Wine festival offers deals on tasting sessions in advance

You can save money on Vancouver International Wine Festival tickets until Dec. 15, or while quantities last.

Only a limited number of tickets are available at the advance rate for each of the four tasting sessions, namely Thursday and Friday evenings from 7 to 10 p. m. ($ 80, regular $ 89), the Saturday matinee from 2: 30 to 5 p. m.

($ 70, regular $ 79) and Saturday evening from 7 to 10 p. m. ($ 95, regular $ 99). All ticket prices include wine, food samples, service charges and taxes. Spain and Portugal headline the 2018 winefest that runs Feb. 28 to March 2 at the Vancouver Convention Centre.

Escape to Wine Country for a

■ four- day, three- night New Year’s Eve getaway at the Walnut Beach Resort in Osoyoos with the B. C. Wine Appreciation Society. The trip includes luxury bus transportation from Vancouver, leaving Dec. 29, returning Jan. 1. The $ 495 includes all taxes, gratuities, and fees. The lunches and dinners on Dec. 30 and 31 include wine as well. There are no hidden surprises. Accommodation is not included, but a block of rooms is on hold from $ 99 to $ 199 a night. To reserve your place, email organizers at info@ bcwas. com.

B. C. WINE OF THE WEEK

Sperling Vidal Icewine 2015, Okanagan Valley

$ 55: 92/ 100

UPC: 627843609926

They never make a lot of this label at Sperling, but we wish they would. It’s the acidity that makes this Vidal so intriguing, balancing off its rich, tangy peach and orange flavours. It’s not often you want another glass of icewine, but this is one of the good ones. It should also age well for a decade and beyond, but in my experience the fresher younger wines are the most interesting to drink. Winery direct or mywinecanada. com.

WINE FOR THE CELLAR

Luigi Bosca Malbec Single Vineyard DOC 2013, Lujan de Cuyo, Mendoza, Argentina

$ 29:| 88/ 100

UPC: 7791203000142

The Bosca single- vineyard Malbec comes from the La Linda site at Vistalba in the DOC of Lujan de Cuyo that was created in 1989. The power and finesse of this wine is immediately noticeable as is the influence of new oak. Plenty of dense fruit afforded by 70- year- old vines near 1,000 metres above sea level fights back, offering potent and fragrant plum, violets, blackberries, mulberries and medicinal cherries. Cellar for five years or serve now with roasted lamb.