LCBO Food & Drink Summer 2017

Tipple Time The Benjamin Bridge winery in Nova Scotia’s Gaspereau Valley has a growing region and season akin to Champagne, France. You can taste it in their stunning Brut Reserve. Walk the family-run orchards at The BX Press in Vernon, B.C., before tasting their incredible dry, off-dry, fruit-infused or barrel-aged ciders. Bar Raval , is like a Gaudi-inspired trip to Barcelona in Toronto’s Little Italy, where you stand shoulder-to-shoulder drinking sherry and eating Boquerones and likewise Pintxos. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more stunning setting than Mission Hill Family Estate in Kelowna, B.C., and their wines, especially the full- bodied reds that may be enjoyed during vineyard tours, are just as striking. For three weekends in January, Niagara celebrates extreme viticulture at the Niagara Icewine Festival , where you can elbow up to the twinkly ice bars while celebrating Canada’s liquid gold.

Clayoquot Wilderness Retreat, Tofino, B.C.

STAY A WHILE These deluxe digs will have you wrestling with the idea of cozying up with a glass of wine by the fireplace or enjoying the great outdoors. Thankfully, there are no wrong answers. Book a roomat any of the follow- ing and you can drink, dine and sleepwell while enjoying a sense of place: Inn at Bay Fortune , P.E.I. Fogo Island Inn , Nfld. Fairmont Pacific Rim , Van- couver. Four Seasons Resort Whistler , B.C. Shobac Cottages , Lunenburg, N.S. Kingsbrae Arms , St. Andrews-by-the- Sea, N.B. Arowhon Pines in Algon-

quin, Ont. 124 on Queen Hotel & Spa , Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Sooke Harbour House , Sooke, Vancouver Island, B.C. Wickaninnish Inn , Tofino, B.C. Pacific Sands Beach Resort , Tofino, B.C. Drake Devonshire , Prince Edward County, Ont. LeChâteauMontebello , Montebello, Que. Auberge Saint-Antoine , QuebecCity, Que. Post Hotel & Spa , Lake Louise, Alta. The Ritz-CarltonMontreal . Hotel LeSt-James , Montreal. ClayoquotWilderness Resort , Tofino, B.C. Four Seasons Toronto . Fairmont Chateau Laurier , Ottawa.

Researching our culinary roots while carrying the torch for a reimagined food heritage tied to indigenous ingredients, these restaurants have dug deep. Think caramelized whey, pine ash, spruce syrup, haskaps, seaweed, smokehouses, open hearths and open hearts. And definitely think about eating at any of these proudly Canadian spots: Canis, Boralia, Montgomery’s, Actinolite Restaurant, Loka (all in Toronto), Wolf in the Fog, (Tofino), Mallard Cottage, Raymonds (both in St. John’s). The new Canadian Classics

Bar Raval, Toronto

PHOTO COURTESY OF CLAYOQUOT WILDERNESS RESORT; BAR RAVAL BY KAYLA ROCCA

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