Gourmet Food and Wine Expo 2009

I didn't end up taking very many pictures at the Gourmet Food and Wine Expo; my hands were too full with wine glass and notebook as I sampled (it turns out) 28 wines from Canada, Austria, France, Spain and the U.S. Oddly, I never made it to the Portuguese wine section, despite the fact that Portugal is the focus country this year and the heartfelt strains of a live fadista could be heard all evening through the roar of the crowd.

The image above shows Splendido's food offerings: deadly-looking chocolate bites that were going for a $1 ticket each (the system is something like the CNE: once inside the show, you purchase blocks of 20 tickets for $20 and use them for food and drink tastings, mostly in the 2-to-4 ticket range. Some food vendors are selling food for cash, in the $5 range for something like a sausage on a bun.)

I concentrated on cheeses, and had some really nice ones – although at $2 for a modest piece, I didn't feel they were a particular bargain. I enjoyed Le Cendrillon, a soft cheese from St-Raymond-de-Portneuf, Quebec that's coated with dark vegetable ash. I also had La Sauvagine, a very grainy, salty soft washed-rind cheese that I like so much that I went out and bought some for myself yesterday at Nancy's Cheese (260 Dupont near Spadina). Among other yummy Quebec cheeses were 1608 from the Charlevoix region, a yielding raw cow cheese, and Le Ciel de Charlevoix, a crumbly semisoft blue-veined cheese with pleasantly powdery pockets in the overall texture. These are generally available at A Taste of Quebec in the Distillery District.

However, the #GFWE – as it's being referred to on Twitter – is much more a wine than food event. It's worth noting that the wines on offer don't tend to be intimidatingly expensive bottles. A large proportion are available in the general section of the LCBO in the $15 neighbourhood. There are also enough craft brewers present that it could make a great outing for a beer aficionado, and there are also a few whiskey offerings, along with some of the types of premixed brand-name liquor drinks that I learned to avoid some years ago for the sake of my constitution. I recognize that many people love them – they're just not my cup of flavoured vodka.

I concentrated mainly on white wines, I'm not sure why; possibly because late in life I seem to be entering into a love affair with Riesling, a grape I never had much interest in before. In honour of sommeliers John Szabo and Zoltan Szabo, I made sure to try some Austrian Grüner Veltliners, a white wine grape they often mention as underknown and underappreciated. I also enjoyed some wines from Alsace, the French province on the border of Gremany known for its greenish wines in distinctive tall thin bottles. But without any false nationalism I have to say I found the most exciting and enjoyable wines in the Ontario section. Of my 28 tastes, here are my favourites for the night, in the order of tasting (as I've pointed out before, I'm no qualified wine judge; I'm just describing how things tasted to me):

1. I started the night off well with a little true French champagne: Nicolas Feuillatte Brut, available to the general public through Lifford Wine Agency for $49.85 a bottle. It had a sweet subtle scent and a lovely festive taste, with medium-sized, gingerale-type bubbles, and it automatically put me in a good mood.
2. Of the Austrian wines, I liked the Schloss Gobelsburg Grüner Veltliner Steinsetz 2007, a pale yellow wine with a soft slightly musky scent. Its taste was complex and minerally, apple-dry, melony and extremely pleasant. It can be found at Vintages if you persevere, for $24, which seems reasonable to me. Apparently it could age two or three years.
3. From Alsace, my favourite was the Léon Beyer Pinot Blanc 2008, a pale, slightly viscous wine with a gentle minerally green scent. Its taste was complicated, with subtle peach and maybe even pomegranate flavours. I'm told it's available at Vintages for $16.15, which I conside to be a very good deal.
4. Then we got into home turf with Angels's Gate Süssreserve Riesling VQA 2008 from the Beamsville Bench, and all the rest of my picks are Ontario wines. Apparently the "Süssreserve" name means that the wine has unfermented juice added to the bottle before it is aged. In this case, the process creates a pale, pale liquid with a gently aromatic green apple scent and a charming, surprisingly deep peach taste. It's available on the LCBO general list for $14.15, and I think that counts as a bargain. (Aha! I see upon checking that Rod Phillips agrees with me; in his guide to best buys at the LCBO he says it's recommended with spicy food.)
5. My only red wine pick (because I tried so few) was the Peninsula Ridge Beal Vineyards Cabernet Franc VQA 2004. It's brownish purple-red with a raspberry-green pepper smell. The taste reminded me of gingerbread or plum pudding: something dark, spicy and fruity. It's available at the winery for $15.95. I couldn't find out whether the LCBO carries it.
6. Next I tried another delightful sparkling wine, the newly released Grange of Prince Edward Brut VQA from Prince Edward County, available through the winery for $29.95 (they'll deliver six bottles or more; a couple of friends could club together and invest). It's the palest of peach colours, and its scent is of beautiful spring and summer flowers. The taste is pineapple, cherry and raspberry: such happy flavours!
7. My last glass was poured by sommelier Mark Moffatt of Dines 'n' Vines and Chez Victor at the Hotel Le Germain. It was a lovely end to the evening: the Hidden Bench Riesling VQA 2008, available for $24 through the vineyard. It's a bright, pale yellow with a scent of peaches and pears. (I think my faculties were getting blunted by this time, as other people can smell everything from beeswax to pink grapefruit in this wine.) It had a lipsmacking nectarlike taste of peaches and sweet pears (or honey and yellow grapefruit, say the experts!)

The Gourmet Food and Wine Expo continues at the Metro Convention Centre, south building, until 6 p.m. tomorrow (Sunday, November 22). Admission is $15, which includes a tasting glass, and you could have a pretty good time with just one block of $20 tickets. You need to be 19 to go in. I'm hoping I can get back to check out those Portuguese wines and a few more from Ontario. If you go, tell me about them!