wine vacation planned

I just booked my accommodations for my wine education / vacation this summer.  I'm excited about my itinerary and about what's to come ..

I'll post my adventure as I go .. So stay tuned!

Cheers,

Pudgy

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tasting Niagara on the Lake wines

Last week, I attended a taste and buy event featuring Niagara on the Lake wine. Unfortunately, Colaneri was unable to be at the event.  I was looking forward to trying their wines.  There were plenty of other wines to try.  All of the wines were not available at the LCBO.

One of my favorite wineries was Palatine Hills.  They had an excellent Riesling at the show - off dry, citrus, minerality, crisp acidity.  The way a Riesling from Niagara should be.  The best part was the price.  There were other Rieslings at the show - I tried the Riesling by Trius called Ghost Creek.  It was good but it was twice the price of Palatine Hills version!  I learned that winemaker (Jeff Innes) at Palatine Hills was an assistant winemaker under Brian Schmidt, winemaker at Vineland Estates. I have tremendous respect for Brian because he has been a great source of knowledge in the art of winemaking.  I'm a huge fan of Vineland wines and it's no wonder I have become a fan of Palatine Hills.

The rep at Palatine Hills remembered me from an event last year and I had connected with him at the Toronto Food & Wine show last year.  I told him that their Riesling was the best in show and later on, he gave me a bottle for the road.  It was unnecessary as I put in an order for a few bottles.  Anyway, I highly recommend their wines .. I didn't get to try their Cabernet Merlot but I was told that it was fantastic.

Niagara College Winery brought their Dean's List Chardonnay.  It was a classic Burgundian Chardonnay .. Buttery, smoky, lemon.  It was quite good .. 

I wandered over to Ravine Vineyards because the guy pouring was kind of cute - ok, don't judge me :) .. But that was short lived.  The guy said their Chardonnay was lightly oaked but when I tasted it, it was not what I would call "lightly oaked".  In fact, my guess would be that it had spent some time in new American oak.  How do I know?  I stopped by Pillitteri's table and tried their barrel fermented Chardonnay and they did it right.  There was a hint of smoke and it wasn't overpowering.  The wine was quite pleasant on the nose and palate - ripe melon, stone fruit, floral .. I was impressed.

What also made their Chardonnay impressive was the fact that it was more fragrant than the Chardonnay musque by Chateau des Charmes.  I let the folks at Pillitteri's know that the Chardonnay musque failed to impress me.  They promised that when I drop by the winery for a visit, I will be "wow-ed" with theirs.

The 2003 Gewürztraminer ice wine by Pillitteri's was delicious.  Too bad it was just for tasting.  There was a lemon iced tea aftertaste that was so lovely .. 

Finally, the most memorable wine of the night?  A 1993 sparkling wine by Chateau des Charmes.  It was toasty, bubbly, and very fresh for a sparkling that is 20 years old!!!  Can you believe it?  I wanted to lick the inside of my glass. 

Ahh .. It was truly a great night.  I wish you were there .. I'm sure there will be other opportunities to attend more tasting events.  Til then ..

Cheers,

Pudgy

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lucky me

Next Tuesday, I will be attending a private wine event featuring 27 wineries from Niagara-on-the-Lake.  I'm pretty excited because a few of my favorite wineries will be there.  I mentioned in my last post that Colaneri and Pillitteri wineries were my must-see places.  They will be at the event.

In my recent chat with the folks at Pillitteri, they convinced me that their Chardonnay Musque would turn me into a Chardonnay fan.  Chardonnay Musque is a clonal variety of Chardonnay with aromatic characteristics of Muscat.  This is a varietal that I have not tried before.

Colaneri Winery is also another winery I have been planning to visit.  They are a fairly new winery in the Niagara area.  They specialize in the appassimento style of wines. This style is mainly practiced in Veneto, Italy - home of Amarone.  Grapes are dried on straw mats before being pressed.  The appassimento style is becoming increasingly popular here in Ontario and Colaneri is just one of a few producers - Foreign Affair and Burning Kiln are others experimenting with this method.  Generally, their wines command a higher price tag due to the amount of work required to produce them.  Is the final product worth the big $$?  We shall see.  I will be sure to blog about my favorites of the night.

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taking a break this summer

This is my first semester without any classes.  My last course was cancelled due to low enrolment - which was likely due to summer vacation. So I am free this summer to do whatever I want.  Not having wine class is pretty weird for me. 

I have decided to stay busy though.  Next month, I will be resuming my cake decorating classes at Michael's craft store.  I have always wanted to go back and continue but ever since I started the wine program, I just didn't have time.  My most recent creation were rose cupcakes for a friend's birthday.  I still enjoy baking but I only do it at certain times of the year.  Usually when I am planning a trip home to see family, I will bake something to take with me.  I don't usually eat a lot of my own baking because I watch my weight.  I would be appalled if I ate two dozen cupcakes myself :)

On the sports front, I also decided to go back to playing tennis.  Every time I watch tennis on TV, I get the urge to hit the ball myself.  Luckily I have a few friends who are quite skilled at tennis and are willing to play with me.

I signed up for tennis lessons this month and I picked things up fairly easily.  My forehand has always been good and my backhand is fine as well.  I can't wait to hit with my friends.

There is a badminton club that is running during the summer if I want to drop in to play.

I will also continue training for a run this year.  I haven't decided which race to participate in.  There is the Army Run which raises money for our veterans.  And then there is the CIBC Run for the Cure which I missed last year.  Both causes are fantastic charities but I can only do one.

I have to plan a long overdue trip to Niagara.  I have chatted with several wineries over the last few months and I really need to get myself out there to meet the winery owners and winemakers.  Work has been extremely busy these days that I haven't had time to plan a vacation.  Off the top of my head - Vineland Estates, Colaneri, and Pilliteri Winery are the must see places for me.

Gosh .. Doesn't sound like much of a break, does it? :)

My last two courses ended on a high note.  I worked hard on these courses and it paid off.  The Beer Course was one of my favorites.  I still keep in touch with my instructor who worked very hard to make sure I walked out of the course with a favorite beer.  He also was a great instructor to have discussions with.

I am going to miss studying wine when this ends.

Anyway .. It's late and I must get some sleep. 

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a new year, a new schedule

whoa .. it's been a while since my last post.  didn't realize i was so behind in my posts.  i have been busy .. really, i have been.

christmas came and went - had a blast at my brother's place.  i also went shopping while down in the US.  i don't shop much so when i get the chance to hit a sale, i stock up.  :)

anyway, it's another semester.  this semester, i am taking a beer course and a food & wine pairing course.  this will be my first venture into the world of ales and lagers.  after seven weeks of beers, i have a new appreciation for this beverage.  i have also been very spoiled.  the class focuses on craft beers rather than the mass produced commercial stuff.  after tasting the products from craft breweries, the Labatts, Molson, Budweiser, and even Alexander Keith's are just .. watery brews.  Alexander Keith's is actually quite disgusting.  it's made with adjuncts instead of real ingredients.  when i do have a beer now, it's gotta be a good one.

the course that has me the most on edge is food & wine pairing.  there is no midterm or final exam but there is a paper to present at the end of the course.  we have to come up with a dish and wine to complement the dish. we also have to explain why the wine was chosen.  this is supposed to be a group project but i have elected to do the project solo.  i'm not anti-social .. i just take the course a lot more seriously than others.  it doesn't feel like i'm doing it alone though.  some of my wine study group members have already taken the course and have offered to help me.  as part of my project, i'm throwing a three course tasting dinner at my house.  i've got the menu set .. just have to get the wine list together.

this weekend, i'm off to Prince Edward County again .. i've got a meeting with the folks at Lacey Estate winery.  they are going to provide me with a few bottles of their gewurztraminer to pair with the thai red curry dish that i am planning to present as my dish.

i am grateful that they have offered me to try their wine at no cost.  doing the project solo could be very expensive because you are absorbing the entire cost for the wine - nobody to split the bill with.  hopefully it will be worth it in the end.

cheers,
pudgy

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old world wine regions - completed

After 16 weeks of classes, I'm finally finished with Old World Wine Regions. It was probably the toughest course in the entire program. It covers so many regions in one semester - it's just not possible to know everything about such an important area in wine.

I was worried that work and the holidays would make it tough for me to study. But I started early and took a day or two off to make sure I had enough time to prepare. It was so worth it because the written test was good. The blind tasting component always makes me nervous because I don't practice enough so I always wonder whether I am going to fail that portion. When I do a blind tasting, I always doubt myself and I change my answer. The original answer is usually right but because I doubt myself, I end up getting it wrong.

For the final exam, I reminded myself that I need to believe in my ability. This time, it worked. I was able to identify all four wines - an Albariño from Vinho Verde, a valpolicella from Veneto, a Nebbiolo from Piemonte, and a Tempranillo from Rioja. I was able to figure it out based on everything I learned about viticulture and vinification.

I'm happy to end the course on a high note. It is the last of the theoretical wine courses. Next up is Food & Wine Pairing and a Beer Course. Once those courses are done, it's Advanced Sommelier.

I'm almost there .. :)

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christmas came a little early for me ..

back in august, i was in BC for a wine trip.  i had written in my blog that i was supposed to meet with the winemaker from Nk'Mip Cellars but it didn't happen due to last minute scheduling issues.  before my trip, i had never even heard of this winery.  it wasn't until a contact at Constellation Brands suggested i go there.  i'm so glad i went because it had the best views in Osoyoos, BC. the wine was also pretty amazing too.  the winery is a joint venture with Constellation Brands and it is one of Canada's first wineries run by native Indians - might even be the only one?  they rank at #2 on Canada's Best Wineries this year and #1 on best winery in BC.  i'm not surprised because it's quite the place compared to other wineries in BC - and i visited a lot of wineries while i was there.

they produce some excellent wine - not cheap either.  the folks at Nk'Mip Cellars sent me a couple of bottles of wine back in September but somehow got lost in the mail.  my luck with this winery is pretty crazy.  but they made up for it recently by re-sending me a few bottles of their wine - this time via FedEx.  i received a bottle of their cabernet sauvignon and a bottle of pinot noir.  the cabernet sauvignon is now available at the LCBO here in Ontario (see Nov 24th catalog).  the pinot noir is still BC-only.  (thanks randy and eugene for the wine).

i highly recommend you try their cabernet sauvignon.  it's quite good and stands up to the big cali cabs on its own.

as a side note, i was never one to push ontario wine because i always felt that they lacked a good finish.  but the 2012 vintage is going to be one you will want to look out for at the LCBO.  the long, dry, and hot summer produced some very tasty fruit.  i was at norm hardie winery and black prince winery this year to help out with their harvest.  while in the vineyard, i was able to taste the fruit off the vine.  the berries were small - which is a good sign.  small berries mean concentrated flavours.  with the long hot summer, the fruit was able to fully ripen and harvest ended up being a week or two earlier than anticipated.  it wasn't just in ontario that this was the case.  while out in BC, the vines were just as bountiful as it was in ontario.  it's unfortunate that not a lot of BC wines make it out to ontario .. we are truly missing out on some spectacular wines. 

cheers,
pudgy

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