Taste Ontario! Defies Wine Stereotypes

Two Taste Ontario! events featured large tastings of Ontario wine recently. There wa strong representation of provincial wineries pouring a wide range of styles largely from the 2013, 2014 and 2015 Ontario Vintages.     You’ll find 100+ wine reviews from our team here, along with which stores have the wines in stock now.     You’ll get a sense of the strong attendance and energy in the room from the video below (click on the arrow to play it).   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mm2l6sp94g           I was particularly impressed with the riesling, chardonnay and viognier wines I tasted. Meanwhile, Ontario Pinot Noir may have its best […]

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Days of Roses and Red Wine: A New App for Your Valentine

By Olivia Villalta Valentine’s Day and roses go hand in hand. Want to tell someone you love them? Roses. Want to show someone you missed them? Roses. Want to get out of the dog house? Roses. But there’s more to these flowers than a beautiful gesture, composed in an elegant vase. Let me share some secrets with you on how to plan the perfect date night using roses in some surprising and creative ways. First, you’ll need two bouquets… one red, for your loved one, and one with a rainbow of many colours, just for fun. The Perfect Delivery With […]

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Tania’s Magical Matches: Wine Pairing for Canadian Gouda

By Tania Thomas Gouda, one of the oldest and most popular cheeses in the world dates back to 1100’s in its native Holland and is still made today. It is named after the city of Gouda as it has historically been traded there for centuries. Today, the name describes general style of cheese made similar to the old traditional Dutch way, as well as the Dutch original. Brought to Canada with the skilled Dutch cheese-making immigrants who used their centuries-old secret recipes and their native cultures, Canada’s Goudas are every bit as delicious and as high in quality as the […]

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10 Best Sparkling Wines to Buy Now + 5 Surprising Facts about Bubbly

Sparkling wines made outside of Champagne, France, may not be called Champagne as it’s a trademarked term. However, they often use the same methods and/or grapes used in Champagne. 5 Surprising Facts about Sparkling Facts: 1. Bubblies made in Burgundy, France, are called Crémants de Bourgogne while those from Alsace are Crémant d’Alsace. 2. Spain makes Cavas (“cave”), Italy makes either Prosecco (lightly sparkling) or Spumante (fully sparkling and sweet), Germany makes Sekt or Deutscher. 3. Those from New World regions, such as Canada, California, Australia and elsewhere, are simply called sparkling wine. 4. Drink bubbly from a flute glass […]

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Cream of Roasted Red Pepper with Bocconcini Soup Recipe Paired with Sauvignon Blanc

Cream of Roasted Red Pepper with Bocconcini Soup Warm up to Fall Shorter days. Colder weather. It’s enough to leave you feeling like you need a vacation. But if you can’t do that, why not try the next best thing: a hearty, heartwarming bowl of soup. This recipe for Cream of Roasted Red Pepper with Bocconcini Soup ain’t your grandma’s chicken noodle (not that there’s anything wrong with that). It’s a deliciously modern combination of soft and creamy Canadian Bocconcini  and juicy roasted peppers, topped with a sweet tang of balsamic. It’s one of my go-to soups, and whether you’re […]

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Curried Shrimp and Pineapple Skewers Recipe Paired with Reif Riesling

Post by Reif Winery Summer is here and we can help you beat the heat with our 2013 Reif Riesling now available pre-chilled at your local L.C.B.O. It’s a perfect summer sipper with fresh aromas of peach, pear, apple and lemon citrus. It is one of our winemaker Klaus Reif’s favourite wines and his go-to wine for his summer entertaining as it pairs well with light appetizers, salads, pastas, seafood, poultry and pork. It was also a great vintage for white wines in Ontario as it was generally a cooler vintage with fruit at harvest maintaining their natural acidity levels […]

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Wine Pairings for NS Lobster, BC Salmon, Alberta Beef

From CTV’s site: Our resident wine expert, Natalie MacLean, stopped by The Social to share Canadian wines that pair perfectly with the hosts’ favourite patriotic goodies. We had lots of fun pairing the hosts’ favourite Canadian dishes with Canadian wines. Melissa loves Nova Scotia lobster, Traci is a fan of BC salmon, Lani loves beef and Cynthia has a fondness for butter tarts. Ladies, there’s a wine for that … in fact, many. Join us on The Social again July 24 when we chat about great wines for dinner parties. Cheers! P.S. Take The Great Canadian Wine Quiz to find out […]

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Canadian Wine Pairings for BBQ Steak, Chicken, Seafood

On Monday’s CBC radio drive-home shows, we talked about great Canadian wines to pair with your summer barbecues. You can listen to one of those clips above. Discover 10 Surprising Facts about Canadian Wines here. The wines we discussed here included: Jabulani Vineyard & Winery Frontenac Gris 2013 Richmond, Eastern Ontario, Canada Sibling Rivalry Pink 2010 Niagara Escarpment, Canada Mission Hill Five Vineyards Cabernet Merlot 2011 Okanagan Valley, BC VQA, Canada Benjamin Bridge Nova 7 Gaspereau Valley, Nova Scotia, Canada Posted with permission of CBC.   Canadian Wine Pairings for BBQ Steak, Chicken, Seafood   Giacomo: Well according to national stereotypes, […]

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Grape White North: 10 Surprising Facts about Canadian Wine

What better way to celebrate Canada Day than with wines that are truly our own? Choice isn’t a problem with 500 wineries producing 350 million bottles annually. However, it’s the quality of Canadian wines, rather than the quantity, will convince you that they are the ideal complement to summer fare. Although many Ontario and British Columbia wines are available nationally, those from smaller producers may only be available in their home provinces. This makes them a special treat worth sampling if you encounter them during your summer travels. Here  are my top Canadian wine reviews to add to your custom […]

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