William Pollard Jr | aka: Wild 4 Washington Wine

You are such a tease BC wine. Friendly, approachable, desirable and delicious. I was dazzled by your beauty, style, varieties and classiness. You won me over quickly. My heart still flutters just thinking about your tasty qualities on my lips Bench 1775 Chill . I miss swirling you in my mouth, sipping of your delectable charms. And charms aplenty you are conferred; you are a tease Hainle Vineyards Gewurztraminer Ice Wine .

2013 Vancouver International Wine Festival. After the morning  Blind Tasting Challenge , the kind people at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts called a taxi for me. They bundled me up with a bag and a bottle of Mission Hill wine. Away I went, back to my hotel. I dropped off a few items in my room, put the bottle of wine in the fridge for later and prepared to meet a BC wine friend for lunch. Weeks before the Vancouver International Wine Festival (VIWF), I began engaging with Canadian bloggers and wine tweeters. Specifically, those going to the VIWF, those going to the 2013 Wine Bloggers Conference in Penticton, BC and those tweeting about BC Wine.

More from the week of the Vancouver International Wine Festival . Wednesday morning I caught a taxi across the street from the Riviera hotel. There were almost always taxi's lined up across the street. Very convenient. With a full day ahead of me, my first destination was the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts . My appointment was for the 9:30 am Blind Tasting Challenge. photo: Bistro 101 and the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts. The facility for the Blind Tasting Challenge was Bistro 101 at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts (PICA). Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts is located on the south shore of False Creek, near the heart of Downtown Vancouver, by the gateway to Granville Island.

2013 Vancouver International Wine Festival. After an enjoyable interview with Sandra O'Connell , I went for a walk. Tuesday was the only day I had no Wine Festival activities scheduled. My morning interview accomplished, the afternoon interview not until 5:00 pm, I had time to explore Vancouver. Friday night I would need to be in Chinatown for another interview at the Keefer Bar . So I thought, why not walk to the Keefer Bar during the day to see where it was? photo: Media Club - Live Music Lounge. photo: Queen Elizabeth Theatre. With a light rain falling, my first destination on my walk was the  Media Club  on Cambie Street. I had tickets for the Wednesday night show featuring “Deep Sea Diver”  and “Hey Marseilles” both Indie bands. (I ended up missing the show, but I didn't know that Tuesday.) The Media Club 695 Cambie Street at Georgia Vancouver, BC http://www.themediaclub.ca The Media Club is across the street from CBC Radio Canada, behin...

Conversations via 2013 Vancouver International Wine Festival. Photo: Sandra O'Connell. Sandra O'Connell is a writer and a storyteller. She writes for her blog “ Tales From a Bar Stool ” She poses the question, “...why don’t people talk to each other anymore? Strangers don’t equal danger. Too often we surround ourselves with friends yet fail to meet the unknown. We put up barriers to the very people we can learn from and be inspired by. People enrich our lives. It’d be silly not to meet more.” Taking her words to heart, I contacted Sandra for an interview before I arrived in Vancouver for the International Wine Festival . She agreed. Sandra shared a lot of information with me, especially her favorite places to eat. At the bottom of this article you will find a list of the places she mentioned. Last week, at 10 am Tuesday morning, I met Sandra at BLENZ Coffee on the corner of Robson and Bute. We talked for an hour. BLENZ coffee had a good selection of coffee, c...

Drive + Hotel + Wine Reception + Review: Blasted Church 2010 Cabernet Merlot Monday, 25 February, I rose early for the 360 mile drive to Canada. I had been invited to attend the 35th Vancouver International Wine Festival in the lovely city of Vancouver, British Columbia. I was out the door and driving by 7:15 am. This was not my first visit to Vancouver. My first visit was in 1973, I was eleven years old. We lived in Seattle, so that drive took only two hours. Over the years I've visited Vancouver many more times. Although I've seen the city transformed over four decades, it remains one of my favorite cities in the world. For me, it's up there with London and San Francisco. I was eager to return. The drive was mostly uneventful; I stopped in Ellensburg and Bellingham for gas. A bad snow storm on Snoqualmie Pass made me grateful for purchasing Winter tires in January. The border crossing at Blaine went smooth and took no more than ten minutes in the queue. * Tip 1: ...

Last week I attended the 35th Vancouver International Wine Festival (VIWF) in Vancouver, British Columbia. With 175 participating wineries from 15 countries, I was invited to attend as a representative of my New Zealand wine blog Kiwi Daydreaming . Grant Bellvé, export manager for Tyrrell's Wines in Australia's Hunter Valley. The reveal at the Blind Tasting Challenge. A lovely Syrah. The VIWF is a fundraiser for the “Bard on the Beach” Shakespeare Festival. Bard on the Beach is one of Canada's largest not for profit professional Shakespeare Festival. In addition, many other activities are offered; opera concerts, workshops, lectures and forums. A wonderful venue for locals and tourists. Make your plans now. The 2013 season is June 12 – September 14, 2013. Tickets go on sale starting April 8. Discover California Wine. Each year the VIWF has a theme, this years regional theme was California wine, with a global focus on Chardonnay. California wines were strong...

photo: Blasted Church Cabernet Merlot. One of the coolest wine labels. "The plan called for a controlled blast of four dynamite sticks inside the church in order to "loosen the nails". Odd as it may seem, the explosion spared the wood from damage during dismantling. Save for losing the steeple, the plan succeeded. Now, the 120 year old wooden church stands proudly in its second home of Okanagan Falls." A few years ago in Vancouver, British Columbia, my waiter at dinner introduced me to Blasted Church wines. "Pour me something local and good." Is what I asked for, he delivered. "Show me the bottle." Was my next request. I've been a fan since. Love the design of their label too. It is nearly impossible to find wines from British Columbia/Okanagan Valley in Washington. I'm told trade tariffs make it prohibitively expensive. Shame. The next time you are visiting Canada, go on the hunt for Blasted Church wines. You will be rewarded by ...