The Grape Nut

with Ben MacPhee-Sigurdson

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• B.C. wine rises from the ashes

  The past couple of weeks have been quite the roller coaster ride for British Columbia wineries. Of course, the wildfires in West Kelowna and surrounding areas have been at the forefront of residents' minds; with highways re-opened and most of the fires contained or extinguished, people are now returning to their homes and trying to get their lives in order.

  View Full Post 07/23/2009 1:16 PM 0

• Merl-Oh! Canada

  It's been a little quiet on the blog front for me as of late - having this second child around has made life somewhat chaotic.

  View Full Post 06/30/2009 4:05 PM 0

• Getting Fest-ive with wine

  

  First off, I picked up a bottle of the Cono Sur 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, which has been discontinued in Manitoba and is currently on sale for about $9. Very much worth it - in fact, I may pick up a few bottles and use it as the "house wine" for the time being...

  View Full Post 06/12/2009 2:43 PM 0

• Out with the old, in (and out) with the new

  Well, it's been a while since I last blogged... my absence is mainly due to the "in (and out) with the new" part of this blog's title — namely, the arrival of our son Owen one week ago. He (and Frances, our 2.5-year-old daughter) have been keeping my hands full, both literally and figuratively. But, of course, it's totally worth it. Moving right along...

  View Full Post 06/11/2009 3:22 PM 0

• Wine on Wheels

  Well, I guess I was "scooped" by Free Press columnist Gordon Sinclair Jr. on the Independent Specialty Wine Stores of Manitoba's fall wine event called Wine Stage Manitoba. As he mentioned in his column

  View Full Post 05/28/2009 2:50 PM 0

• Winnipeg Wine Festival wrap-up, etc.

  First of all, a quick note that Liquor Marts are open Saturday and Sunday (regular hours) but closed on Monday, most private wine stores will have regular weekend hours Saturday and Sunday and holiday hours on Monday, and beer vendors... well, who knows - they'll probably be open Monday, at least for holiday hours. After all, the next round of NHL playoffs start on Sunday...

  View Full Post 05/15/2009 10:40 AM 0

• Winnipeg Wine Fest, Day 3

  A favourite among Winnipeg Wine Festival attendees, the Wines From Spain: Grape Stomp was moved from the Delta Winnipeg's Blaze Bistro to one of the hotel's ballrooms to accommodate more people. As a result, it was a less sweaty, elbow-to-elbow affair than previous years. I liked the frenetic feel of the event in Blaze Bistro, but as a whole I think the larger room works better.

  View Full Post 05/7/2009 1:32 PM 0

• Winnipeg Wine Festival, Day 2

  Last night was the Hola Chile event, held at the Assiniboine Park Conservatory. And yes, as the name of the event suggests, it was all Chilean wines, music, culture and, ahem, a wee bit of food. More on that later.

  View Full Post 05/6/2009 2:18 PM 0

• Winnipeg Wine Festival, Day 1

  And so begins the week of madness that is the Winnipeg Wine Festival. Well, it's madness for me anyway - last year I managed to taste nearly 200 wines in a week. I'm actually hoping to come in a little lower this year - take it easy on my palate a bit - and just try to enjoy the events a bit rather than "power taste".

  View Full Post 05/5/2009 5:18 PM 0

• Palate push-ups?

  I suppose I should be doing palate exercises a-la Rocky in preparation for the Winnipeg Wine Festival. With ancillary events starting on Sunday and running through to next Saturday, I'll need all the stamina I can get. Maybe I should run a milk thistle IV drip...

  View Full Post 05/1/2009 4:09 PM 0

• Show me those ruby reds

  So the Winnipeg Wine Festival starts in just over a week, and I'm trying to plan my attack - I'm hoping to get to as many ancillary events as possible. Winnipeg Free Press coverage this year should be pretty cool - I'll be updating from every event with pictures and Twitter updates that should be streamed into a Cover it Live platform. If I find a real gem of a wine to try, I'll be able to let you know in real time. Heck, you'll probably be able to track me down at the ancillary events and the main tastings based on my updates.

  View Full Post 04/24/2009 1:33 PM 0

• What wine goes well a chocolate bunny?

  Hey, it's a long weekend! Wondering where and when you can buy wine this weekend? Here are some helpful hints:

  View Full Post 04/9/2009 1:34 PM 0

• The Grape Nut gets all Web 2.0

  Just a couple of quick hits before the weekend:

  View Full Post 04/3/2009 3:45 PM 0

• History, bottled

  I love hearing stories about older wines - tales of decades-old wine (or older) surviving signifant dark times in human history and other significant world events. There have been a few juicy tidbits surfacing as of late...

  View Full Post 03/20/2009 1:06 PM 0

• If there's Chardonnay in your neighbourhood...

  ...who you gonna call? DAN AYKROYD!

  View Full Post 03/19/2009 10:25 AM 0

• Stars and stripes, reds and whites

  OK, so this is the last chance for me to remind you that the California Wine Fair happens tomorrow night from 7:00 – 9:30 p.m. at the Delta Hotel (350 St. Mary Ave.).

  View Full Post 02/26/2009 12:12 PM 0

• Escaping the fires

  First off, a quick reminder that tickets to next Friday's California Wine Fair are on sale now at Manitoba's Liquor Marts or by calling the Red Cross at 982-7330.

  View Full Post 02/18/2009 2:21 PM 0

• Stimulate the economy ... drink wine

  OK, so maybe drinking wine won't kick-start the economy back into action, but that won't keep me from trying. Here are some sales, dinners, and other worthy events for your perusal.

  View Full Post 02/12/2009 3:58 PM 0

• Bargain bottles and judging judges

  I think for the time being I'll sidestep the increasingly heated debate in the Freep about the place of government (in our case, the government-run Manitoba Liquor Control Commission) in the sales of wine, beer and spirits, and just lob a couple of softballs out there for your consideration...

  View Full Post 01/28/2009 12:15 PM 0

• The $213 Chilean bubbly, etc.

  The typical holiday madness and a stomach flu have ravaged the household over the past week, leaving me in less-than-ideal shape for tasting much wine. Darn germy kids. Anyhow, here's a little something to swirl, sniff and swallow over the weekend...

  View Full Post 12/19/2008 3:52 PM 0