Sunday morning was filled up by registration; and visiting old friends Some producers were that I wanted to see would only arrive on Monday, so one of my highlights was re-acquainting myself with Fabiana Brooks, now export director for a brand new winery in Uruguay, Narbona. Taste all 6 wines that they produce and while
read more...Another quiet day (the calm before the storm) as we visted Château Guiraud in the wonderful town of Sauternes. Even though these visits were organized by our Bordeaux negociant, most wineries are empty of key personnel due to the upcoming Vinexpo. So again our vist to Guiraud was a general guided tour of vineyards, cellars
read more...Our Saint Emilion day started off by picking up our car at the Gare St. Jean station in downtown Bordeaux, a nice VW Polo, perfect for two. Ivan was the navigator, I the driver. But I can tell you I was forewarned not to act Italian in my driving technique as France has really hit
read more...After an easy night flight from Toronto, we arrived in Paris where we took our connection to Bordeaux. Charles de Gaulle airport is so congested and busy that it took us over one hour just to drop off our bags. Weather in Paris was extremely muggy, so bottles of water became a survival necessity at
read more...Hi everyone. As you can guess this is my bi-annual ( every two years) trip to Bordeaux what many wine aficionados call “the greatest show on earth”. I have yet to arrive in France so there is not much to mention except that I am waiting here at Pearson’s airport for my flight to be
read more...Hi all, As previously promised here is my “compte rendu” of the incredible Global Chefs Challenge that occurred on Friday, May 04, 2012. I have already chatted about how the Challenge occurred in my last blog. This time I would like to offer you the dishes that each finalist prepared for the judges. As the
read more...Hi everyone, Friday was an actual very busy day full of scheduled educational and informative events, but I was soley concentrated on a very specific one: The Global Chefs Challenge. Crowning the Top Chef in the World came down to 7 final contestants which I mentioned in yesterday’s blog. I arrived at the Challenge quite
read more...Good day everyone. Thursday had been my slowest day yet. As previously mentioned, I was able to sleep in, so by 9 am, I went down for breaksat and then off to write my Wednesday blog. By the time I had finished it was time to grab a cab for the Convention Centre for lunch
read more...Good morning everyone, As Thursday events are about to start, Wednesday was very much a repeat of Tuesday. Participating chefs were involved in 3 categories. Todays”R” teams which included strong teams from Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong were prepping seafood (halibut) while the “D” teams were involved in the Gourmet Challenge and Categories A, B,and
read more...Hi everyone, Tuesday has been a long day. But exciting! Getting up at 5 am to relate about the previous day events can be hard on the system but let me tell you, very worthwhile. By 7:oo am I was ready for another sauna experience and like the day before, a westerner in a Korean sauna
read more...Well today started my official involvement with WACS Congress. So to get in the right frame of mind, I went to the renowed Spa annexed to my hotel. At 6:30 am it was already quite busy with buisness men and seniors washing, bathing and steaming themselves. I went from a warm bath to a hot bath
read more...As I mentioned yesterday, Sunday was a day of repose with nothing to do but relax. I am hoping I am not confusing you all with my time and dates as Daejeon is 15 hours ahead from Edmonton. My day of real work starts Monday as I will need to prep myself so as to
read more...Hi everyone, As previously mentioned I have been invited by WACS as a key note speaker to their bi-annual Congress. So here I am. My very first day and first time in Korea. Arrived late Saturday night after 13 hours of flight and layover time (Edmonton-Vancouver-Seoul) and with a 15 hour time difference. The trip with Air
read more...As Vines’ principal sommelier I have been invited by the prestigious World Association of Chef Societies to their Bi-Annual Congress, which will be held in Daejeon, South Korea from May 01-May 06, 2012. My main role at the conference will be assisting the young chefs’ delegates as well as seasoned chefs to further comprehend the
read more...In celebration of The Bard’s upcoming birthday I felt moved to share a few random thoughts on the wonderful world of whisky in this fair city in the year 2012. The first thing that needs to be shared is the choice of whiskies at this time in Edmonton and Alberta is outstanding compared with any
read more...Much like the ancient astrolabe steered mariners and explorers through uncharted waters, so the palate of Simon Waghorn guides the winemaking at Marlborough’s Astrolabe Winery. We had the distinct pleasure of joining Simon, his wife Jane Forrest, and his general manager Jason Yank, in the cosy confines of their loungeroom for a personal journey through
read more...Our second day in Central Otago, or “Central” in the local vernacular, proved to be just as rewarding as Day One!! On the recommendation of Matt and Andrew from Akarua, we made our way over to Wooing Tree Winery, just on the northern edge of the town of Cromwell. Sandy Anderson led us through a
read more...After enjoying the fruits of the north end of the south island, we struck out for the two-day (we are taking it leisurely, after all) drive down to Central Otago, the hottest new wine area in New Zealand. Our first stop was at Northburn Station, a newer property just north of Cromwell. At their cellar
read more...After our great wine experiences in Blenheim, we thought we’d relax a bit with some beach time in Nelson. However, the gale-force winds made any outdoor activities somewhat less than appealing. So, we just had to substitute cellar doors for surf and sand. On Kevin Judd’s suggestion, we made our way to Neudorf in the
read more...Marlborough This New Zealand wine adventure has been very interesting and great fun but when we hit Blenheim, a pleasant little city in the heart of the Marlborough, the largest and most acclaimed wine region in the country, it got even better. We arrived mid-afternoon and since we had received directions to get to Kevin
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