LCBO Food & Drink Autumn 2017

NOB L E P R I NC E O F WA L E S HOT E L , 8 8 8 • 6 6 9 • 5 5 6 6 , V I N TAG E - HOT E L S . COM Adam Rap sey

dam Rapsey, executive sous-chef of the Prince of Wales hotel, graduated from Niagara College 16 years ago. “It was an exciting time down here,” he remembers, “with wine-country cuisine just taking off and the Food Network making chefs into stars. I wanted to work in the hotel world with people who wanted a career, not just a job.” His first position was at the Pillar and Post, another property with the Vintage Hotels group; he joined the Prince of Wales in 2011.     Noble restaurant (formerly Escabèche) is the jewel in the crown but the kitchen also meets all the hotel’s needs from breakfast to weddings and its famous afternoon tea. Staff meals take place in a staff lounge with numbers nudging 150 in the height of the season, though these days, the restaurant is busy year-round. Back home in St. Catharines, meanwhile, Rapsey is teaching his two daughters to cook healthy, homemade food. “One of them is six, the other is almost two,” he explains. “So we’re really just beginning.” A

PAIR IT WITH

Modern luxury combined with classical elegance—at Noble, customers dine in style.

Château des Charmes Sauvignon Blanc VQA LCBO 391300, $14.95

Adam Rapsey mentioned a Niagara Cabernet- Merlot blend as one possibility for this dish; his other recommendation was Château des Charmes Sauvignon Blanc. A white wine with beef? Really? It works. Unoaked, crisp and fresh, the Sauvignon Blanc is marvellously refreshing on the palate, with an acidity and notes of citrus and pineapple that match perfectly with the oven-dried tomatoes in the dish. And the wine has a herbal, fennelly note on the finish that holds hands with the rosemary in the most friendly manner. All in all, a surprisingly successful and delicious pairing.

“A working meal should be easy to whip up, but you’re cooking for your colleagues, so there’s a certain amount of pride involved!”

PORTRAIT BY MAREK SZKUDLAREK

92  FOOD & DRI NK AUTUMN 2017