THE WINE LIST
BY: STUART BROWN | WINE EXPERT
W
hile growing up in the Lower Mainland of
British Columbia, I had only a sliver of an idea
of what an amazing area of the world I was living in. I naively
thought that every other place on this planet was blessed
with fresh air, beautifully clean oceans and surrounded by
exciting mountain terrain and vast valleys of lush, fertile land.
My surroundings became more pronounced and the beauty
more evident as I grew older, moved to the Pemberton Valley
and later to Victoria.
When I arrived in Victoria, about 12
years ago, I was completely unaware of
the bounty of natural richness Vancouver
Island possesses. My studies of wine and
food took a quantum leap forward as I
explored agriculture, sea life and local
products created by local producers. Then
I saw the wineries. Who knew there were
wineries here?
My first lesson was that Vancouver Island
wine tastes like Vancouver Island wine.
It doesn’t taste like Napa, or Argentina,
or Bordeaux wines because it is made
with Vancouver Island fruit. And what
wonderful fruit we have on the Island! Yes,
it is easier to grow and ripen fruit in other
locations, like the Okanagan Valley, but
the fruit we do ripen and the flavours they
42
express are fantastic. The wine we make
from this lovely fruit, pairs so well with the
cuisine that is locally sourced and served. A
foodie’s heaven on earth!
One of my favourite wineries on Vancouver
Island is Averill Creek. A family run, 40+
acre estate winery on the side of Mount
Prevost in the beautiful Cowichan Valley
that has consistently made excellent, terroir
driven wines.
This is the project of Andy and Wendy
Johnston, and their team of winery and
vineyard professionals that have worked
gently with the land since 2001. While
continuing to improve every vintage, they
ripen some fabulous fruit and make world
class wines that truly express Appellation
Vancouver Island.
When you (and maybe a group of friends)
visit this gravity flow, Vasco Pavlov
designed winery, make sure you visit the
tasting room and bring a picnic to enjoy on
the garden patio. The views are endless and
you might feel like you are in Europe!