summer is here.

geez, it's july already.  i completely missed the month of june.  it was a month of adventure for me.  i'll start with the first ..
a few months ago, i turned to oprah's channel and a message flashed across the screen ..

you get in life what you have the courage to ask for.

that one quote was the inspiration for my first adventure.  i have been studying vinification and i couldn't get enough of it.  it combined chemistry and process .. very .. chemical engineering-like.  i didn't want the course to end but after 4 weeks, it was done.  i decided to create my own co-op program to allow me to continue learning the concepts of vinification.

i emailed some local winemakers asking whether they would mentor me or allow me to shadow them for a few weeks.  of the many wineries i asked, three of them replied to my request.  one of them was norman hardie.  norman hardie was the former sommelier at the Four Seasons in Toronto.  we spoke over the phone and it was like an interview.  the interview went well and i was invited to the winery for a visit.

i decided to stop in the winery while i was on the way back from a trip to Toronto.  i met with mr. hardie for a brief discussion and then we launched into a tasting exam.  he handed me a riedel pinot noir glass and said "i would advise you to spit because you'll be drinking a lot today and i can't have you drink and then drive home".  so that's what i did .. we started off tasting the 2010 county pinot noir .. then the 2010 niagara pinot noir.  "can you tell the difference?" .. the county pinot noir had a bit more structure (ie. more tannic) than the niagara pinot.  i preferred the county pinot over the niagara.  i also sampled the county pinot noir at various stages of barrel aging.  when it came to the cabernet franc, it was the most interesting one.  the pH level of the cabernet franc was too low for any fermentation to take place.  in cool climate regions such as ontario, the growing season isn't warm enough or long enough to allow the sugars in the grapes to develop.  hence, the result is a more acidic grape - yes, even with red grapes.  this cabernet franc was a prime example of this.  the pH was about 2.8 and in order for fermentation to take place, the pH had to be around 3.3 to 3.5.  so what do you do?  you add calcium carbonate .. which is a base (do you remember your chemistry?  :)).  this process is called de-acidification.  by bringing the pH up to 3.3, it would produce a suitable environment for the bacteria to kickstart fermentation. 

once we were done with the reds, we moved on to the whites .. specifically, the chardonnay.  i tasted the chardonnay at various stages of malolactic fermentation and barrel aging.  some were smokey-er than others .. the more 'smoke', the longer it has been in the barrel.  when malo is still going on, you get an effervescent feeling on the tongue.  mr. hardie then started going from barrel to barrel .. blending.  wow .. at one point, the changes were too subtle for me to figure out what the blend was.  but i was like a kid in a candy store.  and yes, i spit everything out.  when i left, there was absolutely no redness on my face.

it was such an amazing experience.  i learned a lot from him and i got to see the practical side of my favorite course.  i even got to give my take on the wines. 

my second adventure was inspired by the exerpt from theodore roosevelt's speech about "the man in the arena".  many times, we tell ourselves that we will enter the arena when we are bulletproof and perfect.  but we all know that may take forever.  so does that mean you'll never enter the arena? 

i decided that i wasn't going to wait for perfection ..  so for my birthday, i made arrangements to dine at a tasting restaurant called Atelier.  i've always wanted to try their 'molecular gastronomy' cuisine by award winning chef Marc Lepine.  you need to book 1-2 months in advance to get a reservation.  i managed to get a reservation with only 2 weeks notice.  i asked for a table for 1 and the chef was able to accomodate my request.

the meal was 3 hours long but the courses were fantastic.  it was such a shame that i didn't have the wine pairings but i was driving so no wine for me.  but after all was said and done, i had consumed 17 courses that night.  i know .. 17!!  i was full after 9 courses but they just kept bringing more cutlery - new cutlery for every course!  i even got a jar of truffles to take home.

i will definitely go back for another meal.  maybe in the fall or winter when the menu is completely changed.  but best birthday dinner ever.