With the blooming of cherry blossoms and daffodils, it's natural to enjoy wines that complement springtime.
With that in mind, I recently visited Blue Canoe Waterfront Restaurant in Steveston.
There, against the backdrop of gillnetters moored at their dock, I sipped a Church & State 2012 Trebella ($10.50 a glass). It's a Rhone style blend of rousanne, marsanne and viognier grown in the south Okanagan.
Trebella delivers a floral aroma and a complex flavour of herbs such as fennel with a lemon and mineral finish.
Unlike many B.C. wines that are fruit bombs, this dry wine has terroir, flavours of the earth and the land along with its restrained floral and fruit flavours.
And kicking it up a notch was chef Danilo Ibarra's feature soup, a prawn and Dungeness crab bisque ($6.99) with generous helpings of local seafood in a creamy broth topped with lobster oil.
It's one of the best combos of soup and wine I have enjoyed! Next was a 2012 Joie Farm Rose ($11 per glass) from Naramata. With its gorgeous hue of pink, this definitely looked like a wine to savour at cherry blossom time.
The rose's bouquet smelled of rose petals along with hints of cherries. Meanwhile, its flavour was decidedly more raspberry and cranberry.
It slipped off my tongue and left me smacking my lips for more.
The Joie Rose was a good match with chef Ibarra's fish tacos ($14.49).
The gluten-free soft tacos were stuffed with salmon, halibut, and ling cod, and topped with a jicama and cabbage slaw, a tomato and avocado salsa and a lemon crema.
Chef Ibarra, French-trained but a native of Nicaragua, skillfully combines his dual backgrounds with wonderful flavours and elegance.
To add a finishing touch to the luncheon, I savoured a glass of See Ya Later Ranch 2011 Pinot Noir ($10 a glass) from Okanagan Falls.
Here was an enchanting version of pinot noir, with a rich burgundy colour and a very Burgundian nose and flavour.
I loved the combination of strawberry, cranberry, beet root, and forest floor: fruity yet savoury.
At home a few days later, I enjoyed the pinot with pan-fried lamb loin chops with garlic and rosemary, plus some splashes of the red with the pan drippings.
The lamb elevated the fruitiness of the wine to a higher level and made the wine creamier with a richer mouth feel.
This is why enjoying food and wine together can be such an amazing experience.
I have also been impressed with the 2011 See Ya Later Ranch Riesling. Really fine Rieslings from Germany and from Australia have a whiff of diesel with the aroma of apples.
Usually, B.C. Rieslings do not have that petrol character, but this one did! And it had a delicious lime and apple flavour with its dry finish.
Rieslings are amazing when served with a roast pork. Splash the Riesling in with the pan juices to enjoy a wine applesauce.
The award winning 2011 Riesling is almost gone.
What replaces it is the 2012 vintage which is a fruity version without the petrol.
Lots of lemon and yellow delicious apples with a very crisp fresh flavour.
All the wines are available at Blue Canoe, Sip Wines and BCLDB stores: Church & State Trebella ($19.99), Joie Farm Rose ($20.93), See Ya Later Riesling ($15.99) and See Ya Later Pinot Noir ($19.99).
Eric Hanson is a life-long Richmond resident, a retired teacher and wine educator.
