Vancouver Food And Wine

Friday, October 7, 2011

Champagne Bars In Paris - Top Picks On Black Book Magazine by Paige Donner

By Paige Donner

[Originally published on Black Book Magazine]

See the full gallery on Posterous

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Posted via email from Local Food And Wine

A Parisian Night of Cheese

By Paige Donner

[All photos by Paige Donner c. 2011]

Parisians are known to do things their own particular way. And when it comes to presenting their cheeses, they make no exception. An art exhibit that opened on October 6th at LaMilkFactory in Paris’s boho chic 11th arrondissement is none other than a full art exhibit presenting imaginative ways to serve cheeses.

A staple of any French meal, cheese, does, of course, enjoy full status as a “course” all to itself in the lineup of a meal. At Design Sur Un Plateau, Curator Cecile Cau, originator of the blog So Food So Good, and her co-hort, food design book author Stephane Bureaux, teamed up to imagine, envision and then carry out a food art design exhibit of “cheese platters” amongst a collaboration of 6 separate designers, all well-known in the field of gastronomy and/or design.

Design_sur_un_plateau_stephane_bureaux_photo_by_paige_donner

Stephane Bureaux, Food Art Design Author And Cheese Platter Designer

Design_sur_un_plateau_germain_bourre_photo_by_paige_donner

Germain Bourre, Consultant to Veuve Clicquot And Cheese Platter Designer

Even if cheese platters aren’t your notion of haute gastronomique design art, I recommend going and checking out Design Sur Un Plateau, showing at Milk Factory (www.lamilkfactory.com) through January 14th, if for no other reason than the showroom is across the street from Paris’s best stocked Argentinian wine bar El Galpon (Trapiche, Schroeder; Malbecs, Torrentes…) and just next door to Paris’s well-loved Argentinian restaurant Unico, where meat-lovers can get a great steak at a really good price. In fact, the whole neighborhood is full of terrific little restaurants and is known to the locals as a “coin de gastronomie” where you can find authentically good meals at prices affordable to us working stiffs.

5, rue Paul Bert, Paris 75011

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Sunday, October 2, 2011

Natalie MacLean's Unquenchable!

From The Nat Decants Newsletter:

I'm so excited about the amazing cross-country tour Random House/Doubleday has planned for the launch of my second bookUnquenchable!

There are events planned across the country ... all of them include wine tasting and some amusing stories from the book: Vancouver, Okanagan, Whistler, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, Niagara, Ottawa, Montreal, Halifax, St. John's

Tickets went on sale yesterday and are going very quickly. I hope you'll join me at one of these events ... there are others planned across the country as well.

Unquenchable has now been #1 wine book on Amazon for three weeks thanks to your pre-orders.

Today's wine picks feature terrific pinot noir and riesling for turkey dinner, as well as a wide selection of buttery-great chardonnays and one of the funniest wine labels I've seen that's also a tasty red wine.

To help you get ready for Thanksgiving next weekend, I've also posted my top five tips on choosing gobbling good wines!
Natalie

Posted via email from Vancouver Food And Wine

FreeTheWine.ca

This was posted on BC Wineries.net

Hi BC Wineries friends,
...you may have seen on Twitter that Okanagan-Coquihalla MP Dan Albas (@danalbas) is introducing a Private Members Bill next week to amend the Importation of Intoxicating Liquors Act. The IILA is the 1928 post-prohibition federal law that prevents wineries from shipping directly to their customers in other provinces (see Mark Hicken's websiteswww.winelaw.ca and www.freethewine.ca for more detailed info). In fact, it could be introduced as early as Monday.

Throughout the bid process for the North American Wine Bloggers Conference (June 7-9, 2013 in Penticton, save the dates!) Dan and I had several conversations about the IILA and I know he's been in touch with a number of organizations, including the BC Wine Institute and the Alliance of Canadian Wine Consumers.

Public support will be needed in order to change this legislation, and Dan has asked me to spearhead a social media blitz (this shouldn't surprise anyone, should it??).

On Twitter, please follow Dan @danalbas and myself @allisonmmarkin, and tag your tweets #freemygrapes for info and to join the conversation. There will be a Facebook presence up shortly as well.

I'll be providing an update on WBC 2013 at the next Eat.Drink.Tweet. event, and hopefully there will be some good news to report on the ILLA front.

Cheers,

Allison [Markin]
------------

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Posted via email from Okanagan Food And Wine

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Bordeaux - Left Bank, Right Bank

By Paige Donner

For most of us wine lovers, the word Bordeaux evokes Mecca-like dreams and memories of some of the world's best and most prestigious wines.

For the Bordelais, there is a pronounced distinction between "Left Bank" and "Right Bank," each with their own Bordeaux sub-cultures and each laying claim to world-renowned chateaux. The Left Bank and its famous Medoc region boasts Mouton Rothschild, Margaux and Pichon Comtesse Lalande, while the Right Bank with its idyllic St. Emilion and Pomerol lays claim toPetrus and Cheval Blanc.

As a Californian, I thoroughly understand this West Coast/ East Coast kind of cultural divide. Californians and New Yorkers rarely have much in common except that they both, technically, belong to the United States. But rather than try to explain what the difference between Left Bank and Right Bank Bordeaux is, I captured these two back-to-back events in photos.

Left Bank (Medoc and Haut Medoc) has the Marathon du Medoc; Right Bank (St. Emilion, Pomerol, Fronsac) has the Jurade Celebrations.

Well, have a look for yourself... ♥Chérie Du Vin

Click Here For Slideshow

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Friday, September 23, 2011

"Wine from Here" Movie Premiere

"Wine from Here" Movie Premiere

& After-Party at BUZZ Wine Beer Shop

Tomorrow | Thursday Sep 22 | 7pm

The San Francisco Premiere of "Wine From Here: Natural Wine in California" last month

drew critical acclaim from wine experts, such as author and wine journalist Jamie Goode:

"Wine From Here" is a really enjoyable film, beautifully shot.. delivers a really engaging story of the winemakers,

merchants and journalists who are hooked by the pursuit of authenticity in wine..

"Wine From Here" is the first film to explore it in depth.

View Trailer

The film "Wine From Here" is now making its LA premiere Tomorrow, on Thursday!

This will be quite the night. Here is the planning:

* 7 pm: screening @ Downtown Independent Theater | 251 S Main Street

* 8 pm: Q&A with lead director * 9 pm: after-party @ BUZZ Wine Beer Shop | 460 S Spring St.

.. a recently-opened natural wine bar, just 2 blocks away!

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Posted via email from Local Food And Wine

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Fête de la Gastronomie

WFoForeword FROM THE MINISTER

The Fête de la Gastronomie is a festival that is not to be missed, and it will be taking place on the first day of autumn [Sept 23rd]. It will also have its own theme, uniting all the different events and initiatives taking place throughout the country. This year we have chosen Our Earth, because it generously allows us to work it, harvest its fruits, and use them for our food. Because man and earth are inseparable. More INFO

Foreword from the Minister Everywhere you look there is something to do with gastronomy: in the media, in the increasingly imaginative dishes available in our restaurants…as though the whole idea were something new, whereas in fact it is no more than a tradition in a constant state of renewal, very much alive, and one that makes the most of our country's dynamism, the foods we produce, and what we do with them.

A tradition, moreover, that is so much a part of our daily lives that until now it has not occurred to us to celebrate it.

The Fête de la Gastronomie, then, is first and foremost an event that celebrates generosity and conviviality. A time for people to get together, for French chefs and French citizens to go out into the street, with their dishes and saucepans, their produce and menus, or just with their knives and forks!...

This is your festival, and it is up to you to decide what you want it to be!

Gourmet restaurant, brasserie, bistrot, picnic, sandwich or aperitif with nibbles…gastronomy is free, imaginative and generous! On September 23rd next, let's show that the heart of every French citizen still beats in time to the rhythm of good food!
You're sure to develop a taste for it!

Frédéric LefebvreSecretary of State at the French Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Industry, with responsibility for Trade, Small and Medium Enterprises, Services, Tourism, the Professions and Consumption

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Saturday, August 13, 2011

Gérard Bertrand Annual Jazz Fest Weekend, Sud de France

All photos by Paige Donner c. 2011.

The Gérard Bertrand annual Jazz Fest took place August 4th – 8th this summer at Château l’Hospitalet in Narbonne. These photos are taken at Château l’Hospitalet just outside Narbonne.

To read more about Gérard Bertrand wines, his annual summer Jazz Fest and his L’Art de Vivre Les Vins Du Sud, click on Gerard-Bertrand.com.

Watch the Local Food And Wine TV interview of Gérard Bertrand at his Cigalus Estate HERE.