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WINE OF THE WEEK: Haywire Secrest Mountain Chardonnay 2017, Okanagan, British Columbia, Canada

Aug 8, 2019

WINE OF THE WEEK: Haywire Secrest Mountain Chardonnay 2017, Okanagan, British Columbia, Canada

£19.99, Selfridges Visiting British Columbia’s breathtaking Okanagan Valley for the first time last year was one of the most eye-opening wine trips I’ve been on. There’s so much more to Canadian wine than Ice Wine. Read more about my trip here, but don’t stop at that: check out the wines Selfridges has this month in its special focus on Okanagan and Canadian wine. I could have chosen any number of varieties for this week’s wine (Grüner Veltliner, Pinot Noir…) but I’ve chosen

Discovering a little-known gem: Okanagan Valley, the world's northernmost wine region

Jul 26, 2018

Discovering a little-known gem: Okanagan Valley, the world's northernmost wine region

My first visit to Canada at the beginning of June took me to the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, the world’s northernmost wine region and one of its most beautiful, where seven wineries have joined forces in the Okanagan Wine Initiative to showcase this lake-side jewel Painted Rock Estate on the eastern shore of Skaha Lake, Okanagan Valley, unwilling provider of food for many a bear before it was fenced in Bear tastes like pork, only greasier, apparently, although it doe

The Next Big Thing...

Oct 7, 2016

The Next Big Thing...

This is the sort of piece I normally write at the close of the year, but I have more than enough material and deserving wines to mention already. Who knows how many more I may have by the end of the year? So, the next big thing in wine is? Well, goodness, don’t ask me. If I knew, I wouldn’t be sitting here telling you, I’d be making sure I was in on the action and the rewards. What I can say is that I seem to have had more frontier-breaking wines this year than ever. Admitted

Keep Up Your Strength: Festive Fortifieds

Dec 18, 2015

Keep Up Your Strength: Festive Fortifieds

Fortified wines are among the wine world's great bargains. They make excellent presents and it's worth pointing out here that the rare Terrantez Madeira and the Pedro Ximénez (aka PX) can be kept for months once opened (although the need may well not arise...). I have also included, below the four fortifieds, a gem of a Canadian Ice Wine. It, too, is a bargain. The fortifieds are listed in ascending order of sweetness, starting with a dry sherry. Watch out for last-order date