Category Archives: Terroir

Night Train to Lisbon recounts the travels of Swiss Classics instructor Raimund Gregorius as he explores the life of Amadeu de Prado, a Portuguese doctor, during António de Oliveira Salazar’s right-wing dictatorship in Portugal. Prado is a serious thinker whose active mind becomes evident in a series of his notes collected and read by Gregorius.

A chance encounter with a Portuguese woman on a bridge, followed by picking up a book in a bookstore, lead to questioning everything in the protagonist’s life.

Quit his job, hopped a train and began to explore.  This is the tale of two men, Gregorius, a Classics teacher who has hidden away from life in the realm of scholarship and Amadeu de Prado, a brilliant, passionate man, a doctor who became a member of the resistance to the government of Salazar in 20th century Portugal.

“We leave something of ourselves behind when we leave a place, we stay there, even though we go away. And there are things in us that we can find again only by going back there.”

You’ll stop many times during your read, and sit and think about what’s going on around you. 

Night Train to Lisbon, by Pascal Mercier,  Barbara Harshav (Translator), was also made into a movie starring Jeremy Irons.

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0802143976

Want to reduce your risk for dementia? Slap on a step counter and start tallying your steps — you’ll need between 3,800 and 9,800 each day to reduce your risk of mental decline, according to a new study.

People between the ages of 40 and 79 who took 9,826 steps per day were 50% less likely to develop dementia within seven years, the study found. Furthermore, people who walked with “purpose” — at a pace over 40 steps a minute — were able to cut their risk of dementia by 57% with just 6,315 steps a day.”It is a brisk walking activity, like a power walk,” said study coauthor Borja del Pozo Cruz, an adjunct associate professor at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense, Denmark, and senior researcher in health sciences for the University of Cadiz in Spain.

Even people who walked approximately 3,800 steps a day at any speed cut their risk of dementia by 25%, the study found.

“That would be enough, at first, for sedentary individuals,” said del Pozo Cruz in an email.

“In fact, it is a message that doctors could use to motivate very sedentary older adults — 4k steps is very doable by many, even those that are less fit or do not feel very motivated,” he added. “Perhaps, more active and fitter individuals should aim for 10k, where we see maximum effects.” 

But there was a even more interesting result buried in the study, according to an editorial entitled “Is 112 the New 10,000?”published Tuesday in JAMA Neurology.

The largest reduction in dementia risk — 62% — was achieved by people who walked at a very brisk pace of 112 steps per minute for 30 minutes a day, the study found. Prior research has labeled 100 steps a minute (2.7 miles per hour) as a “brisk” or moderate level of intensity. 

The editorial argued that individuals looking to reduce their risk of dementia focus on their walking pace over their walked distance. 

“While 112 steps/min is a rather brisk cadence, ‘112’ is conceivably a much more tractable and less intimidating number for most individuals than ‘10,000,’ especially if they have been physically inactive or underactive,” wrote Alzheimer’s researchers Ozioma Okonkwo and Elizabeth Planalp in the editorial. Okonkwo is an associate professor in the department of medicine at the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center at the University of Wisconsin–Madison; Planalp is a research scientist in Okonkwo’s lab. 

“We do agree this is a very interesting finding,” said del Pozo Cruz via email. “Our take is that intensity of stepping matters! Over and above volume. Technology could be use to track not only number of steps but also pace and so these types of metrics can also be incorporated in commercial watches. More research is needed on this.” 5 exercises to offset too much sitting 

The study did have some limitations, its authors point out — it was only observational, so it cannot establish a direct cause and effect between walking and a lower risk of dementia. In addition, “the age range of participants may have resulted in limited dementia cases, meaning our results may not be generalizable to older populations,” the study said.

“Because there are often considerable delays in dementia diagnosis, and this study did not include formal clinical and cognitive assessments of dementia, it is possible that the prevalence of dementia in the community was much higher,” the authors added.

While agreeing that the findings cannot be interpreted as a direct cause and effect, “the mounting evidence in support of the benefits of physical activity for maintaining optimal brain health can no longer be disregarded,” wrote Okonkwo and Planalp.

“It is time for the management of physical inactivity to be considered an intrinsic part of routine primary care visits for older adults,” they added. 

Research adds up

Indeed, recent research published in July has found many leisure activities, such as household chores, exercise, adult education classes and visiting with family and friends, affected dementia risk in middle-aged people.

Adults who were highly engaged in physical activity such as frequent exercise had a 35% lower risk of developing dementia compared with people who were the least engaged in these activities, researchers found.

Regularly doing household chores lowered risk by 21% while daily visits with family and friends lowered the risk of dementia by 15%, when compared with people who were less engaged.

Everyone in the study benefited from the protective effect of physical and mental activities, whether or not they had a family history of dementia, researchers found.

Another study published in January found that exercise may slow dementia in active older people whose brains already showed signs of plaques, tangles and other hallmarks of Alzheimer’s and other cognitive diseases.

That study found exercise boosts levels of a protein known to strengthen communication between brain cells via synapses, which may be a key factor in keeping dementia at bay.

“Dementia is preventable to a great extent,” said del Pozo Cruz. “Physical activity as well as other lifestyle behaviors such lack of alcohol and smoking, maintaining a healthy diet and weight and sleep can put you on the right track to avoid dementia.”

 MERLOT

1,618 ACRES PLANTED (654 HECTARES)

Merlot is BC’s most planted grape. In most parts of the world, Merlot is renowned as having soft tannins and a lush, rich texture. In BC, for reasons linked to the unique climate, the structure of Merlot is completely different. It naturally produces more structured, higher tannin wines than in most parts of the world. BC Merlot will typically have a medium to full body, medium to high tannins and flavours that include black cherry, black plum, chocolate and floral violet notes. As in many parts of the world it is often blended with Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

 PINOT NOIR

1,331 ACRES PLANTED (538 HECTARES)

Pinot Noir has grown more rapidly in terms of acreage (79% between 2006 and 2014) than any other widely planted red grape as growers find it well suited to the BC terroir. Most of the plantings are in the central to north part of the Okanagan Valley as the hottest areas are mostly too hot for this early-ripening variety. Style wise, BC Pinot Noir tends to have both bright intense cherry, strawberry and raspberry fruit flavour as well as complex spice notes, along with medium tannins and high levels of acidity for structure. As a result, good quality BC Pinot Noir tends to age very well.

 CABERNET SAUVIGNON

853 ACRES PLANTED (345 HECTARES)

Cabernet Sauvignon in BC is best suited to the warmest sites, typically on the eastern side of the Okanagan Valley near Osoyoos or on the south-facing benches of Cawston in the Similkameen Valley. Typical Cabernet Sauvignon in BC has intense cassis and blackberry fruit, structured tannins and high acidity, with a notable dried sage or tobacco note. The wines from ripe vintages can age very well, often drinking well for more than a decade.

 CABERNET FRANC

719 ACRES PLANTED (290 HECTARES)

Cabernet Franc is increasingly making expressive, quality varietal wines, rather than its usual role as a blending grape in most of the world. It seems to have a particular affinity with the climate of the South Okanagan and Similkameen, producing wines with bright red fruit, ripe tannins, intense perfume and just a pretty hint of the herbaceous/tobacco character that can be overpowering in overly cool climates. In warm years it produces rich, structured wines yet in cool years it does not overly suffer from greenness, making it well suited to the BC climate.

 SYRAH

553 ACRES PLANTED (223 HECTARES)

BC has proven it is well suited to making intensely flavoured, cool climate Syrah and because of this BC Syrah is consistently named the top red wine in Canada in wine competitions. BC Syrah falls somewhere between the rich, riper style of warmer climate Australian wines and the medium-bodied, fresher, peppery wines of the northern Rhône Valley in France. BC Syrah is intense in fruit, gamey, floral and retains lots of black pepper notes.

 GAMAY NOIR

189 ACRES PLANTED (76 HECTARES)

Gamay plantings are only small in BC but it is gaining in popularity as it consistently produces high-quality wines. The momentum towards lighter, juicier red wines among a growing number of consumers is also helping Gamay’s popularity. A typical BC Gamay will be light in body and tannin with fresh juicy acidity, a silky texture and flavours of red berry fruit, cinnamon and minerality.

Courtesy: Wine Growers of BC

 PINOT GRIS

1,166 ACRES PLANTED (471 HECTARES)

The number one white grape variety
in terms of acreage in BC. The style of Pinot Gris in BC has been, and in many cases still is, quite varied following both the crisper, lighter, fresher style of Pinot Grigio in northern Italy as well as the richer, honeyed, off-dry and more tropical style of Alsace. The majority of BC Pinot Gris though could best be described as something fruitier and fuller bodied than the Pinot Grigio of Italy yet lighter and fresher than the wines of Alsace. Both the French and Italian names are used, often varying based on the style. They are typically dry or off-dry with a medium body and flavours and aromas of pear, honeydew or cantaloupe melon, lemon, and sometimes a little honey, minerality and baking spice.

 CHARDONNAY

1,132 ACRES PLANTED (458 HECTARES)

The style of Chardonnay produced in BC varies from a few unoaked versions with crisp acidity and often crisp apple flavours to world-class barrel fermented wines with complex lees, oak and fruit flavours. The naturally high acidity achieved in BC and the peach, lemon and nectarine flavours when combined with quality oak barrel fermentation and aging on lees can make for very highly regarded wines. Many of BC’s most internationally awarded wines have been Chardonnay.

 GEWÜRZTRAMINER

646 ACRES PLANTED (261 HECTARES)

Gewürztraminer is another Alsatian variety that grows well in BC. The variety has been planted in the province for many years and continues to slowly gain popularity. Between 2006 and 2014 plantings increased by 61%. Known for generating wines with intense aromatics and fruitiness, BC with its unique climate, is an ideal location for producing such a pronounced floral variety. Ripening to high alcohol levels, often around 14%, the variety can lose acidity quickly and become a touch flabby. In BC, the natural high acidity that remains from the cool nights means this is rarely an issue. The wines typically show aromas of lychee, rose petal and ripe stone fruit, often with a touch of sweetness.

 RIESLING

613 ACRES PLANTED (248 HECTARES)

Riesling has always been present in BC but it took a while for it to be taken seriously and the wines are increasingly building a top-quality reputation. From 2006 to 2014, plantings of Riesling grew by 86%. BC Riesling can be both the soft, fruity, off-dry style or, increasingly, a dry, high acid, intense apple, lime and mineral flavoured style that has received international attention. A few producers are also making sweeter, low-alcohol German Kabinett-style wines. Many of the Riesling wines have a great ability to age and some have been cellared for more than a decade.

 SAUVIGNON BLANC

403 ACRES PLANTED (163 HECTARES)

Sauvignon Blanc experienced the same popular explosion in the 1990s that Pinot Gris is experiencing today, being planted rapidly all over the world. Plantings in BC increased quite rapidly in the middle of the 2000s. The BC style benefits from the natural high acidity and fruit ripeness. Both the crisp, zingy, green bean, grass and asparagus style as well as a riper, tropical fruit, richer version can be found. Some of the most successful wines are oak fermented and blended with Semillon to make wines along the lines of white Bordeaux.

 PINOT BLANC

232 ACRES PLANTED (94HECTARES)

Once one of the most planted white grapes in BC, Pinot Blanc has failed to find widespread popularity and acreage has decline. BC Pinot Blanc generally has fresh acid, a medium body and characteristic apple peel flavours, and can make for some great value, characterful wines.

 VIOGNIER

234 ACRES PLANTED (94 HECTARES)

The growth of Viognier from existing only as a small, local curiosity in the northern Rhône to a worldwide mainstream grape variety has been rapid and the trend has not missed BC. Viognier in BC often attains the heady scents of jasmine and stone fruit but retains freshness from the trademark crisp BC acidity. Viognier is increasingly being blended with two other Rhône varieties, Marsanne and Roussanne. Marsanne and Roussanne are not as aromatic as Viognier but share the same rich, soft texture. These blends are proving some of the most successful BC white blends in recent competitions although plantings of these blending partners are still small. Viognier is also increasingly being used to add perfume, texture and brightness of colour to Syrah when blended prior to fermentation in small amounts.

Courtesy: Wine Growers of BC