Chicago round-up

A last post from last weekend in Chicago.  It's time to put those sunny days of meetings and meals behind me.  But let me recognize friends and colleagues as I do.

Like Rachel.  We calculated that we've known each other for approximately 21 years now.  She and I had an early dinner at The Gage last Wednesday, sitting at the bar. 

A nice meal, and very good to catch up.  And then, later that evening, I met up with Peter at the hotel bar to connect before our four days of meetings began.

I confess, a lot of time with friends/colleagues was in the hotel bar, and not always later in the evening, right, Sara?😉🍷 

But she wasn't the only one there.  Ana Elisa, Peter, Christina, Emily, and Lessa one night,

and others were there on other nights, too.  There were also the group meals, this one at Remington's Chicago. 

No, not flattering shots of everyone, but this was the whole gang (I shan't name everyone, sorry - I'm lazy!) of us in the meetings all day.  And the lunches at the meeting place, including Sunday, which was an opportunity for a last shot of Kathy (with Sam)

as well as another Two Peters shot.

And then it was waiting for rides to the airport. 

And then it was time in the lounge with Lessa, Peter, Ray, Sam, and Sara. 

A long time in the lounge, but the smiles and drinks were real.

Next time in Chicago will be a few weeks away and different colleagues, and then back in August and October.  I enjoy the work, but the time with these folks is invaluable.

tastings in the Niagara region

A week ago we were in the Niagara region for the day.  We saw the Falls, as I commented in a previous post, and we had lunch at an inn in Niagara-on-the-Lake.  After that, it was off to tastings.

I debated commenting on and naming the first stop of the three on our tour.  I generally don't really post when I've had a poor or even a mediocre experience like that.  So I won't name this one.  I doubt anyone reading the blog would recognize it anyway.  I have something in the vicinity of two readers, so my influence is, well, non-existent.  So no names.  I'll simply say that although we had a reservation, they were not ready for us, and when we were finally seated (at two tables - not the worst thing ever, but a sign of how disorganized they were), it took ages to get wine.  I actually texted our tour guide to ask him if we should just ask for a refund of the pre-paid fee and leave.  Steve, the guide, knows the winery and really went round trying to get things in order, and I credit him with that.  He was clearly embarrassed by the situation and angry with what we were experiencing.

Ultimately, we all did get wine.  And honestly?  It was very meh at best.  The unfiltered chardonnay was fine, but not a bottle I wanted to buy.  Nothing else impressed me.  So, a nice patio and facility, we got some photos, they gave us each a complimentary pour of a sparkling orange wine (or was it a rosé, they never really said). 

But I ended up essentially pounding back the tasting pours just to squeeze them in before we had to get to the next place.  The photos show us making the most of a bad situation, and we'll look back and laugh, but wow, that was an inauspicious start to the tastings.

The second place made everything right.

We stopped at Big Head, a smaller operation than the first from the looks of it.  There was a table all set up for us, and we had someone taking care of us from start to finish.  I liked all of the wines.  Every one we tried.  Allison had arranged for a couple of local friends to meet us there, and the winery accommodated them handily.  When we asked about a few of the wines, such as the dessert wines, that weren't included in the tasting, they poured us some to try.  Conrad and I ended up buying a handful of bottles to have shipped with what Marie bought back to Vancouver.  Knowing me, I'll forget about them, and by Christmas they'll be a nice surprise for us.  Interestingly, I have fewer photos from Big Head than the first place.  I guess we were too busy enjoying tasting and conversation.

After Big Head, we were off to a distillery.  Spirit in Niagara was the place, a newer operation.  The owner gave us a tour of the orchard and distilling areas before the tasting. 

What was really cool about the place was how it had a focus on sustainability.  The orchard sells fruit (peaches, mostly) to grocery stores, but it cannot sell imperfect fruit.  Instead, it presses them for juice to use as the distilling base.  The mash is then used as green fertilizer for the orchard.  Awesome!  We tasted a number of their products, which included ones made from other fruits as well as some from grains.  I'm not really one for the eau de vie, but I thought the vermouth was good, and I liked the brown spirits.  Conrad enjoyed the gin.  So we bought a couple of bottles, and Van bought a few as well.  I think we call came home with a purchase, in fact, and so our next online happy hour will be themed around drinks made with the SIN spirits. Side note:  I loved the labels. 

So much so, I bought a tshirt from the place.

It was dusk when we were done, and we rode back to Toronto in increasing darkness, me dozing as I do so easily in vehicles (and planes).

Steve from Wheelz Niagara was a very good guide.  We greatly appreciated his suggestions for the tastings (yes, even the bad one - it will make for a good story for all of us to enjoy among ourselves) and lunch.  He built a custom schedule for the day based on a lot of communication, which I was grateful for as well.  I happily recommend him, and I happily recommend Big Head and Spirit in Niagara!

a birthday dinner

An unusual dining post to share because - weirdly - there are no food photos.  Oh, one cocktail photo, because you know us, but no food.  In part this was because the lighting was low, in part this was because we were dining family style, and I didn't want to make anyone wait for me to photograph a shared dish, in part because we were simply having a very nice evening.  So no food photos, just a little commentary.

We all came together (minus Brenda, who joined us for dinner at the restaurant) at The Oud and the Fizz, an Armenian bar near Kensington Market. 

It was cool in a ramshackle, in formal way.  Chris and Allister had arrived early to have a snack and a drink, and they recommended to us a variation on a Last Word called the Ayki. 

Cool drink - it swapped out the maraschino for attar, a rose water syrup.  I need to try making that at home some time, because it was tasty.

After that enjoyable stop, we headed to the restaurant Allison had picked out for her birthday dinner:  Grey Gardens.  I just saw the latest Toronto Michelin awards yesterday, and Grey Gardens had received a Bib Gourmand, so good for them!

Allison had worked with the restaurant to do a set menu of multiple courses for us, two items per course, all shared at the table.  She also gave them guidance on wines for us, so we had a nice range of pet-nat, white, and red.  Highlights of the dinner?  The pickerel, hands down, the best item.  I think everyone raved about it.  So good.  The bread was delicious, and the potato chips and smoked fish dip were a great opener.  I was very fond of the gnudi and the Basque cheesecake, too.  Not a dud among the courses.  It was all excellent.

But best of all, all of us together. 

Somehow it was women at one end and men at another - weird coincidence - but it was easy enough to talk along the table and share laughs.  There was no rush to the meal.  We sat in the front window area near the bar, and we had ourselves a really terrific dinner.  A fitting 50th birthday meal for Allison.  I'm glad we all shared it.