what could possibly be new about a wine making process that is thousands of years old? well, plenty. u+a wines has covered the new wineries of thailand, a region that had previously never produced wines, using grapes that never before been used for wines. now we find ourselves in an entirely different climate, culture and terroir - canada in winter.

british columbia's okanagan valley to be specific, sampling ice wines and pinot noir from quails' gate estate winery, one of the leading producers in this emerging cool climate wine region. four hours drive north-east of vancouver, the okanagan valley is being touted as a "new napa" with a critical mass of wineries producing a wide variety of high quality wines.

quails' gate winemaker grant stanley, who honed his craft at ata rangi, one of new zealand's most prestigious pinot noir houses, speaks in depth about the growing recognition of wine-making excellence in this region, and the innovations and ideas with which he produces award-winning wines.

in the introduction, stanley speaks about the particular qualities of an excellent pinot noir, "the heartbreak grape".

in part two, stanley discusses other outstanding pinot noir houses in the united states and new zealand, as well as recommendations of ways for visitors to spend time skiing, biking, boating and otherwise, enjoying the beautiful okanagan when not sampling wines.

and finally, executive chef roger sleiman of the winery's "old vines" restaurant, pairs ice wines with indigenous cheeses, desserts and canadian foie gras. then demonstrates a contemporary rendition of caribou, long a favoured staple of canadian first nations peoples.

cheers,
james culham, creative director

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u+a wines: new wines, new ways...


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