On New Year’s Eve, the Ministry of Finance announced that, at long last, grocery stores will be able to sell liquor—but not in the freewheeling, wine-shelf-in-every-Metro manner that many Ontario drinkers wanted. Instead, the LCBO will be setting up about 10 “LCBO Express” locations across the province over the next 12 to 18 months. The shops will be staffed by LCBO employees and sell products from the normal LCBO roster. The liquor monopoly also has plans for five “VQA Destination Boutiques” inside existing LCBO locations that will focus on an expanded selection of Ontario VQA wines. It’s not clear, however, whether the Toronto area will see any such stores. A ministry spokesperson told The Dish that the LCBO Express and VQA Destination Boutiques would only be appearing in “areas with growing demand but a somewhat under-serviced market.” Under-serviced is, of course, in the eye of the beholder, but with over 70 LCBO locations in Toronto—plus dozens of Beer Stores, Wine Racks and other grandfathered winery stores—we’re not holding our breath.
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Holiday Gift Guide 2012: a cheeky flask for a manly man
A personal supply of hooch can make anything from a freezing cold football game to a niece’s ballet recital a lot more bearable. Izola’s stainless steel flask fits easily into a jacket pocket and, at $30, it’s an affordable gift. Plus, the cheeky message engraved on the front offers some (probably unnecessary) encouragement to drink up. See 13 other unexpected gift ideas »
Available at The Future of Frances Watson, 1390 Queen St. W., 416-531-8892.
Memoir: when my deadbeat dad had a stroke, I finally learned how to forgive him
In the spring of 2006, I sat in a padded metal chair and watched my 63-year-old father wake up from a Demerol sleep. He was lying in a bed in the intensive care unit at Toronto Western, recovering from a stroke that, quite literally, had knocked him off his feet. There was damage to his spinal cord; now, his doctors were saying, he was permanently paralyzed from the waist down.
“I dreamed I could walk,” my dad said. There were several people in the room, including two nurses and my grandmother, but his blue eyes snapped right on mine. “I can’t walk, can I?”
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Nine vibrant, refreshing rieslings that make for perfect patio sippers
(Illustration: Jack Dylan)
There’s nothing quite like the crack of a crisp riesling on a bright spring evening. That bolt of vibrant, citrusy acidity, followed by a flood of peach, pear, honey and wildflowers. But wait, what’s that odd scent—is it flint? Or diesel fuel? Riesling disciples use the term “petrol” to describe its unusual aroma. Although I would argue for the grape’s virtues—as a versatile food wine and as the world’s best cellaring white—riesling has never gained a mainstream following. Not just because of its idiosyncratic bouquet, but because attempts to mass-produce it on the cheap have often resulted in limpid, overly sweet wines. Recently, however, better rieslings have made in-roads on wine lists across the city, thanks in large part to the excellent bottles produced here in Ontario. The LCBO also carries many refreshing, off-dry examples in the over-$15 range that make superb patio sippers and offer extraordinary value—just check out the point-to-price ratios on the following bottles.
David Lawrason’s Weekly Wine Pick: a Niagara red from the region’s best vintage to celebrate Canada Day

Trius 2010 Red
$21.95 | Niagara Peninsula | 89 points Read the rest of this entry »
If you want to celebrate Canada Day with a homegrown wine, this Ontario red is the ticket. It’s from the best red vintage to date in Niagara. Trius winemaker Craig MacDonald has figured out how to best express the lighter side of merlot- and cabernet-based Ontario reds—an arena where many winemakers still try to extract brute force from grapes that just don’t have it in them.
Quoted: Gord Perks on the virtues of a gin and tonic (and a few bowls) on a hot summer’s evening
“The idea of somebody on a hot summer’s evening tossing a few bowls and sipping a gin and tonic is not a bad one, to me.”
—Councillor Gord Perks, seconding fellow lefty councillor Adam Vaughan’s motion to consider allowing city-run lawn bowling clubs to sell alcohol and offer later hours. City clubs are struggling this year due to declining membership and new annual fees, and Vaughan and Perks are hoping that adding a little booze to the mix will broaden the sport’s social appeal while helping the clubs court a younger demographic. And we’re certainly inclined to agree with Perks on the merit of a crisp, refreshing G&T. Though we can’t help but wonder what kind of bowls he’s really talking about. [Toronto Star]
The Weekender: Luminato, Woofstock and six other items on our to-do list

1. LUMINATO
Art, theatre, film, dance, books and music—the arts are everywhere in the city this weekend. Clearly, Luminato has arrived. On our radar: Friday’s First Night concert featuring rapper K’Naan; Sunday’s Rufus to the Max program, a two-parter that includes a one-hour tribute to Rufus Wainwright and a concert with the man himself; 1000 Tastes of Toronto, a President’s Choice–sponsored food extravaganza; a late-night performance of Shostakovich’s Eleventh Symphony by the TSO; and the New Yorker lit series, which features talks and panels by author Annie Proulx, theatre critic Hilton Als and food critics Calvin Trillin and Adam Gopnik. June 8–17. Various prices. 416-368-3100, luminato.com.
Dear Urban Diplomat: I gave my boss a bottle of fancy scotch after we closed a deal. He’s an alcoholic
Dear Urban Diplomat,
My boss and I recently closed a huge deal, resulting in a healthy commission for both of us. I bought him a bottle of Macallan 15-year-old single malt, then found out that he’s a recovering alcoholic. The bottle is still sitting on his desk,tempting him out of sobriety. I’m mortified. Should I sneak in after hours and take it back? Buy him a new gift? Apologize?
—Accidental Enabler, East York
Is drinking coffee simply too taxing? There’s an inhaler for that

Shoot ’em up (Image: Aeroshot)
After marvelling (and despairing a little) at breathable chocolate and bacon inhalers, only the latter of which turned out to be an April Fool’s joke, we were curious as to what the next breathable wonder to hit the market would be. Enter the AeroShot, a lipstick-sized tube containing four to six puffs (about 100 mg) of calorie-free, lime-flavoured caffeine. Developed by the same Harvard scientist who created Le Whif inhalable chocolate, the device is being promoted as an alternative to the oh-so gruelling task of drinking coffee or energy drinks: “pure energy” with “no liquid to slow you down or fill you up.”
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Memoir: in the online gaming world, I was a champion; in real life, I was a mess
I’m an IT manager. And an occasional photographer. Sometimes an aspiring writer. I’m also a city planner, a weapons specialist and a blue-skinned shaman, slaying demons.
I am a gaming addict.
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Remind us never to get in Martin Regg Cohn’s bad books: this weekend, the Toronto Star columnist followed up his recent screed against the LCBO’s pricing policy with a second rant against the board’s business practices. This time, Cohn took the LCBO to task for selling a covetable Lafite Rothschild 2009 at about 30 per cent below international market price. During the run on the Bordeaux that predictably followed, LCBO stores gave preference to longtime customers, which Cohn interpreted as allowing fancy wine-investor types to profit from a tidy bit of arbitrage. Cohn also argued that the LCBO should stop awarding Air Miles because the program is expensive, encourages alcohol consumption and is pretty much unnecessary for the provincial liquor monopoly anyway, since it’s usually used to distinguish a retailer from its competitors. The man’s got a point, but we’d sure miss those reward miles. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »
12 delicious days of Christmas, from candy cane ice pops to yule logs filled with mousse cake

Bannock’s holiday tourtière
This time of year, it takes a strong will not to indulge, whether it be in the beautiful pastries and cakes spilling out of patisserie windows or the drinks at a holiday party. We say, why even try? We’ve rounded up some of our favourites, along with a few other gifts that your food-obsessed friends are sure to love (including one salve for those who’ve indulged just a little too much).
Perhaps in a gesture of solidarity to his jailbird dad, 33-year-old Jonathan Black has landed himself under house arrest for allegedly violating his bail conditions. Black was picked up early Sunday morning at Toronto’s Horseshoe Tavern and set free the next day for $60,000. Now he can’t leave home without his mom or stepdad and can’t consume alcohol or access computers, smart phones or the Internet. In other words, he’s been grounded. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »






