Lammie Loves Fizz

A forever learner of wine and lover of food. Follow me on Instagram or Twitter @lammieloves covering drinks with a side of food. Got food and wine/spirits news, events, and recommendations to share? Let me know what's happening at [email protected]. If I like it, I'll write about it!

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The only recent rosé pic I could find when I saw that it was rosé day: the Jolie-Pitt & Perrin Miraval rosé (but soon to be the Jolie, Pitt & Perrin rosé). Loving the bottle shape. The last few weeks I've opened up what feels like thousands of rosé bottles - just a little sun and warmth and everyone's like, gimme a light pale pink wine!!!

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Exploring new sparkling wine trends yesterday at Decanter's Great Sparkling Exploration masterclass with new world bubbly a definite stand out among the Prosecco, Cava and Champagne. I especially enjoyed the Tasmanian sparkling. And cool climate Canada got a feature thanks to Nova Scotia's distinctive and delicious Benjamin Bridge Non Vintage which is a blend of multiple vintages going back all the way to 2002, their inaugural vintage! For the non Canadians, Nova Scotia is a province located in the Eastern side of Canada.

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Happy wine wednesday, winelover! Dry January is over for many (I personally never start the year dry AND I avoid the gym 😬) and with Canada celebrating it's 150th birthday, this month I'll feature some Ontario wines I've brought back to Vancouver because our country makes some pretty awesome wines and we should give them lots of love! It's pretty difficult to find Canadian wines made outside of the province you live in but the Vancouver International Wine Fest country theme is Canada this year so definitely get a ticket if you want a little taste of Canadian wines from west to east - it's happening in a few weeks' time. Let's hope one day Canadians can find Canadian wines from all regions easily across Canada. Oh and today it's exactly 150 days from 150 years!!!!!!! And that was a lot of canadianess in one post. #sorrynotsorry #gocanadago #canada150

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Enjoyed at Maenam alongside their Dine Out Vancouver Festival menu: an Italian white blend from Donnafugata that transported me to summer! Very fresh and crisp with flavours of apple 🍎 and stonefruit 🍑.

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Christmas Tasting Journal: 2015 Pétale de Rose

I am so thankful for another Christmas spent with loved ones with good food and cheer. This year for Christmas, I picked a dry rosé as one of my wines for turkey dinner. Crisp and refreshing while heftier than a white it's a great middle ground between red and white, especially when there's so many different accompaniments on the table (and in a multicultural city like Vancouver where I’m based, a Christmas dinner can easily mean roasted turkey served alongside a sushi platter, korean fried chicken, and a plate of samosas!) For me, a dry rosé is a nice compromise to please both mum who finds red wine too bitter and dad who likes the rich full bodied reds.

This year, I opened the 2015 Château La Tour de l'Evêque Pétale de Rose from Provence, southern France, an organic wine which was a beautiful very pale pink, made from a blend of Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Rolle, Ugni Blanc, Sémillon, and Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s floral, a touch savoury and herbal, with aromas of red fruit and buttery notes having undergone malolactic fermentation. On the palate, it’s rich and creamy and goes down very smooth. Very enjoyable on its own but also enjoyed this with turkey!

Until the next post, merry merry Christmas to you!

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Visited the family owned and operated Speri winery in Valpolicella, Italy and bringing this beauty back to Vancouver with me! Their single vineyard Amarone della Valpolicella is made only from grapes grown in their Sant'Urbano vineyard and only made when they deem the grapes are of good enough quality to make this style of wine (their grapes are air dried four months before it is made into wine). 2012 is considered a very good year but they did not make Amarone in 2014 as it was quite a wet growing season with a lot of rain (another winery I visited said they were all put to the test! that year). Speri make a small range of wines with all the grapes coming from their own estate, which is around 60 hectares in total. #traveltuesday #winewednesday (at San Pietro in Cariano)

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Tasting Journal: 2012 Catena Alta Historic Rows Malbec

Sounds kinda wild but this delicious wine had me thinking of dim sum outings. If you're like me and like to specify having the deep earthy pu'erh/bo lei tea with dim sum (if you don't you'll likely be served jasmine tea), you'll be pleasantly amused like I was at the 2012 Catena Alta Historic Rows Malbec, a fabulously layered wine, deep purple in colour, that kept coming back to me with flavours of pu'erh, alongside ripe black fruit, liquorice, spice and leather. I definitely would love to try pairing this next time with dim sum. It’s a splurge wine at around C$50 so take time to savour this - for me, it was a perfect soothing drink on a rainy fall day.

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Coz it's Champagne Day.

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Black Hills Winemaker’s Dinner at Zest

Hello there! I’ve been a bit behind on blogging the past few weeks having been busy travelling and studying for the WSET qualification for the wine and spirits trade, but with Thanksgiving coming up, I wanted to blog about a winery in British Columbia, Canada, Black Hills Estate Winery, that is making some fabulous wines and highlighting two wines in particular to consider for Thanksgiving, whether to serve to your guests, or to bring as a gift for your Thanksgiving host. I’ve enjoyed the Syrah from Black Hills for a few years now and recently had an amazing dinner at Zest that coincided with the release of Black Hills’ premium wine, the 2014 Nota Bene, which is a Bordeaux style red blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. My favourites from the wines poured that night that I found really great to drink now are the 2014 Syrah and the 2015 Viognier. The Nota Bene is an excellent wine, but I felt it would benefit immensely from more time in the bottle for the patient ones willing to put it away for several years.

Personally, I’m super interested in how wines pair with Asian food. In comparison to Europe, there historically isn’t a wine culture or wine and food pairing tradition in Asia and so it’s always fascinating to see how Asian flavours can pair with wine and see what works and what doesn’t. 

Out of the wines poured that evening, the best pairing to me was the Viognier with the appetizers of fresh Kusshi oysters, BC spot prawn yuzu ceviche, and Madai nigiri sushi. The citrus mignonette with the delicate flavours of the oysters, the creaminess from the ceviche, and the rich slices of fish went so amazingly well with the creamy, fuller bodied Viognier, the flavours from the wine and food enhancing each other. 

Following the reception where several glasses of Viognier were happily drank by moi, everyone sat down for the first course, which featured a selection of small bites, paired with the 2015 Alibi, a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. The light citrus flavours paired well with the seafood starters, which included local heirloom tomato and BC Dungeness crab, BC honeydew with Hokkaido scallop, Atlantic lobster with tosazu jelly, house smoked bonito carpaccio, and BC geoduck with Okanagan nectarine.

For the much anticipated 2014 Note Bene, thinly sliced duck breast was served. The 2014 Syrah was also poured for this course.

For the dessert, the 2015 Alias, a white blend, was served alongside a very light and fluffy Okanagan peach tiramisu with a one bite yatsuhashi (like a fancy mochi!) which I secretly wished was many more bites because it was super tasty. This white wine was a blend of Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer.

All in all, the Black Hills winemaker’s dinner was a fabulous event and I can’t wait to go back to Zest for more Japanese cuisine. Not only was dinner delicious and the wines enjoyable, we also were able to have Graham Pierce, the winemaker at Black Hills, at the dinner where he was able to talk about each wine that was served. 

Below: Snap of the portfolio of wines from Black Hills taken while I was at Marquis Cellars in downtown Vancouver picking up a few bottles of the latest Nota Bene. 

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Ice Cream Scrolls at On Yogurt

If you’re looking for ice cream that’s unique and tasty, I recommend heading to downtown Vancouver for a visit to On Yogurt which specializes in Thai-style ice fried ice cream made with yogurt as well as milk/cream. I’ve been here a few times and love the creaminess of the ice cream and of course how pretty it looks rolled up as scrolls. While they have some mainstay flavours, they also have limited time ones - you can check out their website to see what flavours they are offering!

Below: Ube (a feature flavour in the summer):

Below: Matcha ice fried rolls on a waffle and earl grey ice fried rolls with grass jelly topping, which both were very flavourful. I especially enjoyed the earl grey as the tea flavour really came through.

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e.b.o Restaurant Introduces New Tasting Menu

At a recent media dinner, e.b.o. restaurant and their Executive Chef Keith Pears showcased their new tasting menu, which will change monthly, to introduce dishes beyond those found on the regular menu. Over the course of the evening, I tried seven different dishes, each paired with a wine from their wine list. Be sure to check out e.b.o. restaurant in Burnaby as you will be in for a treat! Enjoy the photos of the tasting experience below. P.s. they also have an amazingly fun and delicious sundae surprise for dessert on their regular menu which I highly recommend.

Beef carpaccio with triple crunch mustard, horseradish aioli, house pickles, reggiano crackers, paired with Quails Gate rosé from B.C., Canada.

Heirloom tomato salad with compressed Okanagan peach, stracciatella, serrano ham, and almond praline, paired with Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand.

Local salmon with bacon and manchego gnocchi, pine nuts, Ikura, and hollandaise sauce, paired with Inniskillin Pinot Grigio from B.C., Canada.

Albacore tuna with watermelon, avocado, ponzu and cilantro, paired with Jackson-Triggs Reserve, Sauvignon Blanc from B.C., Canada.

Moroccan spiced lamb chop with tabbouleh salad, smoked yogurt, and picked mustard seed, paired with a red wine - McLarens on The Lake Shiraz from Australia.

A little palate cleanser - e.b.o. restaurant’s signature champagne freezies. An adult friendly freezie ;)

Chicken duo topped with shaved truffle, chanterelle mushrooms, carrot puree and crispy chicken skin. Hard to imagine what could top lamb (my favourite red meat) but at this dinner, I really enjoyed this. It was amazing how moist and tender the chicken was and rich in flavour. This was paired with a lighter red wine, Quails Gate Pinot Noir from B.C., Canada.

The night ended with a light summery dessert of peach millefeuille served with popcorn ice cream. The popcorn ice cream went really well with the Warres Warrior Port from Portugal.

Last but not least, if you’re planning on coming in for a meal, I hope you try their sundae surprise dessert because it is truly a delight to watch and eat! It’s substantial so prepare to share!

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Tmix Tea & Dessert Bar launches home made gourmet ice cream

While stopping at Tmix Tea and Dessert Bar to media judge their ice cream sundae for the Sundae Challenge run by food blogger Vancouver Foodster, I was also able to sample their home made small batch ice cream, just launched last week. A few notes on what I sampled is detailed below - I highly recommend stopping in for ice cream. 

Top left to right: Peanut butter brownie fudge (very nutty!), double chocolate almond (very rich with dark chocolate and could have this with a nice glass of red!), matcha (wouldn’t mind a stronger matcha flavour).

Middle left to right: pineapple coconut (refreshing pineapple flavour), hazelnut chocolate milk (like rocky road ice cream without the marshmallows), cookies and cream (homemade cookie - imagine an Oreo and a brownie coming together), and salted caramel. 

Bottom left to right: mango (made with Mexican mango and love the bits of mango in it!), white chocolate lavender (strong lavender flavours with the white chocolate adding creaminess), and frozen creme brulee banana (lovely banana flavours and not too sweet - my most favourite out of the ones I tried).

I had visited before when they were using ice cream from outside for their desserts and their decision to make their own ice cream in-house is definitely an excellent one. I was in for a nice surprise as the ice cream was full of flavour, creamy, and made with high quality ingredients, such as fresh fruit, bc eggs and cream, and home made cookies and cake. 

They also serve a variety of home made desserts, such as macarons, bubble waffle, and shaved ice, as well as drinks, including bubble tea. 

I tried the tofu drink with fresh mango and grass jelly. 

The limited time offer red velvet ice cream wrapped in bubble waffle was entered into the sundae challenge. 

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Tasting Journal: 2013 Foxtrot Vineyard Pinot Noir from Foxtrot Vineyards. Happy wine wednesday with this lovely lovely lovely 2013 Foxtrot Vineyard Pinot Noir! I had the 2012 previously and personally prefer the 2013 in comparison. I can taste lively red fruit, very smooth, with layers of flavour lingering in the mouth afterwards. Also don't miss their Chardonnay - it's beautiful. I tried their latest vintage and it was crisp and refreshing, citrus and mineral notes, with just the slightest hint of oak in it to round it off. Defintely one of my favourite wineries in the Okanagan.

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Liquid nitrogen ice cream is getting lots of love lately in Vancouver. You'll hear the flavours available at Joey! I sampled the espresso flavour and it was delicious. #weallscreamforicecream (at JOEY Burrard)

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French-style Breakfast Delivery Cycles into Town

There’s something so luxurious about waking up only to settle back in bed to snooze, knowing there’s nothing on the agenda to rush to. I look forward to those days whenever I get a chance. But at some point sleeping in, I start to feel... hungry. Hungry and wishing someone could bring me my breakfast rather than the hassle of having to get properly dressed for a breakfast and coffee run. 

When I first heard about The Cycling Croissant, which focuses on French-style breakfast - think fresh pastries and viennoiseries - delivered to your door, I thought, what a great idea for Vancouver! Day-old pastries just don’t quite taste the same but if you want it fresh, you have to purposely go out and get it yourself the day of. The Cycling Croissant allows you to order a selection of pastries and viennoiseries online and it’ll be delivered to you by bike (order before 5pm for next day delivery). The Cycling Croissant delivered a box of their pastries for me to sample and I tried the croissant, pain au chocolat, almond croissant, raisin danish, and mini palmiers. I particularly loved the almond croissant which was generously coated with almonds and had a rich creamy filling, as well as the mini palmiers which were buttery and flaky.

If you’re interested in trying out The Cycling Croissant’s breakfast delivery service, check out their current selection and delivery area on their website. They work with a local French baker to provide the goodies which are baked fresh the morning of your delivery. The Cycling Croissant also does custom corporate orders, delivering breakfast and morning beverages for your meeting or event, with no area restriction. Follow them online on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for updates as they will soon be expanding their offerings to include lunch and afternoon treats.

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Preview of House Special Specials+Spirits Tasting Menu

House Special is a new restaurant located in Yaletown serving Vietnamese food with a modern playful twist! They will be launching a limited time four course tasting menu the July 22nd weekend where each Vietnamese dish will be paired with a specially crafted cocktail. Enjoy a few photos below of the recent media preview and head to House Special to try more of their tasty dishes!

Apocalypse Now New York Sour with rye, citrus, ginger syrup, and pinot noir in beautiful sunset shades. A nice stiff drink. I like my drinks strong so this was excellent!

Seared cobia fish with boudin noir stuffed squid. Fish was done perfect!

"Hoi An Fruit Stand", a cocktail with watermelon, gin, ginger syrup and Berliner weisse. Refreshing even though I’m not too big a fan of these lighter beers.

Chicken fried buttermilk quail with siracha geelee and jalapeño buttermilk biscuits paired with "Hoi An Fruit Stand". Prepare to do some finger lickin’ after diving in to this!

Beef carpaccio with Vietnamese herb puree. 

The tasting menu ended with a light tart Soursop sorbet to cleanse the palate. 

For more details on their limited time menu, check out their website and social media links at http://housespecial.ca/. 

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Satisfy Sushi Cravings at Temaki

Although a bit further away from where I live, I do love making the trip over to Temaki in Kitsilano for Japanese food. They have a wide range of Japanese dishes, although I tend to go for the super fresh sashimi, cooked fish, and sushi. I often take out of town visitors here as it has a nice atmosphere, comfortable seating, and is not too noisy so we can hear ourselves talk! Below are some of the dishes I’ve had in the past: