Sam The Wine Teacher 
When most people think of Australian wine, they picture sun-drenched vineyards and powerful reds. There’s truth in that image, but it’s incomplete. The country’s most important wine regions are clustered in the cooler southern half of the continent, often close to the ocean or at higher elevations. Those moderating influences help preserve acidity and aromatic … Read more
It’s only now that I can tell this story. Time has passed. Therapy has helped. There are moments in a wine lover’s life that test one’s character. This one of them. It was a year ago, the day before Valentine’s. We had just got back from a trip to the coast the day before and … Read more
In addition to the weekly wine review and the various other, usually wine-related, articles I write for My Van City, I am going to include a new one that will appear from time to time. I’m calling it, ‘From the Cellar’. It will be similar to the wine reviews, except that it will feature wines … Read more
A friend recently mentioned he was going to be opening a special bottle he had been saving: a 2010 Grange. When I asked him to tell me more about how he came across this wine, he said, “We have a lifelong friend of my wife’s who lives in Sydney. She bought the bottle quite a … Read more
In addition to the weekly wine review and the various other, usually wine-related, articles I write for My Van City, I am going to include a new one that will appear from time to time. I’m calling it, ‘From the Cellar’. It will be similar to the wine reviews, except that it will feature wines … Read more
Germany is a cool-climate wine country built on freshness, high acidity, and aromatic clarity. Vineyards often cling to steep river slopes along the Mosel and Rhine, where reflected sunlight aids ripening and cool nights preserve acidity. While Germany sits far north by wine-growing standards, its varied soils and exposures produce wines prized for precision and … Read more
In addition to the weekly wine review and the various other, usually wine-related, articles I write for My Van City, I am going to include a new one that will appear from time to time. I’m calling it, ‘From the Cellar’. It will be similar to the wine reviews, except that it will feature wines … Read more
Sicily is closer to Africa than it is to Rome, a geographical fact that helps explain its wines. This sun-drenched Mediterranean island is shaped by heat, wind, altitude, and a remarkable range of soils, producing wines that can be ripe and generous yet fresh, structured, and distinctive. Climate and Soils Sicily’s Mediterranean climate delivers abundant … Read more
Kung Hei Fat Choi! Wishing you happiness and prosperity in the Year of the Horse. Haywire Winery marks the upcoming 2026 Lunar New Year with the release of its latest Lunar Red, continuing a tradition that began with the winery’s first Lunar New Year bottling in 2014. Created in collaboration with Vancouver’s Foo Hung … Read more
2024 Splash (white blend) River Stone Oliver, BC $22.90 The 2024 wines are part of the Good Neighbours Series, made from Washington State grapes. This vintage is a blend of Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay, and Sauvignon Blanc. Pale lemon yellow with medium-minus intensity. The nose shows aromas of lemon, grapefruit, tropical fruit, apricot, grass, white flowers, … Read more