Restaurant takes guests on exploration of estate wine

The Restaurant at Liquidity Wines, ensconced in the rolling hills of Okanagan Falls, a 20-minute drive south of Penticton, is reopening weekends beginning Saturday, offering exceptional cuisine and elegant wines paired with exquisite views. Availability starts at noon, with the last seating at 4 p.m.

The plan is to take you on a multi-sensory exploration of estate-grown wines paired with in-season fare in a two-course, wine-paired experience. Each course will be carefully curated by winemaker Amy and chef Josh, a culinary leader who trained in the kitchens of some of British Columbia's most inspired restaurants. With spring and al fresco season approaching, Sonoran Desert Winery & Inn has announced its first long-table dinner event on Saturday, May 6.

The evening features a celebratory Cinco de Mayo-style Tex-Mex menu created and presented by chef Karl Gregg of award-winning Rosie's BBQ & Smokehouse. Gregg has 25 years of experience as a chef in Vancouver, and his passion for classic Texas BBQ and traditional Mexican food led him to launch Rosie's BBQ and Rosie's Taco Shack with recipes perfected during numerous culinary trips to Central Texas and Sinaloa.

The menu will feature fresh seafood and slow-cooked local meats prepared to show off the irresistible flavours. Tickets are available online, and Stay and Dine packages can be booked by emailing the winery.

B.C. WINE OF THE WEEK Hester Creek Old Vine Cabernet Franc 2020, Golden Mile Bench, Okanagan Valley $27.99 I 90/100 UPC: 626037001157 Block 3 is home to this old vine Malbec, initially planted in 1968 on the Golden Mile Bench. Today it yields one bunch per shoot, hand-picked and sorted and whole-berry fermented for 17 days in Italian Ganimede fermenters. Post ferment, it is aged for 18 months in primarily French oak. It was a great year in the Okanagan, and this wine's nose is stunning. Aromatic and stuffed with savoury black cherry, this is the best version ever from Hester Creek. The acidity is on point, the youthful fruit more red than black, and the oak moving to mostly French is the icing on the cake. The tannin is dense but sweet and smallgrained. I love the balance and the potential to age for five to seven years without difficulty. Well done.

WINE F OR THE CELLAR Rocca di Montegrossi Chianti Classico Organic 2020, Tuscany, Italy $35.99 I 90/100 UPC: 8032956630040 The Ricasoli-Firidolfi family is part of the Chianti Classico fabric from Baron Bettino Ricasoli, who created the original formula for the Chianti Classico's blend of grapes in 1872. Today the Rocca di Montegrossi estate is located on a high-altitude plateau with stony, calcareous soils, leading to a more elegant and harmonious DOCG Chianti Classico style. The 2020 mix is 91 per cent Sangiovese, seven per cent Canaiolo, and two per cent Colorino, which jumps from the glass with youthful earthy, peppery, black cherry fruit and spills across the palate. The finish shows some tannin and dryness, but something that will be resolved down the road with time in the bottle.