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Looking back on a volatile year in BC Wine.

They are:

 

Christine-Coletta-OCP

 

DJ Kearney

Rhys Pender

 

Lauren Skinner

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON

Part One of Van Wine Fest

Spring Releases

Out of BC wines are coming

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It’s early January.

It’s Victoria.

Must be Whisky Season!!

THE SHOW 

It’s the first of two Whisky Specials from the 2025 Canadian Whisky Awards and the 2025 Victoria Whisky Festival.

There are always headlining whiskies and star whisky makers in attendance!

Whisky fans want to taste and explore the new releases from Crown Royal, Canadian Club, Forty Creek, Hiram Walker, JP Wiser’s Lot 40, Pike Creek, Gooderham and Worts, Nikka, Amrut, The Dalmore and Glencadam.

For the first time ever,  Gisbelle Distillery a distillery from China,  would be joining the lineup.

The West Coast and Vancouver Island were well represented.

Stillhead, Odd Society, DubhGlas, Sheringham, Sons of Vancouver & Shelter Point.

Over 200 whiskies were up for the awards. 14 judges from across the country tasted and scored.

The Grand Prize Winner, judged Canadian Whisky of the Year was,

The Peat Project Moscatel Barrique single malt from Macaloney’s Island Distillery (Saanich)

Here are the guests on part one of the 2025 Whisky Awards and Victoria Whisky Festival

Davin De Kergommeaux  –  Davin is the flag bearer for Canadian Whisky. He singlehandedly brought Canadian Whisky to the attention of Canada and The World.

His latest book is the updated and expanded third edition of Canadian Whisky – The Essential Portable Expert.

I love the first line.

“Handles, mickeys, shots or drams, no matter what its measure, Canadian whisky is a story of Canada.”

Davin is my ultimate connection to the world of Canadian Whisky. He helped create these awards and leads the judging team.

Davin de Kergommeaux

Grant Stevely – Distiller at DubhGlas (Oliver)

In the fall of 2010, Grant purchased some property at Gallagher Lake near Oliver, B.C.

“I wanted to build a distillery from the ground up, which is distinctly different from a lot of other

distilleries,” he says. “So we built the distillery with expansion in mind.”

Grant Stevely

At the heart of the operation is a German-made Arnold Holstein still.

No sooner did Stevely open Dubh Glas Distillery in the spring of 2015, when he began winning awards

for his first product, Noteworthy Gin.

“Dubh Glas” is Scottish Gaelic for “from the dark water.” It’s pronounced “Douglas,” which happens to

be Stevely’s middle name.

Jason MacIsaac – Distiller. Sheringham (Langford, BC)

Sheringham Distillery  won Best Contemporary Gin at the 2019 World Gin Awards

Its Seaside Gin captured the award against World-class competition from 23 countries,  including the UK  and USA.

“We created Sheringham because we saw a hole in the market: the opportunity to create the world’s most drinkable spirits. This approach has served us well, and in the seven years since founding Sheringham, we have been on the ground building authentic connections with buyers, retailers, and consumers, sharing our story and highlighting our chef-driven approach to innovation and quality.”  (Distiller Mag)

Jason and wife  Alayne now have their growing portfolio available across Canada and in 15 markets in the USA.

Graeme Macaloney – Master Distiller  Macaloney Island Distillery (Saanich)

There once was a wee Scottish lad by the name of Graeme Macaloney who found a summer job bottling

whisky and fell in love with Uisge Beatha, the ‘water of life’. He dedicated his heart to finding a way to

make whisky for a living.

Graeme set up shop on Saanich, just outside Victoria. Some of his favourite Scottish and Irish whiskies were island-made.

Graeme has found his “island” in Canada.

Congratulations Champ!!

– Distillery opened in 2016

– The first whisky made onsite and  released in 2020

-Canadian Whisky of the Year – 2025

Brennan Colebank – Master Distiller Stillhead Distillery (Duncan)

Founded by the Colebank family, Stillhead Distillery Inc. opened its doors in October of 2017.

After working 15 years in the tech industry, Master Distiller Brennan Colebank left his job to pursue his dream career,

blending the two things he loved most: chemistry and spirits.  The chemist has created an amazing portfolio and a home for Whisky in the Cowichan Valley.

www.victoriawhiskyfestival.com

www.canadianwhiskyawards.com

NEXT WEEK – Part Two featuring 

Dr Don Livermore – Hiram Walker & Sons (Ontario)

Bill Ashburn – The legend from Forty Creek (Ontario)

Sons of Vancouver – The next generation of artisanal whisky. Won the whole shebang two years ago. (east van)

Gordon Glanz – Odd Society   –  (East Van)  Holds an MSc in brewing and distilling from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland. Followed by a week at Whicky School at Springbank Distillery in Campbelltown

Best Coast Distillers – Just opened in North Saanich. Where innovation meets passion.

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON:

Part two of Whisky Special

The Hatch

Grant Stanley – Spearhead for 2025

Vancouver Wine Festival

Fort Berens

Hester Creek

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This is Wine School –  Kelcie Jones and Jenna Brisco wine educators

And

BIG NEWS:   BC Wineries can now sell directly to Alberta consumers.  

The Guest is Paul Sawler. Board Chair Wine Growers of BC.   Plus sales & marketing for Dirty Laundry.

THE SHOW 

 

This is Wine School 

Smaller, funny and essential wine school in Chinatown with outstanding educators.

The guests are

Kelcie Jones –  The Best Sommelier in BC 2023

As a perennial student of wine, Kelcie holds the WSET Diploma, 3IC Italian wine certificate, and is a Stage 2 student with the Institute of Masters of Wine. She teaches WSET courses to novices and industry professionals alike and leads BC Wine Ambassador courses locally. For the past half-decade, Kelcie was Wine Director for Chambar Restaurant in Vancouver, where she managed a team of sommeliers and led them to several Platinum Awards at the Vancouver International Wine Festival.

Following that, she opened Elephant on Powell as GM and wine director, which was featured in the Michelin guide and Air Canada’s En Route in its first year. Outside of wine, Kelcie holds a Master’s in English Literature from the University of Toronto

Jenna Brisco – Partner and Educator

Jenna has a diverse background in the wine industry, spanning hospitality and business consulting. She earned her WSET Diploma in 2018 and now teaches the programme in Vancouver. She also completed the WSET Educator Training Programme in 2019. Jenna is the Project Director for Top Drop Canada, a terroir-focused wine festival, and serves as an international wine judge. A student in the Master of Wine programme, she became a VinItaly Italian Wine Ambassador in 2018.

Her sommelier experience includes work at Vancouver’s Hawksworth and Elisa, as well as London’s Medlar and Lorne. For over 10 years she was the General Manager of Café Medina in Vancouver. In 2016, Vancouver Magazine named her a top front-of-house ‘All-Star’ for her work there.

Jenna is currently the Technical Director for the Best Sommelier of British Columbia and has helped curate the Best Sommelier of Canada competition. Best of all, she is a new Mom. Congratulations.

I was fascinated by This is Wine School. From the title alone.

 

But I had also worked with Kelcie at Van Wine Fest and judged with Jenna at Lt Governer’s Awards.  It felt like a good fit. So much so that I’ve asked if they would co-host with me at this years Van Wine Fest.

Along with their third partner Maude Renaud- Brisson, who’s currently in Spain.

Kelcie and Jenna explain the courses and how it all came together. We also talk BC wine in general including  the state of BC wine heading into 2025.

www.thisiswineschool.com

BC Wine/Alberta wine fans.  –  Finally, a hug and a handshake.

Our guest is Paul Sawler.  Board Chair  BC Wine Growers & leadership at Dirty Laundry (Summerland)

Dirty Laundry Vineyard

BC wineries can now ship Direct-To-Consumer in Alberta!

Starting this week, BC wineries who register can sell into Alberta; report and make payment to AGLC for the wine products they sell directly to consumers in Alberta.

Paul Sawler

Alberta is a huge market for BC wineries, so it is about time that the AGLC caught up, to allow this mutually beneficial relationship.

Al Hudec and I advocated against Alberta’s blockade of BC wine one year ago. This is great news for BC wineries and growers.  Hello Alberta wine fans!!!

Paul Sawler takes us through the process that achieved this partnership.

It took top level government teams on both sides of the Alberta/BC border get this right.

We thank those involved and Paul and the board at Wine Growers for speaking on our behalf.

www.winebc.com

www.dirtylaundry.ca

STORIES WE’RE WORKING ON

The Hatch

Van Wine Fest

Fort Berens

Victoria Whisky Festival

Hester Creek