Sunday, May 10^th: London. Deborah and I are staying at the house of our friend Livia Prior in Hampstead. We took her to dinner at a local Lebanese restaurant, coincidentally named Oliviya. We started with Chateau Ksara Blanc de Blancs 2022 and moved on to Chateau Musar Hochar 2021. Back at the house we had a nightcap of Marquis de Sylène Calvados Vieille Reserve.

Monday, May 11^th: Went to the V & A museum to see the Schiaparelli exhibition. Stopped for lunch at a crêperie.

Deborah’s crêpe

Dinner with old friends from Toronto Ashley and Lucie at St. John restaurant in Marylebone Lane, within walking distance to where I used to live.

Lucie and Ashley

St. John menu

Tuesday, May 12^th: My birthday! We’re flying home. Picked up a couple of jars of marmalade at the Fortnum & Mason store at Heathrow. Ubered home to a rapturous welcome from Rosie the Rescue from Texas.

Wednesday, May 13^th: Tasted the following wines from Domaine Artema from Oliver, B.C.:

Domaine Artema wines

Domaine Artema Sparkling Rose Village 2024
(74% Pinot Noir, 26% Chardonnay)
Light salmon pink in colour; active mousse of tiny bubbles; strawberry bouquet; light-bodied, dry, redcurrant and rhubarb flavours; good length, lovely mouth-feel. (90)

Domaine Artema Black Sage Road Blanc 2024
(58% Riesling, 48% Viognier)
Light straw colour; spicy apple nose with a floral top note; full-bodied, dry, peach and melon flavours; well-balanced; firmly structured, good length on the palate, lively acidity. Viscous mouth-feel. (89)

Domaine Artema Pinot Gris Village 2024
Golden colour; spicy, peach pit nose with a toasty note; medium to full-bodied, dry; richly extracted peach and lemon flavours. Great length. (90)

Domaine Artema Gamay Village 2024
Ruby colour with a purple hue; cherry with vanilla oak notes on the nose; medium-bodied, dry, well-extracted flavours of cherry and red plum carried on lively acidity.  (89)

Domaine Artema Back Sage Road Rouge 2022
(Syrah “with Bordeaux varieties”)
Deep ruby-purple in colour; toasty, spicy, peppery, blackberry bouquet; full-bodied, dry, savoury, smoked meat and black fruit flavours. Northern Rhone style. (91–92)

Domaine Artema La Petite Mort Port Style
(47% Zinfandel, 40% Merlot, and 13% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes)
Deep ruby with a mature rim; mulberry nose with oak spice and a note of chocolate; full-bodied, sweet, black fruit and date flavours with oak notes; creamy mouth feel.

Thursday, May 14^th: Tasted the following wines from Flat Rock Cellars:

Flat Rock wines

Flat Rock Cellars Pink Twisted 2025
(Gamay 78.5%, Riesling 14.7%, Gewurztraminer 4%, Merlot 2.8%)
Pink with a bluish tint; spicy, melon and lychee nose; medium-bodied, just off-dry; elegant, pink grapefruit and lychee flavours; long, lingering finish.(90)

Flat Rock Cellars Riesling 2024 (Niagara Peninsula)
Pale straw in colour; spicy, floral, grapefruit nose; light-bodied, off-dry, grapefruit and lime flavours. Long, lingering finish. (90)

Flat Rock Cellars Pinot Noir 2024 (Niagara Peninsula)
Light ruby in colour; lifted nose of cherry and raspberry with vanilla oak notes; medium-bodied, dry, well-structured, cherry and raspberry flavours;well-balanced and nicely integrated oak. (90)

Friday, May 15^th: A big shop at Costco for our dinner party on Sunday night. Including a whole beef tenderloin.

Saturday, May 16^th: Took the tenderloin over to Chef Andrew McLeod at Bolete restaurant in St. Catharines, who had kindly offered us a tutorial on how to prepare to butcher a beef tenderloin.

The tenderloin butchered…

…and sealed.

Sunday, May 17^th: Spent the day preparing for tonight’s dinner party for our guests Sherri Haigh and Stephen Lamont and Jill and Don Troyer. Deborah made a smoked salmon and cream cheese dip and I stuffed dates with blue cheese and prepared the Hasselback Potatoes.

A roaring success, if I say so myself.