Make Your Evening Unforgettable With These Curated Wine & Cheese Plates

Leanne and I chat about some marvelous wine and cheese pairing for holiday entertaining and beyond, plus the secrets to creating a cheese that will make your guests’ jaws drop ;)       So many delicious combinations! You can watch our second CTV segment on wine and cheese pairing here. Plus, we’ve had two dynamic Facebook Live video chats on this topic in preparation for the launch of a new cheese and wine pairing course. You can watch the first video is here on this website, and the second will be posted soon. Registration opens November 28 for a short […]

read more …

Read More

Retronasal Smell in Tasting Wine and Virtual Brands with Jim Duane of Inside Winemaking Podcast

Introduction How can tuning into the retronasal aspect of smell take your wine tasting skill to the next level? What makes the sense of smell so fascinating? What does it mean to be a virtual wine brand? What do grapes & M&Ms have in common? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Jim Duane, winemaker and host of the Inside Winemaking Podcast. You can find the wines we discussed here.   Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook […]

read more …

Read More

What Being a Winemaker is Really Like with Inside Winemaking’s Jim Duane

Introduction Have you ever dreamed of becoming a winemaker and wondered what it takes? What’s it like to work a wine harvest without power? What makes Riesling the most difficult grape to ferment? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Jim Duane, winemaker and host of the Inside Winemaking Podcast. You can find the wines we discussed here.   Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video or YouTube Live Video. I’ll be jumping […]

read more …

Read More

Perfect Pairings and Recipes for Asparagus and Wine

  Sponsored Post by the Wines of Austria Seldom have young wines gone so well with springtime’s most distinctive calling-card as do Austria’s 2018 wines. Completely harmonious and beautifully blessed with refined acidity, they provide an ideal partner to the dazzling variety of asparagus dishes due to dominate Austria’s menus in the coming weeks.   Asparagus & Wine from Austria: Delicious Essence of Springtime Asparagus Season is once more in session! No other vegetable stands for culinary pleasure in springtime like the delicious white or green shoots, which are certainly best when locally grown.   Whether with Hollandaise sauce or with […]

read more …

Read More

Wine Supertasters, Food Pairings and Canadian Palates with XChateau’s Robert Vernick & Peter Yeung

Introduction What does it mean to be a supertaster? How did wine consumption habits change during the pandemic? Do Canadians have different wine preferences compared to drinkers in other regions? Why is food and wine pairing such a great way to get into the world of wine? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m being interviewed by Robert Vernick and Peter Yeung, co-hosts of the XChateau podcast. You can find the wines we discussed here.   Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on […]

read more …

Read More

Chilean Wine in the Driest Place on Earth & England’s Storied Wine History with Janina Doyle

Introduction Are you curious about British wines and their history that dates back to King Henry VIII? How is wine made in the driest place on Earth and where is that exactly? Are stemless wine glasses better than traditional stemware? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Janina Doyle, sommelier and host of the Eat Sleep Wine Repeat podcast. You can find the wines we discussed here.   Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video […]

read more …

Read More

Best LCBO Wine Reviews: Vintages Ratings February 19

  You can access the wines that I reviewed as a text wine list with my complete tasting notes, scores, food matches. If you are a Paid Member, you can add my wine picks to your custom shopping list with one click and access that list on your smartphone to find the stock for each wine in your closest LCBO store. You can also see my wine reviews for February 5th. These are just some of the benefits of supporting out wine community as a Paid Member. Inventory stock numbers are usually posted online a day or two before the release based on the LCBO doing so. Curious about […]

read more …

Read More

Hate Valentine’s Day? There’s a Wine for That Too

This is one of a series of chats we had yesterday on the CBC drive-home shows across the country. I liked this one in particular with host Sue Smith of Homerun in Quebec because she has a great sense of humour. Sue also wanted recommendations for those who hate Valentine’s Day … I was happy to oblige along with the food pairing suggestion of heart-shaped cookies that you break into small bits first with a hammer.     Now that we’ve launched the inventory of SAQ wines on the site, along with the LCBO, BC Liquor Stores and the first […]

read more …

Read More

Best LCBO Wine Reviews: Vintages Ratings February 5

You can access the wines that I reviewed as a text wine list with my complete tasting notes, scores, food matches. If you are a Paid Member, you can add my wine picks to your custom shopping list with one click and access that list on your smartphone to find the stock for each wine in your closest LCBO store. You can also see my wine reviews for January 22nd. These are just some of the benefits of supporting out wine community as a Paid Member. Inventory stock numbers are usually posted online a day or two before the release based on the LCBO doing so. Curious about […]

read more …

Read More

Volcanic Soils, Old Vines and Italian Wine Diversity with Wine Spectator Columnist Robert Camuto

Introduction What does drinking Italian mean today? How has globalization impacted the Italian wine you drink? Do volcanic soils really make a wine taste different? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with author and journalist, Robert Camuto. You can find the wines we discussed here.   Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video or YouTube Live Video. I’ll be jumping into the comments as we watch it together so that I can answer your […]

read more …

Read More