MAKING THE CASE
For BC Wines By TOM FIRTH
Let me root, root, root for the home team….
W
hether you are a fan of baseball or not, there is a certain appeal to cheering on the home team, and it’s an important thing to support as many local businesses as we can. Over the 26+ years I’ve been involved in beverages, the story of our next-door neighbour in wine has seen a great many changes. In leaps and bounds, the quality has elevated British Columbia’s wines to world class in many regards, and they stand tall with many examples from around the globe. While rarely inexpensive, the wines are indeed priced fairly, and in most cases, each of these wineries are a mere drop in the bucket in terms of how much wine each can produce compared to many of the bigger wineries that grace our liquor store shelves. Even the biggest BC
wineries are tiny – often family owned and run enterprises that survive at the whim of nature, relying on the significant talents of the folks involved, and some pretty spectacular vineyard sites. If you’ve never been to wine country in British Columbia, it’s a worthwhile trip – and bring a camera. In some ways, talking about BC wines is a little like preaching to the choir. They’ve always been good, and in the last 15-20 years, they’ve started being excellent. If one is lucky enough to visit the region, you’ll know that it’s a wonderful combination of incredible scenery, some utterly fantastic dining options, (golf - if that is your thing), and wineries. A quick insider tip, the view is always better from the winery than it is from the highway. It’s far better to pull in for a few minutes
than to keep driving - unless you have an appointment at the next winery. I was prompted to reflect on what has been happening in these wineries over the last ten years or so, and it was a little harder to do than expected. More of the long-time growers have hung out a shingle as winery producers now, lending that expertise in making quality grapes to the finished product. The growth in wineries has been slowing down somewhat, but we have seen further entrenching of who really is making the good stuff. The brands you like are better than ever, many of the vineyards have had their vines replaced a few times now, so have better clonal selections, even better site selections, and also exactly what is being planted where in a specific vineyard.
creative dishes. Grab your mum and join us for six courses of this delicious, carefully paired menu.
evening of this fabulous, premium, multi-course pairing dinner in the private dining room for 18 people.
Check culinairemagazine.ca/events regularly, and please email linda@culinairemagazine.ca to reserve and to be included in our bi-monthly updates to hear about events before the rest of the city. They do sell out rather quickly! We try to cater for all allergies.
One-Off Fine & Dine Pairing Dinner at T.Pot China Bistro Wednesday May 25 T.Pot China Bistro was awarded the Best Cantonese Cuisine Restaurant in Canada 2018, and we’re coming for a very special, one-off, 6-course pairing dinner to enjoy this elevated and completely delicious cuisine!
Vine & Dine at The Attic Mother’s Day, Sunday May 8! Our first Vine & Dine evening at The Attic last month was absolutely superb! We can’t wait to return for a repeat of Chef Lyndon Hertz’s upscale and
Special Surf-Turf dinner at Modern Steak Southport Thursday May 12 SOLD OUT! Thursday May 26 Our first event at Modern Steak sold out quickly, so we’re thrilled to offer another
Vine & Dine at Las Canarias Wednesday June 15 and Tuesday June 21 Always excellent, we love our summery evenings at Las Canarias, and this year we have two nights for this authentic, 6-course Spanish pairing dinner, with some of the best paella in the city, and much-loved dishes from the Canary Isles. We’re delighted to announce new dates, new pairing dinners, and new menus for you to enjoy an evening of good food where you don’t have to do the washing up afterwards.
May 2022 | Culinaire 37
