MyWinePal

This April, Port Moody’s Pizzeria Spacca Napoli marks 10 years of wood-fired Neapolitan craft – a milestone that arrives with a new addition to the kitchen and two firsts for the restaurant. Recently arrived from Naples, pizzaiolo Salvatore Russo brings more than 25 years of experience in Neapolitan pizzerias, including overseeing multiple kitchens. His arrival deepens a program already rooted in traditional…

I spent Friday afternoon at the Vancouver International Wine Festival 2026 tasting French red wines.  Here are my favourite French wines from the International Festival Tasting Room.  There is a fairly even distribution of red wines from different regions of France (and therefore different varietals) in my picks below.  Enjoy. My French Red Wine Selections Castel Frères Exclusive Aspirant de…

For my Ontario Chardonnay Review, Cave Spring Vineyard sent me four bottles of their various Chardonnay wines.  In my previous article I reviewed two of the wines and I am now reviewing the remaining two wines.  This winery is one of the pioneers in the area, having been around for four decades.  They are certified by Sustainable Winegrowing Ontario and…

Many people imagine Champagne as a pale lemon-coloured wine with fine bubbles and some combination of aromas and flavours of citrus, apple, nuts, oak, and brioche. But, Champagne is also available as a Rosé wine, giving it a different flavour profile, typically of red fruits, a little more body, and larger bubbles, from the use of Pinot Noir as the…

We are back to estate grown BC grapes for the 2025 vintage.  It was a great year for our wine grapes, producing a bumper crop for all vineyards.  I have two white wines from Okanagan’s Hester Creek Estate Winery; their Hester Creek Estate Winery Character White 2025, a white blend containing Gewürztraminer, Viognier, and Pinot Gris, and Hester Creek Estate…

When I was contacted to see if I was interested to review this book, 100 Things to Do in Vancouver Before You Die, by Kathryn Anderson, I could not say no, as I’ve been a Vancouverite for 38 years as an adult, and counting.  What new gems may I find within these pages that I did not already know about?…

My interviews in the past for Vancouver International wine Festivals have always been with winery principals, but at the Festival this year, I came across Chocolats Favoris, offering Canadian-made chocolates, so had to interview them.  Owned and operated by Patrick Robert and Paul Codilla, in Gastown, they had a booth at the International Festival Tasting Room where you could sample…

My next set of Ontario Chardonnay wines to review comes from Cave Spring Vineyard.  This winery is one of the pioneers in the area, having been around for four decades.  They are certified by Sustainable Winegrowing Ontario and their wines are also vegan-friendly.  The two wines I received to review are Cave Spring Vineyard Chardonnay 2024 (coming from a selection…

On a lighter tone, at VanWineFest 2026, I had a chance to attend a walk-about lunch at LaSalle College Vancouver; French bistro fare prepared and served by LaSalle students, while sampling a selection of French wines representing seven French wine regions.  Below is a list of the French wines followed by the menu.  No wine reviews here, just some general…

Do you know about the long history of Domaine Laroche in Chablis, France?  I interviewed Romain Chevrolat from Domaine Laroche in the International Festival Tasting Room during the Vancouver International Wine Festival 2026.  Listen in as Romain tells us about their winery.  He makes fantastic wines, BTW.