If you have been following this space you know that I am currently on holiday in the province of Algarve on the southernmost coast of Portugal. October is generally a good month to visit the Algarve and this year has been no exception. Apart from two brief storms the weather has been magnificent – warm [...]

I have a strong preference for dry wines but there are occasions when a sweet table wine goes down well; such an occasion is a hot, sunny October afternoon in southern Portugal. My cousin Cindy’s husband Alex is not a big drinker but he does like the berry wines produced near his hometown of Ladner. [...]

From what I can find out there are no Portuguese beers available in British Columbia but be sure to let me know if I am wrong. So this week I will tell you about a brew of another kind. Most countries have their own version of ‘firewater’ and in Portugal it is called medronho. In [...]

I am currently on holiday in the south of Portugal, a region I have been visiting annually for 24 years. I stay in the town of Portimao in the province of Algarve which is famous for its many hours of sunshine, beautiful beaches and villages with old world charm jostling with modern resorts rampant with [...]

I must admit that before writing this blog I had drunk B.C. Wines only on occasion. Maggie was born in Argentine and lived a long time in Chile and so generally we opted for wines from one of those countries. We also drink a lot of Portuguese and Spanish wines as we spend time there [...]

This week I flew to Portugal via Air Canada. The flight was Vancouver to London Heathrow and then London Gatwick to Faro Airport in the southern province of the Algarve. The flight to London was an evening flight and we were served dinner not long after taking off. There was a choice between a beef [...]