On May 3, Cherie Oke of Cowichan Valley Photos was privileged, on behalf of the Cowichan Wine & Culinary Festival, to be the guest of Rocky Creek Winery at their Press Conference. What a treat that was! First, the tastings and appropriate canapés from Amuse Bistro to accompany them. With the crisp, fruity dry Ortega –a flavourful bruschetta; with the gold medal winning Pinot Gris a luscious layered camembert and chevre from the Cowichan’s own Hilary’s Cheese. Robin’s Rose paired with a carrot dip and thin slices of artisan bread

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Venturi-Schulze Vineyards, Cobble Hill, Cowichan Valley

The vineyard, which is

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Zanatta Winery and Vineyards, located in Glenora, is four minutes southwest of Duncan in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island. Glenora comes from Scottish origin meaning “golden valley”, which perfectly describes the Cowichan Valley. The winery, which opened in 1990, is part of a 120 acre farm with thirty acres being dedicated to the vineyard and the remaining 90 acres consisting of hay fields, pasture, forest and old orchard trees.

Loretta Zanatta, Italian educated winemaker, and her husband, Jim Moody, also own Vinoteca on the Vineyard Restaurant and Wine Bar

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Merridale Estate Cidery is located on the southeast coast of Vancouver Island, about 40 minutes north of Victoria, and one hour and 20 minutes south of Nanaimo. Merridale has truly been an ongoing project for the owners, Janet Docherty and Rick Pipes. Since their purchase of the property in March, 2000, they have continued to renovate the estate with a tremendous focus on quality control. As they would renovate one part of the cidery, they would outgrow another and have had to continually update and upgrade.

In the summer of 2005,

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Cherry Point Vineyard sits on thirty-four acres of what used to be a mink ranch approximately one hour outside of Victoria on Vancouver Island. In 1994 the vineyard became one of the first licensed wineries on the island.

Cherry Point also has a bistro on site open May to September with many delightful menu selections. The bistro features an indoor garden pavilion with a fireplace perfect for sitting by with a glass wine during the autumn months. The bistro is also available to book for weddings or family events.

The winery is open year around

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Keating Farm Estate was purchased in 2005 by The Land Conservancy, in part to protect many of the heritage building on the site but also to protect some wetlands and the general agricultural potential. Keating Farm Estate is located in the Koksilah area of the Cowichan Valley making the site readily accessible to locals and tourists. The estate features events all year and they have been putting on a great showing at the Cowichan Wine and Culinary Festival this year.

An annual borscht cook-off and lunch was held on Saturday

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Locally produced cheeses - Cowichan Wine and Culinary Festival

The Cowichan Wine and Culinary Festival started off with a bang tonight at the Satellite Bar & Grille at the Arbutus Ridge Country Club. The food was excellent as one would expect, take a look at what was available to sample:

Of course, one of the

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It was pouring rain last Saturday noon when the Cowichan Valley Photos duo pulled into the parking lot of Dermod & Dudley’s Irish Pub & Grill in Lake Cowichan.   A wonderful sight, that pub, for two bedraggled and hungry sight-seers.  Our pretty, friendly waitress seated us by the window from where — even on such a dreary day – the view of Cowichan Lake and surrounding hills was spectacular.   We both opted for the special, a halibut burger, Kevin choosing regular fries (rather than either soup or a salad)

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We finally had an opportunity to visit the Honeymoon Bay Outdoor Market in conjunction with the Honeymoon Bay Blackberry Festival. While the weather wasn’t perfect, a trip to Cowichan Lake is always an adventure and we discovered the funkiest outdoor market in the Cowichan Valley. The stalls are made from “found” objects and recycled wood giving the market a somewhat “Frontier Town” sort of feel. From the SS Minnow serving up fresh prawns to local Cowichan Lake organic produce and locally made craft items this market was really fun.

The Honeymoon Bay Outdoor

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Averill Creek Wine, Cowichan Wine and Culinary Festival 2009, Cowichan Valley, Vancouver Island

Eat, drink and be merry! A grand thought, that and just what is in store at the fifth annual Cowichan Wine & Culinary Festival. The festival launches its celebration of the food and wine – and beer and cider — of this fertile region with an evening of fabulous food, wine and music in the Satellite Bar & Grille at Arbutus Ridge Gulf Club on Friday, September 18th where the wines of Alderlea Vineyards will

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