Clear, light gold appearance. Clean, medium citrus-pear on the nose. A dry, low acidity, smooth, pear-green apple taste. Overall quite good. I haven’t tasted many Washington State wines, but on a recent trip to Seattle visited The Tasting Room in Post Alley, near Pike Place Market, tried a few, and was impressed. (Why doesn’t Vancouver have a wine tasting bar? Or a vegetarian restaurant like Carmelita or Café Flora? Or a bookstore like Elliot Bay? But I digress.) It doesn’t seem to me that Washington’s wine industry is as mature as BC’s, but I could be wrong. Anyway, worth checking out. See Apex Cellars.

OK, I was in a hurry and didn’t want to spend a lot this Friday afternoon, having seen The Police (even at a reduced rate) this week and having bought tickets to La La La Human Steps in a couple of weeks. So, another Chardonnay.

A clear, medium-deep lemon-gold appearance on this Argentinian vintage. Clean, pronounced tropical fruit and oak quality on the nose. Dry, perhaps surprisingly light on the palate, perhaps slightly lacking in acidity particularly in the finish. A weaker pineapple quality with just a hint of oak. Good length. Overall good.

I’ve been drinking too much Chardonnay, so I’m going to venture out a bit. Still looking mostly at BC whites.

This vintage has a clear, pale gold appearance with a clean, pronounced citrus-sage nose. A very slightly off-dry, quite acidic quality with medium body. Nice, straightforward grapefruit flavour on the palette with floral hints and a nice length. Very good.

Clear, medium lemon-gold appearance. Nose: clean, deep, rich vanilla nut with a hint of spice. A lovely aroma; tempted to keep sniffing instead of tasting! Dry on the palate; dry with perfect acidity, medium to full body. Wonderful vanilla oak with a hint of grass. Excellent. $36.

A friend bought me a 2004 vintage a few months back, and this differs significantly. This vintage has a clear, pale, almost silver-amber colour with a medium, citrus-pineapple nose. On the palate: dry, slightly weak acidity, medium body with a strong citrus flavour. Good, but a little overbalanced with the strong flavour. $23.

A clear, very pale lemon-gold appearance on this vintage. On the nose, clean medium grassy quality with a hint of sagebrush (brings back memories to this former Kamloops boy). A nice off dry palete, solid acidity, medium body and length. Grassy-vegetal qualities enhance the mineral quality. Overall, good; I will try others from this winery, which has had tastings around town recently that I’ve not been able to attend.

Probably my favourite sweet wine. A clear, medium lemon-gold appearance; clean, medium intensity grapefruit-pear-vanilla on the nose. Sweet, low acidity, full body. Taste similar to the nose, but almost like honey. Good length. Very good to excellent. $20.

Clear, medium-deep gold appearance (quite lovely) with a clean, medium intensity grassy hazelnut nose. Disappointing on the palette: dry, medium body, low-ish acidity, and a citrus-pepper impression. Good, but not particularly enjoyable. Grant Burge Wines. $21. OK, I am drinking too much Chardonnay. On to something else next.

A medium-deep gold intensity of appearance. Clean, citrus spice vanilla on the nose. A dry wine with medium acidity, medium body, and a little fruity with a hint of oak on the palate (as I haven’t tasted many oaked French wines, I’m not sure if this is reflective of the “marketing” push, cf. the label name; but it’s not over the top). A very good wine. $20 at Bimini’s on Fourth Avenue.

A clear, pale gold appearance with a clean, quite light, citrus-yeast nose. A hint of oak. On the palate, dry with nice acidity, and a medium body. Tasteful oaking lets the grape and grapefruit flavours through. A nice finish. A good affordable wine. $15 at the liquor store on the Granville Rise.