CHEERS, A votre Sante, Salut, Skaal, Kippis, L’chaim,
Slainte – Here’s tae Ye! or how ever you may say Cheers!
My name is Neil Roy and I am the newest addition to the Wine Sense family.

I’m the new Manager at the Wine Sense location in Brandon. I have been with Wine Sense for about 2 months now and to be honest with you, I haven’t enjoyed myself this much at work in a very long time.

I’ll be taking over from Ben and Ken- if you’re a Brandon Wine Sense customer you know how good a job they’ve done over the years.

Ben and Ken practice for retirement while on the job!

Most of you know Chuck by now- he is staying on with me as we prepare to fill the very large pair of wooden shoes that Ben is leaving behind. But don’t worry, Ben is going to be keeping an eye on us and will be working on Tuesdays. I expect Tuesdays will be very busy days! 

I live in Brandon with my wife of 25 wonderful years, Janene and our 3 sons. My wife and I have enjoyed the wine making lifestyle for some 8 years now and really enjoy the whole adventure.

I’ve been training in Brandon with Ben & Ken and at the Wine Sense locations in Winnipeg.  One thing I realized quickly is that when you learn from the Wine Sense staff you learn from the best!

My promise to you all is that customer service is our number one goal and if I can’t answer any of your questions I have an amazing group of collegues that will or will direct me on where to find it.

I look forward to all the new relationships with my fellow winemakers and together we can enjoy and share all the wonderful aspects of winemaking. One very important thing I’ve learned so far at Wine Sense… we don’t just sell wine kits, we sell a “Wine Lifestyle”

Cheers and enjoy!

Neil Roy

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Filed under: General by Craig

Winexpert often has the opportunity to secure small amounts of very special raw materials. These raw materials are unique and deserve special attention. The grapes are either unique varieties, come from special regions, or can be combined to produce exciting blends. The result is the ‘Small Lots’ program.

This year we have a Meritage blend which is a combination of two or more “noble” Bordeaux varieties. Our Meritage 3 Continents is a blend of Petit Verdot from Australia, Cabernet Sauvignon from California, and Merlot from Chile. Meritage wines historically are prized for their smooth, silky texture and robust structure. The ‘Small Lots’ Meritage 3 Continents has flavours of blackfruit, soft notes of licorice, and hints of cedar and chocolate. I’m tasting it already!

Chardonnay is becoming one of the most popular grapes in BC, and has become a sought after wine. The ‘Small Lots’ BC Chardonnay provides us with the unique opportunity to choose the style of Chardonnay we wish to have. Keep the oak out to create an un-oaked ‘New-World’ style- crisper and more fruit forward. Alternatel you can add the oak creating a more traditional style bringing out some of the vanilla notes and extending the finish. I’m going to add the oak!

I’ll be making one of each as I don’t want to miss this opportunity.

If you buy yours before May 22^nd you’ll receive a FREE $15 Wine Sense Gift Card!

We only have a few left and once they are gone that’s it- thus the name ‘Small Lots’…

Cheers,

Victor- Manager (McPhillips)

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Filed under: New Products by Craig

Twisted Mist is back in stock at Winexpert and more is being shipped to Wine Sense right now. Although some Wine Sense locations may be low or out of stock right now- all should be back to normal by Thursday or Friday of this week.

The sales of Twisted Mit have been simply amazing. For those of you who don’t know you what Twisted Mist is- you can now make your own Mojito and Strawberry Margaritas! Click here for more details.

Many of you must be close to bottling at this time, and it would be to your best interest to review the instructions. The one big difference is that the fruit pack is added at bottling time. Also, the finished product will have a cloudy appearance. The final product should look this way- so do not worry. 

One other interesting note in the instructions concerns degassing. They suggest that after you have completed the degassing phase that you siphon some wine into your test jar- halfway is good. Insert a solid bung or cover with your clean hand and give a good shake. If you hear a pop or puff of gas then you should continue degassing. If the wine foams up but no pop of gas then you have completed the task. I think this is a great idea and should be applied to all wine kits.

Cheers

Bob- Manager (Wine Sense- Springfield Rd)

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Filed under: New Products by Craig

Time flies – a lot has changed in 8500 years!

Evidence tells us winemaking originated in 6500 BC and in recent years has come full circle. Wine was first made in the home and as time progressed it became a commercial endeavor. Along the way the quality of wine evolved and improved into the amazing beverage enjoyed today.

Home winemaking... We've come a long way baby!

Wine Sense opened 19 years ago and in that time the home winemaker has seen a lot of history repeat itself. We opened just as the first major change in the recent history of home winemaking was occuring. It was about 20 years ago that Winexpert(orignally named Brew King) created the modern wine kit. Cans of low-grade red or white grape concentrate were vastly upgraded to the bag-in-box wine kit featuring high quality varietal grape juice and concentrate that we know today.

The 'modern' wine kit- by Winexpert

Next, Canada’s largest wineries took notice and bought into the ‘cottage’ wine kit industry. As a result the industry gained access to technology that further improve the quality of wine kits. Along with technology, we gained greater buying power and access to better, more sought after raw materials from all around the world. We’ve gone from making ‘red or white’ wine to making Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon and New Zealand Marlbourough Sauvignon Blanc!

Most importantly to our valued customers- because of the above mentioned innovations, the wine that you are making today is significantly better than the wine you were making when we first opened in 1991.

What else has changed? 

A big one certainly was our name. In 2006 we changed from The Brew Doctor to Wine Sense. Why? Because you our customers told us we were in the wine business. In the early days, beer kits carried the load. I recall many years ago boasting in our Yellow Pages ad that we had over 140 different beer kits. But you the consumer changed as your tastes have shifted from beer to wine. While we still have a selection of beer, we now offer over 180 different wine kits!

Why the change?

Because home winemaking made wine affordable for everyday enjoyment. Wine was no longer just for special occasions- we can now afford to make every occasion special by opening a bottle of wine that we made.

Do we still carry beer kits?

We sure do. We also carry a variety of products that allow you to offer more choice for yourself, your family and friends: Island Mist and Niagara Mist patio wines, Twisted Mist Cocktail kits and Still Spirits liqueurs extracts.

As we’ve grown, so has our ability to communicate with you. We’ve grown from little ads to a full-colour presence in newspapers, from a black and white newlsetter to full-colour, from radio to TV commercials and now as you read our blog, the social media scene which you probably linked to from our Facebook Fan Page that you likely first learned about from our email marketing.

We are also renovating all of our stores. Four have been completed with two more remaining. Our Southdale store will be converted this summer. So for our customers in that area you can expect to see new colours, a new layout and a new way to shop for your wine kits.

Our new store design... 4 down 2 to go!

The Wine Sense family has also grown over the years. We have more staff than ever and I’m pleased to boast that they are unmatched. They all love wine, winemaking and they have a passion for what they do. They are trained in winemaking and wine enjoyment and are happy to share their knowledge with you.

The Wine Sense Family

As I write this 19th Birthday Blog I’m seeing the trend… Change and Quality. And as we move into year 20 and beyond, Wine Sense will continue to evolve to offer you a great shopping experience and provide you with leading edge quality.

It’s one of those birthday’s that’s a pleasure to celebrate. Cheers!

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Filed under: Events, General by Craig