Never forgotten
There is always a visionary who imagines the potential of a region and then—through force of personality— makes his dream a reality. In 1983 Ed Neuser decided to plant grapevines on his property in Prince Edward County. Today we mourn his passing, and extend sincere condolences to his life partner, Rita Kaimins. We should also […]
The 67-day itch
I confess to complete hypocrisy. I have always derided the Sunday Coronation Street afficionados, for whom the weekly fix of a slew of back-toback episodes is as addictive as their morning coffee. And now here I am, a wretched soul who marks down on his wall the number of days that will pass until Season […]
Don’t blame the wind
It’s not always easy to write a column. Sometimes there are many false starts, piles of notes and oodles of heated discussions before the show really “gets on the road.” This past weekend I spent 11 hours in the car with LOML while the Canadian portion of Frankenstorm began to blow and bluster. Every time […]
Two worlds
Until recently, New World wineries mainly endeavored to reproduce classic French wines. Identification by region—not grape variety—reflected an enduring mystique that has been hard to dispel. Copying the culture of an adjacent civilization is not a new phenomenon. The patrician class of Rome worked to produce wines in the Greek style, while demonstrating their erudition […]
Smoke and mirrors
I had a few minutes to kill last night. I poked my nose into a computer report on the labour situation in the National Hockey League. Remember? The hockey league that plays all of its games in North America, with the best players in the world? Yes, that’s the one. At any rate, I listened […]
The world’s greatest humourists
I have to hand it to them. Without a doubt, the world’s greatest humourists are teenaged children. Under the pressure of an exam, they sometimes manage to answer adroitly the very question they are asked, but—courtesy of the nuances of the English language — not the question the examiner had in mind. And sometimes, they […]
Kids these days
Teenagers, eh! Remember when you were a teenager? Did you just shudder? I remember. Like now, I knew it all when I was a teen. I put on a sweet face for my elders when advice was being dispensed—but, inside. Oh, the dialogue that was going on inside my head. Somewhere, on the timeline between […]
Yankees and Tigers 2012
The New York Yankees stormed into the 2012 playoffs this year, sporting the best record in the second half of the season. They knocked the cover off the ball, slamming more home runs than any other team in baseball. More than 50 per cent of their runs came as a result of round-trippers. Defence was […]
A grape resurrected
Although they form the most visible part of a vineyard, the canopy of grape leaves is often overlooked. But, without the carbohydrates formed through photosynthesis, the vine—and its grape clusters—would never grow. Canopy management is critical in a vineyard: the leaf-to-fruit ratio will determine whether the fruit reaches its maximum potential. Vineyard managers will also […]
Grannies with small suitcases
I was going to give it the benefit of the doubt. But I hear so many other people grumbling about it that I’m going to go public with my grumbles and bravely assume that my comments might resonate. So what am I talking about? The new Belleville Via station, that’s what. For any of us […]