Adam, Deborah, Mak, Nora, me and Zeena
Sunday, August 30th: Lunch at Stonewall Winery with our Toronto friends Adam and Zeena and local friends Nora and Mark (who have made it a mission to visit every winery in Ontario!). Started with a glass of Stonewall Cabernet Franc Rosé 2023 followed by a dish called “Chinese Street Corn.”
Monday, August 31st: Tasted a range of Monte Creek wines from the Okanagan. Continue reading
Too much tannin? No, just a ComicCon participant
Monday, August 24th: I received the following samples from Palatine Hills to review:
Palatine Hills whites and rosé
Palatine Hills Savage Brut Sparkling (traditional method)
Deep golden in colour; subdued mousse of fine bubbles; toasty, leesy bouquet of peaches; light to medium-bodied, dry; dried apricot flavour carried on fresh acidity, Drink now and through 2027. (89)
Food pairing: aperitif wine; oysters; sushi; strawberries.
Palatine Hills Pinot Grigio 2025 (Lincoln Lakeshore)
Almost water white; spicy, peach nose; medium-bodied, dry, peachy-melon flavour with a floral top note. Easy drinking, lovely mouth-feel. Drink now. (89)
Food pairing: goat cheese; mussels; seafood pasta. Continue reading
Twisted Pig’s complimentary dessert
Monday, August 17th: Today is our 29th anniversary. We will celebrate with two couples tomorrow who share the same day.
I went to Big Head winery to taste some of Andrzej Lipinski’s new wines.
Big Head Biggest 2023 (carbonic maceration; 32 months in French 500-litre foudres)
44% Cabernet Franc, 33% ,15% Petit Verdot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon. Dense purple in colour; cedary, toasty, blackcurrant bouquet with vanilla oak notes; full-bodied, dry, richly extracted sweet black fruit flavours; well-integrated oak; firmly structured with ripe tannins. A powerful wine (15.3% alc) with a rich mouth-feel and bright acidity. (95–96) Continue reading
Andrzej Lipinski presents me with a signed bottle of Lipinski Family Syrah 2023
Monday, August 10th: John Nadeau and I took an early Porter flight to Kelowna. But we never got there. Over Calgary, the Captain came on the public address system to tell us that he had been instructed by NAV Canada to return to Toronto because of the smoke around Kelowna airport.
Tuesday. August 11th: Tasted ten Big Head wines: Continue reading
Monday, August 3rd: Dinner: chicken puttanesca tagliatelle (a sous vide meal created by Cacio Pepe (www.caciopepemeals.com), with a bottle of Perez Cruz Gran Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 2024 from Maipo Valley, Chile.
Tuesday. August 4th: Dinner: hamburgers with a bottle of Malivoire Albert’s Honour Old Vines Foch 2022. Continue reading
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| A Wine Lover’s Diary… on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 882… |
