Here are my top wine picks from the September 28 Vintages Release, the most quoted Canadian source of reviews in this release. VIP Members can access all 80 wines that I reviewed as a text shopping list with my complete tasting notes, scores, food matches and the stock for each bottle in their closest LCBO stores. Stock numbers are usually posted online a day or two before the release based on the LCBO doing so. You can also see the September 14 LCBO Vintages reviews. They can also add my wine picks to their custom shopping list with one […]
Wine Picks
LCBO Best Wines: Henry of Pelham and Oyster Bay Pinot Noir, Elderton Shiraz Vintages August 31
Here are my top wine picks from the August 31 Vintages Release. VIP Members can access all 53 wines that I reviewed as a text shopping list with my complete tasting notes, scores, food matches and the stock for each bottle in their closest LCBO stores. Stock numbers are usually posted online a day or two before the release based on the LCBO doing so. They can also add my wine picks to their custom shopping list with one click and access that list on their smartphone. This is one of the benefits of becoming a VIP Member. I’ve […]
LCBO Best Wines: Stonier Pinot Noir, Emiliana Syrah Vintages August 17
Here are my top wine picks from the August 17 Vintages Release. VIP Members can access all 68 wines that I reviewed as a text shopping list with my complete tasting notes, scores, food matches and the stock for each bottle in their closest LCBO stores. Stock numbers are usually posted online a day or two before the release based on the LCBO doing so. They can also add my wine picks to their custom shopping list with one click and access that list on their smartphone. This is one of the benefits of becoming a VIP Member. I’ve […]
Halifax Sommelier Pairs Wine and Seafood with Titanic Menu
Avery Gavel, assistant manager and sommelier at The Five Fishermen restaurant in Halifax, shares his insights about pairing wine and seafood, creating historic meals with wine and his take on Nova Scotian wines. What was your first wine experience? I grew up on a dairy farm in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, the oldest of five children. Wine wasn’t part of our family traditions, not even special celebrations. Communion in church was grape juice, even. My first wine experience was at The Five Fishermen in the early 1970s when I was 24 and on a double date. We ordered the cheap German […]
Liquid Lingo of Italy: You Say Wine, I Say Vino
By: The Drink Wine and Giggle Gals Dove regna il vino non regna il silenzio. (Where wine reigns, silence does not reign.) Italian Proverb The second stop in our linguistic tour of the world’s top wine-producing countries is Italy. Whenever the Drink Wine and Giggle Gals think about Italy, we think about the Italian philosophy of living referred to as la bella figura—“the beautiful figure”—that is about much more than dressing well, looking good and admiring all forms of physical beauty. La bella figura is also defined by behaviour, specifically how one comports oneself when ordering wine. Our first Italian […]
Steve Bird Sauvignon Blanc, Templarios Cabernet, Dr L Riesling: Best LCBO Wines Vintages July 6
Here are my top wine picks from the July 6 Vintages Release. You can also get all 68 of my Best Value Wines and Top Rated Wines for red, white, rosé and sparkling wines that encompass many price points, styles and regions. Full Members can access all 68 wines that I reviewed as a text shopping list with my complete tasting notes, scores, food matches and the stock for each bottle in their closest LCBO stores. (Stock numbers are usually posted online a day or two before the release based on the LCBO doing so.) They can also add […]
Baco Noir: A Grape to Call Our Own
Baco Noir: if you live and drink wine in Ontario, then seeing this on a wine label is probably not a curiousity. But, if you don’t live in a cool wine making region, then this hybrid grape has probably never passed your lips. A cross of Folle Blanche from western France (historically used to produce Cognac) and a Vitis Riparia vine indigenous to North America, Baco Noir grows happily in vineyards of Ontario and produces wine that is deserving of the glass. Typically a smoky, fruity, deeply coloured wine, it was once a mainstay in Niagara, before the arrival of […]
Best LCBO Wines: Vintages Release June 22
These are the reviews the LCBO published in the Vintages Catalogue from my tasting notes, the most quoted Canadian source of wine reviews in this release. Full Members can access all 97 wines that I reviewed as a text shopping list with my complete tasting notes, scores and food matches. You can also see a sneak peak my reviews for the July 6 LCBO Vintages Release. Full Members can access all 68 wines that I reviewed as a text shopping list with my full tasting notes, scores, food matches and the stock for each bottle in their closest […]
Reporting Live from the LCBO: Which Wines are Hot Now?
Here’s a little story about the power and reach of social media … it started with food blogger Anne Waters who was shopping in the LCBO and noticed one of my wine reviews posted on the shelf. Physical world, paper review, glass bottle, liquid wine. That’s where it would have ended three years ago. However, Anne took the Instagram picture above with her smartphone and shared it on Twitter. (The Bila-Haut M. Chapoutier 2011 is a robust red wine that’s perfect for summer barbecues … you can’t beat the price-quality ratio at 91 points for $14.95.) I forwarded Anne’s […]
Best LCBO Wines Vintages Release June 8
These are the reviews the LCBO published in the Vintages Catalogue from my tasting notes, the most quoted Canadian source of wine reviews in this release. You can also see my reviews for the May 25 LCBO Vintages Release. Subscribers to my premium service can access all 67 wines that I reviewed as a text shopping list with my full tasting notes, scores, food matches and the stock for each bottle in their closest LCBO stores. They can also add my wine picks to their custom shopping list by clicking on the little shopping cart icon and access that […]
