After a seemingly endless summer, fall has arrived in British Columbia. We finally had some rain, and the grass is looking a little greener again, yet at the same time leaves are showing the first hint of fall colour. Now that schools have started and things are just a little bit quieter on the roads, why not enjoy a little BC get-away?
One of the great things to check out in the fall is wine festivals in British Columbia. From September 26 through October 5 Vancouver Island’s Cowichan Valley hosts the “Savour Cowichan” festival, featuring over 40 artisan producers of wines and cider and more than 50 tastings, dinners, cooking classes, bbq’s, charity fundraisers and other special events. A detailed list of everything that’s happening in the Valley can be found at Savour Cowichan.
Savour Cowichan Festival
While BC’s main wine region, the Okanagan, has wine festivals every season of the year, the Fall Wine Festival is still the largest. For 10 days during harvest time, more than 165 events throughout the entire Okanagan wine region will temp your palate, tickle your taste buds and offer you vineyard tours, dinners, tastings, arts and education. For the list of events for this year’s Fall Wine Festival, running October 2 to October 12, 2014 check out their website .
While not all wine regions in the province have specific wine festivals, grape harvesting and events will also be taking place in wineries on the Gulf Islands, the Fraser Valley, the Similkameen Valley and emerging wine regions in the Kootenays, Lillooet and the Thompson and Shuswap regions. Our BC climate is obviously conducive to growing many varieties of grapes, and there are people almost everywhere in the province with expertise and a passion for the business.
One of the best places to find out about the local wineries in each area is at a BC Bed & Breakfast. Bed & Breakfast hosts are well informed about many local attractions and events and they love to share the great places in their area. Nothing gives innkeepers greater pleasure than seeing their guests having a wonderful experience!