Free Fun Tasting - Follow Ups

Last Sunday my mom, my friend, Mallora (trailed by her two young kids) and I tried these wines on the weekend. Here's what we thought.

Mission Hill - Five Vineyards Pinot Grigio, $17
Starts with a light fruity nose, and ends with a long finish. This is nicely tart, and would be refreshing on a hot day, and a great accompaniment to seafood.

Quail's Gate - Chenin Blanc, 2006, $19
I really enjoyed the subtle complexity of this wine. There was a hint of warm toast from the oak, very bright citrus flavours, sweet honey, and balanced acidity. A winner.

Gehringer Brothers - Dry Rock Sauvignon Blanc, 2006, $16
Honeysuckle and nectarine nose that gave way cleaner, greener, more mineral flavours.

Summerhill - Gewurtraminer, 2006, $19
The very young CJ, and the even younger Maia got a little restless at this point, and we had to leave before trying this. Try this wine at Sip on Saturday. (See the Free Fun Tasting Alert posted today)

Yesterday, a friend and I tried Saturna Island wines.

Pinot Gris - 2005, $14
I enjoyed this wine with its honey and green melon flavours, and think it's a good value for the price. There are other BC Pinot Gris that I prefer, but they're all $8-$10 more. Available at Taylorwood and Liberty.

Un-oaked Chardonnay - 2005, $15
More good value here. There's a light toast to this wine, and plenty of fresh tangy flavours. For those who aren't fans of Chardonnay, or aren't into a lot of oak, this is a great one to try.

Pinot Noir - 2004 and 2005 $17
I really didn't enjoy either of these wines, but many other people have very good things to say about them. How boring would the world be if we all enjoyed the same wines? These Pinots are very light, and almost look rose due to the cool climate they're grown in. I found them sour and lacking in complexity, though they might pair well with a rich, fatty, chargrilled farmed salmon.

Check your local VQA store or specialty store (Liberty, Marquis) or click here to search for availability of these wines: http://www.bcliquorstores.com/en/customerservice/productsearch