stockpot continued from page 57 n The Test Kitchen Restaurant and Bar “pop-up” dining series presents Chad Taylor’s All American Tailgate, 6:30 p.m., November 3, $30, $50 with wine pairings; Colin Pedersen, A German “Fest,” November 5, 6:30 p.m., $40, $60 with wine/cocktail pairings. These are so much fun! Details at testkitchenyyc.ca and @TestKitchenYYC. Reservations and details at info@testkitchenyyc.ca, seating is limited.
wine and beer wanderings n Tastings at J. Webb Wine Merchant: November 5, Italian Food & Italian Grapes; November 13, Rhone Renaissance; November 20, Booty-licious Italian Wines; November 27, Scotch Tasting 201; December 4, Rediscover Beaujolais. Visit jwebb.net for details or call 403-2539463 to purchase tickets. n At Co-op Wines Spirits Beer: November 22, Gnarly Dudes – Old and Ancient Vines; November 1, Napa vs Wash-
ington Cabernet; November 7/21 Sniff, Sip ‘n’ Swirl; November 8/29/December 11, Get to Know Rum; November 6/21, Wine, War and History; December 6/13, Holiday Wines – Ports; December 6, Wine and Cheese, Classic Pairings; December 3, Wine Down Wednesdays, Value Wines under $20; November 8, Brunch Pairings with Mighty Skillet; November 7/28, Wine and Pizza. Visit coopwinespiritsbeer.com/ events for details.
Shiraz, 2012, a unique take on amarone – dried grapes with concentrated flavour of cherries, dark plums and dark chocolate with a velvety finish. Alfredo Second Pass Shiraz, 2012, crafted like an Italian ripasso and racked onto its lees after fermentation, featuring flavours of raspberry, blueberry, earthy tones and plush tannins. Find these flavoursome wines at Co-op Wine Spirits Beer, Crowfoot Liquor, Cook Fine Wine, Willow Park and Highlander.
n Craft Beer is the new wine! 17th Ave. Liquor Boutique is a premier place to shop for a variety of fresh craft beer on tap at a unique growler fill station bar, which is sure to please craft beer enthusiasts. This new liquor store offers an interactive tasting experience of fine wines, spirits and 12 excellent craft beers on tap. For the holidays, take a refillable growler of craft beer to the dinner table to share with your friends and family. Follow @craftbeer2go.
n Here’s a very Canadian cocktail from Luksusowa, a potato-based Polish vodka. You and your guests will love it: muddle a bunch of orange peel – just the orange part – in the bottom of a cocktail shaker, add ice, 2 oz. Luksusowa and 1/2 t. maple syrup, or more if you like your drinks a little sweeter. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a twist of orange zest. Find it at Co-op Wines Spirits Beer and Willow Park Liquor Store.
n Bring your own Big Rock Barn Burner to the holiday parties – a limited edition that includes beloved Big Rock Trad and Scottish Style Heavy Ale plus two new ones: Thresher Wheat Lager, a fusion of sweet caramel, toasty malt, bready flavours and a slight hop bite; Steel Cut Oatmeal Raisin Stout with roasted malt flavour, notes of chocolate, raisin and dark fruit. Big Rock also offers a Brewmaster’s Limited Edition RadTrad featuring two new brews born from Traditional Ale: The Cascadian, with a mild malt, caramel and citrus hop flavour, and The Anarchist, with mild malt, caramel and earthy hop flavour.
n ATCO Blue Flame Kitchen: Lunch ‘n’ Learn, 12 noon-1 p.m., $20; Mains and Grains, November 6/7; Holiday Collection, November 13/14; Baking with Whole Grains, November 20; Cooking for Company, November 27; Holiday Brunch, December 4/5; Holiday Hors d’oeuvres, December 11/12; Christmas Alternatives, December 18/19; Hands-On, $70; Mains and Grains, November 8; Christmas Baking & Bread, November 22; Cooking for Company, November 29; Holiday Hors d’oeuvres, December 13; Chef’s Table, $95; Charlie Trotter, November 8; Wild Game, November 15; Asian Fusion, December 6. atcoblueflamekitchen.com
n Chinook Arch Meadery, Alberta’s first honey winery, offers free mead tastings and meadery tours – contact info@chinookhoney. com to book. Sample award-winning Bochet, Cherry Mi Amor, King Arthur’s Dry or Fire ‘N’ Spice, to name a few. Located 20 min. south of Calgary, just west of Okotoks on Hwy. 7 and 16 St. W. chinookarchmead.com.
n At Salsita Mexican Food Market: Three-course Mexican cooking classes, November and December, making tamales, empanadas, paella, tres-leches, Mexican flan, plus vegetarian and gluten-free options available in the classes. Visit salsita.ca for all the spicy information.
n Scottish brewer, Innis & Gunn, has crafted a limited-edition gift pack with delish beers, including a Rum Finish rich with fruit and spicy notes, Bourbon Stout, a red stout matured in bourbon-infused oak – mmmm, good – Toasted Oak IPA with a hint of vanilla sweetness from the oak. And, re-released, Innis & Gunn Scotch Whisky Porter. Find it all at your fave beer outlet.
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n At SAIT’s Downtown Culinary Campus: Rush Hour every Tuesday after work, $40; Pasta, November 6, $90; Sushi, November 7, $90; Chocolate, November 8, $120; Gluten-Free Sweet, November 8, $110; Baking Cakes, November 22, $120; Sauces, November 12, $90; Gluten-Free Savory, November 14, $110; Date Night, November 14, $75; Artisan Bread, November 15/29, $120; Intro to Cooking, November 15/22, $400; Christmas Cookie Exchange, December 6/13, $100. Visit culinarycampus.ca for all the details.
n Phasion Estates Winery,Okanagan Falls, took the judges’ selection award for the best bordeaux blend in the 2014 Alberta Beverage Awards. This competition highlights the best wines, beers and spirits in the Alberta market. Phasion Estates launched in June 2013 and has had good success with its 2012 Très Chic chardonnay, the award-winning 2011 Haute Couture merlot/cabernet sauvignon blend and the 2012 Glitterati, a merlot, malbec and cabernet franc blend. Find at Co-op Wine Spirits Beer, Willow Park Wine & Spirits, Sobey’s Spirits & Wine, Zyn, CSN liquor store and Royal Liquor Merchants.
n 5 Vines offers custom events for friends and colleagues, corporate team building with a wine or beer tasting, and custom gift baskets. Growler Happy Hours every Wednesday, Tasting Tuesdays feature wines, beers or spirits and Sunterra foods, a free informal tasting so you can try something new and maybe find a new fave! Visit 5vines.com for details.
1613 9th Street SW (juSt off 17th Avenue)
cooking classes
n Nugan Estate, a top Australian wine exporter, makes two bold takes on two Italian wine methods. Alfredo Dried Grape
CITY PALATE.ca NOVEMBER DECEMBER 2014
n Deliciousness @ The Compleat Cook Kitchen: Roasting, Braising & Frying, My Indian Kitchen – Seafood, Naaco Street Cultura, Date Night – Tapas, A Greek Festival, Quick Easy Italian, An Appetizer Menu, Knife Skills, Middle Eastern Express. Bring your appetite! compleatcook.ca or call 403-253-4831. n The Light Cellar Superfood & Superherb Teaching Kitchen classes include: Fermentation, Elixirs, Bone Broths, Raw Chocolate, Men’s Health, Blood Sugar, Hormone Balance, Dehydrating, Medicinal Mushrooms, Raw Desserts and more. To register online and visit: thelightcellar.ca, 6326 Bowness Road NW. n Poppy Innovations classes for 2015: Parent-Child Culinary Program, $210, Tuesdays from January 20 to February 24, April 14 to May 19, September 15 to October 20, Thursdays October 29 - December 3. In this six-week course, parents and children work
together to prepare delicious food to enjoy together in the class while learning about healthy food choices and nutrition. Suitable for children 9 and above. Register with Sharon McCormick at hello@poppyinnovations.ca or call 403-919-0176. South Health Campus, Wellness Kitchen, 4448 Front St. SE.
general stirrings n The 2nd Annual Vancouver Aquarium Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown takes place on November 19 at the Hyatt Regency. Our 13 Ocean Wise chefs create their chowders to vie for the title of 2014 Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown Champ. Guests get to try all of these chowders and vote for a people’s choice. A panel of judges decide who takes top honours. It’s tasty and fun, get tickets at vanaqua.org/chowdown n Don’t miss Willow Park Wines & Spirits’ 21st Charity Wine Auction, Arabian Nights, in support of the Vintage Fund, raising money for local charities, November 8, 7 p.m. And auction week events: November 5, Whisky in the Warehouse; November 6, Beer Bash; November 7, California Dreamin’. Details at willowparkwines.com n SAIT has named its 2014 Distinguished and Outstanding Young Alumni, celebrating achievement and accomplishments. On the food side of outstanding there’s chef and co-owner of Rouge and Bistro Rouge, Paul Rogalski, who graduated from the professional cooking program in 1986 and has nourished a reputation for excellence for nearly 30 years. The young foodie graduate is Rosalyn Ediger, chef de cuisine, Four Seasons Hotel, Beijing. She graduated from the professional cooking program in 2005. Ediger was recently featured on a popular Chinese documentary-style cooking show. Good stuff! n Delicious quickbreads from the Calgary Co-op bakeries for your holiday entertaining or for when things are getting a little crazy and you need a nosh of comfort food with your afternoon tea. And they freeze beautifully too. Flavours include Meyer Lemon, Chocolate Zucchini, Banana, Chocolate Chip, Raisin Walnut Spice and Whole Grain Probiotic. Pick some up today, put them in the freezer, and you’re ready for anything the holidays toss your way! n Cococo launches a new chocolate bar in November – the Oregano Fusion. The new dark chocolate version of Rosemary Fusion, with earthy oregano and sage flavours, is sprinkled with habanero sea salt and pairs deliciously with charcuterie meats, bold cheeses and nuts. Available at all 12 Calgary locations. Cococo Chocolatiers won six awards at the 2014 Canadian installment of the International Chocolate Awards. Good show! n In addition to regular hours, Thursdays from November 27 to December 18 enjoy evening shopping at Chinook Honey Company until 8 pm. Great Christmas gift ideas, see what the bees are doing and sample honey and mead. Located 20 minutes south of Calgary, just west of Okotoks on Hwy 7 and 16 St W. chinookhoney.com n Eight Ounce Coffee, a Calgary-based specialty coffee retailer and distributor, will open a new showroom at 3921 Manchester Rd. SE in November. Look at and play with the finest and coolest coffee equipment from all over the world. Visit eightouncecoffee.ca for details.
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