Charcuterie Boards

What beats visiting a winery and enjoy a tasting. The answer is relaxing on their patio with a cheese plate or Charcuterie Board along with a glass of wine or two.

Charcuterie is a branch of cooking involving prepared meats, such as ham, sausage, bacon, confit, or other pork products. The word originated in France, and it translates to "pork-butcher shop." While the original French translation refers to pork, modern Charcuterie boards can include other types of food, such as duck, goose, chicken, cheese, toast, fruit, or other options.

In French, the person that prepares the meat is called a Charcuterie. Additionally, the English pronunciation of Charcuterie varies slightly from the original French. The correct French pronunciation of Charcuterie is "shar-coo-tree."


Although the pure definition of a Charcuterie Board is enhanced by many wineries providing a board combining meat, cheese and other delightful items. Crackers or bread is often the main addition to the board, Olives and fruit are often added as well.

The Key to me is the wine. What is the best wine to have with the Charcuterie Board? I suggest you simply order your favourite wine. Another suggest would be (if offered by the winery) try a flight. A wine flight is a group of wines for you to taste.

Some of the best Charcuterie Board that I have experienced last summer would be Backyard Vineyards, Seaside Pear Farmgate Winery and Blackwood lane. Recommended vinAmite in Oliver. Okanagan Crush Pad in Peachland, Cedar Creek, Kelowna and Upper Bench, Naramata.

In Ontario, Ravine Vineyard Estate comes highly recommended. Between the Lines and Hidden Bench also have excellent boards.

In Nova Scotia, you must stop in at Jost Vineyards and Domaine de Grand Pre. In NS try the Tidal Bay wines.

Of course, you can always have your own wine party.

See our visit to Seaside Pearl and 40 Knots

Who drinks Champagne!

In my world as small as it may be very few people drink Champagne. In fact, most people do not realize we have an international agreement with France that only sparkling wines produced in the champagne application region of France are entitled to label their product Champagne.

So perhaps the question is who drinks Sparkling wine. Once again in my world very few do.  Champagne is known around the world as an indulgence and expensive luxury.  You can buy cheap sparkling wines but if you want really good Champagne you have to pay for it.

In my world, I am more often served a Mimosa. Mimosa is a mixture of sparkling wine ( Champagne if you have it)  and Orange juice. It is best to use a dry wine.

In Canada, we have a number of wineries that specialize in Sparkling wines. Nova Scotia seems to be perfect for producing the right grapes. Benjamin Bridge has distinguished itself as one of Canada's top producers of sparkling wine and built a national following for its critically-acclaimed Nova 7, which has helped raise the profile of Nova Scotia's wine industry within Canada and abroad.

L'Acadie  Winery owned by Bruce and Pauline Ewert is another top producer of sparkling wines in Nova Scotia. Bruce and Pauline grow primarily L’Acadie Blanc grapes and craft them into a premium, traditionally bottle-fermented sparkling wines and still wines.

The award for Best Sparkling wine at the All Canadians went to Two Sisters Vineyards of Niagara-on-the Lake, Ontario for their Blanc de Franc.

Summerhill Pyramid Winery in Kelowna, BC is a well known and respect producer of Sparkling wines.

Canada has come along way in its product of Sparkling. Devote winemakers are producing wines that are considered to be just as good or perhaps even better than those coming from France.

The Bubbles in sparkling wine ( and soft drinks) comes from  Carbon Dioxide gas. It is this effervescence that I do not enjoy.  I even let my ginger ale fizzle out before drinking it.

Just one more note here when you watch the World Series and see the winning team celebrate in the locker room chances are its a cheap sparkling wine that gets spread around the room.

Remember Sparkling wine can be opened safely without sending a cork fly across the room. You may have noticed today that championship winners celebrate their Champagne ritual by first wearing safety glasses.  Thus another reason I do not care for sparkling wines I hate opening the bottle. So many of our friends say to me your the wine guy please open.... Thankfully most do not drink Champagne.

Rosé is a term describing the French technique for making wines ranging in colour from greyish pink to very dark pink. Rosé is a type of wine that incorporates some of the colour from the grape skins, but not enough to qualify it as a red wine. It may be the oldest known type of wine, as it is the most straightforward to make with the skin contact method.

Winemakers create a rosé wine by juicing red grapes and then allowing the juice to soak with the skins for a very short period, usually only two to three days. As soon as the juice begins to take on the beautiful pink colour the winemaker desires, the skins are removed and the juice is allowed to ferment, creating delicious rosé.

Rosés have exploded in popularity in the last few years. At a recent VQA fall release almost every time I came to taste a wineries wines they insisted I try their Rosé. Some very good, some were not.

Recently my wife and I hosted a dinner party. We began the evening by doing a blind Rosé tasting challenge. We featured two BC wines, two Washington State wines and one California wine.  Twelve guests took the challenge. Only two of the wines received a passing grade and were awarded a vote. Both were from BC. 

The final score was 8-4 with Castoro de Oro Pinot Duetto been the winner. The deep colour attracts one's attention. This Pinot Noir and Pinot Blanc blend starts with a nice aroma, featuring an initial tart cherry softened by peppery tannins. It has a nice smooth finish. 

Castoro de Oro is a small family-operated winery in Oliver along the Golden Mile. Their friendly winery and fine cellar makes them a winery you should visit.

Anniversary Dinner

Barbara and I decided to get away for a few days to celebrate our 27th wedding Anniversary. We decided to visit Parksville and Qualicum Beach. I had not been to this part of Vancouver Island since I lived in Victoria (73-84).

One forgets how beautiful the Island can be. The population growth is also amazing. Since I left the Island a number of wineries have opened.

On our first day in Parksville, we decided to enjoy the beach and then dine at the highly recommended Kalvas Log House Restaurant. As luck would have it the restaurant was next door to the hotel. We could walk. No drinking and driving involved.

The restaurant is not all that impressive from the outside,  however the interior immediately captures your attention. Upon entering we were quickly greeted bya gentleman wearing a suit ( a suit always makes a good impression) and were immediately shown to a table.

The menu is simple based upon Seafood and Steaks with a few additional items like pasta and schnitzel. Our waiter was elegant and humorous. He knew the proper ways of a 5 star restaurant and contributed greatly to the enjoyment of the evening. Thank you Tim!  Tim also had a very charming young lady assisting him. Who took charge of photographing Barbara and myself.

We settled on a Hester Creek Cab/merlot as we studied the menu.  The special for the evening was a NY steak with prawns. I am not a fan of shellfish but I ordered the special, Barbara could have my shrimp. Maybe they were called Prawns?

The wine was good and we relaxed awaiting our dinner. We discussed our plans for the following day which would take us up Island to visit 40 Knots Winery. A report we will post on Winesofcanada.com.

Our dinners arrived a very impressive presentation. Tim refilled our wine glasses. Pictures were taken of the meal and I gave my prawns to Barbara. I could hardly wait to taste the steak.

The steak was amazing, oh so good, as were the mashed potatoes and vegetables. An excellent meal.

Been our anniversary the Kalvas provided a complimentary cheesecake. It was quite good! I also enjoyed a Spanish coffee.

It was a most enjoyable dining experience!

Please Don’t Ask Me

When it come to e-mail the most asked question I get is about Brights or Jordan Wines.

The e-mail usually starts within “In my parent's house, I found an old bottle of” So the question is it drinkable, is it worth any money.

I would like to give a very short answer “no” to both questions but I take the time and provide some historical information.

The T.G. Bright & Company Ltd can trace its roots back to 1874 when Thomas Bright and F.A. Shirriff founded the Niagara Falls Wine Company in Toronto. In 1911 they moved to Niagara Falls and incorporated 1911 as T.G. Bright & Company Ltd.

Brights today is a brand label owned by Arterra Wines Canada., . a leading international producer and marketer of beverage alcohol brands. Brights wines are made at other wineries owned by Arterra Wines Canada.

The first bottle-fermented champagne produced in Canada when the first President champagne was released in 1949. Originally named President because it was made from the President grape, a Munson hybrid, the cuvee eventually came to include Catawba, Dutchess, Delaware, Rosette, and Seyval.

In 1993 Cartier and Inniskillin merge with T.G. Bright to form Vincor.  Constellation Brands bought Vincor changing he name to Constellations Canada. Today the label is owned by Arterra Wines Canada who purchased Constellation Brands Canada in 2016.

Jordan wines, established in 1920. Jordan had a succession of owners including Seagrams and Rothman's tobacco group. In 1973 Jordon took over Growers Winery in Victoria BC and called the new national company Jordan & Ste-Michelle. In 1986 Brights Bought out Jordan and Ste Michells and moved all of its products to its own wineries.

Arterra Wines still owns the Brights label and still produces some wines under that label, including Brights Presidents Sparking wine.

The question I do not want you to ask me, be it b e-mail or in person,(In person, it is peoples favourite question to me) what is your favourite winery? Answer: Anyone that provides excellent hospitality and mighty fine wines. They usually follow that up with "what wineries would you recommend. It is almost the same question. I prefer to believe all wineries are good and all Canada's wines are good and all are worth experiencing.

Oh if a winery wants to bribe me well that's ok too. Can you pay my rent for a year LOL

Steak and Wine

The majority of us would agree that the best wines to go with red meat is red wine. Even I a devoted white wine fan agree. Having a steak it must be red. Maybe!

What is the best red to enhance the experience of a perfectly grilled steak? Well, not everyone agrees.  The most common answer among the average wine drinker is Merlot. However, most so-called experts who write about wine often go with Cabernet Sauvignon. Malbec is often chosen as the best wine for a rare steak.

The experts, of course, have a wine for every which way you wish to cook your steak or the type of steak or the amount of fat in the steak. Let's not get carried away. If you pile on the sauces or BBQ sauce you, of course, have changed the game. A softer lighter, perhaps even sweeter wine is best.

After the Merlot, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon a Syrah makes a good choice. 

Some wine drinkers actually like a Zinfandel  Okay that is their choice.

When it comes right done to it why not just select your favourite wine. 

I have once or twice even been so bold as to order a Bacchus wine with my filet magnon. Maggie Hoffman Managing editor os Serious Eats calls drinking only reds with steak an old and Antiquated way of looking at food pairing.

Many believe the best wine of all is Champagne or sparkling wine.

Please report errors and visit us at www.winesofcanada.com

Wow! You Want to Own a Winery



Wait not so fast owning a winery may sound exciting and luxurious but It is a great deal of work. The major of winery owners are hard-working farmers.. they till the land, grow grapes, harvest the grapes and struggle to make money. If you want to be a successful wine owner its best to start rich and many do.

It also helps to hire an experienced winemaker, even a consultant with a great reputation and vineyard manager is also required. You also require the help of other wineries, especially if you plan on doing all the jobs by yourself.

Then, how are you going to sell your wines where is your market. Most likely its only the province your located in. But even getting your wine beyond your own gate is not easy. There are so many wineries out there.


To become VQA certified you have to pay for this honour. Getting restaurants, pubs ,and liquor stores to carry your wine, a most difficult task. Canadian restaurants don't have a passion for listing Canadian wines on their wine list. Is that the consumer fault?

So what are you left with, selling your wines on site. Can you afford a tasting room? Can you afford to staff it. You cannot sell, your wines outside of your own winery and tend to your tasting bar at the same time.


Winery owners are finding the industry is much more difficult than they anticipated

In the last few year we have seen the number of new wineries triple if not more. However numerous wineries are for sale and some have even declared bankruptcy

So let's support our local Wineries. But wait the majority of the population does not live in Wine Country. In Ontario its only 2 hours to the Niagara Peninsula In BC its five hours ( those of you who say you can do it four your away over the speed limit) from Vancouver to the Okanagan. To the Island wineries a rather expensive Ferry ride.

Also, there is the cost factors, wines in Canada are over taxed and cost too much
You can buy good wine in the USA for $5.00 in Canada finding one under $12.00 good luck. If you wish to bring box wines into the picture and other cellared in Canada wines remember those grapes are not grown in Canada It is economically challenging for Canadian vineyards to grow grapes at the price and quality needed to compete with the low priced imports that are flooding our wine market. Check it out for your self what are people buying in your local store. The big bottles from foreign markets I bet.


Many wineries sell limited quantity wines selling for $35.00 and up. Great but they better be way beyond good. Even if they are you need to find a way to let the consumer know and once again find a way to sell them

For over twenty-seven years now we have promoted the wineries of Canada her wines. Yet many wineries totally ignore our request for information.

AVAs like the Okanagan relay deeply heavily on tourist to purchase wines directly from the winery. That is one reason our website features a tourist section. We also believe we live in a great country and wish to bragg a little.

Icewine is Canadians biggest selling wine product Thanks to a very strong Chinese market. However, only a few wineries have access to this rich market. Due to the high price Icewines do not sell well in Liquor stores. In fact, I could find only three bottles of Icewine in our Local store. Some wineries in Canada produce only icewine. That's a gamble. If the weather is too warm there is no harvest.

Do you still want to own a winery?

and then you have California

California wines continue to grow in popularity with both trade and consumers in the Canadian market," according to Rick Slomka, Wine Institute Trade Director for Canada. "Some of the recent growth comes from new brands with eye-catching labels and clever names. Also contributing to this growth is the ongoing strength of the Canadian dollar which has made California wines more competitive compared to wines from other major wine regions. Our continued success with premium wines in the Quebec market and in LCBO VINTAGES, indicates that Canadian consumers see good value in California at all price points," said Slomka.

Canadian wines are world class yet consumers still flock to the wines of California and the old world.

We would like the hear your thoughts bobbell@winesofcanada.com





February 2012