Green Olive
1                      Dill Pickle Spear
1                      Pickled green bean

Shawn SuttonBrown lives in Southern California and is currently on location in Chicago, Illinois. For sometime now Shawn has shared is fascination for making the perfect cocktail with friends and family.