Q&A with James Cluer, Master of Wine and owner, Fine Vintage Ltd., Vancouver (www.finevintageltd.com)
What is your connection to the Canadian wine industry?
I moved from Ontario to British Columbia in 2005, where I have since been closely involved in the industry in a variety of ways. These include working for the government to help promote British Columbia wines, launching four wineries from scratch, and consulting to a host of others, plus airlines, cruise lines, retailers and hotels. We also operate the country’s main wine jobs website (www.winejobscanada.com), and run six professional schools across Canada.
How would you characterize the wine story in western Canada at present?
There has been huge progress since 1990. Some of the wines have won awards like “Best Chardonnay in the World” and “Best Shiraz in the World” at major U.K. competitions. Riesling can be great, pinot gris and pinot noir can be superb too. Yet, there’s still room for improvement, even as the overall quality continues to quickly advance, with strengths including white wines and sweet wines.
How can groups experience Canadian wine in Vancouver and British Columbia?
Most top Vancouver restaurants offer a good selection of B.C. wines by the glass. We also prepared the wine lists for all six Fairmont hotels in the province, each featuring a great B.C. selection. For the real deal, fly (45 minutes) or drive (4 hours) to Kelowna or Penticton and visit the 200-plus wineries of the Okanagan. To really know all about Canadian wines, take our two-day course where you’ll taste over 32 classic wines and become a Fine Vintage Canadian Wine Scholar, our professional accreditation course.