13 NEAR MISSES — The Final Cuts to the Top 40 Best-Value Wines at the LCBO
Well, tomorrow’s the big day—the 2025 edition of the TOP 40 Best-Value Wines at the LCBO. But culling the herd is always difficult—this year in...
Best Value Wines (Near Misses—Edition 1)
Full confession—I’ve been drinking a little more than normal lately. I blame most of that on multiple Toronto Blue Jays playoff games—either at friends’ homes...
A Chef, a Winemaker and a Bottle of Marsanne
The dynamic duo of Rhône winemaking star Michel Chapoutier and three-star Michelin chef Yannick Alléno. When a world-famous chef and one of the Rhône Valley’s...
What is Cannonau, and Why is it the Grape of the Gods?
Picture Sardinia, Italy: an island strewn with craggy peaks, wild myrtle and sheep with attitude. Now spray some sea mist, throw in a chorus of...
QUEEN OF BAROLO: It may be “the wine of kings,” but it was a Frenchwoman who fixed Nebbiolo
More than 200 years ago, Juliette Colbert laid the foundation for one of the great wines of the world. There’s nothing quite like a centuries-old...
Celebrating International Rose Day with Wine, Pizza and Questionable History
Happy International Rosé Day, everyone—the one day a year where it’s socially acceptable to pretend you know the difference between a Grenache and a Pinot...
THE ART OF THE BLEND – Wakefield Jaraman 2022
A step up from its Estate level of wines, Wakefield’s “Jaraman” name is derived from an Indigenous term meaning “seahorse”—a nod to the discovery of...
PIONEERING SPIRIT: A Chilean white and red wine for under $12
Chile’s Maule Valley provides the backdrop for Morandé’s Pionero range of wines. I’ve long been a fan of Chile’s Viña Morandé and its ability to...
The Prosecco Market is Sparkling!
Toronto’s W Hotel provided an elegant venue for the Prosecco DOC event earlier this month. Worldwide wine sales have been slipping the past few years,...
Think “Red & White” this February
OK, they’re not Canadian, but at least these white and red wines among today’s new releases at the LCBO are not American. And they’re both...
