We were greeted at the base of the mountain with live music and canapes as we awaited our “chariot” (the cable lift) to transport us to the idyllic snow covered peak of Vancouver.  The first glimpse of snow of the season is always the most magical isn’t it?

As I traveled from table to table I was greeted with gustatory delights to pair with a multitude of wines enhancing flavours and textures.  Desert Hills had a 2008 Gewurztraminer that I enjoyed for its floral notes of rose water with a lychee sweetness and also a 2005 Mirage that paired deliciously with a short rib served nearby.  I had some wine-gasmic experiences with some Big Bold Reds: Hanz Herzog ” Spirit of Marlborough” 2001, Castello di Bossi 2003 Chianti Classico Riserva “Berado”, and Gianfranco Alessandria VDT L’Insieme 2004 followed by a gnocci with some cinnamon and creme freche that made my eyes roll back in my head.  Some Rieslings from the fellas serving 8th Generation, paired well with their sparkling personalities and some citrusy fish.  I wandered through the tables filling my plate and tummy with a white bean cassoulet with duck con-fit & Merguez sausage, a mackerel amuse-bouche, some spicy ahi tuna, cheeses, and a heart stopping pork belly while sipping some of the over 100 different wines.

Two words: Chocolate Cellar.  Oh yes.  A room full of chocolates and dessert, fruit, and friendly wines had my attention several times as I ran back to pair certain wines with different cupcakes.  Research, my friends.  Daniel Le Chocolat Belge had a table covered, I mean, c-o-v-e-r-e-d in different chocolates.  My senses were tingling with glee!  Two of my favourite cupcake pairings was a red velvet cupcake with a Mad Housewife Cabernet Sauvignon, and a lemon cupcake with the Mad Housewife Chardonnay.  Another Mad Housewife cupcake sampler was Taylor Jukes from Virgin Radio.  We shared our tasting notes and nibbled on the tower of iced delight.

A wall of wine and some firefighters hit the stage to generate some bids for the live auction.  The wall of wine is a temperature controlled cellar filled with 100 bottles of wine from Wolf Blass.  It was gorgeous.  But not as gorgeous as the firefighters.  The auction was for these fine (and I mean FINE) gentlemen to come cook and serve dinner for eight in the winner’s house with a case of wine from Rollingdale Winery.  The bids mounted higher and higher and faces were fanned as shirts were peeled off and women cheered.  The arousal of our senses were hightened.

I finished the evening with some liqueurs from Giffard with Kristi Gordon from Global.  I was enamoured with the Poire Williams which is a 43 proof treat with a whole pear in the bottle.  Sparing me from my glazed eyed bewilderment, the guy serving us explained that the bottle is tied to the branch when the pear is still a bud and is removed once the pear has matured making a truly remarkable conversation piece.

The evening wrapped up at about 11 and we decended the mountain with aching feet and satisfied palates.  A little rough math tells me that between the silent auction and the live auction, I am confident that the goal of $100,000 was met.  The evening was surely a success with many happy, rosey faces and I do believe that what went on tonight will benefit many children and families for years to come.   To find out more about adoption and how you can support BC Adoption visit their website or follow them on twitter @bcadopt.

Head Winemaker, Dan Jones, was kind enough to take some time to tell me about the New Westminster winery, the wines, and the barrels.  He outsources his grapes from the Lake Country just north of Napa, has them shipped up here in a temperature controlled truck within 24 hours of being picked, and then stems and crushes them.  It is all as if he were on the vineyard himself with that short timeframe.  He is a true garagiste; the first in BC and one of very few in Canada.  A garagiste is a French term for someone who makes a relatively small production of wine based out of a small building or, you guessed it, a garage.  In this case it was a building in a business park and was full of lovely French oak barrels parked on the racks amongst stainless steel vessels.

When I asked how much of a difference his influence and the changed environment makes on his wine compared to wines made from the same grapes in Napa, he proudly gestured at his many awards.  He has also earned some sparkling reviews from Jurgen Gothe, Deanna Van Mulligan,  Dr. Gary Hayes, and Robert Whitley.

French Oak Barrels at Pacific Breeze

I have a fascination with barrels.  They remind me of hibernating bears or butterflies, sleeping until they are mature enough to fill bottles.  These sleeping beauties were segregated into two areas.  The reds were the largest group stacked in the main area, and the chardonnnay ‘princesses’ had their own temperature controlled room (appropriately named: Chardonnay Room).

Dan deciphered the labels on the barrels for me: The first letter indicate the forest from which the oak originated, the second group of letters indicate the level of toastiness, and the third group (if it applies) indicates if the head of the barrel is toasted.  Why are the barrels toasted?  The answer is simple: toasted tastes better.  The toasting inhibits the oak from transfering and overpowering the wine; the heavier the toast the less oaky the wine, and the lighter the toast the more oaky it becomes.  Everyone has their own preference of how much oak a wine needs.  There are the two extremes of those who prefer unoaked and those, like my hobby wine dabbler father, who ask the question: can there be too much oak?  Most people would say yes.  Yes, there can.  (He created a wine he affectionately named ’splinters’.)  I find myself in the middle-of-the-road depending on the wine.

Pacific Breeze does many different tastings and educational evenings.  Sam Hauck does the teaching based on his experience as a wine maker and wine adjudicator.   Dan was telling me how they once tasted the same wine from different barrels made from different forests and were amazed by the distinctness that each forest added to the grapes.

I enjoyed tasting a few of the varietal wines on their own and then picking out the flavours in the blended wines.  I was blown away by the spring release of P2 as well as the unabashedly oaked 2005 Chardonnay (I am my father’s daughter).  Of course, I left with my arms full of those plus the summer porch friendly unoaked Sauvingnon Blanc.  I am very impressed with the quality of these wines and the artistry of Dan Jones and his team.  The simplicity of a garage creates a perfect canvas to create revolutionary, award winning wines and breaks the mold of the preconceptions that a great wine must come from large establishment.  Sometimes the greatest wines are born out of humility, innovation, and hard work.