Vitis Magazine

In Chile’s Malleco Valley, Indigenous Mapuche people work the vines in collaboration with Viña San Pedro to create the premium Tayú 1865 Pinot Noir. Photo courtesy of Tayú Ten years ago, when wine grower Juan Curin Loncomilla first started cultivating his family land in Chile’s Malleco Valley, a.k.a. the gateway to Patagonia, he was surprised to find relics from battles of days gone by.

Holding a wine glass by the stem gives you better leverage for proper swirling. iStock / Getty Images Plus / Lalomartinez photo If there’s one thing Hollywood reliably gets wrong, it’s having supposedly sophisticated characters hold their wineglasses by the bowl. Sure, you can technically hold a glass any way that feels comfortable, but if you know, you know, and you can’t unsee what you know is just wrong.

The revival of Listán Negro in the volcanic soil of the Canary Islands recognizes the unique flavour of Atlantic viticulture. iStock/Getty Images Plus/StockPhotoAstur Around the world, winemakers are rediscovering long-overlooked grapes—reviving history, boosting vineyard biodiversity and offering drinkers fresh flavours far beyond the familiar international varieties. For much of the late 20th century, the global wine industry marched toward uniformity.

Sommelier Stephanie Mathis is a constant at the Fairmont Pacific Rim. Photo courtesy of Stephanie Mathis Stephanie Mathis is one of the greats in the Vancouver hospitality scene. If you don’t know her already, please let me introduce you. Stephanie is a true wine nerd. She is quick-witted, hardworking and, in a world where ego sells, she leaves hers at the door. I am simultaneously delighted, and baffled when I see Stephanie at the Fairmont Pacific Rim hotel.

Bourgogne’s vineyards, like these in Hautes Côtes de Beaune, are as renowned for their human history as their physical terroir. BVIB/Michel Joly photo Burgundy is, famously, the home of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and some of the world’s most valuable vineyard land. It was a powerful medieval duchy that was annexed by France in 1477, but its history stretches back millennia, embracing the Celts, the Gauls, the Romans and the Hapsburgs, among others.

When asparagus is the star of the grill, grassy whites play a perfect supporting role. Other vegetables, though, may pair better with light reds. iStock/Getty Images Plus/Liudmila Chernetska photo If you’re anything like me, the minute the weather gets warm enough and dry enough, I pretty much want to move outdoors, especially when it comes to cooking and eating.

Photo courtesy of Tourism Langley Discover the wine region right in Vancouver’s backyard with the return of the popular Fraser Valley Wine Passport. This collaboration between Fraser Valley-based beverage producers, with support from Tourism Langley and Tourism Abbotsford, will run from April 1 through May 31, 2026 (excluding Mother’s Day, May 10).

Cannon Estate Winery brings an elegant note to Fraser Valley farm country. Photo courtesy of Cannon Estate Winery While the Okanagan is typically the destination of choice for B.C. wine enthusiasts, a handful of boutique wineries in the Fraser Valley are offering a quality experience that’s closer to home for most.

Few wines are as emblematic of the Okanagan than Quails’ Gate Stewart Family Reserve selections, which continue to highlight the top-tier varieties first introduced by the pioneering Stewart family some 50 years ago. Over the last few decades, “the Family Reserve line has always been about expressing what our estate is capable of,” says winemaker Kailee Frasch.

It’s the annual summertime dilemma: You want to enjoy good wine in good glasses at your outdoor events, but you don’t want to risk broken glass all over your patio, not to mention how annoyed you’d be if someone smashed your precious Vinum stems. Luckily, acrylic glassware is getting better and better all the time, and there are some truly sophisticated options these days. For instance, there’s the stylish and shatterproof Schott Zwiesel Tour outdoor glasses for Crate & Barrel.