The Tasting Room 2013 @VanWineFest

For the first time in many years we attended the Vancouver International Wine Festival.  We were invited  Thursday night to visit the tasting room and it was Great.   The crowd thinned out for the last couple of hours and it became easily accessible for tasting top picks  We studied the map before we went and along with some of the iconic wines available we chose many of the wine's represented by International Cellars Inc, trusting in their good taste to help guide us. We tasted over 35 wines from  11 countries.   This years regional theme was California and the global focus was Chardonnay.  Not my favourite wine although I like it in a white burgundy, more grape and little or no oak involved for me.

I'm really "into" Sauvignon Blanc and oysters lately, there's so much good stuff around to enjoy and I found a new favourite in Giesen Wines , from Marlborough New Zealand.  The August 1888 is 10% aged in oak and I love the roundness that brings to the sharp minerality. I was also grateful to taste their exceptional but unavailable Pinot noir.  

We're off to a Chardonnay Kitchen Party this afternoon at the Miele showroom.  I hope we don't come home with a new kitchen.

Cheers,  Cathy!