If you drink wine in the Yukon, certainly you have had a glass of Copper Moon wine. Maybe out of a glass bottle, but probably out of a box. I personally love that the Yukon wine drinking community has embraced alternative packaging and the pile of benefits that come with it, but there is more …
This is a wine trend that anyone could enthusiastically embrace – wine and chips! Planning a casual night of watching a show or reading by the fire welcomes a glass of wine and a little snack into the evening. But the snack suggestions with wine are often fussy and complicated. Hard-to-find ingredients and instructions that …
Picking up a new bottle of wine can be as difficult as cracking a secret code. What do all of these symbols and words mean? What mystical juice is hiding inside the bottle? At the end of the day, we just want it to be tasty – right? Let’s decode one of these mystery words: …
For some time, my editor has been urging me to explore the world of non-alcoholic wines and I have to admit that I put off his request, perhaps not being really sure how to approach the subject. Or perhaps it was just that, to me, as a wine drinker of 30-plus years, the whole concept …
I, and the fellow wine enthusiasts I know, seem to have wandered from country to country in the process of discovering wines. We have familiar territories and sometimes work up the courage to explore new lands. I grew up tasting French wines first and, later, Californian ones. In the 60s, when I was a child …
With the exception of New Years Eve, I think I drank two glasses of wine in January — not propitious behaviour for a wine writer. I even missed having something nice for my birthday, but I guess the flu followed by pneumonia is a decent excuse. I even managed to lose 10 pounds, which under …
Several weeks ago, the Rotary Club that I belong to held its 18th annual Fine Wine and Food Festival. We had a record turnout and everyone who attended seemed to have a lot of fun. I was working one of the tables, talking about the wines while I poured them. While there were some number …
Christmas and New Year’s are fast approaching us here in the Yukon, and this weekend reminded me what a beautiful and magical place we live in. If Whitehorse was not beautiful enough, I just came home from driving 500 km through low-angle sun and fresh fallen snow to Dawson City. The Klondike Institute of Art …
Several weeks ago, I mentioned OTBN, or “Open That Bottle Night”; on Saturday, Feb. 27, I had a small dinner at my cabin to celebrate it. Many of us have a special bottle that we have bought, or been given, and saved for a special occasion; so the intent of the evening was to gather …
Sometimes you set out to explore one thing, and end up discovering something completely different. Such was the case, recently, and I wanted to share what I found. I had been thinking that I have not devoted enough time to getting to know South American wines, and felt that an article on those might be …
Now that the Yukon snows have finally arrived and the all-too-brief weeks of skating the magically bare icy surface of my lake are done, I am looking forward to short, early twilights leading into our the long winter nights. For me this is the time of year to reconnect with friends, sit over long dinners …
Last week I was cornered by someone who asked what her options were for taking wine along on a paddling trip. For me, part of the experience of enjoying the outdoors is to end a day with friends by setting up camp with a great view, a good dinner and a glass or two of …
Drinking inexpensive wines does not have to mean you are missing interesting wine experiences. This was brought home to me this past Sunday evening, when I invited a friend from work, and her partner, to my cabin for a dinner of home-made pizza. My friend knew I wrote the wine articles for What’s Up Yukon, …
Holy cow, it has a cork!” These were the exact words I exclaimed to a friend when I went to open a bottle of Australian Yellow Tail Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve ($17.90) several weeks ago. If you’re a wine drinker, you’re probably familiar with Yellow Tail. It’s the most successful wine story of the last decade, …
The third Thursday of November, chalkboards across France announced, Le Beaujolais nouveau est arrivé! (literally, “The new Beaujolais has arrived!”). This annual event is the first opportunity for wine lovers to taste the first wines made from the 2011 vintage harvest, grapes picked just six to eight weeks earlier. I always look forward to this …
I was asked by some friends to participate in “An evening of Art, Wine and too much fun” presented by The Artist Relief Fund Society, and I was delighted to get involved. The Canvas Confidential event will be held on Saturday May 14 at the Old Fire Hall, and proceeds from the event will go …
Most Canadian wine drinkers are pretty familiar with California wines. Their Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays have been celebrated in such movies as Sideways and Bottleshock, and their top-of-the-line Cabernet Sauvignons, like the 2007 Screaming Eagle Cab, can command prices of $2,400-3,400 a bottle (US pricing)! A visit to the Yukon Liquor Corporation (YLC) will yield …
Several years ago, my then-editor at What’s Up Yukon asked me to do a walk-through tour of the Yukon Liquor Corp. (YLC) store in Whitehorse, and write a bit about it. At first, I thought it was a little obvious, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized many residents who pick …
One of the delights of wine is that there are always surprises to be found and bargains to be enjoyed, if you are open to trying new things or going off the beaten path. I thought I had a pretty good handle on the Yukon Liquor Corp selection until I went on my “money diet”, …
I’m not looking to expand my writing into the restaurant review arena, but I couldn’t help but relate an excellent dining experience I had last week. A couple of close friends invited me out to dinner last Thursday night, to celebrate both my birthday and the successful completion of an exam one of my friends …
I was reminded again recently of the role that sharing wine can have in igniting enthusiasm and making new friends. As I mentioned in my last column, I had been invited by the staff of the Yukon Arts Centre to help them offer up a wine tasting as part of the launch of their new …
It took until the middle of July, but it seems (I don’t want to jinx us) that summer has arrived in the Yukon! The past two weekends have actually been HOT, and I’ve been lucky enough to spend two Saturdays nights kayaking, swimming and sitting outside with friends, enjoying picnic dinners and treats off an …
In my last several articles, I have been reviewing a number of inexpensive, yet tasty Malbec and Malbec blend red wines from Argentina. The high altitudes, dry climates and pure waters of the Andes contribute to the growing of terrific grape stock, which makes a large contribution to the success of the Argentinian wine industry. …
As mentioned previously, I’ve been on a “money diet” these past months, but still want to be tasting interesting wines to go with meals I have with friends. Sometimes force of circumstance leads to happy discoveries. I wanted to share some new finds with you, in the hope that you will enjoy them as much …
It wasn’t until I moved to the Yukon six years ago that I heard the term “money diet”, but I immediately liked the concept. Sometimes we diet because our life circumstances require it in order to restore or maintain our health. Other times we do it just because we are feeling a little beyond what …
