Discover your wine style, one glass at a time
The wine-cup is the little silver well, Where truth, if truth there be, doth dwell.
-William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
Ah, Shakespeare. For many, it brings back memories of struggling to comprehend the language of Elizabethan England in high school English class. But being a literature nerd, I always loved reading the Bard, regardless of whether it was a comedy or tragedy.
Yes, you read that right. Kin “Vineyards” and “Ottawa Valley” uttered in the same breath. Could it be? Is it truly possible?
The answer is: yes and yes.
For the past three years, right across the road from the Diefenbunker, a 47-acre plot of land has housed 10 acres of Burgundian grape varietals pinot noir and chardonnay. Down the road in Kinburn, another 6 acres of both vinifera and hybrid varieties are planted on KIN Vineyards, a winery that prides itself on hard work and community. Being a word nerd, I appreciate the name, a tribute to the original vineyard in Kinburn as well as a play on words highlighting the winery’s core values of family, community and connectivity.
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All set for a food and wine event
As some of you may already know, I was recently in Prince Edward County (PEC). I’m often surprised by how many people don’t even know about this gem of a region. About 3 hours from Ottawa and Montreal, and 2.5 hours from Toronto, Prince Edward County is an absolutely idyllic corner of Ontario.
I am a city girl through and through. But this is country life I can get behind! There is something really special about PEC. It has this sense of place and community that is so prevalent. People are proud to live in the County. And it is palpable. As soon as you cross the bridge to the peninsula, there is instantly a different vibe. It’s a bit like that scene in the Wizard of Oz where Dorothy opens the door to her house after the gale and everything goes from black and white to technicolour.
We always seem to be in a huge flap to get there, but once we do, life immediately slows down. Maybe it’s the beautiful scenery. Maybe it’s the delicious food and wine coming out of the region. Everything seems to taste better there. There are certainly plenty of reasons why people are fleeing their big cities en masse and heading to the County on weekends. Continue reading
A few weeks ago, I was at my local LCBO looking for a few bottles to bring to a friend’s house for dinner. She was going to be serving Middle Eastern fare, so I grabbed a bottle of dry riesling from Alsace, which I thought would go nicely with potentially spicy foods. To switch things up, I decided to grab a couple of IPAs, in case anyone wasn’t feeling the wine (scandalous!) and preferred beer.
I went for a bottle of the Fat Tug (which I reviewed here), one of the few beers from my Beer course earlier this year that I actually enjoyed. I grabbed it, and as I put it in the basket, I felt a sharp pain in my thumb.I didn’t think anything of it until about 20 seconds later, when I realized I was bleeding. I went back to inspect the bottle and noticed a small shard of glass, which looked like it had been fused to the bottle during the recycling process, on the neck. I set it aside and advised the cashier, who was nice enough to get me a band-aid, probably so I would stop bleeding all over the store.
Continue readingHello friends!
It was another exciting wine day here in Ottawa with a fantastic Kim Crawford tasting event, which turned participants into winemakers! Kim Crawford wines have been around for 20 years and the brand has practically become a household name. Especially in my household. Just look at some of my previous posts and you will get a sense of how I often I drink it. Kim Crawford comes up in no less than six WWM posts to date, including this post on chardonnay or this one mentioning the KC Pansy! rosé.
I still remember the first time I tried Kim Crawford sauvignon blanc…
Am I dating myself with this flashback gif?
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