Question: I have collected quite a few different sweet wines from Austria, Germany, France and the New World including Canadian Icewines. Find I am not using them with dessert as much as I expected to do. Any other ideas for me?

Answer: Yes when to drink sweet wines seems to be a growing issue for a lot of us – me included! I am trying them with varying success paired to a variety of main courses like pork, poultry or veal in cream. With the right sauce seafood particularly scallops and lobster can result in a good match. Spicy Asian and Indian dishes usually work brilliantly. Experiment. However what I am enjoying most is using my sweet wines more often as an aperitif. Riesling especially has underlining refreshing high acidity that makes for a lively delicious opening wine regardless of how sweet it is. I like a small pour of Sauternes or icewines on their own as an interesting “cocktail” to study at the beginning of a meal. Close friends of mine are using them mixed with either sparkling water or reasonably priced sparkling wine. Boy does that last combination ever improve the flavours of that cheaper sparkler! Please let us know what new ideas you discover.

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By Joseph Temple

A good weekday starts with a good breakfast, but a great Sunday starts with a great brunch!  These ideas will be a sure fire hit at your next mid-morning gathering.  Bon Appetit!

1. Blackberry Pancakes

2. Swiss Cheese Mushroom Panini

3. Honey Toasted Granola and Greek Yogurt

4. Poached Lobster & Eggs with Hollandaise

5. Scandinavian Sandwiches

6. Custard and Fruit Pastries

7. Veggie Frittata

8. Croissant Eggs Benedict Sandwich

9. Classic French Omelet

10. Simple Egg Breakfast & Cappuccino

11. Belgian Waffles

12. Crepes

13. Fried Eggs and Tomato on Toast

14. Toad in a Hole

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Question: My temperature controlled wine cellar in Scottsdale Arizona seems to do the job OK. But it seems almost too dry in there and I would like more moisture. Any tips?

Answer: Some systems have a “Demister” function and other humidifier options for maintaining a higher level of humidity (best between 55-70%) to help keep those corks from drying out. You probably don’t want the humidity any higher than that as this will encourage the growth of mold on the walls, bottles and labels. Check carefully for what you presently have or can easily add on. However, the simplest cheapest less accurate method is just to add a few larger surface open water containers on the floor to allow for evaporation. For a better cellar look you could get a fancy decorative fountain humidifier. Hope you find your “solution”.

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By Joseph Temple

Over the years, this blog has profiled several winemakers applying their craft in some of the most unfriendly weather conditions possible. Let’s face it—when we think of wine, most of us conjure up images of Bordeaux, Burgundy, or Napa Valley—not places like Quebec and Minnesota. At the same time, you can’t help but tip your hat to those vintners who are defiantly standing up to Mother Nature and successfully harvesting grapes in some of the chilliest areas of North America. It also makes you wonder how far (or how north) winemaking can go?

It turns out that Canadians and Americans aren’t the only ones pushing the envelope. Germans have been making wine on the island of Sylt for years while countries such as Denmark, Latvia, and Norway all have vineyards. But the award for the world’s most northerly vineyard goes to Finland; just north of the 61^st parallel is a place that makes a little under 2,000 pounds of Zilga grapes annually.

In the Gulf of Bothnia, on Olkiluoto Island is a vineyard in one of the most unlikely places you would expect to see viticulture: right next to a nuclear power plant. “Flanked by a dense forest, the deep green plants protrude into a clear blue sky,” writes one journalist. “There is a soft breeze. It could almost be France. But the vines are shadowed by two imposing concrete structures and several tall red cranes.” Of course, given the arctic-like conditions (temperatures can drop to -5.6 C during the winter), the vines on this quarter acre of land greatly benefit from their atomic neighbor. Because of the heat generated by Olkiluoto, the vineyard is warmed by the waste coolant water, which is non-radioactive and flows through a series of underground pipes.

With 150 vines first planted in 2001, the Zilga is a fast-maturing grape which comes from Latvia and is known to produce abundant harvests while being resistant to harsh winter weather. However, getting your hands on a bottle might be tough. “Of course we don’t sell it,” said one plant employee. “It’s for our staff parties.”

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Question: I like the IW&FS Vintage Chart and find it useful as an overall wine guide. Your thoughts?

Answer: As a long time past member of the IWFS Wines Committee I like your question! The Vintage Card was started by Andre Simon as a one sided guide to the Old World wine regions. Produced annually since then it has grown to include most of the world wine regions now in a laminated foldable 8 sided version. The original ratings of using a 7/7 for best vintages has been retained in spite of pressures over the years to move to a 100 point scale. Usually covers the vintages over the past 20 years with some older classic vintages also noted. The International Secretariat (sec@iwfs.org) gathers lots of useful background information each year from the wine regions and valuable input from appointed regional wine consultants to help the Wines Committee make their final decisions. It remains a highly respected unique valuable general guide to the overall quality level of vintages in so many wine regions. Glad you use it.

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