LCBO Food & Drink Holiday 2017

GIFTING  MAKE IT CLEAR

BOTTLES TO GIVE

RIEDEL VINUM EXTREME ICEWINE

CHAMPAGNE FLUTE Charming as the broad, shallow Champagne coupe undoubtedly was, it had a fatal flaw: bubbly lost its fizz far too fast. A tall, slender flute keeps the sparkle much longer and offers the pleasing sight of a fine trail of bub- bles purling up to the surface. It also concentrates aromas more effectively, so your wine can better express itself. Save your coupes for cocktails.

THE WORKHORSE So you don’t have room for 100 different glasses—you just want something that works with almost any kind of wine—white, red and rosé. The Riedel Overture Magnum is the answer. It’s versatile, durable, beautiful, can go in the dishwasher and doesn’t cost the earth—an excellent gift for someone em­ barking on the journey into wine appreciation. (set of 2, $29.99 yongestreetwinery.com)

Twenty years ago, George Riedel worked with Karl Kaiser and Donald Ziraldo of Inniskillin to create a glass uniquely designed for icewine. “The question was what aspect of the wine did we want to bring forward,” says Riedel. “Definitely not the sweetness, but the minerality in a Niagara icewine that offsets it.” Mission accomplished. (set of 2, $75, cocktailemporium.ca)

PERRIER-JOUËT GRAND BRUT CHAMPAGNE LCBO 155341, $70.95

(Camille Champagne flute, crateandbarrel.com, $16.95)

Always reliable, the famous bubbly from this venerable Champagne house is a creamy, middle- weight beauty with lemon, pear, brioche and hazelnut notes that linger into a memorable finish.

INNISKILLIN VIDAL ICEWINE VINTAGES ESSENTIALS 388306, 375 mL, $49.95 A classic Ontario icewine full of Vidal’s lush, con- centrated fruitfulness, laced with an unexpected hint of ginger biscuit. Serve it instead of des- sert or pair it with a coarse pâté de campagne.

There was once a trend in a few Toronto restaurants to serve their wines—even expensive ones— in crude, thick little tumblers. It was supposed to be cute but it diminished the wines no end. Half the enjoyment we derive from a wine has to do with its aromas and a decent-sized, tulip-shaped wine glass is designed to gather and concentrate them, provided you don’t pour too generously.     That said, many of the specialist wine glasses that have evolved over the centuries still have their fans and admirers—the sherry copita, for example, or the Riesling roemer. Glasses for white wine tend to be smaller than those for red to minimize the amount of oxidation and preserve the wine’s fresh fruity nuances. white wines

MÉNAGE À TROIS GOLD CHARDONNAY LCBO 485417, $17.95 Here’s a wine with an over- the-top bouquet to show off your new wine glasses! Rich, full-bodied with lush tropical fruit, pineapple, apricot jam and a whack of oaky vanilla.

208  FOOD & DRI NK HOLIDAY 2017