Taste of Victoria: The Main Event

Part One: Vancouver Island Wine

Imagine! Over 52 tables set up offering wine and food from Vancouver Island and the mainland. It was an exciting opportunity to sample a wide variety of different products and talk to the producers.

I am extremely grateful to Kathy McAree, Travel With Taste and event organizer, for giving me tickets to The Main Event, the grand opening of Taste, Victoria’s second annual Festival of Food and Wine. Congratulations, Kathy. The event was well organized, beautifully laid out, and I had a great time.

It wasn’t possible for me to sample all the wines or to talk to all the producers, so I focused on Vancouver Island wineries. I learned a great deal – here’s just a brief overview.

Ortega – the Island Wine
Jane Ellmann, Muse Winery, describes Ortega as “patio wine – summer in a glass.” It’s also known as the Island Wine as this is one of the few areas where it is grown.

Ortega is a dry, fruity white wine. I really enjoyed it and would like to compare the Ortega wines from other Vancouver Island vineyards.

Pinot Gris – with a Difference
There is an added twist to Pinot Gris from Island wineries as it is often a light pink from a short contact with the grape skins. I enjoyed a bottle from Rocky Creek.

Pinot Noir – Averill Creek
Andy Johnston, the owner of Averill Creek Vineyard, boasts that they make the best Pinot Noir in Canada. I certainly enjoyed a sample of their 2008 Pinot Noir. The vineyard is located near Duncan in the Cowichan Valley, which Johnston describes as a warm, protected microclimate that is perfect for growing Pinot Noir.

92 tons of estate grapes are aged for 11 months in 2-4 year old French oak barriques to produce a complex wine with a subtle, unobtrusive oak flavour.

Brut – Crisp, Sparkling Wines
Champagne from France, Cava from Spain, and Prosecco from Italy. But now we can add Brut Naturel from Vancouver Island wineries to the list of great dry, sparkling wines. It was a complete surprise for me to taste some great locally-produced sparkling wines. One of my favourites was Celebration Brut from Starling Lane Winery, which will be released in October 2010. The wine is bottle-fermented from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes grown on their Saanich Peninsula Vineyard.

Another one that I enjoyed was the 2007 Brut Naturel from Venturi Schulze Vineyards. I’ve also heard rave reviews for their balsamic vinegar.

Blackberries
There is an abundance of blackberries on Vancouver Island so it’s not surprising that many wineries offer a blackberry wine or port. Rocky Creek Winery has a very nice Wild Blackberry wine. It has a good fruity flavour and isn’t overly sweet.

Many of the Island wineries offer a blackberry port or dessert wine. One that I have tasted and enjoyed is Cherry Point Vineyards’ Solera Blackberry.

Organic Wine - Mistaken Identity
I enjoyed tasting some of the wines from Mistaken Identity, a certified organic winery on Salt Spring Island. Cliff Broetz, the owner, says that they started growing grapes in 2003 and opened their doors two years ago with the 2008 vintage. Their website states that care of the land and care in the process are the starting points in their product delivery.

I particularly enjoyed their Abbondante Bianco, an estate-blend white wine. It was clean, crisp and dry with a rosy tinge.

Great Artwork
Another Salt Spring Island vineyard offers great artwork along with great wine. The labels for Salt Spring Vineyards are designed by Brandever Strategy Inc. of Vancouver, BC. They work with a number of wineries and specialty food stores on their brands.

Here’s what they have to say about their design work for Salt Spring Vineyards: “Salt Spring Island is a rather fascinating island off of the coast of British Columbia. Known for its eclecticism, hippies, sheep, wild salmon, organic farming, rusty old VW’s, and hand-painted gumboots. Its Haight &; Ashbury meets Green Acres. When we took on the challenge of designing an identity for an upstart winery on Salt Spring, we knew exactly what to do. We created a barely clad, flying goddess, Eartha, wearing gumboots. As she flies overhead, she gifts the land below with hearty edibles. We also stirred-in just about every iconic image of the island we could think of – right down to the free-range eggs.”

The Main Event - Part Two: Food and Spirits

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Flavourful Saskatoon, August 28, 2017

Image
The Next Great Food Business Public Tasting, Sept. 7 The Local Kitchen is hosting a public tasting with samples from each of the finalists in the Next Great Food Business competition. Finalists are: King’s Jerky, Kind Condiments , Smoke and Salt BBQ, Bannock Express , and Voodoo Van . Wine Tastings Guess the most expensive wine (Sept. 8), sample some Rhône wines (Sept. 22), or attend the 2017 Premier Showcase Wine Dinner (Sept. 28) sponsored by Saskatoon Co-op Wine Spirits Beer. Premier Showcase is also offering a Portugal with a Splash of California wine seminar (Sept. 29) and a Women & Whisky seminar (Sept. 30). Refresh and Renew I had a chat with Trent Loewen about his plans now that he has sold Earth Bound Bakery. He is heading east to visit chef friends in Ontario and then off to New Zealand to explore what's happening there. After 9 years with a single focus, it's time to explore new ideas. Interestingly enough, the bakery's new owner is a business
Read more

Flavourful Saskatoon, August 21, 2017

Image
Prairie Harvest Café I was sad to learn that Prairie Harvest Café has closed its doors. It’s been one of my favorite Saskatoon restaurants since day one, and I really appreciated the fact that the chefs focused on cooking with local ingredients, many supplied by the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. All the best of luck in your new adventures. We’ll miss you. Hug a Farmer This has been a tough summer for many farmers. Prairie Sun Orchard lost their entire cherry crop to insects. Drop by their stand at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market, tell them you care, and have an ice cream. My favorite is the chocolate cherry fudge, but Clare Pearson, the principal ice cream maker, says her new favorite is the salted caramel. Peppers If you’re like me, you assume that all small, skinny peppers are super hot and avoid them like the plague. But that’s a big mistake. Kaleidoscope Vegetable Gardens is offering two long, skinny peppers – one can be hot, but the other isn’t. Padron chile pepper
Read more

The Golden Towns of Beaujolais

Image
Heading north out of Lyon, you pass through a long tunnel and exit into a lush green countryside leaving the city far behind. You then turn and head up the hill onto winding roads between a patchwork of vineyards. Many of the vines are really old with short, thick, twisted trunks and a thin stem of green leaves and buds. These are the Gamay vines of Beaujolais, interspersed with a few fields of greener, leafier Chardonnay vines. South Beaujolais, just 45 minutes northwest of Lyon, encompasses 25 medieval villages of orangey-gold stone (limestone and iron) that is surprisingly vibrant (I had been expecting something lighter, similar to the Cotswolds in England). Some of the villages still have the remains of 14th century castles. Oingt is classed as one of the most beautiful villages of France and it really is lovely. You can take a walk around the town on the former ramparts and the church is austere and beautiful. I was on a half-day tour , which combined stopping to
Read more

Petra Market: A Mediterranean Grocery

Image
Tucked away in a strip mall on Primrose Drive (north of Lawson Heights Mall) is Petra Market, a treasure trove of food products from the Arabic countries in the Mediterranean. I’m fascinated by grocery stores full of unknown-to-me products but also a little nervous about trying things, so I was really happy when Nour Dabbour, the owner of Petra Market, showed me around and told me about the different items. Nour is trying to stock products from as many Middle Eastern countries as possible. He even stocks the same product from a number of different countries because he says that each country’s product tastes slightly different. Za’atar , a spice mix, is a prime example with packages from Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, and each one is a slightly different colour with a slightly different taste. The most popular areas of the store are the nut and treats bars with an amazing assortment of Middle Eastern candies and mildly spiced nuts. Nour gave me a variety to try and I’m real
Read more

Spelt and Millet: Ancient Grains for Today's Healthy Diet

Image
When I was growing up, whole wheat flour and rice were exotic options. Now we have a whole range of intriguing choices – buckwheat, spelt, millet, kamut – the list goes on and on. My problem is that I don’t know very much about some of these grains, so I arranged a phone call with Nicole Davis, the Owner/Manager of Daybreak Mill near Estevan. Daybreak Mill grows and processes approximately 18 different kinds of flour, whole and de-hulled grains, flakes, cereals, and legumes. They are 100% organic. “We want people to have access to healthy, wholesome food,” Nicole explains. Two of Daybreak’s products – spelt and millet – have been nourishing people around the world for over 9,000 years. Spelt Spelt was cultivated by ancient civilizations in Europe and the Middle East for thousands of years. It grows well in poor soil and doesn’t require fertilizer. It’s resistant to frost and the thick husk protects the grain from insects. However, spelt requires more processing than wheat as
Read more