Sam The Wine Teacher 
Chaberton-2015 ReserveChardonnay 2015 Chardonnay (Reserve) Chaberton Langley, BC $19.95 The winery may be in Langley, but the grapes for this wine come from Oliver. The wine is golden yellow in colour with medium intensity. The nose shows aromas of lemon, butter, vanilla and toast with hints of pineapple. Good balance. The flavours follow the nose. … Read more
One of our original tasting group members, Wayne Meadows, who tends to plan his annual tasting several years in advance (he has just compiled his 2025 tasting) spent a lot of time putting together his 2018 tasting titled, “The Rarest BC Grown Grapes That You May Have Never Tasted! What he did was to research … Read more
2015 Chardonnay (Reserve) Chaberton Langley, BC $19.95 The winery may be in Langley, but the grapes for this wine come from Oliver. The wine is golden yellow in colour with medium intensity. The nose shows aromas of lemon, butter, vanilla and toast with hints of pineapple. Good balance. The flavours follow the nose. A … Read more
The 2018 Vancouver International Wine Festival has begun. Now in its 40th year, this weeklong celebration begins with a series of wine related dinners spread across the city. Portugal and Spain are this year’s featured countries, but with sixteen countries represented and 173 wineries pouring a combined 1,450 wines at 50 events, no matter what … Read more
What do you think of when you hear the name Giant Head? For me, it has always conjured up summer road trips to the Okanagan. Often it reminds me of days spent camping at the provincial park campsites between Summerland and Peachland. Warm days, fun at the beach and always bringing home lots of fresh … Read more
2015 Chardonnay (Qwam Qwmt) Nk’Mip Osoyoos, BC $25.00 Golden straw in colour with medium intensity. Well-integrated oak and fruit on the nose with notes of delicate butter and tropical fruit, especially pineapple. Well balanced with a creamy texture. The flavours follow the nose along with fresh cream. A medium-plus finish. 2012 Syrah … Read more
2016 Verdicchio Classico Superiore Umani Ronchi Casal di Serra Osimo, Italy $17.99 This impressive Italian white is golden straw in colour with medium intensity. Jasmine blossoms, ginger and melon on the nose. Well balanced. The flavour packs a bigger punch than the nose with the addition of orange peel, pear and almond flavours followed … Read more
2012 Chardonnay Reserve Noble Ridge Okanagan Falls, BC $29.90 Golden yellow colour with medium intensity. Buttered toast, apple, pear and tropical fruit on the nose. Good balance with unctuous texture. Rich butter and tropical fruit on the palate, followed by a medium-plus finish. This wine paired nicely with creamy garlic Parmesan pasta. 2014 … Read more
Liberty Wine Merchants’ annual event is a great opportunity to showcase the amazing craft beers, spirits and wines that BC is becoming famous for. Here are some brief notes on wines I was able to taste. Road 13 I have heard a lot of buzz about this BC bubble and after tasting … Read more
When changes happen in the hospitality industry, say patio seating, live entertainment or Sunday pub openings for example (those things didn’t always exist, believe it or not), or more recently, permitting minors in certain licenced premises when accompanied with a parent or guardian, no restriction on the size of kegs (beer/cider) sold by private … Read more