Beaujolais BBQ at Acadia Restaurant

A couple of weeks ago I attended an exclusive tasting of Beaujolais wines paired with items off the BBQ. This event was done in advance of a special promotion that will be out soon at the LCBO, just in time for the upcoming - or finally arrived? - BBQ season. The luncheon was hosted at Acadia Restaurant in Little Italy, with the food items prepared by chef Patrick Kriss. Leading...

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May 25 Wine Picks: Pinot Noir + German Riesling

The next LCBO Vintages wine release will be on Saturday, May 25. The major focus on this release is on Pinot Noirs that show a sense of place. Most of this feature is quite disappointing. However, if you're heart is set on the heart-break grape, check out the version from Lailey that's from our own backyard. The secondary feature is on German Rieslings. This noble white...

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Lomond Syrah 2008 (South Africa) - Wine Review

This red wine is from last November's Vintages release. I hope you picked up a bottle or two of this when I recommended it last November, as, understandably, there are only 2 bottles available in all of Ontario. Lomond practices sustainable farming throughout all of their vineyards, and the grapes for this wine hail from the southernmost point of Africa. LOMOND SYRAH 2008...

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Wine Reviews: 2013 Niagara Icewine Festival

After much delay, my wine reviews from the 2013 Niagara Wine Festival are finally posted. There were lots of delicious red wines, white wines, and, of course, Icewines tasted over the 2 days. Also check out my full review of the Festival. I hope you can join us next year! Wine reviews from the Peller Estates dinner can be found here. Tasting Notes: NCT DEAN'S LIST CABERNET...

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May 11 LCBO Wine Picks: Australia + Rosé

The next batch of wines from LCBO Vintages release will be on shelves on Saturday, May 11, 2013. The major focus of this release is on the "great, powerful and diverse" wines from Australia. However, in my opinion, the majority of these wines are rather uninspiring. So, we'll focus on the secondary feature - Rosé wines that are food-friendly. Rosé wines are generally blends...

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Apr. 27 Wine Picks: Appassimento + Organic Wines

The next Vintages release will be on LCBO shelves on Saturday, April 27. The main feature in this release is on Italian wines that use the appassimento method to make wines, while the secondary feature is on organic wines. Appassimento-method wines involve drying the grapes prior to pressing and fermenting. There are various ways to dry grapes, such as laying on racks or...

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Napa Valley Wine Tasting

The California Wine Institute has been heavily promoting their wines all over Canada throughout March, and will continue to the beginning of May. Included among this promotion were the major features on California wine in the March 2nd and 16th Vintages releases, and the rather large promotion in the General List wine section at the LCBO titled "California Style". The recent...

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