Were diving into 2014 with quite a big splash around the citys wine scene. The ever-popular Dine Out Vancouver Festival offers a slew of BC VQA wine pairings for your supping pleasure while January 21 brings Liberty Wines Taste BC event, pouring the best of British Columbian wine, beer and spirits to benefit BC Childrens Hospital. We slip down the West Coast on February 5 for Sonoma & The City at the Terminal City Club, and then race right over to the Jewel Ballroom on February 7 for Big Night, Vancouver Magazines pairing up of their Restaurant Awards and Wine Awards winners.
Of course, lets not forget about the biggest one of all: the Vancouver International Wine Festival runs February 24 to March 2, and events are already starting to sell out. Ill be previewing the cant-miss wine festival events in next weeks column, but in the meantime will post more information on all of these events at KurtisKolt.com.
Looks like we need to warm up for all of this hoopla! Here are a fun trio of reds to help you practise your swirl.
This blend of Dolcetto, Barbera and Nebbiolo offers a lovely sense of place, immediately transporting you to Northern Italy upon your first sniff. Those aromas include red berry fruit, a strip of leather, black licorice, and a pinch of oregano. Ultra-juicy and quaffable, there are some fine, polished tannins and bright acidity to keep everything in place. Serve with a hint of a chill to it, thatll elevate its cheer. Tremendous value here.
We had a Christmas party at the beginning of December and this bottle was one of the leftovers that someone brought. (Im surprised something didnt get opened that evening; thats not usually how we roll.) I cracked this just a few days ago out of curiosity and was quite impressed with it, particularly when I looked up the price. A fantastic value of a Pinot Noir here; full of Italian plums, blackberries, currants, blueberry jam and a good dusting of dried thyme that adds a perfect component to the wines breadth.
A modern classic of British Columbian Cabernet Franc. Poplar Groves always sturdy take on the grape involves 18 months in French oak and then an extra 18 months in the winerys cellar, so all of the wines fruit, tannins and other components come woven together well. The result boasts plenty of Fresh-baked ginger snap cookies, cherry compote a little fresh-plucked sage and a hint of roasted red bell pepper sweetness. The alcohol is closing in on the 15 per cent mark, so this guy has some oomph! Serve in the biggest glasses youve got.
As always, if youre having trouble finding something or just want to say hi, find me via KurtisKolt.com or on Twitter
@KurtisKolt.
