Gurvinder Bhatia is one of the few lucky ones to turn his passion into a profession. The Alberta-based wine expert left his 10-year career as a lawyer to pursue his interests in food and wine. He is now a successful wine consultant, educator, judge and writer – and also named as one of the 50 most influential people in Alberta.
As part of his exciting career, Bhatia has the unique opportunity to travel the world and constantly meet new people. His establishment, Vinomania, has been recognized as one of the top 20 wine stores in Canada.
The wine lover believes his interest in wine developed naturally from his interest in food, which was fostered by his parents throughout his childhood, “I’ve had an interest in food since I was young, which stemmed from the fact that there were never any restrictions placed on me. In fact, I was encouraged to try everything. I also travelled a lot with my parents, and they always wanted me to try new things. So I grew up loving food, which naturally kind of led itself to wine.”
His foray into wine began when the Alberta government privatized retail liquor stores. “While I was practicing law, the Alberta government privatized the liquor stores. There were some chains starting to open up, but there weren’t any significant wine stores operating other than the ones that existed prior to privatization. I thought that there was a little bit of a void in the market, and the idea was to create a wine store with a boutique selection that was also accessible,” explains Bhatia.
Opened in 1995, Vinomania set itself apart by sourcing wines from small producers around the world. Bhatia points out that the goal was to “expose people to quality producers from around the world, whose wines have a great sense of place and are great representations of their regions.” Vinomania has recently merged with another private wine boutique called Unwined.
Having spent many years as a wine educator, Bhatia finds it rewarding to share his knowledge with others. “A lot of people are intimidated by wine, and I love to take that intimidation factor away and help people become more comfortable with wine, and not be scared of trying something they’ve never heard of before.”
He finds satisfaction in exposing people to wines they haven’t tried before, in hopes of helping them discover something they’ll fall in love with. Bhatia also loves discovering the people and history behind the wine. He enjoys hearing stories directly from the producers. “I love to learn what they’ve gone through, why a particular bottle tastes the way it does, what they’ve done in the vineyard, their family history, and the cultural aspect of it, because wine really does get its context from the people, the place, the culture and the history.”
Ask him which are his favourite wines, and he replies – “those which reflect where they’re from.” “For me, wine needs to have a sense of place. People forget that wine is an agricultural product, and what’s in the bottle should really reflect where the grapes are grown. When you get the sense of place, combined with it being well-made, and having a great price-quality ratio, those are the most enjoyable wines to drink,” says Bhatia summing up.
