Don’t judge a wine by its homemade label—yeah, the one that’s just “Merlot” scrawled on a jagged strip of masking tape. It’s a lesson for even the unsnobbiest drinkers, and sage advice that Noble Grape’s Shean Higgins is quick to share with hesitant first-time winemakers. Not all homemade wines are that watermelon shiraz your friends […]
Drink
Posted inFood + Drink
The Tidal’s high
While the Nova Scotia wine scene has traditionally been a straggler when it comes to fame and accolades, our first official wine appellation, Tidal Bay, has managed to turn that all around in a matter of only a few years. A blissfully aromatic white wine that hovers around 11 percent, it ranges from sharp, crisp […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Tidal Bays to try
Avondale Sky 2014 Tidal BayBlend: L’Acadie Blanc, Vidal, Geisenheim, Osceola Muscat, Petite Milo Heavy on the citrus notes and high in acidity, this crisp and sharp white is perfect when chilled to the bone and served with a light fish dish or a fresh, zesty pesto dish. Benjamin Bridge 2014 Tidal Bay Blend: L’Acadie Blanc, […]
Posted inFood + Drink
The big cheese
1. Quark, from Fox Hill Cheese House A tangy, eastern European spreadable cheese Beatrice Stutz is playful with the quark, mixing it with chocolate and serving it with Grand Pré’s Dolce Vita Red Dessert Wine, while L’Acadie’s Bruce Ewert suggests either his Vintage Cuvée Rose or Prestige Brut. Benjamin Bridge’s Jean-Benoit Deslauriers is also a proponent […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Orderly conduct
It happens more than you’d like to admit—you’re trying to make a good impression when you’re handed the wine list and the anxiety begins. What do I order? How do I say it? Can I pick something without looking like a total idiot? Thankfully Heather Rankin, sommelier and co-owner of Obladee, A Wine Bar, is […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Five wines for $15 and under
You don’t have to sacrifice taste for price if you know where to look. Sommelier Erin Horton of Bishop’s Cellar pulls five affordable and tasty wines for every budget. The good news is cheaper wines usually mean easy drinking and no “pencil-shaving aromas.” The bad news is you have every excuse to double fist bottles […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Drink up the Fall Wine Festival
Winemakers Dinner and Auction Wine is at the heart of this event but a performance from Symphony Nova Scotia and a four-course meal are the added bonuses. A silent and live auction are also part of the fun, with proceeds supporting SNS. Thu Sep 24, Cunard Centre, 961 Marginal Road, $180 Port of Wines Festival […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Port of Wine Festival toasts two decades
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Port of Wines Festival, and they’re celebrating in style. “For the past 20 years we’ve focused on a single country,” says Tim Pellerin, the NSLC’s vice-president, marketing and merchandising, “where about 20 to 25 percent of wine was from the country of origin.” This year, the four […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Just try me: local wines to drink this fall
Domaine de Grand Pré, Haskap Sparking Wine $23.75 Haskap, a berry native to our province, gives this wine just a hint of body and sweetness. Made in the traditional Champagne method, this is a wine versatile enough to span whatever fall feast you have up your sleeve. “This wine is about as Nova Scotian as […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Bad Apple does good
Charity isn’t a new concept for Jeff Saunders and wife Kari Smith of Somerset’s Bad Apple Brewhouse. Last year, about 80 percent of the microbrewery’s proceeds went to the Halifax Nova Scotia Down Syndrome Society. In late December 2013, Saunders and Smith’s lives were deeply changed. Their six-month-old son was diagnosed with Mosaic Down syndrome, […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Wrought Iron men
The relationships you have with your college dormmates can go one of a few of ways—the classic (and often unintentional) post-grad fade-away, the hollow “we really should get together sometime,” or the unbreakable bond that only geography gets in the way of. For Queen’s alumni Angus Campbell, Josh Counsil and Doug Kehoe, it was the […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Craft club: a Q+A with the Craft Brewers Association
What is the role of the association in a nutshell? The association does two things: we try to promote Nova Scotia craft beer, build the industry and market, collaboratively. We also act as a unified voice for craft beer producers, both provincially and federally. When and why was the association established? There was a loose […]
