Category: Uncategorized

In the Spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love What’s missing here is that in actual fact man’s and woman’s thoughts turn to thoughts of spring wine releases. Like these delightful offerings from Poplar Grove. These wines are meant to be enjoyed now, whether you are sipping them on the patio…

A review by Kingston et al. (2025), published in the Journal of Soils and Sediments, found that integrating biochar with stable isotope techniques shows strong potential to enhance soil biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in regenerative viticulture under climate change while enabling improved monitoring of soil–plant–microbe interactions. Headline Findings Integrating biochar with stable isotope techniques offers…

In a 2024 study published in People and Nature, the authors found that regenerative vineyard practices—no-till and sheep grazing—rapidly but differently alter soil microbiomes, with no-till increasing microbial diversity and grazing enhancing microbial activity. Headline Findings No-till vs sheep grazing have different impacts No-till → increases microbial diversity Sheep grazing → boosts microbial activity/function Soil…

Reading Time: 4 minutes A fresh look at Blue Grouse Estate Winery’s 2024 white and rosé releases alongside a standout 2023 Cowichan Valley Pinot Noir. Vancouver Island continues to sharpen its identity in BC wine, and Blue Grouse Estate Winery is leading the charge. The latest releases highlight what the Cowichan Valley does best: freshness,…

This toolkit from the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance is designed to support winegrowers at every stage of their climate journey—whether they are just starting to explore how climate change may affect their business, already have strategies in place, or fall somewhere in between. Visit the “How to Use” page to find the most suitable starting…

Tasting the Harlan wines Monday, April 13th: A meeting at Ted Van Geest’s house regarding the Niagara wine project we’ve been working on. Ted always brings out good wines: Cloudsley Cellars Pinot Noir 2017 and Hidden Bench Roman’s Block Riesling 2017. Tuesday, April 14th: Dinner: Tasted wines from Hester Creek Estate in the Golden Mile…

April was officially declared BC Wine Month and  Gold Hill Estate Winery is the featured winery on Wine Club Canada this month. Here is a link to Wine Club Canada if you want to check them out. Please note that this month you can use Valerie10 to receive a 10% discount on new subscriptions. Here…

By Rick VanSickle The first time I met Dan Sullivan, he was on the deck of his retail facility overlooking his vineyard with a big glass of County Pinot Noir in his hands. That was way back in 2010, and in many ways, Prince Edward County was still a curiosity with a growing cult following…

From Tre Bicchieri tastings to limited-seat masterclasses, this event offers rare access to Italy’s leading producers For many, the Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri World Tour is defined by its walkaround tasting—a chance to sample some of Italy’s highest-rated wines in one place. But for those looking to go beyond the glass, this year’s Toronto stop…

This week we welcome a new contributor, Mitchell Rabinowitz. Watch for LEARNING ABOUT WINE every Monday. Why Should You Care How Old Vines Are? You should care about vine age when it tells you something concrete about how a vineyard behaves, how it handles difficult weather, and what kind of wine it can produce without…