Wine Reviews

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Featured Recipe


The Stone Road Grille is an icon in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. In its eight years of operation, the restaurant has become a favourite of locals and tourists alike. Located practically in the heart of Old Town Niagara-on-the-Lake, the Stone Road Grille is within easy walking distance of many of the major area attractions. The restaurant's Chef Ryan Crawford, who provided this tasty recipe, has taken the concept of local cuisine to heart. Chef Crawford's connections to local farmers means that ingredients are as local as possible. The restaurant also features a 100% Ontario wine list.

Clafoutis is a kind of eggy pancake popular throughout France. Though not exactly a light (in calories) dessert, this sweet treat makes a wonderful indulgence. Once considered rustic, it's been elevated over the years to an elegant, special-occasion dish. But, I recommend you enjoy it anytime you feel like it!

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Adapted from a recipe developed by Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery, Niagara.

This is a classic T-dot cocktail. T-Dot is what most of us used to call TO, or simply Toronto, Ontario. No matter what's going on outside, you can always find colour and flavour inside. Hence the fabulous flavours offered in this combination. Sweet, fruity, tart, bold … yes, even stylish and cool. It will warm you up in the dead of winter and cool you off in the summer. How can three simple ingredients achieve so much? Give it try and see for yourself.

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Have you ever tried roasting homemade marshmallows? They don't seem to catch fire in the same way that the mass manufactured variety do. Instead, I find that they take a long time to achieve that burnished look. In that time, they're caramelizing all the way through. Absolutely delicious. Anyway, here's something different courtesy of Chef Jason Parsons, Executive Chef at Peller Estates Winery Restaurant. These homemade marshmallows incorporating icewine will leave your adult friends clamouring for more.

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Mountain Road Wine Company in Beamsville, Ontario has been planting acres of Chardonnay, Gamay Noir and Vidal grapes since owner, Steve Kocsis, and his parents (original owners), Andy and Klara, began farming in this area of the Niagara region. The grapes, long sought after by neighbouring winemakers, inspired the Kocsis family to finally embark on that difficult journey of becoming winemakers, themselves. Their first icewine vintage, a 1999 Vidal Icewine, won a gold medal at the Cellars of the World International Competition in Ottawa in 2000. That may have been the first award for this fledgling winery, but it certainly wasn't the last. Every year has seen some accumulation of accolades bestowed upon Steve, who studied under the tutelage of Deborah Paskus.

One of the classic food-icewine pairings is blue cheese. The intensity and saltiness of the cheese is somewhat mellowed by the sweetness of the wine. Mountain Road has provided this recipe for Blue Cheese Biscuits to demonstrate how perfectly suited icewine is to a savoury dish.

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Adapted from a recipe developed by Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery of St. Catharines, Ontario. The reference here, of course, is to the proprietors of Henry of Pelham Family Estate Winery. The brothers - Matthew, Daniel and Paul Speck - promote their family history by way of a lengthy bio on their website and via their wine, naming their products after the family in one way or another. It is, by rights, an impressive history going all the way back to the late 1700s in the Niagara region. That's pretty impressive for a 144 year country. Of course, they weren't winemakers back then, but they must have had the art of wine-, beer- and spirit-making in their blood even then. The family ran a tavern and inn that still stands to this day. Looking for an interesting way to pass a vacation? Follow the trail of history through this part of Ontario.

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