Monika Warzecha | torontolife.com

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All stories by Monika Warzecha

New LCBO wine tags explicitly spell out sugar content

This sauvignon blanc has 3 grams of sugar per litre, making it extra dry (Image: LCBO)

Wine tasting notes are notorious for purple prose and overly impressionistic descriptions, and it’s not always easy to glean that most basic of factors: how sweet the darn thing might be. Luckily for Ontarians, the LCBO has started putting up new bin tags that list the actual sugar concentrations in honest-to-goodness grams per litre. The Globe and Mail’s Beppi Crosariol explains the new numbers replace the previous sugar scale, which ranged from zero to 15 and was frankly a little opaque. The new tags will also take the sugar-acid balance into account by including one of five terms on the tag: extra-dry, dry, medium, medium-sweet and sweet. [Globe and Mail]

The Informer

Summit Survivor

May 18, 2012 | 12:04 pm

2 Comments

Senior commanders and front-line constables facing disciplinary charges over G20 tactics

(Image: Alfred Ng from the Torontolife.com Flickr pool)

Now that the Independent Police Review Director’s report on G20 policing has been released, both top brass and front-line officers will be facing disciplinary charges—nearly two years after the crackdown on protesters. The IPR director investigated 207 complaints against police, and a little over half of those (107, to be exact) led to disciplinary charges, 96 of which were deemed to be serious. The police review office recommended disciplinary tribunals for commanders with the Toronto Police Service (it’s still too early in the process to release names and numbers, but the charges will affect no more than six commanders). And it’s not just high-ranking officers who could get fingered: the director also ordered charges against 25 rank-and-file officers. So far, eight constables (Vincent Wong, Blair Begbie, Alan Li, Donald Stratton, Michael Kirpoff, Ryan Simpson, Jason Crawford and Michael Martinez) will face the disciplinary tribunal in June. Which should mean we’ll be heading into the third consecutive summer of G20 coverage. [Globe and Mail]

The Informer

The Sporting Life

May 18, 2012 | 11:00 am

1 Comment

QUOTED: former CBC exec Richard Stursberg thinks Hockey Night in Canada is probably doomed

It’s going to be very, very difficult. The sports networks are jacking up the prices, so they’re going to have even deeper pockets when they come to the table. TSN and Sportsnet have proven that they can get big TV audiences as easily as the CBC does. And that’s very hard to fight against.

—Richard Stursberg, CBC’s former executive vice-president for English services, sounding the death knell for Hockey Night in Canada. The public broadcaster’s television and digital rights for NHL games expire in two years, and Stursberg believes there’s only a “low” chance it will be able to renew. (Kirstine Stewart, the woman who now holds Stursberg’s old job, insists otherwise.) While big telecommunications companies are willing to shell out wads of money for TV sports rights, the public broadcaster has had its budget slashed and has had lower ad revenues this year, in part because all the Canadian teams dropped out of the playoffs early. All of which imperils HNIC’s future—and Don Cherry’s opportunity to show off his flamboyant coats. [Globe and Mail]

The Informer

Gimme Shelter

May 18, 2012 | 8:00 am

4 Comments

Condomonium: $1 million for a suite in a King West clock tower (round windows included)

ADDRESS: 700 King St. W., Unit 612

NEIGHBOURHOOD: Niagara

AGENTS: George, Frank and John Filntissis, Coldwell Banker Terrequity Realty

PRICE: $999,000

THE PLACE: A three-bedroom condo in the clock tower of a former King West office building. Converted into the Westside Lofts in 2001, the building is equipped with a gym, a sauna and a rooftop patio.

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The Informer

Political Whoas

May 17, 2012 | 2:39 pm

2 Comments

Pride déjà vu: the Queers Against Israeli Apartheid debate imperils funding (again)

Like another Pride controversy of yesteryear, the question of whether Queers Against Israeli Apartheid should be allowed to march in the Pride Parade is once again up for debate. Last year, some city councillors (we’re looking at you, Giorgio Mammoliti) freaked out over the possibility that the group would show up, and talked about revoking funding for the event. In the end, QuAIA volunteered to skip the march (though they did drape a large banner above the Wellesley subway station), and Pride got city cash (though council changed its Pride funding policy: it would only hand over the cash after the parade on the condition that the festivities don’t violate the city’s anti-discrimination policy). This year, however, QuAIA plans to apply to march, making council’s vote next month on Pride’s $123,807 grant potentially thorny. Adding to the uncertainty is the fact that council is still working on figuring out exactly what qualifies as discriminatory: though the city manager has determined the use of the phrase “Israeli Apartheid” doesn’t break any anti-discrimination rules, the policy will be reviewed at the mayor’s executive committee meeting in June. [Globe and Mail]

The Dish

TV Diner

May 17, 2012 | 2:30 pm

6 Comments

Top Chef Canada picked up for a third season

Top Chef Canada has just been picked up for a third season, and Food Network Canada is looking for a fresh batch of competitive cooks. Hoping to be one of them? The questions on the 23-page application range from training (“Have you attended a culinary school or any other cooking program?”) to the not-so-food-specific (“Describe your most embarrassing moment”). The form and a five-minute video are due June 19, so there’s still plenty of time for applicants to bone up on their best offal-prepping skills. After the first season, critics (and Torontolife.com commenters) complained that the cast wasn’t diverse enough to represent Canada—and the show did indeed put together a less white and less male cast for season two. Anything you’re hoping to see in season three? Let us know in the comments.

The Informer

In Transit

May 17, 2012 | 12:20 pm

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Major traffic disruptions on the Gardiner this summer (and the nine summers after that)

While construction on Toronto’s highways and roads is as much a sign of summer as a smog alert or a crowded patio, the next 10 years will have some especially sucky conditions for Gardiner Expressway drivers. Work on the elevated portion of the highway will start this July, when the eastbound Bay Steet on-ramp and Jarvis Street off-ramp will be closed for up to six weeks, and lanes on Lake Shore Boulevard and Bay and Yonge streets will also be closed off. The city has a decade worth of construction projects in store for the seven-kilometre-long elevated section, which will cost about $10 million this summer and up to $15 million a year after that. City staff insist the rehabilitation project has nothing to do with the falling-concrete incidents of last week. To which we reply: if you say so. [Toronto Star]

The Informer

Summit Survivor

May 17, 2012 | 11:02 am

1 Comment

A report slams the G20 police response—but says most officers acted properly

(Image: Phil Marion from the Torontolife.com Flickr pool)

Another long-awaited report on G20 policing—the second this week—is out, and it details some egregious behaviour, including civil rights violations, the use of excessive force and some really bad planning. In the report, Independent Police Review director Gerry McNeilly writes that police unlawfully stopped and searched people on the street, and that the kettling at Queen and Spadina was “unreasonable, unnecessary and unlawful.” He also criticizes the force’s mass arrests and miserable makeshift detention centre on Eastern Avenue.

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The Dish

Pantry Raid

May 16, 2012 | 4:48 pm

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Turns out, some fish stocks are actually on the rebound

Summer flounder, Bering sea snow crab and Washington State coho salmon (Images: courtesy NOAA)

Most reports about ocean fish stocks tend to be pretty ominous, but at last there’s some good news about fish populations. The New York Times’s Green blog points to new numbers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that suggest six species are on the rebound and have already reached healthy population levels. The Bering Sea snow crab, the summer flounder on the mid-Atlantic coast, the haddock in the Gulf of Maine, the chinook salmon along the northern California coast, the coho salmon off Washington State and the Pacific widow rockfish are all back in a big way, thanks in part to not-so-popular government catch limits. The agency also found that 27 fish stocks have been returned to health in the past 11 years (NOAA also runs a neat consumer-oriented site with sustainable seafood information). Maybe now we can feel a little less guilty about how we get our omega-3 fix. But only a little less. [New York Times]

The Informer

Opine for Business

May 16, 2012 | 3:42 pm

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Bell Mobility faces a class-action lawsuit over its pre-paid wireless services

Bad news for Bell Mobility and parent company BCE: they have been served with a $100-million class-action lawsuit over wireless services—a division that has been a cash cow for the company in recent months. Bell Mobility customer Celia Sankar says expiry dates on pre-paid wireless services are illegal, arguing that the payments are defined as “gift cards” under Ontario’s Consumer Protection Act and therefore shouldn’t have a best-before date that allows the company to seize unused credits. If the class-action suit is allowed to proceed, Sankar will represent anyone in Ontario who has used Bell Mobility, Virgin Mobile Canada and Solo Mobile pre-paid wireless services since May 4, 2010 (i.e., a boatload of people).
[Canadian Press]

The Informer

From the Print Edition

May 16, 2012 | 3:30 pm

4 Comments

The Chase: a young couple finds a place to party in the west end

By Monika Warzecha

The Buyers: Joel McConvey, a 33-year-old freelance writer and producer, and Amy Butoiske, the 33-year-old manager of the Worldwide Short Film Festival.

The Story: McConvey and Butoiske, who lived in a small apartment at Bloor and Ossington, never thought they’d be able to afford a house in Toronto. Then, about a year ago, McConvey finished work on The National Parks Project, a popular documentary series, and the couple found themselves with a windfall (he got paid, unusually, for all 13 episodes at once). “We thought, ‘Who knows when this will happen again? Let’s put the money into a good investment,’ ” McConvey says. The couple loved their neighbourhood, with its cool bars and restaurants, and hoped they could find something nearby. They wanted a place big enough for McConvey to have an office (he works from home) and with a good-sized backyard for hosting summer barbecues. The couple set a budget of $465,000 and started their first-ever house hunt.

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The Informer

Ford Focus

May 16, 2012 | 3:25 pm

3 Comments

Could his support for a GTA casino hurt Rob Ford in the 2014 election?

(Image: Shaun Merritt)

Most of the casino coverage has focused on the economic and social aspects of the debate, but today Spacing’s John Lorinc turns his attention to the potential political fallout. He argues that the casino issue has potentially upended the 2014 election, which, until now, pundits had assumed would be centred around subways and fiscal conservatism—issues on which Rob Ford continues to garner a healthy amount of support. However, if a referendum on a casino is on the 2014 ballot, Lorinc continues, it could be “manna from heaven for the centre-left.” The logic goes that Ford’s opponents would be able to rally against the pro-casino mayor by calling attention to the corporate and political villains and backroom deals that surely go along with pushing through such a development. Lorinc says that the trick is to not sound too sanctimonious about shielding Toronto from wicked gambling dens, but rather to paint Ford “as someone willing to gamble the future of the city and its waterfront.” For a mayoral race that’s still more than two years away, things are already getting heated. Read the entire story [Spacing Toronto] »

The Dish

Bottoms Up

May 16, 2012 | 3:00 pm

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Once again, the LCBO posts record sales—which isn’t surprising, given its monopoly

The Summerhill LCBO or Hogwarts? (Image: -sina- from the Torontolife.com Flickr pool)

Ontarians love their booze, and the LCBO’s 2011–2012 financial results prove they’ve been buying lots more of it. It’s the 17th year in a row of record sales for the board, with net sales up $218 million or 4.9 per cent over fiscal 2010–2011, totalling a cool $4.7 billion. Of course, that’s not exactly shocking, since the LCBO’s pretty much the only place in town where you can grab a bottle of bourbon or gin, unless you make your own. VQA table wines from Ontario were big winners last year, with an increase in sales of nine per cent, but the big success story is still craft beers. The fact that micro-brews are doing well shouldn’t be surprising, given the attention they’ve been getting from big beer companies, but the bump in sales is still pretty staggering: in the last year, Ontario craft beers led all segments with almost 45 per cent growth. All of this means that the liquor monopoly remitted $1.63 billion to the provincial coffers. With numbers like these, we doubt Queen’s Park would be in a greatf hurry to get rid of the LCBO any time soon.

The Informer

To Market, To Market

May 16, 2012 | 1:45 pm

4 Comments

Ontarians aren’t buying cottages (even though prices have plateaued)

(Image: b.m.a.n.)

Even if summer weather calls for decompressing in front of a lake (that is, one that’s out of earshot from the Gardiner Expressway), Ontario’s cottage market is lagging. Royal LePage just issued a report on the recreational property market that says a whopping 59 per cent of Ontarians who planned to buy a cottage have postponed the decision because of global economic uncertainty. With the slower demand, and an abundance of supply coming from baby boomers who no longer want their vacation homes now that their children have grown up, prices have plateaued—although waterfront properties under $400,000 and over $1 million are still attracting buyers. But cottage lovers who don’t want to take the plunge into ownership can always rent—and may want to check out twohoursnorth.com, a new Toronto-based site that lists rental cottages by travel time so they’ll know exactly how long they’ll be stuck in traffic before arriving lakeside. [Toronto Star]

The Informer

City Sindex

May 16, 2012 | 12:52 pm

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MLSE’s Larry Tanenbaum joins the ranks of wannabe casino owners

The latest big-wig to dream about owning a colossal casino on Toronto’s waterfront is Larry Tanenbaum, billionaire and chair of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment. Like MGM Resorts International, which has been quite vocal about its preference for a waterfront casino, Tanenbaum was quoted in the Globe and Mail saying he’d prefer a casino along the water, near the core. While most of the early buzz came from Nevada stalwarts like MGM and Caesars Entertainment, Tanenbaum is the second mega-rich Torontonian to show interest. Earlier this week, Gerald Schwartz, head of the Toronto-based buyout firm Onex Corporation and one of the 25 Canadians to make Forbes’ billionaires list, told the Globe and Mail Onex would “definitely be interested” in opening a casino in Toronto, and not just on the downtown waterfront. Another difference between the two Toronto-based titans? Schwartz is the owner of the Tropicana hotel and casino in Las Vegas and Casino ABS in Edmonton, Lethbridge and Calgary. Tanenbaum, meanwhile, only has gaming experience on a much smaller scale: his company, the Kilmer Group, operates charity bingo gaming centres in Barrie, Hawkesbury, Pembroke, Penetang and Sudbury, Ontario. Since casino proponents are thinking mega-complexes, not bingo halls, Tanenbaum had better start looking for partners. [Globe and Mail]

All stories by Monika Warzecha

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