Covering only about 100 square miles with a population of 56,000, the Cayman Islands boast a vibrant wine and culinary scene. Indeed, every year Wine Spectator magazine names restaurants with exceptional wine lists all over the world and in 2013, 13 restaurants from the Cayman Islands got the nod.

The Award of Excellence is the basic award for lists that offer a well-chosen selection of quality producers, along with a thematic match to the menu in both price and style. Typically, these lists offer at least 100 selections. In this category were: Agua Restaurant, Calypso Grill, Casa Havana, Hemingway’s Restaurant, Ortanique: Cuisine of the Sun, Ristorante Pappagallo, The Brasserie and The Wharf Restaurant & Bar.

Best of Award of Excellence is the second-tier award, created to give special recognition to restaurants that clearly exceed the requirements of the Award of Excellence. These lists typically offer 400 or more selections, along with superior presentation, and display either vintage depth, with several vertical offerings of top wines, or excellent breadth across several wine regions. In this category were: Blue by Eric Ripert, Grand Old House, Luca, Ragazzi and Seven.

Last week we were hosted by executives from the Jamaica Broilers Group in the Cayman Islands as they celebrated 22 years of business in that country with

The Best Dressed Chicken brand. One of the stops was Cayman’s newest wine destination — West Indies Wine Company.

Located in the prestigious centre of Camana Bay on Grand Cayman’s Seven-Mile Beach, the West Indies Wine Company offers 80 wines via WineStations, one of the many wine-dispensing devices on the market. These devices have become very popular in recent years, especially in markets where specialised labour costs are high. Used in tasting rooms, wine stores, restaurants and bars, the WineStation claims to keep wines fresh for up to 60 days after the cork is removed by pumping argon gas into the bottle and removing oxygen. This process prevents oxidation, a common wine defect that is similar to foods becoming stale. The cost of the pour depends on the price of the wine in the dispenser and the size of the pour. Customers have three sizes of pours to choose from: a one-ounce tasting; a three-ounce half-glass; or a five-ounce full glass.

Our group had a fantastic evening at the West Indies Wine Company, where we were presented with a wine-and-cheese tasting featuring the fragrant, ripe Louis Jadot Meursault, Burgundy, France; the rich, opulent Orin Swift Papillon, Napa Valley, USA; a huge, concentrated Carmen de Peumo Carménère, Cachapoal Valley, Chile, and we ended with the voluptuous and jammy Taylor Fladgate 20 Year Tawny Porto.

Looking forward to heading back to Cayman soon to sample more of what they have to offer.

Christopher Reckord – Businessman, Entrepreneur & Wine Enthusiast. Send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com. Follow us on twitter: @Reckord