Winery: Fallsview Casino Resort
Celebrate the best of the Ontario wine industry in red carpet style. This black tie optional gala, known as the "Oscars" of the Ontario wine, is the not-to-be missed event of the wine and food enthusiast's calendar. After the Cuvee awards are announced, taste the winners and specially selected wines from fifty wineries while sampling the creations of Canada's leading chefs. Participating wineries and chefs will be updated at www.cuvee.ca.
Cost: $200.00 per person, includes Gala admission and En Route Passport
Tickets: www.cuvee.ca or 905-684-8688
www.cuvee.ca
Winery: Hillebrand Estates Winery
Celebrate the "Oscar's" of the Ontario wine industry with Cuvee en Route. Tour and taste along the wine route when the wineries roll out their special tasting flights embodying the best of the best of Ontario wines, chosen by the winemakers. On Saturday and Sunday, Cuvee en Route guests have the exclusive opportunity to shop for highly prized Cuvee award winning wines direct from the wineries.
At Hillebrand Winery we are offering a Vertical of Trius Red from the 2005, 2006 and 2007 vintages.
Cuvee en Route Tickets are $30.00 per person, or included with purchase of Cuvee Weekend ticket.
Tickets can be purchased at the Hillebrand Winery Retail Boutique.
For information call 1-800-582-8412 ext. 2.
www.hillebrand.com
The Ontario Wine Society Presents. . .
Toronto Chapter
Annual Dinner at The 5th Elementt Tuesday, March 24, 2009
The Venue - The 5th Elementt:
5th Elementt is a
single level restaurant and lounge specializing in fusion food with
special emphasis on Italian and Indian food. It has won the VQA Award
of Excellence in 2006, 2007 & 2008.
The Winery – Huff Estates:
Huff Estates’ goal
is to produce wines that capture the essence of the soils and
mesoclimates of this unique region of Ontario, Canada – Prince Edward
County.
Other Wine Tasting & Related Events In The Works
Wine Fair April 13, 2009
Effect of Different Oaks - Lailey May 12, 2009
Bus Trip: Niagara-on-the-Lake June 13/14 2009
Wine and Jazz Matching - Campbell House June 23, 2009
Bin End Dinner at Woodbine Racetrack August 26, 2009
NIAGARA FALLS–Wine can't melt snow, but it sure can warm your heart.
With more than 80 wineries in the peninsula, Niagara is an oenophile's playground. If you had the constitution – and a designated driver – you could easily spend two weeks working your way from tasting to tasting, sipping, sampling and savoring.
Given that most of us just don't have the fortitude for a fortnight of frolicking, we have to choose our moments.
And the moment is now.
Winterglow, a Niagara-on-the-Lake celebration designed to light the darkest days of the year with entertainment, music, food and wine is about to begin its most delectable phase – Winterlicious.
From Feb. 26 through March 2, frugal gourmands will be treated to star performances by chefs at many of the area's best restaurants, such as the Grill at the Epicurean, the Hillebrand Winery Restaurant, LIV at White Oaks, the Riverbend Inn, and more. Lunch can be had for $20 to $25 and dinner for $30 to $35.
Slow-season deals at hotels and restaurants may not be anything new, but these are bargain basement prices at top-flight Niagara restaurants. It's enough to take your mind right off your stock portfolio.
Passionate about wine? Book your trip to Niagara for Cuvée, the wine lover's Oscar weekend. Running from Feb. 27 to March 1, Cuvée begins with an over-the-top, black tie Awards Gala celebrating the finest area wines and winemakers at the Fallsview Casino in Niagara Falls.
On both Feb. 28 and March 1, the celebrations will continue along Niagara's famous wine trail as enthusiasts enjoy Cuvée en Route, a sipping, sampling, savoring and shopping opportunity at many of the area's most renowned wineries. Tickets for the Cuvée weekend are $200 and include all events.
If a glass of wine can blunt your winter blahs, just imagine what the addition of a bit of chocolate could do. Visit the 20 wineries in Niagara-on-the-Lake any time in February and experience special chocolate and wine pairings – the ultimate indulgence. A passport good for three weekends is $34.50 and is available by phone at 905-468-1950 or go to www.wineriesofniagaraonthelake.com.
There's more to Niagara than wine, of course, so you might want to visit White Meadow Farms near Vineland. The sap is beginning to run and, beginning Feb. 21 the maple sugar bush will be in full swing every weekend until March 29. A great opportunity for the kids to blow off some steam on a bright wintry weekend, a visit to the sugar bush starts with a hay ride, includes a chance to try tapping a tree, a self-guided tour with period-costumed hosts to provide explanations, demonstrations and an introduction to maple taffy pulling.
Be sure to arrive early enough for a pancake breakfast served with maple baked beans, maple muffins and tarts, maple cream cheese, maple apple crisp, maple cheese cake and more.
In case you're thinking that winter in Niagara offers nothing other than fine wine and great food, think again. Winter is perhaps the most spectacular time of year to ride the Niagara Skywheel, a four-season Ferris wheel in the heart of the Clifton Hill tourist area of Niagara Falls.
With the trees bare, the view of the Falls from the Skywheel is unobstructed and mind-bendingly powerful. Beautiful at any time of year, the Falls are most dramatic when surrounded by bushes, rocks and railings coated in icy crystals.
Liz Fleming is a St. Catharines-based freelance writer.
