wine

Champagne Sabrage at Wine Access

Posted July 27th, 2010 09:07 by The Editors

We’ve started a bit of a Friday tradition, here at Wine Access HQ, of doing something fun and wine-related to wrap up the week. This week, we learned how to sabre Champagne/sparkling wine, the fine art of sabrage.

If you’re a wine aficionado, you probably know what sabrage is and you may even know how to do it. For those of you who are new to wine, sabrage is when you use a sabre or knife to cut the top off of a bottle of sparkling wine, separating the collar from the neck of the bottle.

Champagne Sabrage at Wine Access's blog

Champagne sabrage sabre sparkling wine wine Wine Access

Make Time for Calgary’s Vine and Dine

Posted July 13th, 2010 08:07 by Tom Firth

I finally got the chance to go to Vine and Dine the other night and was suitably impressed. For those that might not be familiar with Vine and Dine, this is a series of year-round Calgary dinner events hosted by CBC Radio’s Linda Garson. Vine and Dine puts together an evening centered around a multi-course meal that is paired with appropriate wines.

No Time for Bad Wine's blog

Calgary CBC Radio Dine Escoba food Linda Garson pairing Vine wine

Behind the Scenes at the IVWA

Posted July 5th, 2010 12:07 by Tom Firth

My primary role at Wine Access is to manage and produce our two wine competitions, the Wine Access International Value Wine Awards (IVWA) and the Wine Access Canadian Wine Awards (CWA). While very similar in most respects, they are unique in their own ways.

No Time for Bad Wine's blog

behind the scenes competition International Value Wine Awards IVWA wine

I Know the Value Wines: Can I Buy Them?

Posted June 28th, 2010 11:06 by Craig Pinhey

I just received my judge’s binder from the International Value Wine Awards, with my scores and the names of the wines that I tasted. Now it is time to go through it and find the wines that I liked, that I can actually buy. There aren't many, sadly.

Craig Pinhey's blog

Atlantic Canada International Value Wine Awards sommelier wine wine purchasing

Great Wines from the Austrian Wine Tasting

Posted June 23rd, 2010 08:06 by Tom Firth

I had the opportunity to attend a tasting of Austrian wines hosted by Christian Finz, formerly with the Austrian Wine group, who is based in Calgary with the beverage importer Delancy Direct.

In my last blog post, I highlighted a couple of wines that I enjoyed from the evening. Here are a few more to round out the list.

Loimer Grüner-Veltliner Reserve Terrassen-Kamptal DAC 2008

No Time for Bad Wine's blog

Austria Calgary Grüner-Veltliner Kamptal Kremstal Riesling Thermal wine Wine Meetup Zweigelt

Österreich Wein: You’ll love it

Posted June 22nd, 2010 10:06 by Tom Firth

In late May, I was able to enjoy yet another fantastic wine tasting that rarely comes along. On May 20, I was the guest of the Calgary Wine Meetup Group, which is a social group that gets together to taste and enjoy wine. With over 256 members, it is one of the largest of its kind in Canada. The wines tasted that evening were a number of interesting and rare Austrian wines.

No Time for Bad Wine's blog

Austria Calgary Grüner-Veltliner Kamptal Kremstal Riesling Thermal wine Wine Meetup Zweigelt

Judging at the IVWA

Posted June 21st, 2010 10:06 by Craig Pinhey

This past week, I've been in Calgary judging at the Wine Access International Value Wine Awards (IVWA). This annual competition attracts over 1000 entries from all over the world and the only requirement is that the wines are available for under $25 somewhere in Canuckland, making them a good value wine.

Craig Pinhey's blog

Atlantic Canada International Value Wine Awards IVWA judging wine wine judge

Best Wine Descriptors from the IVWA

Posted June 18th, 2010 12:06 by The Editors

We asked some of our judges to tell us about funny or weird wine descriptors that they heard while wine tasting this week. The submissions ranged from humourous, to bizarre, to inappropriate, to downright incomprehensible - but we thoroughly enjoyed reading them and wanted to share some them with you.

"Wrestles it down like an alligator and pins it to the floor." - John Szabo

"Volcano pie" - John Szabo

Baby barf, singed ironing - Steve Thurlow

Best Wine Descriptors from the IVWA's blog

funny International Value Wine Awards IVWA judging panel wine wine descriptors

The Judges' Picks for Most Promising Wines

Posted June 17th, 2010 01:06 by The Editors

Our judges are tasting a lot of wine this week at the International Value Wine Awards. If you're been watching the twitter hashtag #IVWA, we're sure that you will have seen a mix of positive and negative opinions on some of the wines that they have tasted.

Coming out of the preliminary round, we wanted to clarify how our judges really felt. If they had to choose, which wine flights were the most promising? Here are some of their answers.

Ben MacPhee-Sigurdson: "Syrah flight was great - lots of promise for the finals!"

The Judges' Picks for Most Promising Wines's blog

International Value Wine Awards IVWA judge top picks varietals wine

Judging a Wine by its Label

Posted June 15th, 2010 02:06 by The Editors

Let's face it, unless you're an oenophile, label design plays a significant role in how you select your wine in a store. It's easy to think, "Oh, that's an attractive label! It's probably a great wine." And sometimes you're right, but sometimes you're wrong.

Wine labels are the most direct way for wineries to communicate with and market to their consumers. Labels can make a so-so wine seem highly appealing, but a bland label can cause a bottle to be overlooked. We live in a highly visual society, and what your branding looks like matters to consumers.

Judging a Wine by its Label's blog

International Value Wine Awards IVWA judge wine wine label