Stir Pairing: Got Craft markets X Foxtrot Vineyards' wine
A fall virtual foodie showcase has a taste of what’s in store at Got Craft’s forthcoming Craft Holiday Market; plus, making a Waltz out of Pinot Noir
Chor Leoni Men’s Choir. Photo by David Cooper
Foxtrot Vineyards.
Every week, Stir Wine Pairing suggests locally available wine and food to go with a local arts event.
The event
Got Craft Foodie Virtual Market, to September 25 online
Got Craft Holiday Market, from November 16 to 27 online and on November 19 and 20 at the Croatian Cultural Centre
The wine
Foxtrot Vineyards’ The Waltz Pinot Noir 2020
Broyé Cafe & Bakery.
The lowdown
Whether they’re food- or holiday-related, Got Craft markets focus on the unique. The goods come from local artists, crafters, cooks, and designers who thrive on originality, creating stand-out items with care. What started as a 20-vendor event in 2007 at the Western Front has grown to multiple in-person and online markets that happen throughout the year and feature indie creatives from all across the country, each one an art event in itself.
Now on is the Got Craft Foodie Virtual Market, with 40 local chefs, bakers, and makers.
This is the place you can find everything from pastéis de natas (traditional Portuguese custard tarts by Casa de Natas) to smoked tofu (oomé) to hand-made sweet and savoury tamales (Tamaly Shop). Then there are Japanese buns called melon pan (shaped a bit like a small and squat version of the namesake fruit, fluffy on the inside and cookie-crunchy on the outside) filled with mochi and Belgian chocolate by Broyé Cafe & Bakery. Vancouver’s first Japanese-Vietnamese fusion café, headed by the same team behind the terrific Baker and Table, specializes in the little made-from-scratch breads and cakes and Vietnamese coffee.
Their Pikachu Raspberry Chocolate Mochi Melon Pan and Sakura Mango Strawberry Mochi Melon Pan are delectable, but it’s the Baby Yoda Salted Caramel Mochi Melon Pan that’s really got us hooked. Adorable (but not too adorable to eat).
Foxtrot Vineyards.
Foxtrot Vineyards.
The pairing
If the Got Craft ethos is all about distinctiveness, attention to detail, and fine focus, that same sense of honing a craft applies to Foxtrot Vineyards. The B.C. boutique winery has become known for its Chardonnay and, in particular, Pinot Noir.
One of the winery’s owners is Doug Barzelay, co-author (with Allen Meadows) of Burgundy Vintages-A History From 1845. The New York City-based former lawyer’s knowledge of the region’s history helped expose one of the biggest wine frauds in history, perpetrated by notorious wine counterfeiter Rudy Kurniawan. Barzelay was in Vancouver for work when, at a friend and fellow collector’s place, he had the chance to taste several Burgundies and one red wine that was concealed. The 2006 Foxtrot Pinot Noir bowled him over, setting him and business partner Nathan Todd, a Calgary native and long-time Okanagan resident, on the path, with others, to the winery’s purchase.
The winery takes its name from the way a black bear would show up when the estate vineyard was first planted, just in time for harvest; standing on his hind legs, he seemed to be dancing. Grape pickers affectionately named him Fred, after Fred Astaire. When founders Torsten and Kicki Allander began making wine, they decided to pay tribute to this adopted mascot, picking one of the legendary actor and dancer’s signature dances.
Here’s how Foxtrot winemaker and vineyard manager Andrea Barker describes her approach to what’s in the bottles: “Quality is everything,” Barker says. “We don’t want it to be forced or to cut any corners. The wine comes first. We do everything by taste, not by formula.”
Foxtrot produces several Pinot Noirs; from 2020, they include Raisin d’être (with dark chocolate and lavender flavours), the vibrant Wily Fox, and the age-worthy Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir.
The Waltz Pinot Noir is elegant and approachable, structured and lively, a strong illustration of the inimitable terroir of the Naramata Bench.
A glass of Pinot Noir with a salted-caramel mochi melon pan in the shape of a Jedi master? Delicious and unique.
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