2 Weeks in Nova Scotia “Natural Beauty and Maritime Hospitality” SEPTEMBER 2017 My wife, Sue, and I have often traveled to Canada’s Maritime provinces and there has always been one constant: hospitality. Whether it’s in restaurants, hotels or on sidewalks, we’ve always found east coast folks among the friendliest on the planet. This latest trip was no exception. And,...
Perth, Ontario “Garlic Festival” I’ve been a long-time fan of garlic mainly because of its flavour, and its importance in countless recipes. It manages to enhance so many dishes! I’d always heard of its rumoured health benefits…not to mention its effectiveness in warding off vampires. Talking to some of the vendors at Perth, Ontario Garlic Festival taught me that garlic...
Dispatches from Oz “Three hidden food and wine treasures” Here I am “Down Under” in the beautiful country of Australia, my wife Sue’s homeland. Rather than visiting some of the well-known wine regions like the Barossa Valley, Coonawarra, Margaret River or Hunter Valley we decided to visit some lessor known regions where there are not only fine...
In Search of Nebbiolo “The Elusive Soul of a Grape” The Wine – The taste of a well-aged Barolo is hard to explain. These older wines display a floral (think roses) and fruity aroma which completely belies the taste that soon follows...rather than a nice juicy wine that you’d expect, you are smacked with bracing tannins and crisp acidity, under...
Quebec City ‘Alchemy on Two Ovens’ - August 2016 Quebec City is among my favourite places on earth. The old city with its stone walls encloses one of the best preserved grouping of buildings found anywhere…certainly the best preserved in North America. It’s not only the 3-400 year old architecture, it’s the restaurants, the St. Lawrence River, the café au...
Norfolk County ‘A Day in the Life’ - July 2016 Norfolk County is known as ‘Ontario’s Garden.’ Once famous for tobacco you will now find many varieties of crops including ginseng. I’ve spent many days in this garden and enjoyed its fruits and vegetables. On this occasion I decided to explore some of the ‘value added’ venues – places like...
Grenada The Spice Isle My wife Sue and I first visited Grenada in 2015 and I wrote about its bounty of spices and some of its local cuisine in a previous article. I knew very little about where and how the islands many spices (and other edibles) grew. So this time around I decided to do some exploring and go...
One Week in the Douro Valley My itinerary for a three week visit to Portugal began with a week at a 12th century monastery perched in the hills of the upper Douro Valley. My logic or theme for the three weeks was to start by developing an understanding of rural life, understand its rhythms, then approach the two urban centres of...
Journey To Quebec It was many years ago that I first heard the word ‘provenance’ applied to food. I was traveling in Australia and I came across an article in the Sydney Herald about the new movement in food – brought on by the consumer‘s desire to know where their food came from – concerned with traceability. Of course, the...
Exploring Muskoka by Chance "a good traveller has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving” Lao Tzu (570-490 BC) The old cliché that says life is a journey not a destination often rings true. And it certainly was just that on a recent trip up north. My wife and I were on our way to play golf at...
Traveling in the Low Country There’s something almost haunting about the marshes and forests of South Carolina. It’s a combination of the half rotten smells in many of the expansive swamps and the dramatic appearance of Spanish moss hanging from the magnificent live oaks. Much of it reminds me of the bayous of Louisiana near New Orleans. Throw in...
Carriacou – A Cooks Nirvana Carriacou is in the southern region of a chain of islands known as the ‘Grenadines’. It is part of a country comprised of a trio of islands, including Grenada, the largest, and Petite Martinique, the smallest. Together they are also known as the ‘Spice Islands’ because they have more spices per square mile than anywhere...
Iceland 2014 – The Year’s Best Meal Last July I finally made it to Iceland – a place I’d always wanted to visit. Unfortunately I could only stay for two days but fortunately I found a little restaurant in the heart of Reykjavik that served me an amazing meal… the best of 2014! Before arriving I knew a little...
10 Steps to Becoming a Locavore By Jennifer Maiser Jennifer Maiser is the editor of the Eat Local Challenge website, which is a place for authors nationwide to share their experiences with finding locally grown and locally produced food. Locavores are people who pay attention to where their food comes from and commit to eating local food as much as...
Prince Edward County Day Tripping in P.E.C. It is always interesting to watch an area slowly change over time. I’ve been visiting Prince Edward County for a number of years, primarily interested in its burgeoning wine scene, and have been amazed at not only the development there but also people’s fascination with the ‘County’. I say County with emphasis because...
Sooke Harbour Vancouver Island – A Foodies Mecca A second visit to restaurants can often be a ‘let down’…. especially when the first time was so extraordinary. So it was with a bit of trepidation that my wife Sue and I set off from Victoria to visit Sooke Harbour House. My fears were multiplied because for years I’d been telling...
YU Ranch YU Ranch 460 Plowmans Line, Tillsonburg, Ontario www.yuranch.com The Neophyte Farmers I received the email in mid-July: "Hey Bob, Cathy and I are trying to plan a short vacation in the coming weeks and would like to offer you the farm sitting chore…” Yikes! I had told Bryan Gilvesy that my wife Sue and I would love to...