Monday, September 14th: Lunched at Southbrook with members of the Toronto Hunt Club. It was billed as a “Bordeaux and Burgundy” event, as we tasted Southbrook red Bordeaux varieties before lunch and with the meal prepared by Tony DeLuca and his wife Maria; and afterwards, to Cloudsley Cellars to taste Adam Lowey’s Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs. Continue reading
Monday, September 7th: Tasted two more wines from Palatine Hills.
Palatine Hills Overtime Sparkling Brut Nature
Golden straw in colour; persistent mousse of tiny bubbles; toasty, leesy, apple nose; light to medium-bodied, dry, apple flavour with biscuity notes, lively acidity and long finish. (89)
Palatine Hills Overtime Cabernet Sauvignon 2020
Dense purple-ruby; cedary, spicy, black fruit on the nose with oak spice; full-bodied, dry, richly extracted plum and dark chocolate flavours; well-integrated oak and lively, balancing acidity. (90) Continue reading
Adam, Deborah, Mak, Nora, me and Zeena
Sunday, August 30th: Lunch at Stonewall Winery with our Toronto friends Adam and Zeena and local friends Nora and Mark (who have made it a mission to visit every winery in Ontario!). Started with a glass of Stonewall Cabernet Franc Rosé 2023 followed by a dish called “Chinese Street Corn.”
Monday, August 31st: Tasted a range of Monte Creek wines from the Okanagan. Continue reading
Too much tannin? No, just a ComicCon participant
Monday, August 24th: I received the following samples from Palatine Hills to review:
Palatine Hills whites and rosé
Palatine Hills Savage Brut Sparkling (traditional method)
Deep golden in colour; subdued mousse of fine bubbles; toasty, leesy bouquet of peaches; light to medium-bodied, dry; dried apricot flavour carried on fresh acidity, Drink now and through 2027. (89)
Food pairing: aperitif wine; oysters; sushi; strawberries.
Palatine Hills Pinot Grigio 2025 (Lincoln Lakeshore)
Almost water white; spicy, peach nose; medium-bodied, dry, peachy-melon flavour with a floral top note. Easy drinking, lovely mouth-feel. Drink now. (89)
Food pairing: goat cheese; mussels; seafood pasta. Continue reading
Twisted Pig’s complimentary dessert
Monday, August 17th: Today is our 29th anniversary. We will celebrate with two couples tomorrow who share the same day.
I went to Big Head winery to taste some of Andrzej Lipinski’s new wines.
Big Head Biggest 2023 (carbonic maceration; 32 months in French 500-litre foudres)
44% Cabernet Franc, 33% ,15% Petit Verdot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon. Dense purple in colour; cedary, toasty, blackcurrant bouquet with vanilla oak notes; full-bodied, dry, richly extracted sweet black fruit flavours; well-integrated oak; firmly structured with ripe tannins. A powerful wine (15.3% alc) with a rich mouth-feel and bright acidity. (95–96) Continue reading
 | Derrick M on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 101… |
 | PAT GRAY on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 101… |
 | Vaughan Bowser on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 952… |
 | Andras Borbely on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 934… |
| A Wine Lover’s Diary… on A Wine Lover’s Diary, part 882… |
