Privacy Policy

Last Updated: February 18, 2026

Effective Date: February 18, 2026

Introduction

MalbecTaste operates this website to provide educational and informational content about wine tasting, Canadian wine regions, and digital wine discovery tools. We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal data in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Canadian Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), and other applicable privacy laws.

This Privacy Policy explains what data we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and your rights regarding your personal information. By using this website, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this policy.

Data Controller: MalbecTaste, 1055 Dunsmuir Street, Vancouver, BC V7X 1L3, Canada. For privacy inquiries, contact us at [email protected].

Cookie Categories

We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your experience on our website. Cookies are divided into three categories based on their purpose and the level of consent required.

1. Essential Cookies

Purpose: Essential cookies are necessary for the core functionality of the website. They enable basic features such as page navigation, security, session management, and storing your cookie consent preferences.

Examples: session_id, csrf_token, cookie_consent_status

Consent Required: No. Essential cookies are activated automatically because they are necessary for the website to function properly.

Retention Period: Session duration or up to 12 months for preference storage.

2. Analytics Cookies

Purpose: Analytics cookies help us measure website traffic, understand user behavior, and evaluate site performance. This data allows us to improve content quality and user experience.

Tools Used: Google Analytics 4

Examples: _ga, _ga_XXXXXXX, _gid, _gat

Consent Required: Yes. Analytics cookies are activated only after you provide explicit consent through the cookie banner or preferences panel.

Retention Period: Up to 14 months.

3. Marketing and Advertising Cookies

Purpose: Marketing cookies enable remarketing, personalized ad delivery, and conversion tracking. They allow us to show relevant advertisements to users who have previously visited our website and to measure the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns.

Consent Required: Yes. Marketing and advertising cookies are activated only after you provide explicit consent.

Retention Period: Up to 540 days, in accordance with Google Ads default settings.

Marketing Cookies — Detailed Disclosures

Third-Party Ad Serving

Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a user's previous visits to this website and other sites on the internet. These cookies help deliver advertisements that are relevant to your interests and browsing behavior.

Advertising Partners

We may work with advertising partners such as Google and Meta to deliver advertisements tailored to your interests across various websites and platforms. These partners use tracking technologies to understand your preferences and show you relevant content.

Remarketing

We may use remarketing services to advertise to previous visitors of our website. After visiting our site, you may see our ads on other websites, apps, or platforms you visit. Remarketing allows us to reconnect with users who have shown interest in our educational content.

YouTube and Google Display Network

Advertisements may appear across Google services including YouTube, Gmail, and the Google Display Network. These ads are served based on your interaction with our website and your general browsing activity across the web.

Tracking Technologies

We use the following tracking technologies on this website:

  • Cookies (first-party and third-party)
  • Tracking pixels (Google Ads tag / gtag.js, Meta Pixel)
  • Device identifiers (browser fingerprint, IP address)
  • Conversion event tags

Advertising Measurement

We use conversion tracking to understand which advertisements lead to actions on our website, such as form submissions, calls, or page visits. This allows us to measure campaign effectiveness and allocate budget appropriately. Conversion data may be shared with Google Ads and Meta for performance analysis.

Technologies in Use

Advertising and analytics technologies currently active on this site include:

  • Google Ads (gtag.js / Google Tag Manager)
  • Google Analytics 4
  • Google Remarketing Tag
  • Meta Pixel (Facebook / Instagram)

Opt-Out from Personalized Advertising

You may opt out of personalized advertising at any time through the following resources:

Opting out does not remove ads entirely. You will continue to see non-personalized advertisements that are not based on your browsing behavior or interests.

Cookie Preference Management

You can manage your cookie preferences at any time by clicking the "Manage Cookie Preferences" link in the website footer. This will open a panel where you can accept or reject each cookie category independently. Essential cookies remain active at all times as they are necessary for the site to function.

Consent Requirements

Consent Banner

When you first visit our website, you will see a cookie consent banner that provides three options:

  • Accept All Cookies: Activates all cookie categories including analytics and marketing.
  • Reject Non-Essential: Activates only essential cookies; analytics and marketing cookies remain inactive.
  • Manage Preferences: Opens a detailed panel where you can choose which cookie categories to accept.

The banner does not block content and can be dismissed without accepting cookies. Your choice is stored in your browser's local storage for 12 months. The banner links directly to this Privacy Policy for full transparency.

Consent Statement

By clicking "Accept All Cookies", you consent to the storing of cookies on your device for analytics and advertising purposes, including personalized advertising delivered by Google and Meta. You may withdraw consent at any time through the cookie preferences panel without affecting the lawfulness of processing that occurred before withdrawal.

EEA and UK Users

Users in the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom receive this consent notice in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and UK GDPR. Marketing and analytics cookies are activated solely after explicit, informed, freely given consent under GDPR Article 6(1)(a). Consent is recorded with a timestamp and may be audited upon request.

Withdrawal of Consent

You may withdraw consent at any time by clicking "Manage Cookie Preferences" in the website footer, or by clearing cookies via your browser settings. Withdrawal does not affect processing that occurred while consent was valid.

Data Sharing with Advertising Partners

We share certain data with advertising partners for campaign delivery and measurement. Recipients and the data categories shared include:

We do not sell personal data. All transfers to Google and Meta operate under Standard Contractual Clauses where applicable. Data is processed for ad targeting and campaign measurement only and is not resold to unaffiliated third parties.

Google and Meta may use this data across their own platforms in accordance with their respective policies. We encourage users to review those policies directly.

Contact Forms and Inquiries

When you submit a contact form or send us an inquiry via email, we collect the information you provide. This typically includes your full name, email address, phone number (if provided), and the content of your message.

Legal Basis: Consent (GDPR Article 6.1.a) and, where a service relationship exists, performance of a contract (GDPR Article 6.1.b).

Retention Period: Contact form submission data is retained for up to 2 years from the date of submission, unless a longer period is required by applicable law.

You may request deletion of your data at any time by contacting us at [email protected]. A link to this Privacy Policy appears adjacent to every submission button on this site. Submitting a form constitutes acknowledgment of this policy.

Google Services and Advertising

This website uses the following Google services:

Google Analytics 4

Google Analytics 4 collects anonymized usage data, device information, and behavioral signals to help us understand how visitors interact with our website. IP anonymization is enabled, and data retention is set to 14 months. Users may opt out via the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout

Google Ads Conversion Tracking

This tool records when a user completes a defined action (such as a form submission, call, or page visit) after clicking one of our ads. This data is used solely for measuring ad campaign performance and optimizing advertising spend.

Google Remarketing

Google Remarketing allows us to show ads to previous visitors across Google's network, including the Google Display Network, YouTube, Gmail, and partner websites. Remarketing lists are not created from sensitive data categories such as health, finance, religion, or sexual orientation.

Google Tag Manager

Google Tag Manager deploys tracking tags on our behalf. No personal data is collected by GTM itself; it acts as a container for the tags listed above.

Google's advertising products are governed by: https://policies.google.com/technologies/ads

Meta Advertising Services

This website uses the Meta Pixel to measure the effectiveness of our advertising on Facebook and Instagram. The pixel may record:

  • Page views and time on site
  • Specific conversion events (form submissions, page interactions)
  • Custom audience membership for retargeting purposes

We do not use the Meta Pixel to collect sensitive personal data, nor to target users based on health status, financial situation, religion, political views, sexual orientation, or any other special-category attribute prohibited under Meta's advertising policies.

Meta acts as an independent data controller for data collected via its Pixel and processed within its own platform. Refer to Meta's Data Policy: https://www.facebook.com/privacy/policy

To manage your ad preferences on Meta platforms, visit: https://www.facebook.com/adpreferences/

Prohibited Content Self-Declaration

This website does not promote, sell, or facilitate access to prohibited product or service categories including but not limited to: weapons, controlled substances, counterfeit goods, gambling services (unlicensed), adult content, or services that make misleading health or financial claims. All advertising conducted through Google Ads and Meta Ads complies with the respective platform policies in full.

Landing Page Integrity Statement

The content of this website accurately represents the information and educational resources advertised. No bait-and-switch practices are employed. The experience delivered to users arriving from paid advertisements is identical to the experience for all other visitors. Cloaking, automatic redirects, and content variation by traffic source are not used on this website.

Children's Privacy

This website is not directed at individuals under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect personal data from minors. If we discover that data has been collected from a person under 16 without verifiable parental consent, we will delete it promptly. Contact us at [email protected] if you believe we have received data from a minor.

International Data Transfers

Personal data collected through this website may be transferred to and processed in countries outside the European Economic Area, including the United States, where Google LLC and Meta Platforms, Inc. are based.

These transfers are conducted under Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission, which provide appropriate safeguards for personal data. A copy of the applicable SCCs can be requested by contacting us directly at [email protected].

Your Rights Under GDPR

If you are located in the EEA or UK, you have the following rights under the General Data Protection Regulation:

  • Access (Article 15): Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
  • Rectification (Article 16): Correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
  • Erasure (Article 17): Request deletion of your data ("right to be forgotten").
  • Restriction (Article 18): Limit how we process your data.
  • Portability (Article 20): Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
  • Objection (Article 21): Object to processing based on legitimate interest.
  • Withdraw Consent (Article 7.3): Revoke consent at any time without penalty.

To exercise any right, email us at [email protected]. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority:

What Data We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal data:

  • Full name
  • Email address
  • Phone number (when provided voluntarily)
  • IP address
  • Browser type and version
  • Device type and operating system
  • Cookies and tracking identifiers
  • Usage data (pages visited, time on site, click paths)
  • Form submission content
  • Conversion events (form submits, page visits)

Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data under the following legal bases as defined by GDPR Article 6:

  • Contact form data: Consent (Article 6.1.a) and contract performance (Article 6.1.b)
  • Analytics data: Consent (Article 6.1.a)
  • Marketing and remarketing data: Consent (Article 6.1.a)
  • Security and fraud prevention: Legitimate interest (Article 6.1.f)

Data Retention Periods

We retain personal data for the following periods:

  • Contact form submissions: 2 years
  • Analytics data (Google Analytics 4): 14 months
  • Marketing cookies (Google Ads): Up to 540 days
  • Email communications: Duration of relationship plus 1 year
  • Server logs: 90 days
  • Cookie consent records: 3 years (audit requirement)

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technologies, legal requirements, or other operational needs. When we make changes, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page.

If we make material changes that significantly affect your rights, we will notify users via a banner on the homepage at least 14 days before the changes take effect. Continued use of the website after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact Information

If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact us:

MalbecTaste
1055 Dunsmuir Street
Vancouver, BC V7X 1L3
Canada

Email: [email protected]
Phone: +1 (604) 555-7834