Apple Cider is not Champagne. Fact.

Tys is exhausted from all
the pre-Christmas
festivities... 

Well, with only two sleeps until Christmas, (I think) I am officially done all my shopping. Just this morning. But at least it's done now. Tomorrow can just be a relaxing day, maybe with a sleep in. 

This week we did some holiday baking (or rather, Shane did), and we had The Puddys over for a pre-Christmas visit. It was a fun evening, although I don't think the next morning was as fun for anyone... Oops. 

Looking very dapper in
Shane's bowtie

December 22, 2016

It's going to be a short review this week, and you'll see why in a moment. This week we tried Domaine de Vaugondy's Brut Vouvray. On popping the top, Shane immediately said "dry apple cider". 

It had a lovely golden colour in the glass, not unlike a cider (are you sensing a trend?)... It had great sharp bubbles. The first couple sips were very dry, but it did seem to lighten up a bit. In the first few sips we both got heavy apple flavours, the yellow apples. We got notes of "cider". And made a point to re-check the label to ensure it wasn't a cider... In a good way, I mean, we enjoy cider, but not when it's supposed to be sparkling wine... 

All in all, it was good, but it tasted like cider. The end. Short review as it was very one dimensional. Apples. Apples and undertones of apples... 

~S

• Brand: Domaine de Vaugondy
• Type of Grape: Chenin Blanc
• Sweetness: 12g/L
• Price: $17.95
• Tasting Notes: Nice bubbly, but very apple forward, not much in the way of other flavours. Would be nice with fruit salad or brunch.

Let the festivities begin!

What a festive week is has been. We started off by getting the kids for a few hours and cutting down our Christmas tree and decorating it; obviously while enjoying some eggnog. My folks came over, and seemed to enjoy the festive spirit. 

The before and after of our lil' tree

Sunday Shane and I went to Merrickville for our 6th Annual Christmas Shopping Extravaganza (self titled). Six years. Wow. That was a great day, and certainly kicked off the Christmas shopping. Well worth the drive in the blizzard.  It was nice to finally feel like we'd taken a chunk out of the shopping, and it relieved the pressure a bit. Don't get me wrong, I still have a lot to do, but at least I got started... 

The rest of the week was low key, but nice. The weather has been cold though, which is less nice. I love winter, but -25C is a little much. We can have a nice winter around -10C if you ask me. Tyson has been enjoying the snuggles by the fire though, so that's an upside of cold weather. 

December 15, 2016

This week we went for a fancy-looking bottle. Not quite sure how I'm going to get the "label" into my book but I'll figure something out... 

So this was Segura Viudas's Brut Reserva Heredad Cava. The bottle was super fancy with a metal emblem and base stuck on it. We have had a bottle of Segura before. That one certainly didn't feel this fancy, but was very tasty. Also note-worthy, the Segura Viudas brand falls under the giant umbrella of the Freixenet S.A. brand, of which we've had many many types (here, here, and -unfortunately- here)

Shane didn't get much on popping the top. In the glass, I thought it smelled of something very distinct and familiar, but I couldn't identify what it was. Shane couldn't either. So we were at a loss. Now, something to keep in mind, is this bottle was super cold. It had been in the freezer chilling, but also our living room was cold, so it didn't really get a chance to warm up after opening. 

It had a nice mouth feel, lots of sharp, crisp bubbles. It was okay overall, predictable, but boring. It was wine-y, with hints of white grape (which I think is different than winey...). We do have a special review this week from Tyson, who was enjoying licking it off our fingers. He seemed to think it had hints of salted, cured meats, but we think maybe that was because we had just eaten a prosciutto platter... but who knows... 

Near the end I thought it had a bit of a liquory after taste, but Shane wrote down liquorice... not sure if that's because he tasted liquorice, or if it's just what he thought I said... 

So I guess no, we wouldn't get this again. It wasn't worth the extra money for the fancy bottle. If you want this brand, try their regular brut cava.

~S

• Brand: Segura Viudas
• Type of Grape: Not mentioned
• Sweetness: 8g/L
• Price: $29.95
• Tasting Notes:  Mild flavoured bubbly, winey and grapey. Would go nicely with food with mild flavours so it isn't overtaken, like a fruit tray. 

You Won't Believe Me

(Edit: Would you believe me if I said that I actually did start this post last Friday? No, I wouldn't either, but it's true...) 

I can't believe we're done the second Champagne Thursday of December. I also can't believe that there are only 3 more Champagne Thursdays in 2016. Time flies, eh? 

Last weekend we had a lovely baby shower for Baby Ozzy. Afterwards I got to snuggle with him for almost 2 hours, pure delight. Although, all the baby bouncing did remind me how out of shape my legs are... gotta get on that before I go skiing... yikes!

I've just realized how close Christmas is... Should start shopping soon...

December 8, 2016


This week Shane went rogue and went to the LCBO without me! I'm pretty sure he chose this bottle based on the colour alone. It was a beautiful dark rosé. Juvé y Camps' Pinot Noir Cava. It had a super loud pop, but not much scent off the top. 

In the glass, I got a strong, tart cranberry scent right away. I thought it was dry at first, but it seemed to mellow out after a few sips. Shane said that the first thing he thought of after swallowing it was "Baby Duck", in that he found it sweet, but not in a bad way that you'd maybe think with the baby duck comment (Baby Duck has 51g/L of sugar, compared to the low teens we try to stick to)... 

After a glass, it seemed to open up a bit more, and gave way to some raspberry scents along with the cranberries. It had the essence of a sweeter wine, while still being quite dry (if that makes sense?). I did notice a bit of a boozy or liquory aftertaste, but nothing too offensive. 

It had a really nice mouth feel, with lots of sharp bubbles. And, like I said before, has a beautiful colour. Overall, yes, we liked it, and wouldn't hesitate to get it again. 

Til next time (aka tomorrow, hopefully), 
~S

• Brand: Juvé y Camps
• Type of Grape: Pinot Noir
• Sweetness: 12g/L
• Price: $21.95
• Tasting Notes: CRANBERRIES with a touch of raspberries. Would pair nicely with a baked brie in puff pastry. 

Playing Catchup

 So a bit of catch up: 2 weekends ago, mom and I had a Christmas dinner to go to in Peterborough. It was nice to see a bunch of our motorcycling lady friends and reconnect and listen to their stories about where they'd ridden to this summer. There are some incredible ladies, my mom included, riding all across Canada and the USA.

Last weekend we took a couple days off and enjoyed the American Thanksgiving/Football Day. We also got all our Christmas decorations out, and made the eggnog to have with the Grey Cup game (not that we watched it, but that's beside the point...). So I think we are about ready to go. We've watched a couple Christmas movies, and will be putting up our tree next weekend with the kids. Now we just have to get our list-making and Christmas shopping on... That's the hard part...


We also had the absolute pleasure of meeting little baby Ozzy. He's just a delight. Going to be so much fun watching him grow.

Anyways, since we have a couple bottles to review, let's get to it.





November 24, 2016

This week we celebrated earlier in the day, as we were having a few beers while watching football and we wanted to be able to give a honest and accurate review. We got Wolfberger's Crémant d'Alsace Brut.

On popping the top, there wasn't much in the way of scents coming off the bottle. In the glass I thought it had a bit of white peach and a dry nose, but Shane said he didn't. The first couple sips I got a dry apple cider, or maybe an under-ripe pineapple. Shane said that it wasn't unlike any other sparkling, and that it tasted and smelled familiar (which makes sense if it is similar to many others). But he liked that about it, it felt like home.

Using the most technical of technical terms, I thought it was a bit Winey. It had a creamy mouth-feel, which is common for a crémant, although it did have some sharper bubbles. It started to lead into some tart crab apples by the end. Shane said he liked it, he said it was nice and dry. I thought it seemed to get sweeter with each sip, but overall it was a nice, simple, dry bubbly.

Shane would get this one again.

December 1, 2016

This time we tried Fantinel's One and Only Single Vineyard Brut Prosecco. We didn't get much aromas on popping the top (but it certainly had a, perhaps overly, dramatic popping). In the glass, it had a yeasty, bready scent. It was ridiculously pale in colour in the glass, almost colourless, but not quite. It had a tart first sip, but that may have been because we just enjoyed a glass of a dry cider (which may have also been why we tasted a bit of apples off the top).

I thought it had a slightly bitter aftertaste. Shane found it had a bit of a boozy taste, with not much going on. I still tasted some apples even into the next couple glasses.

It was the least favourite thing we drank that night (did you know you can get apple pie in a can?? That's right, this is the new Thornbury's Spiced Apple Cider, yum.)

That's all for this round. Sorry about the delay!

~S

November 24, 2016

• Brand: Wolfberger
• Type of Grape: Not sure
• Sweetness: 5g/L
• Price: $18.95
• Tasting Notes: Nice, simple bubbly, white peach and under-ripe pineapple flavours. Would pair well with a chicken cacciatore over pasta.

December 1, 2016

• Brand: Fantinel
• Type of Grape: Glera
• Sweetness: 6g/L
• Price: $18.95
• Tasting Notes: Mediocre bubbly, boozy taste with not much going on. Slight apple flavours, bready scents. Would go well with a fish dish with a creamy sauce.