Pickleball is now the fastest growing sport in the country. Almost 2 million of us are playing.
That means a lot of us are sitting beside a court on a Saturday afternoon and wondering what to pour.
Who better to help us than our favourite drinks expert Natalie MacLean, editor Canada’s largest drinks review site at nataliemaclean.com.
Welcome, Natalie.
Great to be back with you! Pickleball has a zone called the kitchen, and the rules say you’re not allowed to stand in it. I’ve finally found a sport that understands me. I’ve always been kitchen- and cooking-adjacent. I just pop corks.
So why does pickleball need its own drinks list?
The game ends and nobody goes home. It’s short rallies and long conversations. The paddles go down, the folding chairs come out, and nobody moves for an hour. I’ve got the pours for exactly that moment.
Let’s start with the one that doesn’t come in a bottle.
Jackson-Triggs Proprietor’s Selection Sauvignon Blanc
Ontario
Jackson-Triggs is one of the most popular names in Canadian wine. And there’s no better value on the shelf.
The four-litre bag in box holds more than five bottles. So, it’s just $2 a glass and it tastes great.
It’s light. It doesn’t shatter. Nothing in a giant pickleball bag can crush it.
The bag inside also collapses as you pour, so no air gets in. It stays fresh about six weeks, which outlasts the tournament and the argument about whether that ball was in.
No pressure to finish it, fewer trips to the store, so more time on court.
Feel free to try the Jackson-Triggs Proprietor’s Selection Sauvignon Blanc.
Lemony citrus first, a green herbal note underneath, apple and pear behind that. Dry and crisp with a fresh line of acidity. Wouldn’t this be lovely with long rally shrimp tacos?
I should note that all the drinks we’re tasting today are in the LCBO.
More Pairings
- Stay out of the kitchen shrimp tacos, warm corn tortillas blistered on the grill grate, cool lime-slicked cabbage, and shrimp still hissing as they land.
- Long rally goat cheese and asparagus tart, butter-flaky pastry, warm tangy cheese going soft at the edges, and charred spears that smell of smoke.
Next, something in a can from up the Ottawa Valley.
Broken Paddle Whisky Sour
Ottawa Valley, Ontario
Whitewater Distilling Company from Cobden, Ontario has just launched this incredible whisky sour at the LCBO. It’s a bartender quality cocktail in a can. Normally, making a whisky sour means juicing, measuring, shaking or straining.
This one uses real lemon juice, local honey and Broken Paddle Canadian whisky, nitro-infused for that freshly shaken texture. The instructions are three words for effortless cocktailing. Shake, crack, sip.
Three steps, and you can do all of them without getting out of your folding chair. You can also pour it into a rocks glass over one big cube. It’s the dink of cocktails: the most subtle shot in pickleball that’s perfectly placed.
Feel free to try the Broken Paddle Whisky Sour.
Bright zesty citrus arrives first, then gentle honey, then warm caramel and baking spice from the whisky underneath. Velvety texture, clean citrus finish. Can you imagine this with pickleball fried chicken sliders with extra pickles?
More Pairings
- Extra pickles fried chicken sliders, crackling golden crust too hot to hold, cold snappy pickles, and a brioche bun that steams when you pull it open.
- Post-match cheddar and honey board, sharp aged cheddar, walnuts warm from the pan, cold apple slices, and honeycomb slowly giving way in the sun.
Natalie, tell us about the next wine.
Vineland Estates Unoaked Chardonnay
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario
Vineland Estates sits on the Niagara Escarpment on a beautiful homestead from 1845. The restaurant is in the old farmhouse; the wine shop is in a log barn that feels like a cathedral.
This is the old label for the wine below. Look for the new one above.
You arrive for a tasting and stay through lunch. The vines were planted in 1979.
This year the whole range has been redrawn, so the label tells you where the wine comes from before it tells you anything else. It’s homegrown!
Feel free to try the Vineland Estates Unoaked Chardonnay.
No oak on this wine, so the fruit does all the talking and it has quite a lot to say. Bosc pear, crisp apple, a hint of honeydew melon, then lemon and lime zest on the finish. Wouldn’t this be wonderful with lobster rolls?
More Pairings
- Cedar-planked salmon, the plank smoking on the grill, the fish turning coral and flaking under a fork, with a blackened lemon squeezed over.
- Doubles partner grilled corn and basil salad, kernels sliced hot off the cob with charred edges, torn basil released into the warm bowl, butter melting through it.
Let’s cross the ocean. What’s next?
Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais-Villages
France
Georges Duboeuf built his first mobile bottling line on the back of an old Citroen truck so his grape growers could bottle on site. He eventually went on to supply famous Michelin-starred restaurants like Paul Bocuse and the Troisgros brothers.
Beaujolais-Villages draws on 38 communes or small, fine wine regions. The family also runs Europe’s first theme park devoted to wine, which is my kind of theme park. Cellar Mountain and It’s a Small Barrel After All. Yes please!
Feel free to try the Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais-Villages.
This beautiful summer wine opens with ripe raspberry, currant and strawberry. It has a velvety palate with fine tannins. Serve it slightly chilled, 14 to 16 degrees, for refreshment. Wouldn’t this be great with a line-call charcuterie board or grilled meats?
More Pairings
- Disputed line call charcuterie board, rosy folds of cured ham, pate en croute under a burnished pastry lid, sharp cornichons, and a warm baguette cracking as it’s torn.
- Rematch herb-roasted chicken sandwiches, warm shredded chicken with crackling bits of bronzed skin, thyme and garlic still steaming, pressed into a soft bun with the pan juices soaking in.
What’s next?
Familia Torres Gran Coronas Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon
Cataluña, Spain
The Torres family founded this winery in Penedes in 1870. In the 1960s, Miguel Torres was the first to plant Cabernet Sauvignon in Penedes.
Then in 1979, at a blind tasting in Paris called the Wine Olympics, his Cabernet went up against top-tier Bordeaux, Chateau Latour, and won the category.
This wine represents the family’s innovation and courage. Gran Coronas is the everyday descendant of that wine.
This is the bottle to open when somebody fires up the grill at the clubhouse. It’s a rare Cabernet Sauvignon from Spain under $20. It’s what the Torres family drinks on a Tuesday.
Feel free to try the Torres Gran Coronas Reserva.
Cedar and black plum, blackberry over a toasted background with a hint of coffee, chocolate underneath, a floral herbal lift. The tannins are ripe and soft, which is what you want with anything off the barbecue. How great would this be with clubhouse grill lamb skewers?
More Pairings
- Clubhouse grill lamb skewers, rosemary smoke rising off the coals, edges charred and crackling, the centre still blushing pink.
- Last one off the court mushroom and Manchego flatbread, blistered dough off the grill, earthy mushrooms glossy with butter, nutty Manchego melting into the cracks.
And to finish?
NÜTRL Vodka Soda Lemon
Ontario
NÜTRL is one of Canada’s leading vodka sodas, founded in BC and produced across the country, including here in Ontario, which is a great Canadian success story.
It’s made with vodka, soda, natural flavour and has no sugar added. You can just sit back and enjoy it straight from the can or pour it into a tall glass with a lemon wheel if you want to dress it up.
We’re tasting the lemon today in the 473 ml size, and it also available in a mixed pack in 355 ml with lime, cranberry and cherry. Four flavours, so nobody on the sideline has to agree on anything.
Feel free to try the NÜTRL Vodka Soda Lemon.
The lovely lemon flavour comes through the fine bubbles, then a clean dry finish. Doesn’t this call for a second-serve watermelon and feta salad?
More Pairings
- Second serve watermelon and feta salad, cold cubes glistening as they’re tossed, salty feta crumbling over, torn mint, and a slick of grassy olive oil.
- Match point chili-lime chicken skewers, blistered at the edges, smelling of lime zest and smoke, with a cool yogurt dip flecked with coriander.
Natalie, these suggestions are fantastic! Any final words of wisdom for our viewers?
To the game that got the country off the couch and onto the court!
Thank you, Natalie! Where can we find you and these wines and whiskies online?
On Instagram, I’m at @NatalieMacLeanWine and online, my website is nataliemaclean.com. Come for the reviews, stay for the rally.
Posted with permission of Citytv’s Breakfast Television. Please drink responsibly.
