Lieutenant Governor’s Awards For Excellence In British Columbia Wines

Canada > Archive by tag 'Lieutenant Governor's Awards for Excellence in British Columbia Wines'

Lieutenant Governor’s Awards for Excellence in British Columbia Wines

Hot Dining: Dazzling Drops

Winning bottles of the 2011 Lieutenant Governor's Awards for Excellence. Photo by Tim Pawsey

Looking for the best of BC wines? Search out these winners of the 2011 Lieutenant Governor’s Awards for Excellence at local wine shops and liquor stores.

Howling Bluff Estate Winery 2009 Pinot Noir

Laughing Stock Vineyards 2010 Pinot Gris

Mt. Lehman Winery 2010 Viognier Reserve

Quinta Ferreira Estate Winery 2008 Syrah

Red Rooster Winery 2008 Meritage

Sandhill Wines 2009 Small Lots Syrah

St. Hubertus and Oak Bay Estate Winery 2009 Dry Riesling

Stoneboat Vineyards 2009 Pinot Noir

Sumac Ridge Estate Winery 2006 Steller’s Jay Brut

Volcanic Hills Estate Winery 2010 Rosé

Wild Goose Vineyards and Winery 2010 Mystic River Pinot Blanc

—Tim Pawsey

Hot Dining: Victorious Vintages

Sandhill is a popular BC wine label

Hard to find but worth the search in local wine stores: the just-announced Lieutenant Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the BC Wine Industry.

Desert Hills Gamay Noir 2009
Foxtrot Pinot Noir 2007
Gray Monk Odyssey Brut 2007
Inniskillin Okanagan Discovery Series Sangiovese 2007
Pentage Gerwurztraminer 2009
Painted Rock Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
Painted Rock Red Icon Blend 2007
Peller Estates Private Reserve Riesling 2008
Poplar Grove Syrah 2007
Sandhill Single Block Merlot 2007 (pictured)
Van Western Vino Grigio 2008
—Tim Pawsey

Hot Dining: BC Uncorked

View of Okanagan Lake and vineyards near Naramata. Photo by Don Weixl courtesy Tourism BC

Fruit-forward, food-friendly BC wines continue to surprise and delight, winning medals in prestigious competitions from San Francisco to London and beyond. Most grapes are grown in the picturesque Okanagan Valley (a five-hour drive east of Vancouver), with varieties ranging from cool-climate Germanics, Burgundians such as Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and Rhone and Bordeaux styles from the semi-arid, desert south. Names to watch for include majors such as Jackson-Triggs, Inniskillin Okanagan, Mission Hill Family Estate, Sumac Ridge Estate Winery and Sandhill, as well as producers such as Blue Mountain Vineyard Cellars, Black Hills Estate Winery and Laughing Stock Vineyards, along with any number of smaller, family wineries. Winners of the 2009 Lieutenant Governor’s Awards for Excellence in British Columbia Wines, a keenly contested competition, were Bounty Cellars 2007 Pinot Blanc; Cedar Creek Estate 2006 Platinum Reserve Merlot; Church & State 2006 Syrah; Howling Bluff 2006 Pinot Noir; Joie 2007 Reserve Chardonnay and Joie 2008 Riesling; Peller Estates 2007 Private Reserve Pinot Noir; Road 13 2006 Fifth Element Meritage; Sandhill 2007 Small Lots Syrah; See Ya Later Ranch 2008 Gewurztraminer; Stoneboat 2007 Pinotage; Wild Goose 2008 Pinot Gris. At local liquor stores.—Tim Pawsey