Video: Prince Edward County Wines and Free My Grapes

On CTV News today, Leanne and I chat about the glorious wines of Prince Edward County, as well as why it’s a great region to visit. I’ll list the wines we mentioned here soon. You can watch our second wine video segment here. We also discuss the new campaign from the Canadian Vintners Association (CVA) to encourage interprovincial trade ministers to make direct to home delivery legal, as the federal government has already passed legislation to do so via Bill C-311 six years ago. You can add your voice to this important campaign at actnow.freemygrapes.ca. Interesting Facts and Stats Canada is […]

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Wine Glasses: How Many Do You Really Need? Which Shapes Work Best?

  I’m often asked if the shape of a wine glass really matters? How does it affect the taste of wine? Just how many wine glasses do you need? Here’s my advice …   A Glass Act: The 7 Essential Wine Glasses   Wine Glass Type Why It Works   Sparkling Wine Champagne, Italian prosecco, Spanish cava or any other sparkling wine is best enjoyed in a tall, narrow glass to preserve the bubbles. And there are specific glasses for different kinds of bubbly, ranging from straight, very slender flutes to long-stemmed, slim white-wine style glasses.   White Burgundy White Burgundy […]

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Spicy Food & Wine Pairings: Cinco de Mayo, Tex-Mex, Indian Food Matches

On Global Television’s Morning Show today, we chatted about wine and spicy food pairings than to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. What better time to explore these than on May 5, the day in 1862 when a rag-tag Mexican army defeated the far larger French forces under Emperor Napoleon III. Sure, you could toast with a cerveza or tequila, but which wine? The growing Mexican wine industry is gaining respect, particularly the region of Baja California, and among the leading producers is L.A. Cetto, creating exceptionally well-priced red wines. But let’s broaden the field, and look at wines from around the […]

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Spring Wines for Fish, Shellfish and Seafood

CTV News anchor Natalie Piero and I chat about wines for spring, including those that pair well with both fish and shellfish, as well as those that drink well on their own as an aperitif.   Spring Wines for Fish, Shellfish and Seafood   Host: It’s the Natalie Show today ;) Natalie: Easy to remember. Host: Spring is here finally! Natalie: Yes! Host: And Natalie MacLean is here to talk about some of the spring wines. Natalie: Absolutely! Host: You change what you drink depending on the weather? Natalie: Yes, I do. Like winter wardrobe, get out of those heavy sweaters, get into something lighter, more comfortable. You’ll […]

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Wines for Easter Brunch and Passover Dinner

  CTV News anchor Natalie Piero an I chat about wines for Easter brunch, Passover and other holiday weekend wines. Also check out The Essential Hip-Hop Guide to Easter Wines, which includes pairing ham and wine, lamb and wine, vegetables and wine, and chocolate and wine.     Wines for Easter Brunch and Passover Dinner Natalie Piero: Passover starts tonight and of course Easter is coming up this weekend. So Natalie MacLean is here to talk about the best wines to pair with whatever meal you might be serving or having for the holidays. Natalie MacLean: Absolutely, we have a variety of […]

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Take the Quiz: Pair Wine with this Year’s Oscar Nominees

On CTV’s The Social yesterday we paired our favourite paired wines with this year’s Oscar nominees. Can you guess the pairings correctly? Watch the video above to play along with our hosts. Now you’re all set for the Academy Awards tomorrow evening!   View Survey   Here are my Top 20 Oscar Wines showing your which liquor stores have them in stock now … enjoy! Best Supporting Actor or Actress – Jess We’re starting with Miravel Rose … it’s a dry rose from southern France. Which Oscar-nominated best supporting actor would you pair with this wine? Sylvester Stallone in Creed Tom Hardy in […]

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Galentine’s Day Wines for Your Besties Get-Together (Video)

Valentine’s Day is coming up, but what if you’re not in a relationship? There’s a special day for you, too. It’s called Galentine’s Day and it happens every year on February 13th. On CTV News, we chat about terrific wines to drink on both days.   Let’s start with what is Galentine’s Day?   – It’s one of those made-up micro-holidays, like Friendsgiving just before Thanksgiving, that’s a reaction against the day that commercializes romance and instead celebrates platonic love/female friendship and the bond that lasts longer: women and wine!   – As one embroidered pillow on Etsy read: Happy […]

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Music and Wine Pairing: Cabernet in C Major

On CTV’s The Social yesterday, we had so much fun pairing wine and music. This was also the topic on CTV News with Leanne further below. MARCI Welcome back. Would you add heavy metal music to your playlist if someone told you it’d make your wine taste better? Well, our next guest says it’s something you should consider because a growing body of research suggests music may influence the way our brain interprets the flavour of wine. LAINEY Natalie MacLean is the editor of Canada’s largest wine review site and she’s here to put that theory to the test. Welcome […]

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Can You Lose Weight While Drinking Wine?

Do we have to give up wine if we want to shed a few pounds? No! Click on the arrow above to watch the video … On CTV’s The Social, we put this notion to the test with a fun quiz show format on calories and wine. How many answers can you get right? Three of the wines we’ll taste are marketed as “diet wines” with just 70-80 calories: SkinnyGrape, SkinnyGirl and one other, plus two ringers.     Two wines are not diet wines, but are naturally low in calories. The names of two wines give them away, but […]

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Canadian Icewine: Extreme Winemaking

In our Facebook Live Video Wine Tasting above, we chat about the difficulty in making icewine and why it’s so expensive. We also welcome our special guest, Daniel Speck of Henry of Pelham Winery, Niagara, Ontario. You can click on the arrow above to play the video. If you’d like to read the 100+ comments, or make a comment yourself, visit: https://www.facebook.com/natdecants/videos/10154730618869845/ You’ll find the most recent live video wine tasting at the top of the timeline here: https://www.facebook.com/pg/natdecants/posts/ We taste every Sunday evening at 6 pm eastern so add us to your calendar and grab a glass of wine. Click […]

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