NICHE style Winter 2015

NICHE travel
TRAVEL BITES
by Stuart Brown | wine columnist
OKANAGAN VALLEY, BRITISH COLUMBIA
Tasting wine is a wonderful way to spend your
day, weekend or even your vacation. I have
heard countless tales from my friends and family
about their travels in wine regions and visiting the
local producers. I, too, have spent many vacations
exploring wine regions and tasting wines paired with
local foods and regional cheeses.
Wine tourism is growing in popularity, and of course,
the wine industry has worked to accommodate this
growing business. Many wineries around the world
now provide exquisite tasting rooms with vineyard
views, wine tasting events, paired dinners, tours of the
vineyards, wine making facilities and cellars, and of
course accommodation to make the visit complete. It
is reasonably easy to now create a full experience for
the travelling wine enthusiast.
And wine not? Wine is a beautiful thing that comes
from a specific place where the grapes it is made from are
grown. It can complement regional cuisine and it is the
perfect beverage to enjoy after a long day of sightseeing.
There is almost nothing better than lingering over
a glass of wine while looking at the sun dip below
rolling hills of vineyards, especially if you are sharing
that moment with someone special in your life. Wine
experience is unique to each place it is created from.
We should all take the time to enjoy the food, people,
sights, culture, and wine all coming together near or at
the vineyard and where the wine is created.
Wine regions, like Bordeaux and Burgundy in France
and Napa and Sonoma counties in California, are wellknown
tasting destinations. More recently, however,
areas around South America, Canada, South Africa,
and New Zealand have come into their own as wine
tasting destinations. Here are a few of my favourite
wine destinations and a few examples of my favourite
wines that you will want to taste while you are
exploring there.
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WINTER 2015