A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 877: Taste Ontario! Toronto

Took the train into Toronto from Burlington to attend this first major tasting of Ontario wines since the pandemic. It was great to see a lot of old friends and fellow wine writers. We were privileged to have two rooms set aside for us – one for white wines, one for reds, so that we could taste and make notes sitting down. I spent an hour in the white room before heading to the 17th floor of the newly-renovated Park Plaza Hotel for a seminar by British Master of Wine Nick Jackson, based on his book, Beyond Flavour. Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 876: 50th Birthday Bash

Meg McGrath

Saturday, April 1st: Deborah and I were invited to celebrate Meg McGrath’s 50th birthday at a lunch at Erik Peacock’s Wellington Court Restaurant.

Menu

Meg’s partner, Phil Dowell, winemaker at both Angels Gate and Kew Vineyard, had made special bottlings for the event – as well as a welcome sparkling wine from Phil’s own company, Millésime. Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 875: Château des Charmes Reds

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(And one from Malivoire.)

Château des Charmes Cabernet Sauvignon St David’s Bench Vineyard 2020 (St. David’s Bench, Niagara)
Deep purple in colour; cedary, blueberry nose with vanilla oak notes; medium-bodied, dry, savoury plum, blueberry and currant flavours with an engaging floral note; elegant and firmly structured. (90) Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 874: An Eclectic Wine Week

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Yalumba Organic Viognier 2021 (South Australia, $17.95, Vintages #28217, to be released April 29th)
Golden straw in colour; minerally, peach pit nose; medium-bodied, dry, white peach flavour; elegant with an intriguing note of almond-like bitterness on the finish. (90) Continue reading

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A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 873: Niagara College Winemaker’s Dinner

Sign: Welcome – Women in Wine Winemakers Dinner

Thursday, March 9th: Deborah and I were invited by Niagara College’s winemaker Allison Findlay to attend her winemaker’s dinner at the St. Catharines Club.

Winemaker Allison Findlay

The Niagara College wines for the dinner

Continue reading

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