Kurtis Kolt on BC wine sales in the US
City Cellar – BC Wines run for the border
Kurtis Kolt
January 1st, 2014
“I’ve made it a regular habit to bring along a couple bottles of BC wine when I’m visiting other countries, whether the trip is for business or pleasure. The vast majority of BC wine is consumed within the province and our few exports largely consist of ice wine. So, I find that sharing a bottle of something that expresses the quality of what we do is a great way to expose friends and colleagues to some of the good stuff they might not otherwise try.
Truth be told, I also enjoy taking any opportunity to dispel the somewhat common myth that all we’re capable of around here is ice wine.
Well, it looks like the next time I go to the US, my luggage can now be a little lighter! The BC Wine Institute, whose mandate is to market and promote BC VQA wine, has recently entered a partnership with Good Company Wines, an American importer, to make BC wines far more accessible to consumers south of the border.
To start things off, there are four premium producers now available through the retail portal at WineBCUSA.com: Black Hills Estate Winery, Laughing Stock Vineyards, Meyer Family Vineyards and Painted Rock Estate Winery.
Now those of us wanting to share some local goods with American friends and family have a far more streamlined way of doing so.
Here are my recommendations from what’s available. The best part is, the bulk of these are still widely available in BC, so we’ll still have plenty of opportunity to enjoy them in comfort of home.”
Here’s what Kurtis says about our 2011 Tribute Series Chardonnay:
“Winemaker Chris Carson’s steady hand with Chardonnay comes from years in New Zealand, Burgundy, and now a dazzling handful in the Okanagan. Striking the perfect balance between perfumed, tropical fruit from the Old Main Road Vineyard he calls home, and his calling card of pitch-perfect oak, this is Chardonnay for both discerning obsessives of the grape, and those looking to come back to it after a few years away.”
