I have, what has been called, a keen interest in Ontario wine. Well, I think that is an understatement, but I’ll let it slide. I was contacted by the good folks at the Wine Country Ontario, and asked to profile and give away an experience to taste some great Ontario wines, and eat some great food. Well, their focus is on holiday gifts under $100, so that includes a lot more than just food and wine experiences. But really, can you see me at a spa?

I came up with this recipe while out at Vicki’s Veggies on Labour Day weekend for the annual Heirloom Hurrah. Every year on the last long weekend of the summer, people flock from all over Ontario to sample the goods at this annual tasting of the tomatoes. It started many years ago when Vicki realized that she had too many tomatoes left at the end of the season, so decided to invite people out to taste all of the great varieties that she grows.

My love for Stratford Ontario runs deep, and has a history dating back to my childhood. As long as I can remember I have been visiting this sleeping, yet full of life town, that is under two hours from Toronto, to see shows at the Stratford Festival and enjoy the food in this culinary destination located in the heart of some of the best farm land in the country. As an adult, my perspective on the town has skewed, but only slightly. Well, the town has grown and this leads me to my love for everything culinary and gives me more of a reason to make the trip out more than once or twice a year. My most popular post on my blog, by a long stretch, was my post on my very first visit to Savour Stratford, one of the best food festivals in Ontario. I also posted a series of photos from last years event as well, located here and here. 

One of my many friends from Stratford, Steve Stacey

One of the best things about Savour Stratford is the main tasting event that takes place on Sunday afternoon. A chance to taste the best of Perth County, prepared by the best chefs of that region. Producers and chefs team up, and present to the hungry crowd some great bite sized offerings, along with some great local wine and beer. I did my best to taste what I could, but sadly due to an unfortunate run in with a bottle of tequila the night before, I was unable to drink, or go near booze. This was a shame, because there really was some great stuff there to taste. Oh well, I guess you will have to join me next year, not for the tequila, but the Ontario VQA and craft beer offerings at the tasting. 

As I have mentioned before this is one of my favourite food events of the year, and below you can see why it is worth the price of admission. I present my second photo journal of my experience at Savour Stratford. In the final installment, I will show some of the faces of the tasting, the chefs and some people who were there to taste along with me. Cheers.