You’ve heard of sake, you’ve come across it in Japanese restaurants and seen the colorful, characterful bottles lining store shelves. You’ve probably tasted it — hopefully not heated — and maybe even, ideally, in a white wine glass. But what exactly is it? Sake is an...
You see them on the shelves of hip bottle shops and on the lists at hot wine bars. They’re the indie darling of the natural wine movement and a bottle badge of adventuresome wine drinkers. Pét-Nat, short for pétillant naturel, may be trendy and new to you, but this is...
How to reach the far edge of the world? Land on British Columbia’s Vancouver Island (via ferry, airplane or seaplane), get to the centrally located seaside community of Parksville and head west. The road winds through old growth rainforests, beside deep fresh lakes...
Back in the day - we're talking 1886 - Gastown was the epitome of cool. Granted, Gastown was also the epicenter of everything then, officially incorporated as the City of Vancouver that year, making it Vancouver's first and, by default, only neighborhood. But it was...
Olo is Chinook jargon, a pidgin language of the Pacific Northwest that spread throughout the coast during the 19th century. Its rough translation is “hungry,” as in what you’ll be when you enter in the doors of lower Chinatown’s 112-year-old heritage brick building...
This wine is one in Okanagan Crush Pad’s Wine Campus series, an annual collaboration sponsored by the progressive Okanagan winery and awarded to the Vancouver International Wine Festival sommelier of the year. Proceeds from the sale of this wine benefit wine education...
This rich, chocolately, Dark Side of the Moon oatmeal session stout is from the fearless team at Victoria, British Columbia’s Moon Under Water. Located in the historic city’s brewery district, the family-owned and-operated brewpub has earned many fans for its...
Though you may not instantly reach for a Belgian-style witbier in these darkest days of winter, you can confidently crack the top of a can of Strange Fellows Brewing Jongleur year round. The French (and Belgian) pronunciation of the word "juggler," this wit toggles a...
“Let’s go for a drink.” “Ah—I don’t know. I’m really tired and I don’t feel like brushing my hair or dressing up.” “Perfect, we’ll go to the Upstairs at Campagnolo.” And that’s all it took to convince me to abandon plans to work in my Vancouver hotel and head out for...
Mandolyn Jonasson's battle with an autoimmune disorder led her to being an entrepreneur, founding and operating Island SodaWorks out of her Errington, Vancouver Island home. The sodas focus on seasonal, locally harvested and organic ingredients, fermented naturally...
