Everything Wine Magazine Issue 3

ISSUE #3Jul-Aug 2009

Dragonfly Hill Vineyards

Walking the CaminoA Pilgrim's Journey Across Spain

Taleggio

the lifestyle surrounding the glass

Everything Wine#131-2401 Millstream Road,

Langford, BC V9B 3R5(250) 474-3959

998 Marine DriveNorth Vancouver, BC V7P3C4

(604) 929-7277

www.everythingwine.ca

A Pilgrim's GlassEverything Wine's own Guy Dalcourt journeys across the North of Spain to explore the Camino de Santiago, as well as the wines along the way.

TaleggioThe supreme cheese of Northern Italy, Taleggio is stinkiness lurking behind a mild persona.

ContentsEditor

Jason Sych

Assistant EditorsJasmine O'Brien

Contributing WritersGuy Dalcourt

Dave RamsdenGina SavardJason Sych

Contributing PhotographerAdelio Trinidad

www.adeliotrinidad.com

E v E r y t h i n g W i n E M a g a z i n EJ u l / a u g 2 0 0 9 i s s u E 3

Dragonfly HillFrom grape growing to vinify-ing--one of Vancouver Island's own garragistes shares her views on wine, and what is im-portant to her vineyards.p.24

p.23

p.8

Questions or comments for Everything Wine

magazine?

Please forward any correspondence to

[email protected]

2

i'vE only bEEn to Spain once, and most of the time I don't even admit to it. My reluctance to admit to spending time in Spain is because for the three days I was on Spanish soil, I never left the centre of Barcelona. Of course, there was a rea-son...

When I travel, I spend a great deal of time learning about how a culture views food and wine. Understand a culture's table, and you're a good way along in understanding that culture. Mar-kets can't be beat for learning about how people relate to their food, and in Barcelona is the stunning Boqueria, a veritable food and wine heaven. The market itself is the size of a train station, and sells every manner of pro-duce, meat, fish, wine, charcuterie, and cheese under its gigantic roof. Walking in was like walking into a Blueray movie--everything seemed almost too vivid, too real, to be real.

At the front were the produce stands, full of so much fresh, local everything that any chef would ovulate just entering the market. But at the rear of the market, past

the produce, past the fish counters displaying more finned and tentacled things than I knew existed, were the food stalls, serving ev-erything from papas gadita-nas (small potatoes with saf-fron and pine nuts) to olleta de cordero (lamb braised with cured ham in red wine). Some stalls offered a coun-ter to sit and eat at, while at others you just took your cordero away on a heavy paper plate to eat while

leaning against a wall in the sunshine.My time at the Boqueria gave me a great snapshot of

the Catalan food culture. But to truly get an idea of any culture takes time, which is why the idea of a pilgrimage, such as the one featured in this issue, is so appealing. Walking through a country gives the time to breathe in that culture slowly; it allows time for not just one plate of cordero, but many plates, each slightly different, giving a broader picture of what cordero, and the culture that made it, is all about. Understand the cordero, and you'll understand the culture.

~Jason sych

DecantingA walk in the market


3

Click here to Searchover 3000 wines online

at www.everythingwine.ca

The vegetable stalls at the entrance to the Boqueria.

http://www.everythingwine.ca/Store-Locations

http://www.everythingwine.ca/Search-Wines

4 lostlast seen in my wine cellar on May 15, 2009, shortly before my son's May long weekend party.

If you've seen this bottle, or know its whereabouts, please call 555-8247 immediately.

Luckily, we have more. Because we truly are

The Cheese Plate....................................$46.99

WordsA caseophile shares his

passion

Max MccalMan, the maître fromager at the restaurants Picholine and Artisanal in New York, is an expert on cheese. He lives, breathes, and eats it in vast quantities; he has even coined the term "caseophile" to express how a love for cheese can be as envelop-ing as a love for wine. In The Cheese Plate, McCalman has put his experience, knowl-edge, and passion for cheese into a book any cheese lover will identify with.He begins with the basics of cheese: its his-tory, how it is made, the major families of cheese, and what it is that makes cheese so...cheesy. He continues with a guide on how to properly taste cheeses, how to recognize if cheeses are ripe or past their prime; how to pair wine with cheese; as well as giving a guide to some of the best cheeses in the world. Informative, insightful, and entertain-ing, this book is truly created for those who share McCalman's passion for cheese.

"Many of the best cheeses in the world smell like something you'd rather not have in your house; they taste strong and spoil quickly...They make us turn up our noses, crinkle our eyebrows, clack our gums, pucker our cheeks, reach for a glass of...something--anything. Some of them launch a sneak attack: they tiptoe across our tongues, then explode at the back of our mouths with a tangy wallop. Others mount a full frontal assault, then melt sub-limely away toward the back. In the end, the great ones always titillate our taste buds."

The photographs titillate as well; they almost constitute "cheese porn". In short...if you or someone you know loves cheese, this book is a must-have...in fact, its almost as enjoyable as spoiled milk.

~Jason sych


Jason sych, along with running the Vintage Room at the Vic-toria Millstream Everything Wine store also considers himself a caseophile...so much so that when he first came across that word, he didn't even have to look it up.

http://www.everythingwine.ca

7AccompanimentsE v E r y t h i n g W i n E M a g a z i n EJ u l / a u g 2 0 0 9 i s s u E 3

in thE WinE World it is normal to describe a wine’s balance and finish, to pay attention to the region in which the fruit

was grown, and to describe the nuances of taste and scent within the wine; not often do you do that when describing

a chocolate bar. But Thomas Haas choc-olates are not your run-of-the-mill choco-

late bars. A fourth-generation pastry chef from Germany, Haas has won numerous

worldwide accolades for his pastries, choco-lates, and desserts. In 2000, he and his wife

started their own business in Vancouver, with the goal to create the best chocolates from the

finest raw ingredients. All the recipes are hand crafted--no assembly lines or mass production--and

do not use any preservatives or artificial flavours. The bars were created with the focus on cocoa: its

origin, purity, and nuances of flavour. The beans for the chocolate are blended in the specific percentages

needed to achieve the desired finish. The 37 (each num-ber refers to the percentage of cocoa) is milk chocolate

yumminess (there's no other way to describe it); creamy with a nutty undertone, and a truly smooth finish. The 67 (my fa-

vourite) is a dark chocolate bar made from criollo and trinitar-io beans (two highly prized varietals of cocoa); robust and full

bodied, it carries hints of mango and banana on the nose. It's a true delight on its own, or with a glass of Amarone. Of course,

so is the 83, a dark chocolate filled with bold flavours of concen-trated fruit liquor and a dusty earthiness. Regardless of your choice, you won't go wrong with these fine chocolates. ~gina savard

Gina Savard is the Events Coordinator at the Millstream Everything Wine store, and has a secret love triangle--herself, chocolate, and Amarone.

Thomas Haas Chocolates..............................................$4.99

Ford Motor Cars has 41 Vintages.

We have roughly 684.

And ours are drinkable.

Come in and check out our Vintages room.

A Pilgrim's GlassthE caMino dE santiago runs 780 kilo-metres across northern Spain, winding its way through the wine and cuisine of countless towns, villages, and cities before reaching the Atlantic Ocean at Finisterre. Everything Wine's own Guy Dalcourt tied on his hiking boots, grabbed his pack, and headed down the road where the Camino passes though the wine regions of Ribera del Duero, Bierzo, and Galicia, experi-encing not only the culture of the pil-grim trail, but the culture of the wines, food, and people along the way.

by guy dalcourtPhotograPhs by guy dalcourt

& barry byErs

Santiago de CompostelaS S

O Cebreiro PrEcEEding PagEs: A view towards Santiago de Compostela from the ruins of an old villa.

abovE lEft: The stunted-looking Tempranillo vines of the Ribera del Duero.


hy thE caMino?

In 2001, when I turned 60, my inner voice kept asking, “ What next? If you look into the future what do you see?” I saw blurry visions of a sedentary old age, arthritic life on a sofa, and I thought that there had to be a different path for me; hence the walk along the Camino, a pil-grim road that [ would take me through three great wine regions of Spain], and ends at Santiago de Compostela, on the Atlantic coast.

I had, for quite some time, con-templated walking the Camino de Santiago in Northern Spain. Santiago, or St-James, is said to have visited Galicia: after being beheaded, his friends managed to sneak his body from Palestine, and took it to Northern Spain, or so the legend says. He was buried in Compostela, where he lay virtually forgotten for centu-ries. However, in the 9th century, the church seized on the idea of a pilgrimage to his tomb, to help


10 11

AMadrid

SBurgosCarrión de los Condes

S

Vega SiciliaPut ting Ribera del Duero

on the MapVega Sicilia is undoubtedly one of the greatest wines of Spain. A combination of exceptional artistry, marketing, and rarity, the wines of Vega Sicilia are among the most sought-after of the Ribera del Duero. Extremely low yields, late harvesting, and rigorous cellaring, ageing, and bottling prac-tices all help to create the legend surrounding this wine. The 1994 vintage of Vega Sicilia had to be recalled, due to a massive problem of cork taint. Since then, the wine makers at Vega have become obsessive about avoiding taint from any

source--even ensuring that the steel bands around the ageing barrels, the barrel wedges, and the barrel

palettes are all stainless steel. The Unico Gran Reserva is aged a minimum of 10 years be-

fore release, and is the hallmark of the Vega Sicilia brand. Riedel even pro-

duced a glass created especially for Vega Sicilia in 1995.

vEga sicilia unico gran rEsErva

1995$431.99

W

prevent the people of northern Spain from falling back on their pagan ways. The pilgrimage was a resounding success, and it is es-timated that upwards of 500,000 people walked the Camino in a span of 200 years. Today, there has been a revival of the camino walk, with close to 100,000 peo-ple making the trek each year. In 1982 the Pope paid a visit to Santiago de Compostela, and by 1993 UNESCO had added it to its World Heritage Site list.

i bEgan My trEk in suitable fashion: In the Barrio Antico, or historical centre, of Burgos, at a restaurant named Rincon de Espana. I was having my last “civilized” dinner, a meal that began with a cool gaz-pacho, followed by white aspara-gus covered in a warm béchamel sauce, followed by bacalao a la Viscania, a traditional dish of cod with julienned steamed vegeta-bles. Burgos lies in the region of Castilla y León, whose wine fame is usually associated with inexpen-sive reds; however, this region also produces crisp, clean whites and wonderful rosés. Naturally, I tried a wine I’d never had before, a bottle of a wonderful Rosado Pe-nascal, a rosé that was vibrant, re-freshing, and crisp. The pilgrimage is a journey of discovery, after all. “Let discovery be a key strategy for life,” I thought. From my table, I

looked onto the gothic Cathedral of Burgos--it was in the cathedral’s sacristy I had my pilgrim passport stamped to witness my point of departure on the pilgrim trail. The custom is that everywhere a pil-grim stops along the way, be it a restaurant, an albergue, or a cafe, they have their passport stamped to verify their pilgrimage. The fol-lowing morning my trek would start...but that night I enjoyed the wine, food, and atmosphere of Burgos.

duE south of my starting point lies the fastest developing wine re-gion of Spain, and the first region I would walk through. The Ribera del Duero is Spain’s premier wine region, producing such famous wines as Vega Sicilia, Pesquera, and Pingus. It averages about 1000 metres above sea level, and the summer temperature reaches extremes, with very hot days (up to 42 degrees), and cool nights. This provides the vines the po-tential to create wines with great structure and longevity. After a few days of walking through the blistering heat of the Ribera del Duero, I decided to have an-other last “civilized” dinner. Car-rion de los Condes is a small town about 75 kilometers west of Bur-gos, and it has where I arrived at night has an old Benedictine mon-astery, San Zoilo, whose construc-

tion began in 1076. It has recently been converted to an hotel with a 2-star restaurant that features wines primarily from the Ribera del Duero. I arrived at Carrion de los Condes at night, walking straight to the albergue (translation: a hos-tel for pilgrims that sleeps at least 10 to a room, with lots of snoring guaranteed) for a cold shower, and a fresh t-shirt. Suitably clean,

Gazpacho1 kg ripe tomatoes, de-seed-ed and skinned baguette, crust removed2 cloves garlic1 tbsp sherry vinegar cup extra virgin olive oilsugarsaltpeppergreen onoin tops

1. Crush garlic with a mortar and pestle, then combine with the tomatoes, diced bread, sherry vinegar, and olive oil in a food processor, and blend until very smooth, about 1 minutes.2. Taste, then adjust seasoning with the salt, sugar, and pep-per. Chill in fridge for at least an hour before serving.3. Garnish with sliced green onion tops.

13

E v E r y t h i n g W i n E M a g a z i n EJ u l / a u g 2 0 0 9 i s s u E 3 E v E r y t h i n g W i n E M a g a z i n EJ u l / a u g 2 0 0 9 i s s u E 3

14

Ensalada de Arrúgula y LangostinasArugula Salad with Langoustines

If arugula is out of season, this salad can be made by substituting mus-tard greens and baby lettuce for the arugula.

3 langoustines per person1 lemon1 cups white winelemon juice

sherry vinegarolive oilarugula (or other greens)chopped almonds

Combine the lemon and white wine in a pot large enough to hold the langouostines, then fill the pot full with water. Bring to a boil, then poach the langoustines until cooked, about two minutes. Remove from the water and place on a plate to cool slightly. Toss the arugula with the chopped almonds, place on a salad plate, and sprinkle with the oil and vinegar. Arrange the langoustines on top of the arugula, and enjoy.


I walked back through the streets of los Condes to San Zoilo for din-ner. I started with ensalada de arrúgula y langostinas, or a salad of arugula with langoustines. The wine list went on and on, and I distinctly remember selecting a bottle of Pesquera Crianza, which was outstanding. To this day I actu-ally cannot recall what I had for my main course that evening—which I blame directly on the wine.

Most meals, however, were not like this dinner. Usually a bunch of peregrinos would either eat at the albergue if there was a kitch-en, or go to the village restaurant where a menu for pilgrims ranged from 4 to 7 euros, often including a small pitcher of wine. The wine consumed at these pilgrim dinners was simply the local wine, no De-nominacion de Origen, no fancy pedigree--most times they usually came from a plastic drum under the counter—and no label. Most times they were very palatable as well, simple and without preten-sion. In other words, perfect for a pilgrimage, and perfect for shar-ing with others who are doing the same, because a great plus on the Camino is the opportunity to meet people from all over the world. One evening I had dinner with three other travelers: an Austra-lian, a Malaysian, and a Belgian. I rounded out the group, and kept referring to that evening as The


Four Continent Dinner. Our small pitchers of wine quickly became multiples thereof, as we listened to hilarious stories about the Belgian Navy (the total fleet, according to our expert in residence, is quite consistent—it has had in service, on average, somewhere between one submarine and none over the last 60 years).

during thE night in los Condes, however, despite the wonderful wine, I experienced anxiety at-tacks. Was I going to make it to Compostela, was I giving it my all? The Camino, as a pilgrimage, is truly a challenging experience, both physically and spiritually. That night I dreamt that my left foot had three large blisters. The dream was so vivid that the next morning I began walking with a limp.

The terrain began to get quite hilly the closer I neared Galicia, although noticeably more lush and green than the Ribera del Duero. And since the Camino is the same pilgrim trail that has existed for over 1000 years, it tends to follow the topography of the land—in other words, there is no highway cutting through the mountains here, or bridges spanning the valleys.

O Cebreiro is a lost village that sits around 1,300 metres up the side of a mountain. It is noteworthy because it has a collection of pal-lozas, oval stone houses with coni-


cal straw roofs, built by Celts in the Middle Ages. O Cebreiro also has the only pre-Romanesque church fully intact on the Camino route, as well as a lodging house for pilgrims that has been in operation since the ninth century. However, getting there is considered the most difficult ascent on the entire Camino. But it is worth the difficult climb, because when you get to the top and des-perately need a refreshing drink, you then realize the village is right in the middle of Bierzo, a somewhat lesser-known wine region. Lesser-known, but wonderful; Bierzo wines give many a cause to celebrate.

Bierzo is in the northwest corner of Castilla y Leon, and is half way between the dry heat of Ribera del Duero and the humidity of Gali-cia. The most dominant red grapes grown are Mencia and Alicante, and the white grape of choice is Palomino. The reds make fragrant and fruity wines that tend to age well in oak. They also lean more to-wards the rustic style of traditional Spanish wines, but are smooth and usually not more than 12% alcohol. These are very good, affordable wines that are unfortunately not very well known in Canada.

thE rEstaurant in o cErbrEio was serving the region’s wine but only joven, meaning a young wine made for immediate consumption. The jo-ven wines have not been oaked,


1716

making them light and refresh-ing, and not too acidic. Another reason O Cebreiro is worth the ascent is for the view. This is the boundary between Castilla y Leon and Galicia, and the views from O Cebreio are breathtaking—the dusty ruggedness of Castilla y Leon one way, and the lusher val-leys of Galicia in the other.

So now, with a glass of joven in my hand as I await dinner, I stand at the border of Galicia. Tomor-row I will set foot in it. I have now walked approximately 350 kilome-tres from Burgos, through both the Ribera del Duero, and into Bierzo. I am ahead of schedule to meet my wife, who is flying to Santiago to meet me, where we will spend time, exploring Galicia together. Next issue I will continue the Cami-no, telling more of Bierzo and the wine and food of Galicia. But for now, I will rest, look out over Gali-cia, and enjoy my simple joven.

~guy dalcourt

When you go...Walking the Camino--some things to know

Walking the Camino is more than just a long walk across Spain; it has been a spiritual quest, as much as a physical test, for centuries. The modern pilgrim trail traditionally begins in St. Jean Pied-de-Port, in the foothills of the Pyrenees just inside the French border. From there pilgrims cross the mountains into Spain. The journey across Spain takes around six to eight weeks to complete, and by the time a pilgrim reaches Santiago, they will have travelled over 780 kilometers.

To qualify for the Compostellana, the certificate which states a pilgrim has indeed traveled the Camino de Santiago (and thereby recieves a certain amount of time off purgatory), a pilgrim must travel by foot, horseback, or bicycle, and must travel at least 100km if walking, or 200km if traveling by horse or bicycle. As a pilgrim, the traveler is entitled, with the help of a 'pilgrim passport', to stay for free (or very cheaply) in the refugios operated by towns, churches and monestaries all along the Camino. Although the refugios are very basic and, at times, are nothing more than a place to put your sleeping bag, quite often they also include a home cooked meal for a very reason-able fee.

The Camino is traveled by all manner of people--young and old, fit and unfit, religious and not-so-much. Interestingly, the pilgrims that seem to have the most trouble finishing the route are the young ones, presumably because they try to finish the Camino too quickly. The key to the Camino is to slow down, and take it at a pace that allows you to experience the journey. And that very much includes the wine and food of the regions traveled through, as well as the scenery and history. Because as with any journey, the true enjoyment, and learning, is in the traveling.


Guy Dalcourt is a Sales Associate at the North Vancouver Every-thing Wine store. His favoourite Spanish wine is...well, all of them.

Previous page: The palozas of O Cebreiro, overlooking the valley towards Santiago de Compostela.

18

Ordering wine online is as simple as hitting a few keys.

Go to www.everythingwine.ca and have wine delivered right to your home.

Try it...you may never leave the house to buy wine again.


20 our wine associates can help you decipher the world of wine

better than this can.

Mainly because we can answer your questions.

Partly because we drink a lot.

And we truly love

Ribera del Duero & BierzoCeleste 2005 Crianza TempranilloLiquorice, black pepper, ripe blackberry and black cherry. Well balanced with good tannins, oak, and solid fruit. Full bodied with a long finish.$27.99

Aalto 2004 Crianza TempranilloRipe black fruit, floral notes, bacon, wood smoke, spicy tobacco. This wine is ex-ceptional: powerful, lay-ered, and complex.$74.99

Gormez 2007 TempranilloEarthy, spicy, with miner-als, dark plums and black currants. Medium bodied with light tannins and a pleasing, balanced finish.$19.99

Atalayas 2004TempranilloTraditional in style, with inky, dusty dark berries, cracked pepper, and vio-lets. Firm tannins with a long, meandering finish.$34.99

Legaris 2003 Crianza TempranilloSmooth, dark and rich. Black plums, blackber-ries, tobacco, coffee and subtle oak. Elegant tan-nins lead into a long finish tinged with vanilla.$27.99

Dominio de Atauta 2004 TempranilloTraditional style, with ex-pressive spice box, coffee, black cherry, and black-berry. Solid acidity and tannins make this wine elegant.$64.99

Luna Beberide 2006Mencia Red- and blackcurrants, white pepper, minerality, and smoked herbs. Light coffee on the nose, with soft tannins and a round finish.$17.99

Pittacum 2004 Mencia Blackberry, raspberry, li-quorice and subtle oak. Smoked herbs and spic-es with a hint of cocoa. Sweet tannins and an ex-pressive finish.$28.99


Palomero 1999 TempranilloAn exceptional, highly sought after wine, the Palomero carries a nose of cassis, earthy forest floor, blackberries, black cherries, espresso and spicy oak. The palate fol-lows suit, with a smooth yet complex flavour that is firm and powerful. Is drinking well now, but will continue to evolve over the next 5 years.$134.99



Taleggio

Right: It is innocent enough to look at, but the pungent scent of Taleggio can be surprising..

Cheese at a GlancePronunciation

Tah-LEdge-io

arEa of origin

Lombardia, Italy

stylE of chEEsE

Washed Rind Cow's Milk

flavour ProfilE

Rich, buttery, tangy and beefy; a mild palate despite its nose, which is reminiscent of a neglected gym sock. The cheese itself looks soft, delicate, and invit-ing yet this exterior hides a stinkiness most people find surprising given the look of the cheese.

WinE Pairing suggEstions

riEsling sPätlEsE

barbEra d'asti

dolcEtto

subliME, softly PErfuMEd, regal, and carrying an indomitable character--like a cheese version of Audrey Hepburn--Taleggio has somehow been able to maintain a measure of secrecy in its ex-istence; it is truly one of the undiscovered secrets of the cheese counter. Ranging from tangy to buttery in flavour, true Taleggio is made from the unpasteurized milk of the Valtellina cow of Lombar-dia, which gives it a resulting depth and complexity of flavour that surpasses that of cheeses made from the milk of other breeds. It is still traditionally aged in underground caves, and gets washed weekly with a brine while maturing to develop a beneficial mold that is gently pressed back into the cheese surface, creating much of the pungency this cheese is noted for.

Taleggio is a wonderful cheese for eating on its own; however it also pairs beautifully with arugula, olives, polenta, and crusty, rus-tic bread. Another skill of Taleggio is its ability to melt; perfect for

an ingredient in risotto, or to top a pizza, Taleg-gio often finds its way into the regional dishes of Lombardia--and for good reason.

~Jason Sych

The Perfection of Stink

23

http://www.charellis.com

Dragonfly HillVineyard

Almost hidden away along the gentle hills of Saanich, a grape grower is creat-ing wines of distinction and character--and shows how the essence of a wine

lives within the vineyard.

by Jason sych

Photos by adElio trinidad

26

E v E r y t h i n g W i n E M a g a z i n EJ u l / a u g 2 0 0 9 i s s u E 3 E v E r y t h i n g W i n E M a g a z i n EJ u l / a u g 2 0 0 9 i s s u E 3

27

Previous Pages: Carol Wallace explains how grapevines need to be trained in the vineyard.

Below Left: Carol in her tank room, enjoying a sample of her Cabernet Sauvignon from the 2007 harvest.

Below: The ground cloth used to minimize weeds along the rows of vines.

Following Pages: The young vines of La Belle and St. Laurent await pa-tiently to be planted in the vineyard.

bout 16 kiloMEtrEs outside Victoria, just off of rolling, winding Old West Saanich Road, lies a se-ries of ponds that ring the bottom of a property. The ponds look like your average ponds—covered with lily pads, trees that overhang and hide the watery edges, and a cacophony of singing frogs at dusk—but these particular ponds also have a secret life. They are the breeding ground for innumer-able dragonflies that come forth each year to fly silently on their four wings, capturing the atten-tion of those they pass with their distinctive shape and metallic colouring. They go to feast on whatever bugs it is that drag-onflies feast on (I know mosqui-toes are on the dragonfly menu, which is fantastic as far as I am concerned), and in so doing cre-ate a better life for us; less pests to make us itch, plus the child-like enjoyment of seeing a dragonfly whizz past, hover, and then dart away. It was these dragonflies that Carol Wallace thought of when she needed a name for her wine estate, situated at the top of the hill overlooking the ponds. They are a great symbol for both Carol and the wines of Dragonfly Hill Vineyard—bright, colourful, energetic, and dynamic.

carol, thE oWnEr and opera-tor of the vineyard, is a down-to-earth, laid-back, self-proclaimed

grape grower, met me outside the door to her “wine facility” (a small out building next to her house that serves as both tank room, bottling room, case storage site, and tast-ing room), on the dusty driveway that lead down to those dragonfly ponds. Seemingly ever relaxed, Carol doesn’t quite fit the image of the sort of person everyone imagines a wine maker to be. But then, she never really does refer to herself as a wine maker. She’s a grape grower, through and through, and happily admits it.

“We’ve been growing grapes for sixteen years,” she says, lead-ing the way towards a group of potted baby vines, all stand-ing like a platoon of kindergart-ners before the teacher. “I’ve sold grapes to Glenterra up in Cobble Hill, they bought my first crop., then Chalet Estate for sev-eral years, and then Salt Spring Vineyards. And then in 2005 we started making our own wine.”

The platoon of grapevines are a hybrid called “La Belle”, and another varietal named “St. Lau-

A rent”. Both are red grapes, and both are suited for cooler-climate vineyards. These early-ripening grapes hold great promise for the climate of Vancouver Is-land, and Carol will be tending the new grapevines to see how they perform in the vineyards at Dragonfly Hill, a job she seems to be looking forward to. And the vines themselves seem to be destined to succeed here; as it was pointed out to Carol by a close friend, the name La Belle means “dragonfly” in Dutch (al-

though it is spelled “libel”, it is pronounced the same). Some-times, things are just meant to be.

sErEndiPity asidE, the vines that are closest to Carol are undoubt-edly her white grape vines: the Ortega and Auxerrois that she grows on a gently sloping hill above the ponds. With these grapes she creates Dragonfly Hill’s signature wine, a dry, per-fumed blend that combines Or-tega’s fruit with the floral notes of the Auxerrois. The two varietals

28

E v E r y t h i n g W i n E M a g a z i n EM a y / J u n 2 0 0 9 i s s u E 2

30 31

Click here to Searchover 3000 wines online

at www.everythingwine.ca

are very different on the palate, yet the blend works well. Even in the vineyard, the vines them-selves are diverse, as distinct visu-ally as they are in taste, even to the untrained eye. The Ortega seems to grow haphazardly, tufts of leaves and shoots erupting er-ratically, whereas the Auxerrois seems neat, regimented and or-ganized in comparison. Pointing to the Ortega, Carol muses, “Well, these are Italian. And these,” she says, pointing to the Auxerrois, “Are French. Macho...gay. These [the Ortega] get a lot of growth, a lot of fruit, the stalks are really heavy...it’s just so muscular. And with the Auxerrois...they just grow straight up. They’re all nicely spaced, the shoots, the fruit...if I didn’t do anything to them, they’d be fine.”

Of course, a lot does have to be done to the vines, even ones as organized as Auxxerois. Grape vines, as prolific as they are, need to be trained and tended to en-sure the quality of the fruit is high enough to make a brilliant wine.

This is where Carol’s experience as a grape grower comes into play, giving her the knowledge necessary to coax the most from her vines. She places an emphasis on utilizing organic and sustainable practices in the vineyard to ensure that it not only continues to grow each year, but acts as a wellspring of nutrients that nourishes the land as it grows, rather than depleting it. Black ground cloth runs be-neath each row of vines, effective-ly eliminating the need for weed killers and chemicals, as well as tractor-driven weeding equipment. So all the thinning, the removal of shoots, and nixing the few weeds that do manage to grow through the ground cloth is done by hand. And each grassy row between the vines has a unique feature—a punk rock haircut. Grasses and native plants are allowed to grow in a centre strip down each row, act-ing as a catch for the grass that does get cut, where it can natu-rally break down and re-fertilize the ground. “And, it’s a place for

all the little creatures to go when there’s something going on, like spraying. There’s snakes in here, spiders, beneficial types of crit-ters...this is their little hiding space.”

And speaking of critters, we must not forget Carol's sheep.

“At this time of year they can’t come in the vineyard...as soon as we harvest, we open the gate and they come in all winter long. And they’re really happy...all the grass is really nice, all the grapes that have fallen...they have a hey-day, and they fertil-ize. They fertilize all winter long.”

if thE ortEga-auxErrois is the wine closest to Carol’s heart, her Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon blend must be closest to her soul. Rich, harmonious, and unpreten-tious, Carol's red blend demon-strates how her patience as a grape grower influences her wine, creating a dynamic, round and fla-vourful wine. I mention patience because Carol will not release her wines before she thinks they

are ready to go out into the world, even if it means she must sit on a vintage while it works through its growing pains. This means that her wines, upon release, are ready to be enjoyed. The 2006 Merlot-Cabernet spent a full year in bar-rel and another year in stainless steel tanks, before being blended and bottled. Its nose is rich with black fruits, plums and berries, with pleasant oak, mocha, and fine tannins rounding out the palate. The 2007, still sorting itself out in stainless steel tanks, has the same hallmarks of the 2006—still a bit

sharp and unorganized to taste, but without doubt showing the po-tential of becoming as full and fla-vourful as the 2006. And this is quite an achievement for someone who admits to having little practi-cal experience with wine making.

“I didn’t become a winery own-er because I’m a wine snob...I be-came a winery owner because I’m a grape grower, and it was a step,” Carol says, somewhat thoughtful. “A step into the unknown, really.”


Ortega/Auxerrois NV

The signature blend for Dragonfly Hill, with hints of citrus and honeysuckle. Crisp, smooth, with a finish of green apples. $21.99

Chardonnay 2007

A subtle Char-donnay with just a hint of buttery oak. Ripe stone and exotic fruit share place with pleasant florals on the nose and palate. $18.99

Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

A stunning blend, harmonizing the fruit of Merlot and the structure of Cab-ernet; full of plums, cassis, and cedar wood. $28.99

Bumbleberry 2007

Over 9 differ-ent fruits went into the blend to cre-ate a light, sweet-yet-tart wine that pairs well with any chocolate dessert you could think of.

Jason Sych is the Editor and writes for Everything Wine Magazine. He also manages to taste wine every now and then--but just so he can write about it.


http://www.everythingwine.ca/Search-Wines

32

Last issue, Dave Ramsden gave us a taste of the Cinque Stelle wine tour in Tuscany; this issue Dave takes us further up the mountain, to where the other half of the tour awaits.

aftEr thE cinquE stEllE, we drove further up the mountain, hit-ting snow two-thirds of the way to our destination. We remained un-daunted. At the top of the pass sat a chalet, our next stop on the tour. As it was shortly before Christmas, and there was to be a large feast that evening, we naturally ordered the meal-of-the-day at the chalet. This consisted of bread, chunks of Parmigiano, tiny marinated porcini, genuine Parma prosciutto, and of course, a beautiful dry white wine. The Parma ham is pink and melts in your mouth, awesomely delicious, and nothing like I’d ever had before. The second course is, naturally, more wine, along with a wonderful torte baked from hazelnut flour, which is ground from the nuts of the trees which grow in profusion in the area.

Many Italians still make their own wine, and often have a still into which they put their failures. After distillation, they mix the resulting alcohol with fresh fruit to make many kinds of liqueurs; to finish off the meal, the owners of the chalet brought out Fragolino, a liqueur made from local wild strawberries. An explosion of summer flavour in the mouth awaits; and being Italy, the meal was washed down with a great espresso.

As we headed back down the mountain, the sun had set and the Cinque Stella was packed (men only, they say). Build it and they will come. But before we headed home

for the evening meal, we visited a couple of other places down the valley for more wine and socializ-ing. They all served brilliant wine, but none had the character of the first two. And after we visited those few places...we visited a few more.

Such were the days we spent before Christmas in Italy. The house we were staying at, in Pontremoli, was right in front of the cathedral. And on Christmas Eve, while ev-eryone is getting ready for mid-night mass and dinner afterwards, the men headed out around seven in the evening for the bar a few doors down from the church. Not even on Christmas Eve could the cantina tours be forgotten.

So picture a large room with a vaulted stone ceiling, a giant fire

blazing in the wooden stove at one end, suffusing an inde-scribable warmth over everything. Imagine long wooden tables of fifteen or more men and women laughing and sipping white and red wine from small tumblers while free food, homemade salami, prosciutto, and bread is brought out to the tables. Then imagine as four men silently stand at their table, and begin to sing a cappela in beautiful harmony, their songs for the coming service.

Now that's a cantina tour.~davE raMsdEn

On the Road...Cantina Tours in Tuscany, Continued

by Dave Ramsden

Have a wine story to share? Send us your stories and we'll choose one to feature at the end of each issue. Stories can be emailed to [email protected], with the caption "Wine Story" in the subject line.

See your story here, next issue!


Dave Ramsden started his career in science, but turned to trading stocks online during the Tech Boom, which he survived. He has discov-ered that white wines can be really good, particularly if they have a Grand Cru designation. He still trades online, and having survived an-other big crash, is now a trusted name in finance (last man standing).

The start of the post-cantina tour feast.

Documents

Everything Wine Magazine Issue 3