As you may recall, I headed over to the beautiful Cowichan Valley last month for a day trip wine tour with my friend, Regan Macdonald.  We took in three wineries that treated us well and offered up some exceptional wine.  On July 1st, my article detailing my Cowichan trip was published in the Wine Tourist Magazine and you can read it here.

The first winery we visited was Averill Creek Vineyard which sits at the northern point of the Cowichan Valley.  I had heard of Averill Creek’s excellent reputation for quality winemaking but had never tried any myself.  I was incredibly impressed by the entire flight we tasted and came home with a few delicious bottles – one of them, Averill Creek Vineyard Pinot Noir B.C. VQA 2012.

In the glass, it is a beautiful ruby-red and on the nose, the smell is, in a word, divine.  Full of red and black cherry, blueberry, crushed raspberry and plum fruit notes alongside caramel and a hint of baking spice, I took my time with this Pinot Noir and savoured every minute.  On the palate, the flavour profile mirrored the aromas beautifully but introduced plum and a bit of leather into the mix.  Averill Creek’s Pinot Noir has great, food-friendly acidity and is complete with silky tannins.

For $22 a bottle, you cannot beat the value – this is an outstanding Pinot Noir and one of my new favourites.  If you are over on Vancouver Island, be sure to go to the winery for a tasting – you will not be disappointed.

Enjoy!

XO
C