Care to add to the Diva's list?
Written by: Julie Ovenell-CarterI saw Daenna Van Mulligen–aka The Wine Diva–in action during a champagne tasting at last month’s Cornucopia in Whistler, BC, and I can tell you that if this woman says you should put it in a glass and drink it, you should definitely pay attention.
‘Tis the season for gift bottles and this should make your shopping easy: the Diva, a certified sommelier with a sense of humour to rival her other highly developed senses, has just posted her top 50 wine picks under $50 for 2009.
It’s a treat to see so many excellent Canadian wines on the list.
Perhaps because she’s Vancouver-based, the Diva has favoured labels from British Columbia’s Okanagan wineries–or maybe they’re just plain better than their cousins from Ontario’s Niagara region?
If you beg to differ with the Diva–or if you’d like to add a noteworthy Canadian wine or two to her shopping list–please leave a comment!
Que Banh
on December 10th, 2009Love wine & especially love visiting the wineries. Enjoy meeting the people behind the wines and spending time walking around looking at the grapes and vines. I love to purchase directly from wineries whenever I can
boomergirl
on December 10th, 2009Well, I wouldn’t consider myself an expert by any means on Ontario wines but here’s what I do know. You pretty much can count on an 2oo7 vintage. It was the best year ever for Ontario wines. We had a long, hot summer. Even the reds got accolades. I have yet to purchase a 2007 that I have not liked. If you do a little research, you’ll find that wine writers and winemakers have all waxed poetic about this particular year.
DesBarres Manor Inn
on December 11th, 2009Somehow many “Canadian” wine critics miss the wonderful wines being produced in Nova Scotia in their lists of Canada’s best wines. In 2009, Nova Scotia wineries took home 28 awards at the All Canadian Wine Championships. Our unique terrior produces many varietals found only in Nova Scotia and guests at our Nova Scotia wine dinners are continually wowed by the great wine being produced on Canada’s Atlantic Coast. We’re proud to say our Nova Scotia wines can stand against the international wines on our Wine Spectator award winning wine list.
Julie Ovenell-Carter
on December 11th, 2009Good to hear from Nova Scotia! Could you provide some specific wines or winery names so that people could hunt them down/request them? Are they farm-gate or are they available throughout the country in specialty liquour stores? Any specific info would be most helpful!
DesBarres Manor Inn
on December 11th, 2009All the Nova Scotia wineries are producing good wines today. Their wines tend to be sold primarily at the winery or in Atlantic Canada with some of the larger wineries like Jost Wines being available in Central and Western Canada. As far as favourites, there are so many! We invite your readers to check out our quarterly wine picks from the DesBarres Manor Inn cellar where we share some of our favourite wines and food pairings:
http://www.desbarresmanor.com/dining/wine.html
And to read more about all the wineries in Nova Scotia visit:
http://www.winesofnovascotia.ca
Que Banh
on December 13th, 2009I recommend the Godfrey-Brownell Vineyards’ products to wine lovers who are highly sensitive to sulfites. Dave Godfrey runs it & he’s sensitive to sulfites so their wines are made with the lowest possible content. The vineyard/mixed farm is all organic. I really like their Bacchus (2006), Pinot Grigio (2006;always sells out!) and their Pinot Noir Reserve (2003).
Located in the Duncan area of Vancouver Island
http://www.gbvineyards.com/index.html