Vancouver Winefest Thursday Trade Tasting Report

Excited crush at the tasting booths (See Ya Later Ranch in the foreground)

I just got home exhausted and exhilarated from my first full day at the wine fest. The whole tasting room was buzzing with energy and excitement all afternoon. Now, the winefest is always exciting, but this one is special because the focus is on BC wines, with a full two thirds of the tasting room devoted to BC wineries.

Here are some highlights of my day:



Mr. and Mrs. Gidda, proprietors of Mt. Boucherie Estate Winery

Mt. Boucherie has been one of my favourite wineries for several years now. I think they do their reds especially well. Today I tasted their Blaufrankisch and I was stunned by it! As always, I can't manage to take tasting notes under pressure in a crowded tasting scenario, but this was had great intensity and spiciness. I'll be looking for this wine again, most definitely.



Me mashing Georg Riedel, the King of Crystal

I got to meet charming Mr. Georg Riedel of Riedel Glass. He was so sweet and formal that I just had to get all Canadian mushy on him. Who wouldn't get mushy on the man responsible for all this wonderful glassware?



Riedel Glasses display



I also met Wade Stark, charming winemaker from Prospect Winery, who looks exactly like my first boyfriend. I managed to restrain myself from kissing him (at least for today).



Bo Concept provided furniture for a great chill-out area in the far end of the room. Having a comfy lounge area to retreat to is just so great. Good idea, folks!



Patti from Okanagan Wine Tours

I met lovely Patti Tetreau from Okanagan Wine Tours. Patti knows everyone!! She didn't come out from behind her booth, or I probably would have kissed her too.



Anne at Les Vins d'Alsace

Anne was one of the team manning the booths at Les Vins d'Alsace, which is promoting the pairing of Alsace wines with Asian food. You can put this pairing to the test at their booths, where they're offering a little tasting plate of sushi and pakoras to taste with the wines. It works! Good pairing!

When you check out their booth, do try the Cremant d'Alsace, a lovely rosé sparkler.



Bradley Cooper and friend!

I just had a brief drive-by wave with Bradley Cooper, intrepid winemaker at Township 7 and Black Cloud, who is BC's most Web 2.0 connected winemaker!

Great wine discoveries of the day:

• Mt. Boucherie Blaufrankisch (as mentioned above)
• From Jackson Triggs, a brand new, just bottled, behind-the-counter Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz Viognier with incredible flavour and elevating energy from Brooke Blair, J-T's red wine winemaker. (Which reminds me, I have to ask Brooke what happened to J-T's excellent Pinot Noir, which has disappeared from their lineup in recent years.)
• Also behind-the-counter from Jackson Triggs, a sparkler just into the bottle for its second fermentation, with wonderful fresh apple and earthy scents. Great potential here. Looking forward to seeing it in about 18 months.
• Not a new discovery for me, but do check out Brad Cooper's Black Cloud Pinot Noir at the Township 7 booth (and the wonderful Township 7 wines too, especially their Merlot).
• I also got to taste a Pinot Gris from Prospect that was just bottled on Wednesday! Tasty!
• Finally, from La Frenz, a stunning Tawny Port!

Check these out, you won't be disappointed. Ah, it was a good day. More reports to come!

P.S. For more Winefest info, see Tiny Bites' Winefest Anthology!

Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival begins!

"Get Uncorked" the kickoff event of this year's Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival featured several of Inniskillin Okanagan's Discovery Series wines paired with delicious nibbles at Earls Paramount on Hornby Street.



Featured wines were the Chenin Blanc, Marsanne Rousanne, Zinfandel, Malbec and Tempranillo Icewine. Excuse me for not making tasting notes -- it was simply too much of a crush to pay proper attention to the wines or the food. However, the wines were all extremely tasty and well balanced. I've enjoyed most of these offerings before, and I must make a note to review them all properly. The Chenin Blanc is a favourite of mine, and I was especially impressed by the concentrated fresh berry fruitiness and smoothness of the Malbec.



Brilliant service with brilliant smiles

I absolutely love the fact that Inniskillin Okanagan's winemaker Sandor Mayer is so passionate about growing non-traditional varietals, which would seem crazy to even try in Canada. And he makes them work! Vincor really should be applauded for supporting Sandor in this venture. It's nutty enough to grow Malbec in Canada, but Tempranillo Icewine? Oh, it was good!

The Ogopogo was in attendance.

Gorgeous, non-mythical Daenna Van Mulligen, the wine diva herself, looking fabulous!

Sisters Sue Vandervelde from Vancouver and Rachel Christie from Cranbook enjoying the Chenin Blanc.

Colleen Coplick from Buzz Networker cuddles Ryan McKinley from Pinq!

Miss Chenin Blanc keeping glasses full.

Delicious nibbles!

Au Petit Chavignol, new wine bar in East Van

Au Petit Chavignol tiers of NOM!

Au Petit Chavignol is a new wine bar brought to us by the lovely women responsible for Les Amis du Fromage. It's been open for less than two weeks, and has been packed with customers since the first moment they opened their doors. The wine bar is nestled beside the new third new branch of Les Amis du Fromage at 843 East Hastings, a particularly blah portion of industrial East Hastings. Across the street is the Al Mozaico Flamenco studio, however, which adds a little colour to the concrete and asphalt surroundings.

We arrived at Au Petit Chavignol at 5:15 on a sunny Saturday afternoon. Only 15 minutes after opening the place was already half full. By 5:45 it was packed and people were waiting at the door. Our server told us they've been slammed every moment of the ten days they've been open so far. Why? Well, this wine bar blows all others in Vancouver out of the water. The wine list isn't huge, but it's carefully chosen, and the food is both stupendous and not nearly as expensive as other wine bars in the city.

Food

As expected, Au Petit Chavignol has a killer cheese list. We weren't in the mood to overindulge in dairy, however, so we picked from the other offerings. The Poor Man's Caviar (an eggplant paté), was tender and flavourful with a gloriously creamy texture.



Fig and chestnut salami from Moccia Italian Meat Market (an East Van treasure) -- a very complex, gentle flavour.



Cucumber salad with crottin de chavignol and a delicate lemon dressing, and a melt-in-your-mouth heirloom prosciutto from La Quercia Artisan Cured Meats in Iowa.



All of these dishes were extremely high quality, very fresh and flavourful. My only complaint is that Au Petit Chauvignol's bread doesn't match up to the quality of the food -- it's a characterless white loaf with little flavour and a soft texture. As a paté delivery system it's fine but I always feel that bread should bring more to a meal.

Beverages

I tried two glasses from their by-the-glass list, first Antech Blanquette de Limoux Grande Réserve 2006 -- full of mandarin orange scents and toasty, earthy almond and orange flavours, off dry but with a dry finish. A beautiful wine which has become an instant favourite. Adore!

Second, I had the Château Pesquié Viognier 2007. I found the nose had some floral elements, but mostly lemon pith scents, and the palate was mostly citrus. A very unusual Viognier, not at all voluptuous -- dry, with restrained perfume and a citrus finish.

My honey had a glass of the R&B Brewing Co. Bohemian lager. More East Van pride, yeah!

Ambiance and service



The service was very personable, friendly and attentive. Decor is tasteful, dark grey and dusky plum walls and huge windows (Scout Magazine has some photos of the space when it was in progress). The room is quite small and narrow with concrete floors and a high ceiling, so pack 45 guests into that space (30 at tables and 15 at the big bar) with a team of servers running their butts off and you've got a very noisy room. This is not a place for intimate conversation.



The Damage

Four dishes, two glasses of wine and one beer set us back $55 before tip. Though not cheap, this is most definitely a bargain compared to other Vancouver wine bars. Will we be back? Oh definitely, and at opening time so we don't have to wait!



More info: reviews by Tim Pawsey, Andrew Morrison, Vancouver Magazine, Vitamin Daily and Martini Boys. The man responsible for wonderful Vancouver food blog Butter on the Endive is working the charcuterie station.

Les Faux Bourgeois Café

Les Faux Bourgeois exterior

Les Faux Bourgeois is a terrific French bistro at Kingsway and Fraser (reviewed here, here, here and here). On February 1 they opened a teeny little café in a corner of their space. It's very small -- cosy in fact -- with four little tables and three seats at the bar. This morning it was bright and welcoming with the sun streaming through the windows. The café feels like a little corner of heaven on the edge of, well, a busy city intersection.

The view out the windows is pure Edmonton:* cars, asphalt, trolly lines, power lines and traffic lights with only the very occasional pedestrian sauntering past. This is not a place for people watching! But inside: a few tables, a little bar with maroon upholdered stools, an iPod playing French music, and lovely young French woman serving perfect coffee.



Les Faux Bourgeois interior

I'm fascinated by their decor. Either this place was created in the 1940s and hermetically sealed until last week, or their interior designer is an utter genius. The wood veneer on the banquettes and the bar looks exactly like it came from an Alberta Legion. Do you know what I mean -- the kind of wood they put on the walls back in the 1940s, seen to this day in Canadian Legions? Real wood, with an ashy stain -- this is what fake wood panelling from the 1970s was trying to be. The floor and backsplash behind the bar are clad in little white hexagonal tiles, and the walls are covered in cheesecloth and whitewashed over. If it weren't for the iPod on the bar I'd think I'd timetraveled walking through the door.



Les Faux Bourgeois coffee

Ah, the coffee. Rich, creamy coffee -- shade-grown, organic, fair trade from Farmer First. We had to stay for two cups. And the pastries! Only two kinds available, croissants and pain au chocalat both from brilliant Thomas Haas, North Vancouver cult chocalatier. Exquisitely tender, flaky, melt in your mouth pastries to die for.

Birds were singing like crazy as we walked through east Van on our way to check the out the cafe. I think spring has finally arrived. In fact, here's proof just up the street from the café!



Sophia and 15th, signs of spring

*Actually I love Edmonton, just not its car-centricness.

Corb Lund Concert at Tinhorn Creek Vineyards

Corb Lund and the Hurtin' Albertans in concert at Tinhorn Creek Vineyards September 19! We don't particularly care for country music in our house, but we love Corb Lund.

Part of Corb Lund's attraction is that he's an Alberta boy. He reminds me of my cousins back home, the guys I went to high school with, the love of the mountains and prairies, and a life filled with horses, trucks and dogs. But that's not all -- his lyrics are great, his music is terrific, and he's damn smart. Here's a stream of his song Horse Soldier, Horse Soldier, a song about history, of all subjects:



The concert will be held at Tinhorn Creek's Outdoor Amphitheater. Tickets are steep ($200) but include a pre-concert barbecue. If this price makes your teeth chatter a bit, Tinhorn Creek is hosting four other bands in their Canadian Concert Series this summer, at $35 each or $125 for the whole series.

New York Trip Report #4: Vegan pastries from Penny Licks

Pastries from Penny Licks

How can these fantastically delish looking goodies possibly be vegan, you ask? I have no idea. They sure a heck didn't taste vegan, they tasted as though they were packed with the finest, freshest butter, eggs and cream. The creation at the top left is their peanut butter bomb, which is just so rich the only possible explanation is that their baker sold their firstborn to Satan to get the recipe. Here's a review from a local, and another from Serious Eats New York.

Penny Licks is a little teeny cafe-bakery at 158 Bedford in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, right smack in the center of hipster heaven, a place so hip it's already over. But don't tell that to the throngs of prettily-mussed young people on the street crowding into the great little bookstores, bars and cafés.

Also not to be missed in the area is Uva Wine Shop, with great recommendations and a fascinating, off-the-beaten-track selection; the Bedford Cheese Shop (most definitely not vegan!); and Verb Cafe which had the best decaf espresso my honey has ever tasted, and in fact still dreams of.

Superior coffee from Verb

Name that Wine Association!

The Powell's vine arbor in Summerland

Name that Wine Association, win a trip to Banée -- Oliver's wine festival, April 17 and 18.

The South Okanagan Wineries Association are on the hunt for a better name. When they got together to come up with a name themselves, the only moniker they could get consensus on was rather unwieldy: OODWCA (Oliver, Osoyoos Desert Wine Country Association). Yikes!

They need help! Something short and catchy, something that evokes the virtues of their specific region, the area where most of the grapes in the Okanagan are grown. Full contest details and entry form here.

New Nuba digs!

Before the stellar dress rehearsal performance of Vancouver Opera's Rigoletto last week, my honey and I dined at the spacious new digs of Nuba, Vancouver's (formerly) teeny tiny cult Lebanese restaurant. They've only been in the new space a month!

Nuba has always had delicious food. They've been squeezed into two eentzy spaces, one up on Seymour near the Granville Bridge, and the other on West Hastings. Now they've moved the West Hastings space to the basement of the Dominion Building formerly occupied by the well loved Mexican restaurant The Mouse and Bean, and Nuba finally has room to spread their wings.

It's a really good sized room, easily 20 tables, and a spacious granite bar. They've got a nice little cocktail menu including organic sangria and beet Bloody Mary, and a wine list with eight selections by the glass (three whites, one rose and four reds). I expect that the wine list changes quite regularly, but last week the list included the See Ya Later Ranch Riesling, always a favourite here. The by-the-glass menu is $6-8, in keeping with Nuba's very affordable menu.

The food was great. Fresh, tasty and healthy. Here's a little food porn for the record:



Chicken yummy something or other -- not on the web version of their menu.



Dessert: Cardamom creme bruleé and stuffed apricots. Yumm.

Nuba has always been popular, and I don't expect they'd have trouble filling this expansive new space with enthusiastic, satiated diners. However, you really should check out their new digs and treat yourself to some tasty Lebanese cuisine.

Winefest tix still available!

Tickets! I love tickets!

The Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival is just 17 days away. Tickets are 76% sold out and going fast, so get your tickets soon. Don't want to miss out!

Non-link between cancer and booze

These lovely ladies don't look worried.

Here's an interesting article about the unwarranted hype regarding cancer risks of drinking for women.

Here's a quote:
For over a decade, a constant stream of studies has warned women who drink that they run an increased risk of getting certain cancers, particularly breast cancer. But this steady stream of anti-drinks advice last week gave way to a global torrent when two new studies about the link between drinking and cancer in women received huge, and typically uncritical, international media attention. From Spiked

I'm certainly not saying that booze can't kill you. Recently, I've seen death from alcoholic cirrhosis up close, and it was painful, undignified, disgusting and lengthy. But I do think we're all better off when we don't allow Puritanism to get a choke hold on our enjoyment of life.

Wonderful dinner at Cru

Red and White and Wine: Someone was feeling a little frisky at supper last Wednesday.

Last week my love and I went for a special birthday supper at the wonderful Vancouver restaurant Cru. We ate like queens. Lucky person that I am, I've had many great meals in my life. One of them was in New York recently. Another, way back in 2001 in Iraklion, Crete, featured snails, beets and sardines. And last week's dinner at Cru was yet another mindblowing meal.

I've eaten at a lot of fine restaurants lately, and have even been lucky enough to dine not once but twice in the last month at the much touted West. Quite frankly, Cru's food is even better than West's and for less than half the price. Cru may be the best foodie bargain in the city.

Cru recently celebrated its fifth anniversary. It's an intimate little space, long and narrow, dimly lit and it feels quite romantic. We were there very early, but I was happy to see that even on a Wednesday night in the middle of February, they filled up quite nicely by 6:30.



And the food. My food porn, let me show it you. We went for four small plates. First we had the Miso-marinated sablefish with cauliflower pureé and greens and the three kinds of bruschetta (cured arctic char and house-made cream cheese; white bean puree, crispy sage and parmesan; and edamame, pecorino and oven-dried tomato). All delicious. Unfortunately fish on cauliflower and bits on bread don't make for the best photos. Just take my word for it, the fish was perfectly tender and flavourful, and the bruchetta was tasty.



Miso-marinated sablefish with cauliflower pureé and greens



Bruchetta x3

As yummy as the first course was, the second course blew it out of the water. We had the Oloroso-sauteed mushrooms, on brioche, with aged white cheddar and balsamic glaze, and the crispy duck leg confit, spätzle goat cheese hash, warm bacon dressing. What a fantastic combination these two dishes were: the earthy sherry-scented mushrooms, yeasty brioche, tangy cheese and balsamico paired with the tender, rich duck and smoky bacon. Oh, a meal to remember.



Oloroso-sauteed mushrooms, on brioche, with aged white cheddar and balsamic glaze



Crispy duck leg confit, spätzle goat cheese hash, warm bacon dressing

Not to get all evangelical on you, but really, you need to run out right now to Cru and order the mushroom and duck small plates. You will not be sorry, and you may have a religious experience. And they're inexpensive!! The duck is $16 and the mushrooms are $13. I'd pay much more for food this good. I've paid much more for food not half as good!

The four dishes were more than enough for a meal for two, but it was a special occasion so we had to have dessert -- Grand Cru Chocolate Truffle with peanut butter mascarpone mousse and Warm Apple Spice Cake with vanilla bean crème fraîche. Both rich but not heavy, with a high comfort food quotient.



Warm Apple Spice Cake with vanilla bean crème fraîche and Grand Cru Chocolate Truffle with peanut butter mascarpone mousse

The six dishes filled us to bursting. And before wine, taxes and tip, this meal was $70. Tell me that isn't a bargain.

Ah, but we did have wine. Wonderful wine, glorious wine by the glass. Cru has a finely curated wine list, very sensitively chosen. We had glasses of:

Cedar Creek Ehrenfelser 2007, aromatic, mysterious and complicated with lots of fruit but also green notes like willow bark and pine, but then also maraschino cherry. This wine made us both nostalgic -- it brought up memories of the lake in Alberta where our families both have cabins. Amazing wine. Can't buy any in the city -- it's sold out everywhere. (I've looked!)

Burrowing Owl Pinot Gris 2007, big mineral and floral nose, big complex almond, orange blossom and asparagus flavours among others I'm just simply not skilled enough to identify. Utterly delicious and complex. I'd like to become well acquainted with this wine.

Quail's Gate Limited Release Pinot Noir 2006. I didn't get any notes down about this one as I was too busy enjoying the food. But it was a beautiful Pinot Noir, fragrant and flavourful.

Chateau St. Jean Chardonnay 2006. This was the only non-BC wine we tasted that evening, and as with the Pinot Noir, I was too transported by the food to pause and write notes. A big, rich, oaky Chardonnay, though, quite nice with tons of butterscotch.

Thanks Cru crew for a terrific evening!