Five years ago, I needed a drink just to read a restaurant wine list in this city. Most offered Kraft Dinner wines at Pétrus prices served in golf ball glasses with layers of detergent aromas. I’d like to say, “All that’s changed now.” But I can’t. Of the 1400 licensed restaurants in the region, there are about twenty-four superb wine lists or 2%. That leaves room for improvement. But rather than be a grape grump, I’ll focus on those who are doing it right — and save this magazine some legal fees in slander suits. Ottawa oenophiles are driving recent […]
Slow Food/Personal Chefs
Breakfast in a gulp, lunch on the go and dinner on the run. Life in the fast lane seems to have bypassed the slow, ancient pleasures of the table. However, an aimable group of gastromes hopes to put an end to our nuke-it-and-eat-it culture. With a charming chiocciolina (small snail) as its mascot and a philosophy that advocates the defence of pleasure, Slow Food, an international organization with 30,000 members in 35 countries is helping members rediscover the flavours of regional cooking and fresh local produce. The group believes that small doses of sensual pleasure preserve us from the fast […]
Gifts for Wine Lovers
One of the easiest people to buy for on your list this year is the wine lover. There seems to be no end to the wine books, videos, gadgets and accessories that pour on to the market each year. Even the budding oenophile will appreciate these gifts. The books can be purchased from most major bookstores across the country, while the accessories can be found in specialty wine stores in your area or by calling the stores listed below. In addition to these selections, most of the provincial liquor stores offer special gift packages for the holidays. The beautifully illustrated, […]
Frozen Food Wines
The nineteenth century French gastrome Anthelme Brillat-Savarin would have choked on his foie gras had he known that tipplers today drink wine with frozen dinners. Is this the beginning of the end for the fine art of food and wine pairing? Are we losing our ability to appreciate the finer things of life? Not according to Katie Morton who launched Stouffer’s Complete Dinner Stir-Kits with wine suggestions on the package. Morton has taken on the Quixotic quest of making frozen dinners a more “exotic meal experience.” The meal line has sold well since its launch in 1998, particularly since more […]
Canadian Wines 2
What better way to celebrate the Olympics than by drinking Canadian wines? Choice isn’t a problem with more than 400 wineries in eight provinces. But it’s the quality of Canadian wines, rather than the quantity, will convince you that they are the ideal complement to this sporting event. Canada has a long history with the grape. Viking explorer Lief Erickson first named the country “Vineland” in 1001 BCE when he saw so many vines growing in Newfoundland. Although the classic vitus vinifera grapes such as cabernet sauvignon and chardonnay do not grow in the province, blueberries, cloudberries, lingoberries, or partridge […]
Canadian Wines
1. Canadian wine making is not a recent phenomenon. Viking explorer Leif Ericson first named Canada Vinland in 1001 BCE after he found so many vines growing where he landed at L’Anse Aux Meadows, Newfoundland. In 1535, Jacques Cartier also found many grapes growing on the island he named Ile de Bacchus (later known as Ile d’Orleans). 2. Jesuit priests found that wine made from the native rough-hewn grapes, which were not classic vitis vinifera grapes, was barely palatable for sacramental purposes. Vitis vinifera grapes were first planted in the 1900s. 3. Johann Schiller, a retired German soldier, is known […]
BYOB
When a medium-fancy friend of mine recently joined me for dinner at a medium-fancy Bay Area restaurant, she recoiled when our waitress told her the price of certain Syrah: $8 a glass. Her horror wasn’t at the cost — although it certainly could have been. Instead, she was realizing that since many of this restaurant’s wines were in the $10-15-a-glass range, this $8 glass might very well have been a dollar-store special of dubious quaffability. Now, this same friend regularly — and happily — purchases bottles of wine for $8 or less. “If it tastes good, I take great personal […]
Wine Tasting Party
In my book, seven friends come over to my home and we have an informal wine tasting. It’s a great excuse to get together and chat about the wines and, as the evening progresses, life in general. You don’t need to be a wine expert to host a tasting, just as you don’t need to have a doctorate in English literature to organize a book club. In fact, wine tastings work well for book clubs too, especially if you’re discussing a book such as Red, White, and Drunk All Over. I’ve posted lots of low-cost wines in the Wine Picks […]
Food & Wine 5
Of 11 wines on the tasting table, the Col d’Orcia Rosso di Montalcino, a full-bodied, fruity Tuscan red, was Tom Natan’s top choice. Adam Manson hated it. Both have well-trained and -respected palates. Natan is a partner in the Washington-based importer and retailer First Vine. Manson is a co-owner of Veritas, a popular wine bar in Dupont Circle. But the physiological differences in their tongues, coupled with their varied experiences, mean that the same wine tastes different to each of them. To Natan, the big, juicy flavors are luscious. To Manson, they are overwhelming, even bitter. Neither one is right […]
Celebrity Winemakers
Marilyn Merlot and Jailhouse Red aren’t high-end plonk, but they are among the better-known and widely consumed Marilyn and Elvis selections — celebrity wines with a hint of exploitation, a heavy aroma of kitsch and a nose for profit. Celebrity wines are in, to judge by this growing list: Madonna, Wayne Gretzky, Dan Aykroyd, Mike Weir, Tommy Lasorda, Jerry Garcia, Bob Dylan, Mariah Carey, Lorraine Bracco, Larry Bird, Fess Parker, Francis Ford Coppola, Greg Norman, Ernie Els, Gérard Depardieu, Olivia Newton-John, Barbra Streisand, Sting, Mario Andretti, Michael Schumacher, Paris Hilton, Cliff Richard, Steven Seagal, Sam Neill and Mötley Crüe frontman […]
