Until 2012, sláinte!

Accommodations

As per my stay in Vancouver, I headed up towards the base of Blackcomb Mountain to the Four Seasons Whistler. This hotel is well situated as a hub for both winter and summer activities, and truly captures the magic and beauty of Whistler in its architecture and guest experience. Entering the lobby you are immediately aware that you have entered a modern alpine resort, with low hanging chandeliers, dark wood beams and stone reminiscent of Norse mythology. The hotel is a short walk to the Blackcomb ski base, and is situated across from the Chateau Whistler Golf Course, Lost Lake, and all of the accompanying trails.

The hotel takes care of a lot of the little details that arise in a vacation where you may have ski equipment, golf gear, or mountain bikes. You can get sized for ski boots in a shop under the main lobby, then walk over to the lift and a Four Seasons tent and your gear will be ready for you. There are shuttles to the village if you’d prefer not to enjoy the 15 minute walk along Blackcomb Creek to get to the village, where the shops and restaurants await. The rooms themselves feel very private, luxurious and offer a nice place to unwind after a day of activity. We had a balcony that offered the perfect view for an evening smoke.

Dining

I didn’t have to go far to find a tasty treat, since Sidecut was right on the hotel’s main floor. Catching a whiff of savoury grill, and seeing much of the wine selection displayed behind a glass cellar as you enter the restaurant made me think of the perfect après-ski dinner. Chef Scott Thomas Dolbee and wine director Dave Foran have put together a unique concept, pairing local cuisine with 6 distinct meat rubs and serving it with 6 different sauces and a deep wine list. Many of the fresh herbs are grown on site in special greenhouses. The variety of flavours during dinner here can be exhausting but also exhilarating.

There are plenty of great dining spots in the village as well, with a couple of renowned restaurants including Araxi and the Bearfoot Bistro. Anyone who has walked through the village in summer has very likely done a double take when passing Araxi and seeing the Seafood Towers on display. Araxi has in my opinion the best wine list in Whistler, with lots of options outside the usual BC/California/French brands that you would expect in a tourist trap location like this. The Bistro attracts attention with its gimmicky below zero vodka room, where you put on a parka and taste ultra-chilled spirits. Worth visiting and taking a few pictures for the scrapbook. Both restaurants feature authentically local cuisine prepared impeccably and creatively.

For breakfast I will recommend a little out-of-the-way bakery that seems at odds with the fine dining options I’ve extolled above. Hot Buns bakery is a casual omelet and crepe bar with good coffee and fair prices. It can be found near the village centre around the corner from the Amsterdam pub. This type of joint is rare indeed in a city filled with mostly fine dining and upscale pub fare.

Activities

Perhaps the enduring allure of Whistler is the rich visuals combined with a constant reinvention with the changing of seasons. The experience is so different in summer from winter that it feels like a new destination. Likewise there is a sensible balance between relaxing activities and active ones. Everyone knows about the epic ski experience, and it still is the literal backbone of the resort. But hiking, biking, golf, swimming, climbing, swimming, cross-country mix with spa, spectating, shopping, dining and more, and all are well represented. We spent a day by Lost Lake doing nothing but relaxing. What more do you need?

Part of the reason I waited so long to watch this, despite being aware of the documentary and wine project thanks to Wine Library TV, was that I was expecting the glamorous angle that we get in America from outlets like Wine Spectator. The reality is of course that wine is really about dirt mixed with more literal sweat and blood than the figurative type. Or as Eric says so perfectly, 90% physical labour. This movie reflects that reality and is refreshing in the way that it returns the viewer to the inevitable focus of every wine, the story behind it that contributes to the sights, smells and tastes to create the full sensory experience that wine is.

In particular I love the reflections on critics and the palate of each individual wine drinker: “you have to trust what you like. If you have a Walmart palate you have a Walmart palate. You have to trust what you like.” Maynard’s repetition of this ideal leads into the arrival of James Suckling, super critic. “If you are really serious about your wines, you need to get to know the palate of the person who is scoring the wines.” This segment ends with James feeling the dirt in the vineyard while discussing the inspiration for the wine, Maynard’s mother Judith, then smoking cigars together with Eric in the evening.

There is lots of playful humour coming from Maynard and the filmamakers throughout the film used to emphasize the juxtaposition of glamour and practicality. You see a 20 something girl with dyed blond hair in one scene dipping her fingers in a wine glass to let her purse-sized dog try some. The interlude segments Focus on Interesting Things is weak humour for the most part but contain some of the best insights into Maynard’s introspective and resclusive image.

Blood Into Wine is a solid show for fans of music, wine, and other interesting things.