It puzzled me for a long time, what terroir means in the minds of winemakers in the Okanagan. After all, they say it means the expression of the land and its aspect […]
North Okanagan Terroir
The Best Wine Takes Finesse
Grapes have the ability to deliver nutrients, water and sugar to any point in the plant at which they are needed. It’s not just a matter of raising the vines into the […]
Settler Culture = Terroir
Here’s the grape terroir in the Similkameen Valley. That’s right. There are no grape plants. They would die here. Should one plant them (and someone has across the road behind us), one […]
Of Wine, War and Peace
Wine is largely made in laboratories. What is grown in the field is grapes. The result is a decreased ability for the plant to distribute potassium where needed. The additional remove of […]
Definitely Not Terroir
I think there’s too much money in this country. Vineyards get draped to keep off birds. At the same time, a native berry, Oregon grape, goes through the winter without appreciable harm […]
Indigenous Life and Grapes
Riesling grapes are indigenous to the Rhine and the Mosel, but not to the Okanagan. Pinots are indigenous to the Rhône, but not to the Similkameen or the Shuswap. It’s just the […]
Voodoo Grapes in the Okanagan
Grape growing has its rituals. If you’re going to take a plant that roots itself as it tumbles down hot volcanic soils on river banks in humid Europe and move it around […]
Wild Currants are Ready
What I love about Pacific wild currants is that they taste as dry as the land on a hot day. Their sweetness is pale and their juice minimal, and yet if you […]
When Terroir is Terror
Isn’t it… … about time … … that the growing of … … wine grapes … … and the concept of terroir… … be separated … …completely and forever?
The Ethics of Talking About Wine in British Columbia
The Alumni Association of the University of British Columbia in the Canadian rain forest city of Vancouver is hosting a debate and wine tasting of wines from my valley, although the valley […]
Okanagan Okanogan 