Some drinks to choo-choo choose on Valentine’s Day

If you write a drinks column and it falls on Feb. 14, you are pretty much legally obligated to expound on drinks for Valentine’s Day … drinks to share with your sweetie, tipples to try with chocolate, pink wines and so on and so forth.

With that in mind, I hit the shops to track down some drinks that fit the bill — and if you don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day, well, here some long-weekend libations for your consideration.

If wine’s not your valentine’s proverbial cup of tea, why not pop the cork on a sharing-sized beer — perhaps the 3 Monts Blonde Bière de Flandre (Saint Sylvestre Cappal, France — $8.53/750ml bottle, Liquor Marts and beer vendors)? Deep gold in appearance and with a frothy white head, this French strong beer brings deep malt notes along with cracked oat, bread dough, earthy and red apple aromas. It’s medium-plus bodied and dry, with fresh malt, cracked oat, herbal and bread dough flavours, with a subtle peppery note, modest hops and, at 8.5 per cent alcohol, a long and warm finish. Pop the cork (yes, it’s bottled under cork) and enjoy. 4/5

One can’t do Valentine’s Day drinks without some bubbly, and this one has a twist — it’s a sparkling red. The Cantina Settecani NV Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro (Emilia Romagna, Italy — $23, Ellement Wine + Spirits) is deep garnet in colour with modest effervescence, offering plum, blackberry, violet and black cherry aromas. It’s medium-bodied and dry, with just a hint of residual sugar, and brings big blackberry, plum, dark chocolate and raspberry flavours with light tannin, medium acidity and, at 10.5 per cent alcohol, a modest finish. Chill for 20 minutes and surprise your sweetie with a fizzy red. This one’s available at Ellement Wine + Spirits, but most private wine stores should have a few lambruscos on hand — it’s a style of wine that’s definitely worth a try. 4/5

Crown Royal no longer on rocks in Ontario as deal struck

Crown Royal will remain on Ontario shelves after that province reached a deal with the company behind the Manitoba-made whisky and cancelled plans for a long-threatened boycott.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced Friday that his government had reached a deal with Crown Royal’s U.K.-based parent company, Diageo, averting him from pulling the product from the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. He had threatened to do so for months, after Diageo announced the closure of a bottling plant in Amherstburg, Ont.

The threat placed Ford at odds with Premier Wab Kinew, who repeatedly voiced concern over how it might impact jobs at the Gimli factory where Crown Royal is mashed, distilled and aged.

“I want to thank Premier Ford for keeping the Crown Royal on the shelves. This is a good day for workers in Gimli, and for Canadian jobs generally,” Kinew told reporters following the announcement.

Medal-worthy drinks to enjoy during Olympics

Every fourth winter, the water-cooler chatter at offices everywhere suddenly turns to lesser-unknown athletes in relatively obscure sports:

“Did you catch that Belarusian biathlete who just missed the podium in the men’s 20-kilometre individual?”

“I can’t believe what happened to that Spanish skeleton-er!” (Skeleton drivers? What are they called?)

“The Icelandic pairs figure-skating short program was so compelling — it was heartbreaking when they botched that double lutz…”

More than a meal: Feeding others or donating food is deeply rooted in Hindu faith

“Food is not just nourishment — it is something that makes your life. We need to treat it with utmost love and reverence” — Sadhguru

When food is served in Hindu temples, it is indeed more than a meal. Deeply rooted in Hindu faith, culture and traditions, feeding others or donating food is a highly virtuous act.

Following Sunday services, festival celebrations and other religious activities, food is available, free-of-charge, to everyone at both local temples of the Hindu Society of Manitoba.

Before food is served to the congregation, small portions of each item, distributed in a thali, or sectioned platter, are placed in front of the deities at the temple altar. Rituals are performed and mantras are recited in honour of the food offering to God.

American actor praises burgers at VJ’s Drive Inn

A Winnipeg burger institution is getting some major praise from a visiting celebrity.

American actor Blake Anderson gave a glowing shoutout to VJ’s Drive Inn on a recent episode of the This Is Important podcast.

“VJ’s Drive Inn has probably one of the top five burgers I’ve ever had in my life,” Anderson says on the podcast he hosts alongside his Workaholics co-stars Adam Devine, Anders Holm and Kyle Newacheck.

“It is literally a hut where these old women forge the most beautiful burgers you will sink your teeth into.”

Filipino-style fried-chicken biz off to a sizzling start

Before we begin, John Tadeo wants to make it abundantly clear that Popoy’s, the tag he and his girlfriend Patricia Santiago settled on for their Filipino-style fried-chicken biz, isn’t a play on an international fried-chicken chain that bears the name of a certain, spinach-loving sailor-man.

When Tadeo was a youngster growing up in the Philippines, his paternal grandmother never called him anything but Popoy, a derivative of Popo, which is Tagalog for little boy or child. His parents continue to address him by that term of affection to this day, so last winter, when he and Santiago were tossing around potential names for their fledgling enterprise, they agreed Popoy’s Golden Chicken had a better ring to it than John’s or Patricia’s.

“I guess if somebody associated with Popeyes (Louisiana Kitchen) ever tells us we can’t call ourselves (Popoy’s), we’d probably just change it to Poy’s,” Tadeo says, standing next to Santiago in the commercial kitchen at Riverview Community Centre, where they accept pickup orders on a regular basis, usually every other weekend.

“But since Popoy is my name, I’m not sure what argument they’d have.”

Sandwich-cookie recipe passed down through generations

Heather Penno’s date-filled cookies have a long matrilineal history.

Her great-grandmother made this tender sandwich cookie filled with jammy dates a Christmas tradition and passed the recipe on to her eldest daughter.

“I always remember my grandmother having a dainty tray and this was definitely on it,” Penno says, adding the cookies only ever make an appearance during the holidays.

The tradition of seasonal baking and bequeathing has continued, with the recipe passed down to the eldest daughter of each subsequent generation.

Eat and greet

The next dozen issues of the Free Press are going to be high in sugar content and sentimentality.

Our annual Homemade Holidays series kicks off Tuesday and features 12 festive dessert recipes published over 12 days. The goal is to highlight family traditions, while providing readers with inspiration for their own holiday baking adventures.

Past editions have included vintage treats from the Free Press’s archives, reader-submitted recipes and staff favourites.

This year’s batch showcases the connective power of cookies.

Chronicle of Canada’s maple-syrup industry a sweet treat

The story of Canadian maple syrup is full of unsavoury characters: malicious colonizers, conniving capitalists, brazen thieves.

In Maple Syrup: A Short History of Canada’s Sweetest Obsession, author Peter Kuitenbrouwer draws on this rich well of personalities to create an informative, entertaining account of one of the country’s most iconic natural resources.

It’s a story Kuitenbrouwer is uniquely positioned to tell.

A longtime journalist and former National Post columnist, Kuitenbrouwer grew up tending a sugar maple bush with his family in rural Quebec. Tapping trees and boiling sap was a stabilizing annual tradition following a chaotic early childhood. He’s now a registered forester with his own small-scale syrup operation outside of Toronto.

During World Vegan Month, vegans across generations share their reasons for embracing the lifestyle

November is World Vegan Month, an event celebrated worldwide to shine a light on what it means to be vegan.

The U.K.-based Vegan Society defines veganism as: “a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude — as far as is possible and practicable — all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of animals, humans and the environment.”

In other words, vegans are fully plant-powered.

While veganism was once considered an option from the fringes, it’s now much better recognized, discussed and practiced by old and young, famous and not.

The trail of sweet treats from Hansel & Gretel has come to life in Winnipeg — in a much less sinister way.

● Take a self-guided tour of five local bakeries and cafés to sample special Hansel & Gretel-themed goodies ahead of opening night for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s fairy-tale production, running Oct. 9-12.

● High Tea Bakery (2103 Portage Ave.) has created a set of 12 mini imperial cookies emblazoned with photos from the production. Visit highteabakery.com to pre-order.

● Jenna Rae Cakes is serving gingerbread macarons with icing and sprinkles at its locations at The Forks, Academy Road and Island Shore Boulevard.

Bar Accanto chef off to finals of Canada’s Great Kitchen Party

Emily Butcher, executive chef of Bar Accanto and Nola in St. Boniface, snagged the top podium spot at Wednesday’s regional leg of the national culinary competition Canada’s Great Kitchen Party.

Butcher, 35, who moved to Winnipeg from Vancouver 10 years ago, scored top marks in the six categories — visual, texture, taste, technical, beverage compatibility and wow factor — on which all eight competing plates were judged.

The 2025 gold medallist’s dish of smoked duck and squash dumpling, massaman curry, fermented kohlrabi salad with black pepper glazed octopus, leche de tigre, pickled eggplant and toasted peanut was inspired by the Prairie landscape and rooted in her West Coast upbringing and Chinese heritage.

This is the second gold medal for Butcher after her 2019 regional win, which led her to compete in the 2020 nationals, where she took bronze.

Local chefs heat up culinary competition

Seven local chefs have thrown their hats in the ring for a chance to represent Winnipeg at the 2026 Canadian Culinary Championship in Ottawa January next year.

Also known as Canada’s Great Kitchen Party, the regional qualifier takes place on Wednesday, Oct. 1, at the RBC Convention Centre, and features entertainment from Spirit of the West’s Geoff Kelly, as well as Canadian musicians Barney Bentall, Kevin Fox, Matthew Harder and Rebecca Harder.

Chefs Emily Butcher (Bar Accanto), Darnell Banman (Thermea Spa Village), Michael de Groot (Gather Craft Kitchen & Bar), Ken Hoang (Le Colonial Restaurant and Bar), Norman Pastorin, (Basta! Filipino Kitchen), Chinnie Ramos (Wow! Catering) and Lauren Wiebe-Dembowski (Niakwa Country Club) will be judged on skill, creativity and technique as they vie to impress the panel of local culinary experts, led by head national judge Chris Johns, 2025 regional winner Austin Granados (formerly of Cake-ology) and Winnipeg senior judge Mike Green.

“We’re honoured to have such a strong field of chefs representing Winnipeg this year,” said Green.