Events

Monday February 16th is Family Day in BC.

Time to explore your home province.

Have fun!

It’s Mardi Gras! Put on some beads, don a mask, and laissez les bons temps rouler! Let the good times roll.  

Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is a terrific opportunity for chefs to showcase the best of Cajun cuisine. It is also an excuse for wine lovers to mix and match favourite wines with the hot-and-spicy flavours of the Bayou region.

Overall, white wines will be the most versatile for the majority of Cajun cuisine and Sauvignon Blanc is one of the best options you will come across. That doesn’t mean that reds are out of the question, something like a Pinot Noir or Shiraz would be a suitable choice.

It is hard to resist a sizzling bowl of gumbo filled with sausage, shrimp, or chicken. It is a Mardi Gras favourite and signature dish. And can handle either red or white wine.

If you are trying something seafood or shellfish based like catfish, shrimp creole, or a crawfish entree, stick with white wines. A Riesling or Gewurztraminer will work nicely with any Cajun seafood dish.

But, it’s OK to cheat on wine today! Try a Wild Hibiscus Flower Hurricane – they are amazing!

National Drink Wine Day is celebrated annually on February 18. 

The purpose of National Drink Wine Day is to spread the love and health benefits of wine. Wine has played an important part in history, religion, and relationships. We embrace the positive benefits of wine such as new friends, reduced risk of heart disease, and the enhancement of food and life.

If you needed an excuse to have a glass of wine, this is it. Cheers!

February 22 is National Margarita Day! Sip, Sip, Hooray!

Tequila, triple sec, lime juice, and ice are everything you’ll need to celebrate National Margarita Day – that and some good friends and delectable nibbles. Frozen or on the rocks, your choice. Saludos!

And BTW, it’s OK to cheat on wine today!

Since the millennium, one night in the dull, dark month of February has been immeasurably brightened for wine-lovers by the creation of a special day to celebrate cherished bottles of wine. The last Saturday of February each year is OPEN THAT BOTTLE NIGHT. We open that one and extraordinary bottle of wine we’ve been hiding from the world for so long. Whether it is your vintage wine, a very expensive or rare bottle, or a gift from someone special, Saturday February 28 is a perfect occasion to open that bottle and enjoy what’s been hidden inside. OPEN THAT BOTTLE NIGHT is dedicated to making sure that those bottles of fine wine put away for a special occasion, are used and enjoyed!

Open That Bottle Night has been celebrated on the last Saturday of February, every year since 1999. Begun by the then-Wall Street Journal Wine Columnists John Brecher and Dorothy Gaiter, the event has gone worldwide. It is a call to open that special bottle with friends and share the experience, instead of letting it continue to sit in the cellar. Click here for the full story.

This is the night to open those bottles you have been saving from each batch of wine you made over the years and experience for yourself the benefit of aging your home made wine. This year we are opening our last bottle of Private Reserve Limited Release Brunello (Bruno) bottled in October 2022.

Dorothy & John said (as did Maya to Miles in the movie Sideways) “We all tend to get it backwards, thinking that a special occasion requires a special wine. Actually, when we open a special wine, it makes the night a special occasion.” Simply put, opening the bottle IS the occasion. Enjoy your night and your bottle.

The Vancouver International Wine Festival is starting March 7 and runs until March 14.

We will be closing at 3 PM on Thursday March 12th to attend the general tasting.

The host country this year is France! And the Global Focus is Champagne!

There will be over 100 wineries from all over the world pouring their best wines.

Hope to see some of you there!