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Kristin |
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11/28/2008 2:48 PM |
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| Kristin Donovan comes to the food and wine industry with a diverse background.
Kristin’s cooking career began as a treeplanting cook in the backwoods (really far back) of Northwestern Ontario while she was finishing her undergrad at Queen’s University. This first experience with cooking led to a formal training at the Stratford Chefs School in Stratford, Ontario. Since then, Kristin has cooked at the AGO, at the River Café in London, on a yacht in the British West Indies, as executive chef at Dish Cooking Studio, and most recently, as saucier at Jamie Kennedy Wine Bar. Kristin's newest cooking gig is at her home, where she dazzles her two young children and husband on a nightly basis.
Kristin’s passion for wine began with her first glass of good red on her 18th birthday. Since then, she has considered herself to be a full out ‘wino’. In her quest for wine knowledge and experience, Kristin is currently completing Diploma of the Wine Spirits Education Trust.
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By Kristin on
12/16/2008 3:01 PM
Fortunately for me, I get to taste (read: drink) a lot of good wine. Most of what I get to taste is wine that the agency is bringing in to the province for sale to restaurant and private clients. It is usually above my everyday drinking snack bracket, so is always a welcome addition to my glass!
A couple of weeks ago, my colleague & buddy Mark Cuff came into the office bearing an incredible gift. Mark gets as excited about good wine as I do… Great wine sparks great discussion. I for one am tough to shut up once I get going…
So, in walks Mark, glint in his eye, bottle under arm. He’s carrying the famed Domaine du Coulet, from Cornas in the Northern Côte du Rhône. I have read of this wine in passing, and have heard Mark speak of it. The winemaker is Matthieu Barret, who is maybe 35 years old. The Domaine holds 4.5 hectares of prime old vines in Cornas. The yields are exceptionally low (approximately 8hl/ ...
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By Kristin on
12/8/2008 10:51 AM
This past week I competed in the 4th Annual Wine Tasting Challenge. This is a crazy contest that attracts all of the local wine talent in the Toronto area. It is put on by CCOVI at Brock University (Cool Climate Oenology & Viticulture Institute) and takes place at the Four Seasons Hotel. Big sponsors include yours truly, B&W Wines.
The way it works:
You have 50 minutes to taste 7 wines blind, 3 VQA wines blind, and 3 spirits blind. At the end of this, you hazard a guess at varietal, country of origin, region, as well as vintage.
Prize values total over 100 grand, plus bragging rights. It goes without saying that all of the city’s top winos show up. During my exam alone, I recognized Zoltan Szabo, Paul Decampo from Henry of Pelham, Marlise Ponzo from Crush, Corey Ladouceur from the Granite Club, as well as three PhD students from CCOVI. That was just in the first hour time slot.
&l ...
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By Kristin on
11/28/2008 2:51 PM
I’m sitting at home in the peace (finally) and quiet (sigh) of the evening. The kids are sound asleep and I have a glass of wine at my side as I sit here and write. Life is good.
These last few months have been unsteady, uncertain, petrifying and exciting. I’m not talking about the stock market or the US election, I’m talking about my life!
I left the life of a restaurant cook/chef in July to venture into the world of wine, sales and a brand new food business. To say the transition has been smooth would be a bit of a fib. I’ve been studying wine with food for the last ten years, but have been finishing a diploma in wine for the last three. This was a logical (?) next step, though I realize now just what an enormous leap it has been!
The gang here has embraced me as a bonafide member of the family which has been a lifesaver. I have had to be a quick study in things like Ex ...
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