You can access the 70 wines that I reviewed for July 5 as a text wine list with my complete tasting notes, scores, food matches and the stock for each bottle in their closest LCBO stores. You can also see my wine reviews for June 21. You can 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 Paid Member. Inventory stock numbers are usually posted online a day or two before the release based on the LCBO doing so. Here are […]
Wine Jobs and Careers: Wine Course on Importing Wine is Good Training
By Debbie Trenholm Since I began working in the wine industry over 10 years ago, there are two questions that I am constantly asked: “I was away on holidays in ‘wherever’ and discovered X Wine that isn’t at the LCBO. How can I get it shipped into Ontario?” “I want to get a job in the wine and beer business. Any tips on where to start?” If I had a toonie for each time I get asked these questions, I would be drinking Champagne every day! With the rapid growth of the wine, craft beer and premium spirits too, there […]
Canadians Vote for Their Favourite Wines for Canada Day
This Canadian Press (CP) story was published in the major daily newspapers across Canada. Canada’s best wine for barbecue? Tipplers can vote on favourites By: The Canadian Press OTTAWA – Many Canadians opt for beer or gin when it comes to pairing beverages with grilled food. But wine lovers can now weigh in with their picks in an online poll. In The Great Canadian Wine Match: BBQ Edition, launching Friday, wine lovers can nominate and vote for their favourite Canadian wines to pair with grilled chicken, beef, seafood, pork, vegetables and dessert. Unlike traditional competitions judged by experts, wine lovers […]
Wine Critic Writes with Humor and Contagious Passion
By Jessica Yadegaran For someone who grew up in a whiskey-drinking Scottish family, Natalie MacLean has come a long way in wine. Today, the Le Cordon Bleu World Food Media Award winner is Canada’s answer to Jancis Robinson. She is a critic who writes about wine with humor and contagious passion. She counts Kermit Lynch, Rex Pickett and Gary Vaynerchuk among her fans. Her best-selling books, “Red, White, and Drunk All Over” (Bloomsbury, 2007) and “Unquenchable” (Perigee, 2011), share tips on hunting the world’s best bargain wines. But these days, MacLean’s website, which she launched in 2000, is a go-to […]
10 Best Sangiovese Wines to Buy Now + 5 Surprising Facts about Sangiovese
Did you know that the Latin name for Sangiovese, Sanguis Jovis (San Gioveto), translates to “blood of Jove or Jupiter”? The first written reference to the grape was in 1722. You’ll find my Top 10 Sangiovese reviews and ratings here. 5 Surprising Facts about Sangiovese: 1. Sangiovese represents 10% of Italy’s entire vineyard acreage, the most-planted grape in the country, with 247,000 acres. 2. Until the 1980s, Chianti was bottled in squat oval straw-covered fiasci. It was viewed a modest bistro wine rather than one for collectors. Then winemakers started experimenting with premium blends of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon or […]
Got Wine? There’s an App for That from Nat > Video
Leanne and I chat about Canada’s first wine app, and the only one that gives real-time, GPS-based liquor store inventory across the country. Just scan a bottle bar code and you get instant stock data along with: – professional wine reviews – food pairings – custom shopping list – cellar maturity dates – top 10 wines in your closest liquor store Check out the features here for iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad as well as for Android and the mobile site for other smartphones. Got Wine? There’s an App for That from […]
10 Best Mourvedre Wines to Buy Now + 5 Surprising Facts about Mourvedre
Mourvedre (Mourvèdre) is a warm-climate red wine grape grown in many regions, including the Rhone Valley and Provence in France, Valencia and Jumilla in Spain, California, Washington State and Australia. You’ll find my Top 10 Mourvèdre reviews and ratings here. 5 Surprising Facts about Mourvèdre: 1. Mourvedre is a Spanish vitis vinifera grape, first grown in Murviedro, a small town near Valencia. Mourvedre is easier to grow in Spain than in the cooler region of southern France where it is more susceptible to disease. 2. Mourvedre, or Monastrell as it is known in Spain, is declining in plantings there, but is […]
10 Best Carmenère Wines to Buy Now + 5 Surprising Facts about Carmenère
Carmenère is most widely planted in Chile, however, Carmenère did not get its start in Chile. You’ll find my Top 10 Carmenère reviews and ratings here. 5 Surprising Facts about Carmenère: 1. Carmenère originated in the Medoc region of Bordeaux, France. 2. Used in France initially as a blending wine, or to produce deep dark wines, it disappeared from Europe in the mid 19th Century and showed up in Chile a hundred years later and has since become Chile’s premium grape. 3. Carmenère, a member of the Cabernet family of grapes, is the French word for Crimson (carmin), and is known as […]
10 Best Barolo Wines to Buy Now + 5 Surprising Facts about Barolo
Barolo is a full-bodied red wine produced in the northern Italian region of Piemonte. Barolo means “commune” in Italian. Widely termed “the wine of kings, the king of wines” among the nobility of Turin and the ruling House of Savoy. You’ll find my Top 10 Barolo reviews and ratings here. 5 Surprising Facts about Barolo: 1. This powerful DOCG red wine is made from the late-ripening Nebbiolo grape. Barolo tends to be light rust in colour. Barolo is often described as one of Italy’s greatest wines. 2. Traditional Barolos were known for their ability to age. These red wines extract lots […]
10 Best Baco Noir Wines to Buy Now + 5 Surprising Facts about Baco Noir
Baco Noir is a cross between Folle Blanche (one of the grapes used to make Cognac) and Vitis Riparia, the hybrid discovered by Francois Baco, a native of Southwestern France. You’ll find my Top 10 Baco Noir reviews and ratings here. 5 Surprising Facts about Baco Noir: 1. It was once grown throughout France, but the European Union has imposed restrictions on its commercial use, along with other hybrids. 2. In 1951, Baco Noir was brought to Canada and is commonly grown in Ontario, Nova Scotia and British Columbia. 3. Baco Noir is an early ripening, winter-hardy varietal suited to […]
