A tribute to British Columbia wine icon Harry McWatters; rosé for fall; meet the new owners at Vines Wine Merchants and the Wine Maven Calendar.
by Mary Bailey
Steve Richmond and William Bincoletto are the new operators of Vines Wine Merchants in Riverbend. They bought out former owner Dave Gummer earlier this summer. He had opened the store in 2004, the first fine wine shop in south west Edmonton. Both William and Steve joined in the fall of 2006. “We are extremely excited to be in this new venture,” says William. “Our job is to make sure we continue what Dave did so well—to continue his legacy of professionalism, with the customer always at the top of the pyramid,” says William. “The whisky wall was Steve’s idea, and we have over 300 spirits from $50-$25,000—those kinds of products are really hard to find. Being Italian, I’m very proud of our Italian section. And we are looking at new things, like natural wines. I have to open my eyes to new possibilities.
“Wine is my life, my soul,” says William. “It’s my 46th year in wine since I took sommelier training in Paris. I was there during the Judgement of Paris—I used to shop at Steven Spurrier’s store!”
No need to put away the pinks, we might get some rosé drinking weather yet. The Gerard Bertrand Gris Blanc IGP Pays D’oc Rosé is everything you want in a rosé from the south of France—pale coral colour, bone dry, delicate berry flavours. Drink with crudité and hummus and think of the beach.
Pink cava can often be too sweet and quite ordinary. Not this cava. The Roger Goulart Coral Rosé Cava possesses a fine bubble with fresh persistent flavours of strawberries and cream. The Grenache and Pinot Noir blend has brut level sweetness (8g/l), yet presents dry due to the lovely acidity.
It spends nine months on the lees which creates less toastiness and more fruitiness. Think brunch, aperitif, fall weddings, popcorn.
Mt Boucherie’s 2017 Merlot will keep your guests happy. It’s an ideal wine for fall, with its gentle tannins and sumptuous mouth feel.
The fruit is from sites in Okanagan Falls, South Cawston and Osoyoos. It offers lots of dark fruit Merlot character—black cherry and chocolate, with plummy spice notes, medium acidity and a fairly long finish.
If you love Chenin Blanc, or Gruner or Verdejo, Godello needs to be in your refrigerator. Dry, with citrus and floral aromas, a hit of salinity and a minerally backbone. Bonus—the pleasingly dense texture and long finish. Godello, a white grape native to Galicia in northwest Spain, is being brought back from obscurity by a few growers and winemakers. The Pagos de Galir Godello is a relatively new-to-the-market bottling, ideal with vegetables like squash or pumpkin and fried bits.
Harry McWatters died in his Summerland home on July 23. He was 74. Harry was an indefatigable supporter of BC wine since 1968. He founded Sumac Ridge Estate Winery in 1980, where he released Canada’s first traditional method sparkling wine, and See Ya Later Ranch Estate in 1994. After selling both to Vincor in 2000, he stayed on as president of the wineries and VP of Vincor, then launched Vintage Consulting in 2008, which led to Time, Evolve Cellars and the McWatters Collection.
Harry moved things forward. As founding chair of the British Columbia Wine Institute, which led to the creation of VQA Canada, he was instrumental in creating change that allowed BC estate wineries to grow and prosper.
Harry celebrated his 50th vintage in 2017. He was a true advocate for BC wine. He was a great guy to be around—always ready with a quip, a quote, or a laugh. Condolences to his family, his friends and his colleagues.
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Event Calendar |
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Thu, Sep 5 Wed, Sep 11 Thu, Sep 12 Fri, Sep 13 & Sat, Sep 14 Fri, Sep 13 Fri, Sep 13 Sat, Sep 14 Sat, Sep 14 Tue, Sep 17 Wed, Sep 18 Wed, Sep 18 Thu, Sep 19 Fri, Sep 20; Sat, Sep 21 |
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