BC Wine Appreciation Society 10th Anniversary Gala – Get Your Tickets

Do you love BC wine, or want to try BC wine?  Here is a great chance at the 10th Anniversary Gala of the BC Wine Appreciation Society.   Their announcement is below.  Enjoy!

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10th Anniversary Gala-Over 45 Wineries – April 16/15

Have you signed up for our 10th Anniversary Gala yet?  We still have space, but don’t delay.  It’s only $49 for members and guests.   Here is the link:  http://bcwas.com/

If you’d like to become a BC Wine Appreciation Society member, now is the time:  April 1 is the beginning of our new membership year!   Join now and enjoy 12 months of events with the best wine club in town!  Here’s the link:  http://bcwas.com/membership.html

Please join us for the biggest event of our history –

our 10^th Anniversary Gala celebration!

Wow, do we have an amazing tasting event put together for you!  We’ll be high above the city overlooking the water and mountains in the beautiful Diamond Ballroom. While you walk around and admire the view, you can sip the delightful wines of more than 45 spectacular BC wineries. Socialize with BCWAS members and guests as you savour charcuterie, delicious cheeses, roasted vegetables, bread, and of course, the wonderful crackers of our corporate member, Gone Crackers!

For those of you who attended the recent Vancouver International Wine Festival, we’d like to point out that we will have almost twice as many BC wineries than they did –

our BC winery friends know just how special you are! The wineries you’ll get a chance to try are:

 

40 Knots

Alderlea

Anarchist Mountain

Averill Creek

BC Wine Studio

Bella Winery

Bench 1775

Black Hills

Blue Grouse

Blue Mountain

Burrowing Owl

C.C. Jentsch

Church & State

Clos du Soleil

Corcelettes

Covert Farms

de Vine

Fairview Cellars

Fort Berens

Hester Creek

Hugging Tree

La Frenz

LaStella

Le Vieux Pin

Mission Hill

Moon Curser

Mt Boucherie

Noble Ridge

Orofino

Perseus

Quails’ Gate

Road 13

Serendipity

Seven Directions

Seven Stones

Singletree

SpierHead

Stag’s Hollow

Stoneboat

Synchromesh

Tantalus

TIME Estate

Tinhorn Creek

Township 7

Unsworth

Van Westen

Wild Goose

Zanatta

We hope that you’ll enjoy some old favourites and discover some new favourites, too!

And …. just because we’re so excited about all these great wines, we’re going to make it really easy for you to buy some.  You can buy as few as 3 bottles from any winery – no need to order a whole case, although certainly you can if you find something you simply must have.  🙂

Sign up on the order sheets that will be on each table. Once you’ve paid the wineries, they’ll send one big order to us, and we’ll sort it out and get it to you. A great and easy way to get a start on your summer sipping!

To make it even better – tickets for this fabulous event are

only $49

and you can bring your friends along too for the same great price!

Date: Thursday April 16, 2015

Time: 7:00-10:00pm

Place: Diamond Ballroom, 1495 West 8^th Avenue (8^th & Granville), 4^th floor (The “gem” on the top floor of the Masonic Centre.)

Bus routes 4, 7, 9, 14, 16, 50, and 99 all stop within two blocks. We strongly suggest you do not drive but arrange alternate transport. We will have free bus tickets for your safe way home.

To pay: go to our website www.bcwas.com and click on “Add to cart” via Paypal

2015/2016 BCWAS membership:   Join us now, and your membership is good until March of 2016. Only $40 for a year of our fun and fabulous events! Click here to become a member of the best wine club in town: http://www.bcwas.com/membership.html

Questions? Contact us at events@bcwas.com

 

Please make sure you have a safe way home – take transit, call a cab, or ask a friend to be a designated driver. We will have free bus tickets on hand for those of you who take Translink home.

Please note that we are unable to provide refunds. If you purchase a ticket but cannot attend the event, please let us know with as much advance notice as possible and we’ll try to re-sell your ticket, but we cannot guarantee this.

Best of BC Wine Tastings At BC Liquor Stores in October!

BC flag

This announcement just came out and there are some exciting, quality BC VQA wines being poured at BC Liquor stores in the Vancouver Lower Mainland and Victoria.  Here is the announcement and some of their wines.  Enjoy!

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With the fall harvest in full swing and Thanksgiving just around the corner, October is the perfect month to explore BC VQA wines. British Columbians are celebrating our local bounty and, what better way to honour our crops, than with the annual BC Liquor Stores ‘Best of BC’ release?

Every year, BC Liquor Stores carefully selects a small collection of BC wines which are in limited supply and high demand. In the interest of fairness to all of their customers, the whole selection is released at once, and this year’s release takes place on Saturday, October 12, 2013 in Signature BC Liquor Stores across BC. It’s ‘first-come, first served’, so BC wine fans are encouraged to hurry down and snap up the very best that our province has to offer.

In support of this annual release, the British Columbia Wine Institute has organized an extensive series of in-store wine tastings which will feature a variety of VQA wines from BC. From Vancouver’s West End to West Vancouver, from Victoria to Whistler, 12 different liquor stores will be home to sommelier-led wine tastings where customers can belly-up to the bar while doing their shopping, taste an assortment of BC VQA wines, and learn all about the vinicultural bounty that exists right here in our own backyard.

October brings out the best wines our province has to offer with the ‘Best of BC’ release and province-wide BC VQA in-store wine tastings. Enjoy a glass of your backyard bounty this month!

Dates of In-Store Tastings with Locations and Times:

Thursday, October 3                      

Whistler Marketplace – 101 – 4360 Lorimer Rd, Whistler

3 to 7 PM

Saturday, October 5                       

Dunbar- 3453 Dunbar St, Vancouver

10 AM to 2 PM

Sunday, October 6                          

Highgate – 235 – 7155 Kingsway, Burnaby

1 to 5 PM

Friday, October 11                          

Northgate – 103 – 3433 North Rd, Burnaby

3 to 7 PM

Richmond Brighouse – 100- 8100 Ackroyd Rd, Richmond

3 to 7 PM

Alberni & Bute – 768 Bute Street, Vancouver

3 to 7 PM

Langley – 6435 – 201 Street, Langley

3 to 7 PM

39th & Cambie – 5555 Cambie St, Vancouver

3 to 7 PM

Westwood – 100 – 2748 Lougheed Hwy, Port Coquitlam

3 to 7 PM

Fort Street – 1960 Foul Bay Rd, Victoria

3 to 7 PM

Park Royal – 570 Park Royal North, West Vancouver

3 to 7 PM

Saturday, October 12                    

Northgate – 103 – 3433 North Rd, Burnaby

3 to 7 PM

Richmond Brighouse – 100- 8100 Ackroyd Rd, Richmond

3 to 7 PM

Dunbar – 3453 Dunbar St, Vancouver

10 AM to 2 PM

Alberni & Bute – 768 Bute Street, Vancouver

3 to 7 PM

Langley – 6435 – 201 Street, Langley

3 to 7 PM

39th & Cambie – 5555 Cambie St, Vancouver

3 to 7 PM

Westwood – 100 – 2748 Lougheed Hwy, Port Coquitlam

3 to 7 PM

Fort Street – 1960 Foul Bay Rd, Victoria

3 to 7 PM

Park Royal – 570 Park Royal North, West Vancouver

3 to 7 PM

Thursday, October 17                    

8th & Cambie – 2395 Cambie St, Vancouver

3 to 7 PM

Whistler Marketplace – 101 – 4360 Lorimer Rd, Whistler

3 to 7 PM

Highgate – 235 – 7155 Kingsway, Burnaby    –

3 to 7 PM

Featured Wines in the’Best of BC’ Release:  

Burrowing Owl Cabernet Franc 2010	$32.89	Product # 178756
Painted Rock Syrah 2010	$39.94	Product # 130989
Le Vieux Pin Syrah 2010	$44.88	Product # 875831
Laughing Stock Blind Trust Red 2011	$30.00	Product # 492421
Nk’Mip QwAM QmWT Syrah 2009	$34.99	Product # 561415
CedarCreek Platinum “Block 4” Pinot Noir 2011	$39.95	Product # 464628
Poplar Grove Cabernet Franc 2010	$34.90	Product # 894410
Jackson-Triggs SunRock Shiraz 2010	$34.99	Product # 365635
Stoneboat Pinot Noir 2011	$24.89	Product # 498170
LaStella Fortissimo Selezione Di Famiglia 2010	$34.88	Product # 840504

Get into the Festive Spirit with a Wine Dinner at Wild Rice New Westminster

Wild Rice opened their New Westminster location this past year.  The main location being located at the edge of Chinatown.  I like Wild Rice with their fusion of Asian and European cuisine.  I received this Press Release about their upcoming 5 course wine pairing dinner at their New West location and was very happy to see the high quality of wines they selected from BC and around the world.

Take the skytrain to the New Westminster station and walk across the street to the New West Quay, where you will find Wild Rice, and a great dinner.  Enjoy!

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Executive Chef Todd Bright and Sommelier Andrew Switzer have collaborated to create a stunning five-course wine pairing dinner to kick-off the festive season.

The dinner will be held at the New Westminster location on December 5th starting at 6:30 p.m. and is priced at $75 per person.  Reservations are essential. Please contact caroline@wildricebc.ca to book your seat.

MENU

Tea smoked qualicum scallop, fresh peas and bacon foam

Stift Gottweig Gruner Veltliner (Austria, 2010)
Urban Torrontes (Argentina, 2010)
***

BC spot prawn dumplings in charred onion consommé
Astrolabe Sauvignon Blanc – New Zealand, 2010
LaStella Leggerio un-oaked Chardonnay – BC, 2010
***

Sesame crusted steelhead, squid, roasted cauliflower puree and yuzu buerre blanc
Le Vieux Pin Petit Blanc  – BC, 2009
(blend of oaked and unoaked Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Marsanne, Roussane)
Botani dry muscato – Spain, 2010
***

Crispy roast pork belly, green onion soubise and pickled apple
Rustico Pinot Noir – BC, 2007
(new world but old world Burgundian style pinot)
Sierra Cantabria Rioja Crianza – Spain, 2007
(one of the top Rioja estates in Spain)
***
Petit fours plate

                Red Bean and White Chocolate Macaroon, Salted Caramel Chocolate
and Raspberry Mousse

              Paradise Ranch Late Harvest Chardonnay – BC,  2008

Wild Rice Modern Chinese New Westminster Location

810 Quayside Drive
in The River Market
778-397-0028
newwest@wildricebc.ca

A Taste of LaStella Wines

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} catch(err) {}LaStella Winery is one of the new wineries in the Okanagan, opening it’s doors in May 2007. It has a sister winery, which you may have heard of called Le Vieux Pin. I was recently invited to a tasting of LaStella’s wines in Yaletown and was very impressed with their wines. LaStella operates their vineyards with a cross between organic and biodynamic practices. They also contract grapes from like minded, quality growers (which I will talk about shortly). They also take great care in the production of the wine, from hand-destemming grapes, to using whole berries for fermentation and using small open-top oak fermentors.

LaStella has both white, rose, and red wines. The two white wines I tried was the Leggiero Unoaked Chardonnay 2008 and the Vivace Pinot Grigio 2008. The Leggiero and Vivace grapes come from the Kalala vineyard. For those that have read my past posts, the Kalala Organic Winery in West Kelowna has produced some wonderful organic wines at a great price point. They also told me that they sell some of their grapes to other wineries. So I was VERY happy to see that LaStella is one of those wineries.

The Leggario had nice mango and pineapple aromas. It was medium body, with light acidity, lime and mineral flavours. The Vivace is a gorgeous, refreshing pinot grigio. It has a crisp citrus and pineapple nose. Good acidity, with pineapple, lime, and mineral flavours. Next I moved on to the Lastellina Rose 2008. This is a merlot based rose. It has a nice salmon colour and a ripe strawberry nose. It is medium bodied, with some spice (cinnamon), and strawberry flavour.

There were 3 reds to enjoy. I found out that the reds are all un-fined and un-filtered, which gives you the closest to a barrel sample experience as possible. The red first was the Allegretto Merlot 2006. It was medium garnet in colour. Ripe plums and light oak on the nose. Medium body and tannins, with black cherry flavours. Their premier wine that evening was the Maestoso Merlot 2006. This wine was deep garnet in colour. Ripe black fruit, cigar box and mocha nose. Ripe black fruit, cherries and mocha flavour, with a cherry finish. The tannins were very fine. This is an exceptional wine. Last but not least was the Fortisimo 2007. This wine will soon be bottled, so we were treated with a sneak taste of this wine. The Fortisimo is a Bordeaux blend, with approximately 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 10% Cabernet Franc. This wine had a very complex nose and aroma. I unfortunately did not take detailed notes on this wine, but it had many flavour dimensions and a long finish.

What’s upcoming for LaStella? I heard that they have Sangiovese grapes planted and will be harvesting them to blend with other red varietals to offer their first “Super Tuscan“. I joked that maybe it should be a “Super Okanagan“. Either way, I look forward to trying this wine. Enjoy!