Okanagan Wines, Okanagan Local Foods.
Coming in at a sexy just 30 Euros is Champagne Piper Heidsieck's new limited edition bottle wrapped in its own crocodile skin bodyguard. Think a lipstick red croc Kelly bag for your champagne. Makes a chic gift and the red latex imprint will pair nicely with your holiday heels or even your (naughty) red Santa Suit! Champagne is a blend of several vintages, with a dominance of Pinot Noir. Available at select Travel Retail outlets such as CDG Paris Airport store Aelia.
Dear Readers and Wine Lovers: Please have a look at my recent article which originally appeared in the International Herald Tribune. It is also online at NYTimes.com with full LINK HERE.
by Paige Donner
“We wanted to put our own unique spin on traditional food and wine pairing concepts” says Chef Natasha Harris. “Clients who book the yacht will be able to show their guests Vancouver from a new perspective, while learning about interesting wine and food combinations using local ingredients. It’s a great opportunity to showcase our city and what we are privileged to have here.”
Created by Sunset Bay’s ISG accredited Executive Chef Natasha Harris, The Wine Yacht’s interactive group tasting sessions are designed to provide clients with an informative and unique custom tasting event while on board the “Sunset Bay II” private yacht. Each tasting station features premium wine varietals from BC and around the world, paired with small plates inspired by the corresponding wine’s region.
Available for groups up to 275, The Wine Yacht’s tasting packages range in style and variety, and offer something for everyone from wine tasting novices to experienced wine connoisseurs.
Featuring local products like Nicola Valley Beef and Venison, Maple Hills Free Range Chicken, Ocean Wise® sustainable seafood and fresh organic produce, The Wine Yacht’s flavorful combinations are sure to be a hit.
The Wine Yacht sets out to combine the popular art of food and wine pairing with the exclusivity of a luxury private group charter experience.
From The Nat Decants Newsletter:
I'm so excited about the amazing cross-country tour Random House/Doubleday has planned for the launch of my second bookUnquenchable! There are events planned across the country ... all of them include wine tasting and some amusing stories from the book: Vancouver, Okanagan, Whistler, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, Niagara, Ottawa, Montreal, Halifax, St. John'sTickets went on sale yesterday and are going very quickly. I hope you'll join me at one of these events ... there are others planned across the country as well.Unquenchable has now been #1 wine book on Amazon for three weeks thanks to your pre-orders.Today's wine picks feature terrific pinot noir and riesling for turkey dinner, as well as a wide selection of buttery-great chardonnays and one of the funniest wine labels I've seen that's also a tasty red wine.To help you get ready for Thanksgiving next weekend, I've also posted my top five tips on choosing gobbling good wines! 
This was posted on BC Wineries.net
Hi BC Wineries friends,
...you may have seen on Twitter that Okanagan-Coquihalla MP Dan Albas (@danalbas) is introducing a Private Members Bill next week to amend the Importation of Intoxicating Liquors Act. The IILA is the 1928 post-prohibition federal law that prevents wineries from shipping directly to their customers in other provinces (see Mark Hicken's websiteswww.winelaw.ca and www.freethewine.ca for more detailed info). In fact, it could be introduced as early as Monday. Throughout the bid process for the North American Wine Bloggers Conference (June 7-9, 2013 in Penticton, save the dates!) Dan and I had several conversations about the IILA and I know he's been in touch with a number of organizations, including the BC Wine Institute and the Alliance of Canadian Wine Consumers. Public support will be needed in order to change this legislation, and Dan has asked me to spearhead a social media blitz (this shouldn't surprise anyone, should it??). On Twitter, please follow Dan @danalbas and myself @allisonmmarkin, and tag your tweets #freemygrapes for info and to join the conversation. There will be a Facebook presence up shortly as well. I'll be providing an update on WBC 2013 at the next Eat.Drink.Tweet. event, and hopefully there will be some good news to report on the ILLA front. Cheers,
Allison [Markin]
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All photos by Paige Donner c. 2011.
To read more about Gérard Bertrand wines, his annual summer Jazz Fest and his L’Art de Vivre Les Vins Du Sud, click on Gerard-Bertrand.com.
Watch the Local Food And Wine TV interview of Gérard Bertrand at his Cigalus Estate HERE.
Château l'Hospitalet. Festival de Jazz, Ingrid and Gerard Bertrand. Photo by Paige Donner c. Local Food And Wine. 
Château l'Hospitalet. Festival de Jazz. Photo by Paige Donner c. Local Food And Wine.
Château l'Hospitalet. Festival de Jazz. Photo by Paige Donner c. Local Food And Wine.
Château l'Hospitalet. Festival de Jazz. Photo by Paige Donner c. Local Food And Wine.
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By Paige Donner, Editor, Local Food And Wine
Contact Local Food And Wine for our Culinary Tours and Rates.
By Paige Donner, Editor, Local Food And Wine
Contact Local Food And Wine for our Culinary Tours and Rates.
Gwyneth Paltrow's book of recipes for "Family and Friends" was released by Marabout Books in May. It is a delightful book filled with basic dishes, healthy and flavorful, that will gather your friends around you as you putter in the kitchen.
The dishes are good go-to recipes for "Mothers of The Family," as well, as there are no refined sugars used. Following the foreward by Mario Batali, Paltrow lists two full pages of essential ingredients to have on hand and stocked in the refrigerator. These include: Dark Agave Syrup, Light Agave Syrup, Brown Rice Syrup, Maple Syrup, Honey...
Illustrations include beautifully photographed prepared dishes alongwith family photos of Gwyneth as a child and a baby, and then as a mother herself with her own children. Wonderful summer dessert recipes await you at the end of the book such as Seasonal Fruit Crumble and Fresh Red Fruits With Caramelised Cream.
Paltrow founded the site Goop.com and also wrote another foodie book, co-authored with Mario Batali, Spain, A Culinary Road Trip. Read More on Local Food And Wine.
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The Association Independent winegrowers of Quebec (VIQ)officially joined CEVI, the European Confederation of Independent Winegrowers, on the occasion of the General Meeting of April 20, 2011. This widening of CEVI beyond the borders of Europe reinforces the influence of the profession of the independent winegrower and its values, and allows the network of CEVI to get richer through experience sharing. 
ADVVQ was founded in 2006 by a group of vinegrowers and winemakers in the aim of gathering the producers of the areas of Quebec and of supporting the spreading of the know-how of this production in emergence. Accordingly, the ADVVQ supports the organisation of regional and interregional meetings in order to exchange on the characteristics of the production in Quebec. Since 2010, the association changed its name for Vignerons Indépendants du Québec (Quebec Independent Winegrowers).The goal of the association is to promote the elaboration of wines made from grapes entirely grown on the Quebec terroir, by proscribing any addition of raw material coming from outside Quebec (grapes, juice and concentrates), except for alcohols required to the making of fortified wines, according to an exclusively artisanal and nonindustrial transformation.
The association gathers 51 members, representing approximately 35 to 40% of the production of wine in Quebec. In Quebec, more than 630 hectares of vines are in production. There are 4 main regions: Estrie, Montérégie, Lanaudière and Chaudières the Appalachian Mountains (regions of the South-Quebec). The type of vines which are cultivated there are mainly rustic and semi-rustic hybrid type of vines.
| CHILE AND ARGENTINA |
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What do we do in the winter? When the vineyard is covered in snow and wine is aging in barrel, adventures begin. This year, David went adventure motorcycling in Chile and Argentina with Paul Gardner, from Pentage Winery. While no revolutions were started, much wine drinking was done of South American Tannat (brooding, dark and high tannins), Torrentes (floral, rose petal and fresh) and some rockin' Malbecs (lush, intense and full). Back to spring winemaking realities now of blending decisions and bottling schedules (with some inspiration from Che).
Director's Blend Wines SOON AVAILABLE AT TOP TABLE RESTAURANTS |
Blending is more art than science, and this year the Wine Directors of 4 of the leading restaurants in Vancouver and Whistler joined us to create a proprietary blend series -- available exclusively in each of these restaurants later this spring. Sarah McCauley of CinCin, Andrea Vescovi of Blue Water Café, Samantha Rahn of Araxi and Owen Knowlton of West came up a number of times to the Naramata Bench to create deeply pleasing red and white blends that are true to the Okanagan. Congrats to Owen for being named “Sommelier of the Year” at this year's Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival. It is better to spend money like there's no tomorrow than to spend tonight like there's no money.
P. J. O'Rourke
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Game-changing technology allows you to instantly scan 150,000 wines in the liquor store
Toronto, May 12, 2011 – A new free mobile application will change the way Canadian wine lovers find, buy and enjoy wine this summer. The Natalie MacLean Wine Picks & Pairings app lets you use your smartphone camera to snap a picture of any bottle label bar code in the liquor store. With one click, you get tasting notes, scores, and food pairings.
“You’re in the liquor store wondering if you should buy the bottle with the castle on its label or the one with the fluffy squirrel,” says Natalie MacLean, the editor of Canada’s largest wine web site at www.nataliemaclean.com. She created the tool to make buying wine easier for consumers.“Now you just point and click to find out if that shiraz actually is a good wine to go with your pepper steak, or if the sauvignon blanc would work with your grilled veggies. No more guesswork based on castles and critters.”No more shopping lists either since you can scan the wines right in front of you in the store. The app’s key features allow you to:- Instantly access tasting notes, scores, prices, recipes and food pairings- Search 150,000 wines at the LCBO, SAQ, BC Liquor Stores and other liquor retailers across the country- Get real-time stock for every wine at the store in which you’re shopping- Check the number of bottles in stock at nearby stores via GPS real-time inventory search- Track your purchases in your virtual cellar with just a few clicks- Create a wine journal with your own wine notes and pictures in the app- Share your favourite wines and pairings on Twitter and FacebookThe new Wine Picks & Pairings app is the next generation of Natalie’s mobile app, which was selected among the top five food-and-wine apps by both Computerworld Magazine and the New York Times. It’s the only one featured on Apple’s iTunes store under App Essentials for both “Food & Wine” and “Date Night.”Fans use Canada’s most popular wine and food app to get more than 700,000 wine picks and food pairing suggestions a month—the number of users has grown 230% over the past year. The app, designed by Fluid Trends, bundles a suite of 10 wine apps including reviews, cellar journals, recipes, food pairings, articles, blog posts, a wine glossary, a bi-weekly newsletter, a directory of wineries around the world and excerpts from Natalie’s bestselling book Red, White and Drunk All Over.A certified sommelier and winner of the World’s Best Wine Writer award at the World Food Media Awards, Natalie wrote and vetted all the pairings and wine reviews in the app rather than relying on computer-generated algorithms and crowd-sourced material.Natalie’s Top 10 Well-Done Wine and BBQ Pairings:1. Juicy Steak and Shiraz2. Grilled Salmon and Pinot Noir3. Seared Tuna and Gamay 4. Flame-Broiled Hamburgers and Zinfandel5. Grilled Portabello Mushroom and Rosé6. Herbed Chicken and Syrah7. Lobster in Butter and Sparkling Wine8. Grilled Veggies and Sauvignon Blanc9. BBQ Pork Chops and Chardonnay10. Roasted Marshmallows and Tawny Port
About NatalieNatalie MacLean is a Canadian wine journalist and author of Red, White and Drunk All Over.She connects with more than 123,000 wine and food lovers who get her free e-newsletter. Nat is the only person to have won both the M.F.K. Fisher Distinguished Writing Award from the James Beard Foundation and the M.F.K. Fisher Award for Excellence in Culinary Writing from Les Dames d'Escoffier International. More bio here: www.nataliemaclean.com/bio.
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